Fuel Interview

Dreamcatcher Interactive's Fuel is a multi-versatile racing simulator with insane tracks, 10 different characters and 3 different types of vehicles that pushes each track to their limit. Few games have gone where developer, Firetoad Software, is taking the racing genre. There's a multitude of modes and features, and we have Firetoad's Nathan d'Obrenan to give us a little insight into some of the features of Fuel.

Xbox Core: We looked over the development presentation, and there were some pretty amazing things going on for Fuel. What prompted the idea for this game?

Nathan: The idea really stemmed from Everglade Rush (ER), which was a tech demo we did for Nvidia's geForce3 launch back in the day. ER was a hovercraft racing game, where you could drive on the water, land, and all different types of terrain.....so we thought “Hey, wouldn't it be great to just localize the vehicle types, and add the ability to get in and out of them individually?”. We also had some ideas for 'using' Fuel when driving your vehicle, however, we found that you really don’t want to run out of Fuel, but instead want to always be getting Fuel. So we changed the game design to what it is now, where Fuel is a boost or bonus that you get for smashing things, doing tricks, etc.

Xbox Core: Multi-versatile vehicle driving is a rare racing mechanic in most games. Not since Big Red Racing can we remember a game that actually ventured into territory to give gamers something completely different for a racing experience. Were there any games that helped influence a multi-versatile racing simulator like this?

Nathan: Very interesting you note that game. BRR was a very big influence on us…we loved and played that game to death. A lot of its design and feel is in Fuel. In a lot of ways we set out to make an updated BRR for the Xbox. Other title influences were Diddy Kong Racing, and of course Mario Kart. We really liked the wackiness of those racing games, however; we set out to make the worlds more realistic, while still having outrageous physics and gameplay.

Xbox Core: Some games tend to change significantly going from one platform to the next. Will one platform get some features the other platform won’t?

Fuel: Fuel is definitely meant to be played on the Xbox. Nothing can take the place of a controller in your hand w/ the rumble on. Fuel plays great on the PC, but it plays best on the console. As for features, there wont be that many gameplay differences between the two systems, however, there will be much more customization of features on the PC. Also Xbox has multiplayer, while PC will not.

Xbox Core: Console gamers don’t usually get racing titles all too often. Yet when they do come along, a lot of them tend to focus on graphics over gameplay. What is the general ratio for graphics and gameplay for Fuel?

Nathan:In Fuel's case I think its about 50/50. We've got a ton of gameplay (30 unique worlds, 90 tracks total), and 3 vehicle types which could be individual games on their own, as well as we're also doing a lot of really great things with our graphics engine, so the balance is certainly there.

Xbox Core: Racing physics is about the most important part of a racing game. Did the team originally decide to scrap the first physics setup because they weren’t pleased with the results, or because they were originally aiming for something better?

Nathan: The biggest challenge when developing racing physics is getting that vehicles fun factor down. Setting early parameters for what’s fun, and what isn't is probably the most important thing to get done first. We learned that lesson the hard way…which was a cause for our delay. Also being overly ambitious and trying to create 5+ unique vehicle types was simply just too much for us to bite off. So narrowing it down to 3 vehicles really helped us focus in on getting those 3 different vehicle types great.

Xbox Core: The rag-doll physics is something that’s becoming a more widely used feature. Are there any other developmental features that racing games could make good use of in the near future to enhance the general gameplay?

Nathan: There’s still a ton that can be done on the Xbox. I do think it’s a little bit sad that there’s a big push to move onto the next-gen consoles, because developers can still squeeze oh so much more out of the Xbox. There are some more ideas we have but didn't have time to implement. But I can't be giving away all our secrets now can I? *smiles*

Xbox Core: Fuel’s architecture is pretty amazing. Did the team intend to have a racing title with so many different elements? Or were some things added in as the project made progress?

Nathan: I think that if we knew the requirements for what we've created to date at the beginning of the project, we all would have said screw it, and gone and made a Flash game or something. Heh, just kidding. *smiles* It really was an evolutionary process that certainly didn't happen overnight, but rather just constantly kept our eyes on the prize and kept trying to make good development choices. Thanks for the compliment, though. *more smiles*

Xbox Core: There’s various characters the player can choose from, will each character have different stats that affect the driving and/or outcome of the race?

Nathan: Nope, the characters just add flavor to the game. We really didn't want to be racing around with 'masked riders' as we thought those games that do are missing out on some fun personality. So that’s exactly what we did; we just came up with the most funny, stereo-typed characters we could think of that just say funny things as you race.

Xbox Core: What sort of multiplayer modes will be available, and will there be a difference between the multiplayer features on the Xbox and PC versions?

Nathan: We've got your standard Quick Race and Tournament multiplayer modes, as well as Chase, Tag, Fuel Grab, and Elimination. My favorite is Elmination, what happens is it’ like a regular race, except each lap one player gets eliminated from the race until it’s a heads-up race on the last lap. It's good stuff.

Xbox Core: Has the team considered the possibility of working on a sequel?

Nathan: The possibility exists. Whether or not it’s already in production…hmmm that has slipped my mind, however. *smiles*

The multi-versatile racing title will be hitting store shelves on May 16, 2006 for the Xbox and PC. For more information regarding Fuel, be sure to stay tuned in with Xboxcore.com.

Article By: VGcore Staff