Bizarre Creations – Blur

Bizarre Creations are the makers of some of the finest racing games ever to grace consoles, games such as the original Formula One back on the Playstation, F1 97, Metropolis Street Racer on the Dreamcast (in which they came up with the Kudos driving system) and the massively successful Project Gotham Racer on the XBox systems.

Bizarre were recently released from their contracts with Microsoft and have gone back to their racing roots, their first effort as a stand alone company is Blur.

Blur drops players into heart-pumping, electrified racing action with 20 cars on a track all targeting the finish line and battling each other as they trade paint and collect intense power-ups, including the ability to blast other cars out of the way with huge bursts of energy, boost their speed, and more.

While controlling photo realistic cars, gamers can use offensive and defensive attacks as they battle for the lead and careen through real-world track locations ranging from L.A. and San Francisco to the streets of Hackney, UK and the treacherous roads of Barcelona, Spain.

“We did our homework and saw a huge opportunity to move beyond traditional racers and create a game completely focused on making racing ‘fun’ again,” said Martyn Chudley, creative director, Bizarre Creations. “Blur delivers a new style of racing experience for all gamers, regardless of their experience, skill or genre preferences. Everything the player does, both in their cars and with their cars, is a dramatic adrenaline rush; it’s a real blast!”

“We know that racing can be fun for everyone, and we are excited to enter this genre with a game that keeps players in the pack and combines fun with intense racing battles,” said Maria Stipp, EVP and GM of Owned Properties, Activision Publishing. “Bizarre Creations is one of the most creative studios in the industry with a rich heritage of top-rated racing games and we are excited to partner with them on Blur, which is set to break the mold of traditional racing games.”

Beyond the action-packed racing filled with fast curves, sneaky alternate routes, hair-raising jumps and fully realised damage models that provide for spectacular crashes, Blur’s narrative is presented through Bizarre’s innovative new community-based interface, reaching far beyond the game itself. This unique story-driving social network evolves dynamically as players compete in different races, make new friends, rivals and fans, and connect with other racers both in-game and in real life.

Looking beyond Blur’s single player story, gamers can engage in competitive and team-based multiplayer races with up to 20 players online, or on a single console via 4-player split-screen. Bizarre is especially excited to introduce Blur’s original social gaming experience – custom groups, where anyone can create unique multiplayer modes based on their favourite ways to play the game. These new modes are immediately shared through Blur’s social network, expanding the game in ways that are only limited by the gaming community’s creativity.

Blur is planned for release this autumn for the Xbox 360, PS3 and PC