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187 Ride or Die Q&A Feature
Derek dela Fuente
05/07/2005
Derek straps on the bling and a high-priced honey on each shoulder as he checks out Ubi's take on the vehicle/combat genre...
Fast cars, lush women and a great storyline, what more could you ask for? Derek dela Fuente went one better and spoke to a number of the team working on this cool looking racer with a very mature direction...
Can you give us an insight to some of the games the team working on this title have been involved in and how the concept for the game came about?
Ali Kojori (Project Manager)
I started my career in research and development where I worked on titles like SSX and DEF JAM; after that, I moved to the position of Animation Director on FIFA 2003 and Technical Director on Fight Night 2004.
Along with a few friends, I created a development company called NEXT GEN ENTERTAINMENT in Vancouver, Canada in May 2004, to start working on pre-production of our own game. When Ubisoft approached us and offered NextGen to work as the 3rd party developer on 187 Ride or Die and myself as Project Manager with the main team at Ubisoftās development studio, we gladly accepted since I have a lot of respect for Ubisoft as a publisher and I'm a big fan of number of titles they have developed.
The idea was to create a very strong Racing-Combat game with a mature story line: the concept was very close to what we were preparing at NextGen and it was actually a prefect match!
The team I started to work with at Ubisoft has a very impressive background in racing games and shooting games alike, which made me feel very confident that we had the team that could push the boundaries and even surpass my expectations in many areas over the development of this game.
187 has a strong cinematic look. What would you say is the main focus of the game in trying to be different from many other racing combat action games? Are you trying to add more focus to the cast for instance and what do you see as it unique features?
Matty Rich (Writer and Director)
I agree, 187 Ride or Die has a cinematic look. That was the artistic feeling I was going for. I wanted the player to embrace this game with interest like you would do a good movie. I wanted the player to follow the journey of the hero Buck in the story. The cool thing is Buckās journey becomes your own when youāre playing the game. The difference of 187 Ride or Die is the combination of a strong story line mixed with racing urban combat action. Thatās hot! That is a combination that you rarely see in racing games, which separates this game from many others.
I wanted to create a multicultural cast to be a part of the game. I wanted to reach out to actors in Hollywood that I admired and wanted to work with. I think people will like the cast that is in the game. From the five sexy and strong women of all colours, black, Latina, European, Asian and American. These women are beautiful but do not be fooled, they are also dangerous and lethal with weapons.
I also wanted to create unique male characters. From the O.G gangsta Dupree played by the rapper Guerilla Black. Dupree has a love for money, power and Asian art. He lives in an Asian style mansion. The O.G Cortez, the Mexican gang boss played by Noel G., is dangerous, ruthless; he likes to wear expensive tailored made suits and has a multicultural gangsta crew.
I hope the players will enjoy all the characters, they all are different, but they all have one thing in common, they are all gangstas.
AK: Weāve got a very strong, mature and believable story line from Matty Rich for 187 Ride or Die, which separates us from other racing combat game. We wanted to make sure that from a graphical point of view we had a game that would please even the most experienced gamers. Our ambition was to give the player a purpose to win each level in our game and want to see more of what is going to happen to the hero and crave to know the next chapter.
Please tell us about the gameās 3D engine and physics, with a few features that you believe will impress? Are the physics a big factor within the game?
AK: Our physics are very unique and they have been specifically designed for our needs based on the gameplay we wanted to achieve.
First we wanted to make a racing game that was as good as - and even better - than any other action racing games on the market. We did not want to compromise the quality of the racing and neither the shooting aspect in the game.
Also within our physics, we did not want to make a driving Sims but a believable and fun to drive, easy to get use too game. So we ended up with a number of different physics for our different category of cars we have in our game in order for our players to see and feel the diversity.
Then we looked at many other games within the market and since I am a huge racing fan, we wanted to make sure we differentiated ourselves.
For example the rubber band or catch up system ( the AI slows the CPU cars down so the player stays within the game) widely used by other racing games was something that bothered me for a long time playing other racing games, so we created our own AI named DUI engine ( Dynamically Unleashed Intelligence ).
In our game engine, the CPU Cars make the same mistakes as the player, like to turn at the wrong corners, crash into the wall or trees, or even hitting the other traffic cars. It also depends on your position within the level; the CPU cars can act very aggressively towards the player or each other.
Also the same DUI engine controls the power ups within the environment the player is in, which smartly would change the power ups to challenge player and offer him maximum diversity.
You are using a number of actors ā“ many of which the public may not be familiar with. What were the reasons for using these actors and what kind of input did they offer to the making/creation of the game?
MR: The actors were important in telling the story. The actors that are in the cinematic and the game come from appearing in various movies and television shows. In developing the characters, I wanted to reach out to actors who may not be familiar to many people, but these actors will give strong performances in the roles they play.
For instance, Larenz Tate, plays the lead role of Buck. Larenz is widely known for his raw portrayal in the urban movie Menace II Society. I closely worked with Larenz to bring a bit of that gangsta element that he is known for, and to add some innocence to the character Buck. Larenz brings instant street credibility as the lead character in the game.
I also worked with the rapper Guerilla Black. He is one of the hottest rappers to originate from the West Coast. Guerilla Black is taking hip hop by storm. He is new to acting, so he came in the studio with such fire and passion; I was very impressed with his performance.
Noel G, was easy to work with. Noel is a veteran in portraying tough Mexican mafia types. He brings the Latino gangsta feeling to the game. Noel has been in widely released movies, The Fast and the furious and the hit movie Training Day.
I wanted to add a little more complexity to the character Cortez. Noel and I worked closely in not making Cortez just a typical gangsta, we wanted the viewers to see that Cortez respects his nemesis Dupree, but in this world, business is business, Cortez will do anything to control Dupreeās hood.
How difficult is it to get the right balance between racing and combat and have you tried to offer a number of equations within the balance ā“ i.e. action racing sections, pure combat or has the challenge been to merge them seamlessly?
AK: We knew the challenge we were facing regarding the shooting and driving at the same time and what would be the gameplay and the control system.
We came up with two control systems for the player to choose from. First choice would be to use the control that racing fans on the market are familiar with, which we called āThe Classic control systemā. In this mapping, the player uses familiar mappings, like acceleration using the X button and left joystick to control the direction of the car. We added the R1 as the shooting button with AI semi assisting the player for the aiming to the enemy.
But we also made a control system for more hardcore players: in that case the acceleration is done by pressing R1 and the right joystick controls the shooter in 360 degree of freedom with no assistance from the AI.
We are pleased to have found the balance between racing and shooting which is not distracting from each other but very fun and enjoyable to play.
What kind of realism and deformation of cars and the environment are you offering?
MR: Realism is one of the important things I wanted to bring to the game. I wanted to bring the player through the rough streets of the West Coast, to the bright lights of Downtown, to the Warehouse district, what I called the Sticks, to the Estates. I wanted each environment to have a feeling, a mood; the environments are like characters to me. The environments put the player in the state of mind to complete their objective.
If the player doesnāt experience realism in the different environments, it can take them out of the story.
AK: As we all know many racing games on the market do not allow the cars to be damaged or destroyed. We wanted cars that could be shot at, damaged and destroyed if needed!
Since all the cars were specifically designed and modelled for this game, we have made sure the damage system gave the player the essence and visual look one might expect from the cars being in that kind of situation. Besides, we found very satisfying for the player to see the visual result of their action immediately.
Tell us briefly about two of the diverse cars and weapons on offer?
AK: The cars were specifically designed by a car agency for the game. There are 30 hot customized vehicles in game. In the game, we have 4 categories, SUVs; pick up, sport and muscle. In the game we also have massive street fire power. We have weapons from 9mmās to bazookas and automatic Machine Guns. So you can ride the streets of LA and blast rides, strictly gangsta style.
What is the storyline behind the game and what is the main challenge and game modes on offer?
MR: Yes there is. The storyline is: Two Los Angeles O.G Gangsta rivals fight for one hood. After the O.G gangsta Dupree has been shot nine times by his gangsta nemesis Cortez, he recruits the only young man who can ride hot street rides and shift gears, the only young man who can blast automatic weapons with no fear - this young gangstaās name is - Buck.
Buck must protect Dupreeās Hood at ALL COST. If Buck looses, he not only looses Dupreeās hood, he will loose his own life.
In the game, Buck must ride through different hoods of the west coast and challenge Cortezās crew. As Buck wins races, blasting Cortezās crew, delivering packages, running from the police. The player will take the journey with Buck following his growth to street fame.
Paraphrase one action filled event within the game that shows the diversity and ethos of the game?
MR: Buck rides through the bright lights of downtown. He must ride against Cortezās crew and blast as many of them as he can. At all cost, donāt loose.
TVG would like to thank Ali Kojori and Matty Rich for taking the time to answer our questions; 187 Ride or Die is scheduled for release on August 26th, weāll have further coverage soon.
