Bugbear talk Ridge Racer

In an interview with Gamereactor published today, Bugbear Entertainment Producer Joonas Laakso discusses the design decisions behind taking on of gaming's classic gaming franchises off the race track and into the city streets.

Ridge Racer Unbounded, a new entry to the series announced by Namco Bandai recently, replaces perfecting cornering for wanton vehicle destruction in the tradition of Bugbear's previous racer, FlatOut. Its a comparison that Laakso thinks benefits the developer.

"We are very good at destructive and dangerous driving, so it's quite safe to assume that the new Ridge Racer follows in these footsteps. The teaser trailer gives a taste of the game's mantra: "drive, destroy, dominate". The mantra summarises what we are doing. In addition to that, we have all sorts of cool stuff up our sleeves."

But the producer understands the worry of long-time fans of the franchise. "I'm a Ridge Racer fan myself and I wouldn't do this game unless I believed we can continue and honor the series. The Ridge Racer series is 18 years old, and some of its fans have been along from the very beginning. For them the new style can be a big change, but I think Ridge Racer can also offer other kinds of exciting experiences than what we have seen so far."

Read the full interview, in which he discusses how his studio was chosen for the job, and how it is working alongside the original Ridge Racer team, here.