Alright, we're absolutely huge PGR fans here at Pure Xbox (maybe some more than others!) so you can only imagine our collective sigh when this morning, we heard that a Project Gotham Racing reboot attempt failed at Xbox, back in the 360 era. Bummer!
In a new interview with GQ Magazine, the outlet sat down with multiple members of the Forza dev teams to discuss the highly-anticipated Forza Motorsport reboot. When chatting with Trevor Williams, studio head at Playground Games, the developer opened up about the birth of the Forza Horizon spin-off series.
As it turns out, Forza Horizon started out life as a PGR reboot attempt. Playground Games pitched such a project to Xbox and Turn 10, but ultimately, neither were interested in another PGR title at the time. Remember, this wouldn't have been too long after the final game in the series, PGR4, launched back in 2007.
Rather than completely shoot down Playground Games though, Turn 10 went back to the team and asked, simply, "What would you do with Forza? Where would you take Forza?" Playground then wrote down their pitch for Forza Horizon, "almost on a napkin", and the rest as they say, is history.
"It was one of those stories where the steak turns to ash in your mouth, and I'm thinking, 'how do we afford the flights home? [...] After five minutes, Alan was like, what would you do with Forza? Where would you take Forza? And we pitched what literally became Horizon, almost on a napkin."
It's a crying shame we've not seen a Project Gotham game for almost 15 years, but we can't complain too much. Forza Horizon is one of the standout series' on Xbox, and we've spent many, many hours out on those open roads since 2012.
Would you like to see PGR return one day? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
[source gq-magazine.co.uk, via ign.com]
Comments 15
Ffs. There’s room for PGR to live alongside Forza and FH. I’d love another track focused arcade racer from them. Cut out the filler.
And while you're at it, racing developers, make a Blur-like 2nd expansion for Forza Horizon 5. Man, that was the best Mario kart-alternative ever.
Loved Project Gotham Racing, would've been nice to have seen where it would've gone.
I really love Forza Horizon and it is in my opinion the best arcade racer on the market.
But, I would also love to see a new Project Gotham Racing too.
Following my slight disappointment and feeling of franchise fatigue after the release Forza Motorsport 7 I have long been of the opinion that they should have rested Forza Motorsport and made what has just been shown (their next track racer) as a PGR reboot.
I still think this might happen in the future, unless they slow the schedule down.
No way can FM support a release every two years again, it's just too samey.
Same applies to FH, a great series, now getting milked too much, slow sequels down or kill them MS.
When the Activision buyout has gone through just give us another Blur!!
If there was a dev to do it, I'd love a third spoke on the wheel of Forza that was centered around urban racing like Horizon each in a host city. In effect it becomes the true successor to PGR, but with some modern additions like using some of the real time weather effects as seen in MSFS, or even utilise real time data on the city itself and allow the city to change over time. It also has the benefit of putting the other games on a longer dev cycle so each being released feels like more of an event.
Im more pumped for FM8 as it has had a bit of a longer rest period, the gap between 7&8 will be roughly the same as the gap between 4&7!
sigh....PGR...
welp, Horizon is a good consolation prize i suppose lol
Maybe the next DLC after Hot Wheels could be in the style of Project Gotham Racing and they could call it Project Forza Racing. PGR 3 and 4 were great and i would love to see a PGR 5.
We need a track racer. Horizon is all well and good. But it's not my thing.
I’m not sure if there is room in Xbox lineup to make yet one other racing game, especially when Playground is now also developing Fable, but I could see the need for a city racer being fulfilled either by DLC in Horizon or a third party dev. The former would not be Gotham but we could have a City focused Need for Speed.
I preferred PGR - especially 2 to Forza. I loved the mix of different activities from standard races to 1v1's, cone challenges, speed traps etc and the quest to get 'gold' for every event. As someone who gets bored of racing around similar looking tracks with a similar field of cars over and over again so the different challenges appealed.
Actual Race tracks get very repetitive to me - even if the backdrop around the circuit varies. Most corners have the same looking red/white paint, barriers and the same Sponsors so I do get a bit fed up after a 'short' while but I still enjoy having a few races now and again...
That's why I much prefer Forza Horizon although I am looking forward to Forza 8 too...
I certainly miss PGR, a remaster of the last game PGR 4 I would buy day 1....
@Bartig At the very least make PGR4 and Blur backwards compatible…crazy how they own pgr but it hasn’t had any bc love
Speaking of PGR, I would love to see a PGR collection. Heck I remember when that series started out as MSR on the Dreamcast.
It seems like the only thing carrying on their legacy on my Xbox these days is Geometry Wars.
@Bartig That is such a good idea ... but we'll just get another "rally" expansion.
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