STACK Jun #128

68 / 108

068 JUNE 2015 JB Hi-Fi
visit FEATURE GAMES
This month Italian studio Milestone S.r.l release its annual bike racing spoke
with Milestone technical designer Andrea Basilio about what to expect from MotoGP 15 .
MOTOGP 15
With an annual franchise like MotoGP, how far
out does the planning begin for the game?
Normally we start the concept phase of a new
chapter a year and half before the release. This
means that we imagine the next game some
months before the end of development of the
previous. The real production phase starts one
year (more or less) before the release date.
What are the challenges in bringing new
features to an annual franchise?
It is a great challenge. Lucky for us the MotoGP
championship is a great inspiration, and also
with the help of our fans and communities, it is
not that hard to bring new stuff every year. The
main pillar in the MotoGP franchise is to recreate
the exact MotoGP feeling and experience. Our
improvements every year reflect this.
Do you get constructive feedback from
professional riders?
Yes we do! With MotoGP, thanks to our
licensors (Dorna) and other Milestone partners,
we have a great opportunity to have several riders
test the game before the release. We have the
pleasure of hosting several Moto3, Moto2, and
MotoGP riders at our studios including the four-
time world champion, Jorge Lorenzo.
Can you outline the new features we can
expect to see in MotoGP 15?
The biggest features we’re adding in MotoGP
15 are team creation and customisation and the
brand new Beat the Time mode. The career in
the new MotoGP will be really different from the
previous game installments, with the possibility
of being the manager of your own team. On the
other hand, we developed the Beat the Time
mode in order to give players a chance to ride
the less famous bikes, normally shadowed by
the most famous bikes of the championship. We
expect a huge online challenge now because
for the first time, we have a “challenge driven”
leaderboard.
What are the customisation options in the
game?
The most important evolution present in
MotoGP 15 is that the player can create and
race (career mode) for his own team. When the
team is created it is possible to buy the bike that
the player likes and customise it as they want,
selecting from a list of liveries available. The
colours of the liveries are also customisable by
the player.
What can you tell us about the new enhanced
career mode?
In career mode the player can freely choose the
path that he desires: racing for his own team and
make the climbing from Moto3 to MotoGP, buying
new bikes and contracting with different
sponsors (all the sponsors in the game exist
in the official championship) or they can
follow the more usual path and race for real
teams. It is also possible during a season to
switch between your personal team and the
official teams. In this way the player can win the
championship with his own team or, for instance,
with Valentino Rossi as a teammate.
How important is fan feedback to a franchise
like MotoGP?
We listen carefully to our fans and communities
and when possible we follow ideas and advice
from our community. For instance, the split
screen is one feature that a lot of players asked
us to keep.
What were the most popular fan requests for
MotoGP 15?
Without a doubt it was custom team. The
possibility to race for a private team and also be
the team manager is a great feature. We worked
really hard on it, and I’m sure that players will
appreciate it.
Can you tell us what improvements have been
made to the online component of the game?
In MotoGP 15 we decided to keep the
same game modes from last year and focus
all our efforts on online stability and Xbox One
integrations. At the end of the day, we offer
players four exciting online game modes: Grand
Prix, Championship, Sprint Season and Split
Times.
Why is Moto GP 15 the racer we must buy this
year?
Basically because it is going to be the biggest
MotoGP ever. We’ve included all the classes from
this year's championship and also from 2014.
We’ve also included legendary riders from the
two stroke era and technically speaking, we’ve
introduced several game engine
updates – a new rain system,
new shade system and much
more… Additionally, the bike
physics are a big step forward
compared to MotoGP 14.