Twelve years later, we're still playing Split/Second on our Xboxes. Thanks to backwards compatibility, the classic Xbox 360 racer is playable not only in terms of its single-player campaign, but also its online multiplayer component.
For those who aren't aware, this was a Burnout-style racing game developed by Black Rock Studio and published by Disney Interactive, with its unique element being that you could activate "Power Plays" during races that would cause environmental animations to trigger, such as swinging a crane into your opponent, opening up shortcuts, or even going as far as to entirely demolish half the track in a fiery explosion. In a word, it was awesome.
However, speaking to our brand-new sister site Time Extension this week, Franchise Design Director Paul Glancey admitted that Power Plays were actually the downfall of the game in many ways, due to how complex they were to create:
"They became so difficult and expensive to pull off that they sucked up too many studio resources and knackered the original release schedule, which ultimately knackered the game's success and, I suspect, the studio."
So, what about a remaster or a sequel? The latter was actually in the works at one point, but developer Black Rock Studio ultimately ended up being closed, and the plans never came to fruition, which we think is a real shame!
As for a remaster, Glancey doesn't think it's necessary for Split/Second due to the game being available as part of backwards compatibility on Xbox, coupled with the fact it still holds up to this day:
"I still think it looks great and plays well. Maybe it deserves a sequel, but I don't think a remaster would add much, to be honest. It still impresses me as it is."
You can check out the full feature and interview with Glancey over at Time Extension.
Here's a bit more about the new site:
Was Split/Second a favourite of yours, or were you more into Blur? Let us know down in the comments!
[source timeextension.com]
Comments 23
It definitely could if theyd fix the issues with it running at 60 in pc. Also to run on 60 with modern consoles
I don’t know why I haven’t played this yet. It’s right up my alley. So to speak.
Fantastic game, still looks great.
Same with burnout although I'd love them to re release them all so can play them online
Loved this back in the day. Can’t say I’ve played it recently though. No remaster? How about a 60fps patch at least?
I can’t believe it’s already 12 years since this was released. Such a good fun game to play. Happy it’s available to play thanks to backwards compatibility. Don’t think they need to do a remaster because it still looks great.
It needs a full blown remake and a sequel. Such an underated gem. But no online form 1 achievement this time please. Took 7 hours to boost that with a double box
Alongside pgr 3 and blur split/second was my favourites on 360 love all 3 to get new gen updates
Got this last week in the sale.
Good game so far.
He’s correct, it looks amazing on Series X. In fact, I’m not buying too many HD remasters if they were already in HD to begin with. Looking at 360 and PS3 games, most of them still hold up.
@Gloki_junior I wish someone with connections to Xbox would ask them what the reason behind PGR not being backward compatible. I can only assume it’s a licensing issue and they won’t support it because they know they can’t put it on the store and make money from it. Which is annoying as I’d love to be able to just pop my disc in. Same with Blur. We’ll probably never see new additions to either.
A new game mixing elements of Blur and Split Second would be great... are you listening Phil?
And bring back PGR while you're at it 🙂
This might be an unpopular opinion, but: not all games from the days of the o.g. Xbox and Xbox 360 need to be bumped up to 60 fps. Too often it happens where a dev (or an emulator, or a fan-made mod, etc) will bump a game's frame rate, and the controls go to ***** because the game was built around a specific target frame rate. If a game was built for 30, and bumped up to 60, the acceptable window for inputs is cut in half. If the game was even older and at 15 fps, bumping to 60 cuts your input window to 1/4, and in more action-packed games, you risk getting into a scenario where "normal" people can't play the game anymore because the reaction time demands become too high.
I really enjoyed Pure (ATV racing game also developed by Black Rock and published by Disney). I wonder why nobody talks about that one
FPS boost and some X enhancement is all it would need. I've seen loads of old Xbox games get new life breathed into them with that.
@TheRealPaperKut I remember being really into that game when it came out. It was huge at first, then it seemed to fall off the face of the earth. I think it's because they never followed up on it, one of those one n done sorta games.
This was a great game, maybe time to revisit..
I played it and finished it not so long ago. The only thing I thought it could do with was a resolution increase on XSX. Would really make it shine.
Holy *****... This was my favorite racing game of all time. They definitely need to make a sequel immediately!
@pepsilover2008 there's a mod available for 60 fps on PC
@Quasicat Agree to disagree on the game looking "amazing" on Xbox Series X. On my 55 inch 4k HDR tv it doesn't look amazing at all, but then the bigger your 4k display is, the more pixelated a game that's rendered at a lower resolution will be.
I bought it in a sale recently based on reviews from people wearing rose tinted glasses because back in the day on a 1080p tv this game would have looked the shiz. Not anymore sadly. At least, not on my tv.
@Gloki_junior Couldn’t agree more, they were and still are the ultimate racers. I spent way too much time in my late 20,s and early 30’s playing these. I’ve never been a big fan of open world racers.
@TheRealPaperKut I played pure to death loved it good shout out
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