Scott Hyman Talks Smash Cars, PSP Minis And…Cake

In case you hadn’t noticed (how dare you!), Creat Studios, developers of Cuboid, Magic Ball and Mahjong Tales, have got a new game out. Smash Cars was released a few weeks ago on the PlayStation Store and Scott kindly said he would take some time out and chat with me for a bit. I don’t know why though, surely he has much better/more interesting things to do? After the jump you can find the interview in full (as recorded on Across The Pond) and a link to an audio version.

Anthony Barlow: So, hello to you Scott Hyman. Welcome back and welcome to your first time on Across The Pond.

Scott Hyman: Thank you so much.

AB: How’re you?

SH: Doing quite well, great to be on the show. I greatly appreciate it.

AB: And you’re here to talk about Smash Cars I presume?

SH: Smash Cars, yeah we’ve been working dillgently on this one for a while and we’re very excited. It launched last week on PlayStation Network in North America and launched today on the European PSN.

AB: In fact, it launched within the last hour of this recording.

SH: Really, that soon? I never really know exactly when it goes up. The days our titles launch are always days I have ten other things to do, so I never get to see when exactly when it goes live. So, i’m glad to see it’s up and running.

AB: Yeah, it’s looking good. So, I think Smash Cars has featured in all the interviews that i’ve done with you and, well, now that it’s out there in the world why don’t you tell us a little more about it and why people should be picking this up?

SH: Sure. Smash Cars is actually a joint venture between Tik Games and Creat Studios. It’s an RC car action-racing title. It’s not pure racing, players control a small remote control car that performs tricks and stunts and the way to gain speed is to be jumping off of ramps or bumping other players off the track. The idea is that it’s not simply a racing game,  we tried to encorperate as much action and stunt work as possible.

AB: Well it seems like a great little amalgamation of different things there. Obviously, i’ve been playing it for review and i’m quite enamoured with it myself. I like it, but what’s the reaction been since it’s release last week?

SH: Y’know it’s been great, this is the game we’ve spent the longest time developing for the PlayStation Network and the response as been everything we had hoped. People seem to really be digging it, it’s been really, really gratifying for our team who spent so much time trying to get this out.

AB: Am I right in saying that Smash Cars is a remake? Or is it more of a sequel to the PS2 game?

SH: Yes. I suppose you could argue both. In some ways it’s a sequel, we decided that it wasn’t really worth calling it Smash Cars 2. There’d be a bit of confusion, especially from the North American audience who really didn’t have access to the title. So, in some ways it’s a sequel because it’s the next one and it’s in a different location, but at the same time we really re-envisioned the gameplay and there’s a lot more that’s accessible to the player in this version than the previous one and, hey we’re on PS3 now, it looks a heck of a lot better.

AB: It looks really nice actually,  one of the first things I noticed about the game, is that it looks really, really good and it is so different to Creat’s other games. Why such a change in direction?

SH: Y’know, we don’t really see it as a change. First off, we did the original Smash Cars on PS2 and some of the same designers worked on this one, but our designers have some very diverse backgrounds so we don’t really see it as a change of pace, we just see it as another genre to dive into and what’s coming down the line is going to do that and reach out in new directions.

AB: Well, that sounds great. We’ve spoken a lot about your other games and, specifically in the last recording we did with you it was the Cuboid DLC and the problems that had been having. Are those problems fixed?

SH: Yeah, they’re completely fixed, everything is in full working order and our engineers really worked long shifts and worked their tails off to get that right, so it’s all set, everything is fine, the level editor is just the coolest thing. Really, i just have to thank everyone of our fans and our players out there for their patience in letting us get this thing taken care of. It was just one of those things where we had to work with Sony and make sure every little, final detail got fixed and we were able to take care of the glitch and everything is great now.

AB: That’s great. Has it done as well as you had hoped?

SH: Yeah, it’s certainly getting a great reaction. A puzzle game like Cuboid isn’t exactly going to do Street Fighter numbers, but the people who love it really, really love it and that’s the best possible reaction we could have.

AB: Speaking of DLC, have you got any plans to release more DLC for Cuboid, Magic Ball and Mahjong Tales?

SH: Yeah there’s a lot of talk. Quite a bit, so at some point you’ll hear something.

AB: Is this your job Scott? Just to come on and tease people and then leave?

SH: Y’know, it kills me because there’s so many cool things, I would love to just open the windows to our studio and show you all the pretty amazing things we have going on. But, you have to do it right and you have to roll it out in the proper order and I really don’t have much of a choice. Sorry.

AB: Ok then, I forgive you.

SH: [Laughs]

AB: How about some DLC for Smash Cars? Or is it a little too early to talk about stuff like that?

SH: It’s never too early to talk. You know me, i’ll keep talking. There’s definitely a lot of talk there too. Quite a bit.

AB: That’s good. I can definitely see that being easily expandable and I look forward to that. Like I said, i’m quite enamoured with the original game so more content for that would be pretty damn good. So, Across The Pond is a multiplatform podcast, so i’m not just here on behalf of the PS3 so I have been asked to ask you is there any plans to bring Creat’s games to XBLA or WiiWare?

SH: Lots of talk there too. I wish I could give you some fine details, but that’s pretty much all I can say. We love downloadable games and we’re very comitted to the downloadable space. So, certainly, we’ll go everywhere we can bring them.

AB: Does that include iPhone games, DSi Ware and PSP Mini’s then?

SH: That’s funny, we’ve actually been reluctant to the very, very crowded iPhone pool. The thing about the iPhone is, for a lot of titles it seems like it’s the best possible venue for three guys hanging out in a garage for six months and there’s a lot of amazing stuff on there that’s performed by people in that situation. So, we’ve been a bit hesitant to dive in there. But, DSi PSP, oh we’re very happy to be in there. We have Alien Havoc coming out on, both, DSi Ware and as a launch title for the PSP Mini program later on this year. Alien Havoc is an 80′s, early 90′s style throwback, like an original NES game, where you play an alien that kidnaps cows and it will be released on both DSi and as a PSP Mini. We do have another PSP Mini title that we can’t announce just yet, but we will be doing shortly and that will also be one of the launch titles.

AB: The question has come up in the last couple of interviews about bringing Cuboid, Magic Ball and Mahjong to PSP. Do you think this is the way in now, PSP Mini’s?

SH: PSP Mini’s is where we’re starting. There’s talk about all of those titles and where else they can go, so in time. Certainly we’re hoping, but nothing’s really definite yet.

AB: Well, I look forward to it. I’m gonna be one of the people to pick up a PSPGo on launch day.

SH: Yeah, it looks like a really cool device, i’m really interested to see how it gets recieved. I think there’s a lot of potential there.

AB: I agree, there’s a lot of potential and PSP Mini’s definitely sounds like something i’ll be interested in and something that’s a good thing for the PSP, especially if Creat are involved, I’m sure you’ll pull something out of the bag for PSP owners.

SH: Well, we’re hoping.

AB: Right, now that Smash Cars has arrived, you’ve got two previously announced titles, Digger and Mushroom Wars, what’s the plan for those now?

SH: Actually, we have three. There’s another one we had been working with and now it’s actually going to be launched, along with Tik side by side, which is Interpol. A game that’s already available on XBLA. Tik and Creat are bringing Interpol in September to PlayStation Network

AB: Nice. That’s good. What’s the plan with these three then? When can we expect them?

SH: Very, very soon. I can’t give you an exact date, because we’re waiting for it ourselves, but very, very soon.

AB: Will it be within Sony’s ‘summer’ area?

SH: We’re hoping. Some of that’s up to Sony and we don’t wanna jump the gun and say we’ll be in a particular slot until we confirm it with them. They’re expected to hit very soon.

AB: Ok, so we’ve got Digger, Mushroom Wars and Interpol to look forward to. We’ve spoken about Digger and Mushroom Wars. Can you tell us a little bit about Interpol for those who don’t know?

SH: Interpol is one of those hide and seek games, sort of a ‘Where’s Waldo?’ type game where players are looking for particular kinds of clues and information in large, very detailed images. You play a secret agent who’s chasing after Dr. Chaos, who’s the villain who’s nefariously committing evil deeds and you need to track down.

AB: Interpol, not named after the band?

SH: Unfortunately not, no.

AB: Ah, ok. So we can’t expect any of Interpol’s music there then?

SH: No definitely not.

AB: So, what about that big announcement you and Michael teased?

SH: The PSP Mini was actually part of that, there were very few developed chosen by Sony who got the chance to develop launch titles for the PSP Mini program. So we were very honored to be part of that, the titles aren’t native to just the PSPGo, they’re available on all different versions of the PSP, but we got a chance to have two titles at the launch. There’s other things that we’re really eager to tell the world, but we still have to hold back unfortunately.

AB: I put it out on Twitter and in our last podcast that I would be interviewing you and I asked the readers and listeners to give us a few and, well, here’s the best of what they have come up with. Obviously, the PS3 Slim has just been announced, a few weeks ago in Cologne, how do you feel the PS3 is going to do in the run up to Christmas after the release of the Slim and the price drop?

SH: When consoles get cheaper everybody wins. Really, everybody wins. I even think Sony wins, even though they’re now take a loss on each device. You just get a much larger user-base. Microsoft announced a price drop today too and I would expect that Nintendo must be thinking something. When everything gets cheaper, you get a much larger user-base, everything’s more accessible. I would imagine, certainly, that it’ll help PlayStation Network quite a bit. I think the PlayStation 3 will get an opportunity to shine and show how it is such an amazing system, now that more people have an opportunity to pick them up.

AB: Definitely, that’s something I, being a PS3 writer, have campaigned for. For people to go out, get a PS3 and check out all the stuff it can do. Check out the PSN and the big budget exclusives like inFamous, Uncharted 2 and all that sort of stuff. I think that’ll give the PS3 a bit more of a fighting chance now that it’s got the drop, it’s got a redesign and it’s got all these big games coming out for the holiday season so I think we’re gonna see something big there. You spoke about the PSN and, well, do you think it will get more credit now?

SH: I think the PSN would get more credit even if these consoles hadn’t dropped in price. I just think that there’s a higher volume of titles and a higher quality of titles hitting the PSN. XBLA is doing a great job on their own to, but I think that, really, you’ll begin seeing a different playing field over the next couple of years. What PSN had to do was build a larger catalogue and now they’ve been able to do that I think you’ll see a change in perception and, over the next few years it’ll really begin to change.

AB: I also got a question about your opinions on motion control. The PS3 Motion Controller, Project Natal and Wii Motion Plus. Do you see that as a step forward or more of a step back?

SH: No, I definitely don’t see them as a step back. I think a lot of it is going to take some time. I’ve had a little time to mess with it, but not everything and, for my personal opinion, I’d have to use them a little more to decide where this is really gonna go. The most exciting thing is, there’s a couple of new genres just waiting in the ether that are going to come out because of these new technologies, there’s different game ideas that no one had really considered or taken seriously that will become very viable. I think it’s just another great tool and, just like any other technological advancement we’ll see what the creative and technical minds can do with it and what different games will come about.

AB: Definitely, will you be using any of this new tech in future titles?

SH: I’m just gonna say, after all those other teasers, I’m just gonna spill the beans about this sort of thing. Let’s just say it’s being heavily considered.

AB: Heavily considered, it’s a slight ramp up from a tease. I like it. Now, we had a couple of questions after the release of Smash Cars about the pricing of the game, and generally the opinions on downloadable and retail pricing.

SH: The thing about this is, digital distribution is an incredibly new concept, the market’s going to take care of everything. A lot of folks seem to be in the mindset that publishers are out to steal as much as they possibly can. Certainly, everybody is in the industry to make money, but the idea is to make money and have the consumer be happy with his or her purchase and if you’re overcharging, you start losing customers and the guy who decided to go in the other direction will gain. This is all going to work itself out, I understand people’s frustrations, but we’re in the middle of a very new market with digital distribution and, over time, everything is going to even itself out.

AB: Your recent titles have been downloadable and do you think optical media is a dead format?

SH: No, I don’t think it’s dead my any stretch, I just don’t think that when we look ten years from now it’s going to be the dominant species it’s always been. The thing is, digital distribution is such a new thing and and we’ve only really started to enter an era where it’s understood and commonplace. Remember, ten years ago people talked about how they were nervous and that it was risky to use your credit card on the internet. Eventually, people realised that, actually, it’s more secure than using your credit card at a resteraunt, where the waiter can go and take your number when he brings your credit card back behind the counter. So,these things just takes time for the customer to get comfortable and there will be a point, as younger generations begin to grow up with it, where it just becomes commonplace. Will it ever 100% substitute the notion that somebody wants to go into a regular store, test a few games out, hang out at the mall and then pick it up right there and bring the box home? I don’t ever think it’s ever gonna go away either, I just think there’s now another distribution method to share.

AB:We had that discussion on a previous Across The Pond and I basically said I think optical media is going to stay around, but, like a lot of things, digital media is going to be commonplace with optical media being, almost, for an older generation.

SH: I think that’ll happen, but then I think, to some extent, there’ll be some elements where you’ll need to be buying optical media or re-buying your media and electronic wrapped up into one and it’ll just depend on the product. We have no idea what kinda product we’ll be dealing with, if you talk to people about the potential for digital distribution twelve years ago, when it was all pre-iPod it was a very, very different world, then we got a device like that and iTunes came about and there’s a fully accepted world of digital distribution, it’s good for a start. A lot of things will change in both directions before we finally settle one way or another.

AB: I totally agree and, well, I think we’re about wrapped up. There’s just a couple more questions. First of all, and I was assured this was a deadly serious question, pie or cake?

SH: Ok, yeah, whoever asked this question needs to know that you cannot ask something that serious and be that general. There’s so many pies and so many cakes, I can’t be that specific. All I can tell you for sure is this, no carrott cake. Just, whoever looked at a carrott and thought of a carrott and thought of a dessert is certifiably insane and I can’t stand it. But, other than that, you can go back to this person and give me a specific pie or a specific cake then we’re talking.

AB: Ok, I will find out what they were talking about, i’ll email you the question and we’ll read it out on the show.

SH: Sounds good to me.

AB: Finally, the question I always ask, what’ve you been playing?

SH: Oh god, this is the worst because I haven’t. What i’ve been dealing with is a sick three year old and the poor little guy has just had a fever as of late, so that’s taken up pretty much all of my time and it’s been driving me crazy because there’s a whole list of things I want to be playing and we just haven’t had time at all. Other than that, frankly I’ve been playing Smash Cars because i’ve been here. I’ve been in the office trying to get this thing out to market and  we’re working on an unnanouced PSN title in house here in the Boston office and i’ve been playing a lot of that.

AB: Another tease! You need to stop this.

SH: Sorry, sorry, it’ll be a cool one and that one is a long ways away from release and we won’t be talking about that one for a while.

AB: This teasing needs to stop. Anyway, are we good? That seems to be the end. So, thanks for everything, the pie and cake question and I urge everyone to go and play Smash Cars, go and get it. Thanks Scott, thanks for coming on.

SH: Thanks so much Anthony, I appreciate it.

Thanks a lot to Scott for that. Just to let you know, Scott has now confirmed that Boston Cream Pie is the only cake for him (it might be called “pie”, but I am assured it’s a cake). You can get audio of this interview here, or you can download Episode 7, of Across The Pond.

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