Welcome to PGR: Under the Hood, where we take a deeper look at some of our favorite game’s more interesting stats and news. Keep in mind that stats do change, so this information will be out of date in the near future.

With an Eye toward Design

Bizarre Creations (you may have heard of them; they made some game called Project Gotham Racing 4) gets some Kudos of its own in an article about game design in the Belfast Telegraph. Lead designer Ged Talbot talks about what it took to make PGR4. Short answer: an atlas, airline tickets, tens of thousands of photographs, and a lot of talent. But we don’t want to give away all the secrets.

Faster Cars on the Left, Slower Cars Stay Right

The United Kingdom and Japan share top honors for now, with both countries posting a top speed of 306 miles an hour, while Mexico zooms into second at 294 mph. It’s a tight pack for just about everyone else* in the world. Sweden, New Zealand, Belgium, and Singapore bring up the rear at 269 mph. Hey, guys, here’s a tip: the right trigger makes the car go fast.

*Norway and Finland have absolutely goofy numbers that make us roll our eyes and shake our heads.

A Horstachio of a Different Racing Color

You may have noticed on the PGRNations.com home page that we have a sample display of players in our upcoming individual leaderboard. Some keen-eyed players might recognize those names as belonging to the creatures that inhabit another game franchise, Viva Piñata.

You might be wondering why Mexico is not among the flags displayed? Strictly speaking, Piñata Island would be part of the Rest of the World in PGR 4. However, we display a variety of flags in recognition of the fact that piñatas are properly citizens of the world.

That’s it until the next edition of PGR: Under the Hood. As always, we invite you to chat in the forums. See you on the track.