To learn about these changes and about the game’s development, Gamingbolt reached out to the developers at Three Fields Entertainment with some questions and they provided the following asnwers.

"The biggest change is the continued work we have done on the vehicles and what this has meant for the gameplay – the cars now drive at substantially higher speeds, drift corners, and take even bigger jumps"

Danger Zone 2 will be moving the action onto public roads. What exactly does this mean for the gameplay experience?

The move outside is an exciting one for us both in terms of the variety and immersiveness of the gameplay experience. The team looked at real accident hotspots in a variety of locations around the world. In the United Kingdom the team discovered that a stretch of Motorway just outside Leeds tops the league table for recording the most number of car accidents. In Spain, a few sections of the N-632 Autovia was responsible for keeping local repair shops very busy all year around. No data was available for the United States. However, the team found several links discussing ‘what are the ugliest intersections in the USA?” and used those as the basis for the US based levels. (These were the “Kennedy Interchange” in Louisville, the “Circle Interchange” in Chicago and a few others.). The team felt that the UK’s “Spaghetti Junction” on the M6 in Birmingham was a perfect setting for both a spot of Dangerous Driving and a perfect location to set a Danger Zone.

Apart from driving down public roads, what are some of the major changes players will find in this sequel?

The biggest change is the continued work we have done on the vehicles and what this has meant for the gameplay – the cars now drive at substantially higher speeds, drift corners, and take even bigger jumps. Three vehicles are able to earn and use Boost. These changes have enabled us to bring in much longer run ups and to introduce a Run Up Objective to every level whereby the Player is given a side objective as part of their approach to the main traffic hot spot of each Danger Zone.

Has the goal with this series been to replicate the crash mode from Burnout, or to just build upon it?

With every game we make we try and bring something new. We always said we would never make exactly the same game twice. The Run Up Objective and the new vehicle types like the Big Rig are examples of where we have taken it somewhere new.

What would you say is the most important thing to get right with a game in this genre?

So much! But the handling is of course all important as if that’s not right and the cars are not fun to drive it doesn’t matter what else you do.

From what we saw in the gameplay footage that was released, it looks like you will have to drive longer before getting to the crashes. What inspired this change?

It was a natural progression really. We had been doing a lot of work on things like drift and boost and so to include more driving in the levels was the obvious choice.

"We have tried to ensure that with every level there is something new to challenge the player."

The gameplay is fairly straightforward, so what prevents it from getting repetitive quickly?

We have tried to ensure that with every level there is something new to challenge the player. That’s another reason we added the Run Up Objective in order to add more strategy, tactics and depth.

Burnout is a title that is always associated with your work. Do you see this as an advantage, or does it bring too much pressure from fans of that game?

We are proud of the work on Burnout, the games we produced provided a lot of people with stable employment over 10 years and we also picked up a lot of fans along the way. To us we are right back at the beginning with a small team, this is like our Burnout 2 really.

What made you decide to make a sequel?

We see every game we make as a stepping stone, so each one builds on the last but takes it further and that in itself leads to the one after. So Danger Zone led naturally to Danger Zone 2 and that will lead to Dangerous Driving.

Will you be able to confirm the resolutions and frame rates of PS4 PRO, Xbox One X versions?

Xbox One X runs at native 4k resolution at 30 fps. Players can also opt to choose to play at 1080p 60 fps. On the PlayStation 4 Pro the game runs at 30 fps. Furthermore it runs at Temporal Checkerboard 4k rendering for players with 4k displays. 1080p TV users will have 150% super sampling.

"The challenge is always getting the game to a point where you are happy enough with it to release it"

And for the base versions i.e. the PS4 and Xbox One as well?

Xbox One version runs at 30 fps and 900p resolution. The PS4 version runs at 30fps and 1080p resolution.

Is there a specific reason why you are not launching on the Switch?

Time and budget. It’s something we would love to and we even had a dev kit and assessed how long it might take but we just have not been able to carve out the time.

Were there any particular challenges you faced when developing this game?

The challenge is always getting the game to a point where you are happy enough with it to release it. We would always like more time!

Is there anything more you’d like to tell our readers about the game?

Yes we included some player requested features such as an almost instant restart where with one button press you can be back in the game. We also included bumper cam as people were asking for it.

The steady decline of the car combat genre has to be one of the saddest things in our industry over the last few years. Onrush may have scratched that itch for many people, but it’s heart-breaking that the likes of Twisted Metal and Burnout are a thing of the past now.

Speaking of Burnout, though, Three Fields Entertainment – which is comprised mostly of employees from former Burnout developers Criterion – have been working on a new car combat title, called Danger Zone 2, which looks pretty good. But not only does it look good, it looks good.

We recently interviewed the team at Three Fields, and they fielded several questions, some of which were related to how the game will perform technically on consoles. The answers we got were quite impressive. On the Xbox One X, Danger Zone 2 will come with two modes, one which will prioritize performance at 60 FPS and render a 1080p resolution, while another mode will also be available that will support native 4K resolutions, but with a 30 FPS frame-rate.

On the PS4 Pro, meanwhile, the game will only run at 30 FPS, while a native 4K resolution will also not be supported. Instead, it will make use of temporal checkerboarding, and achieve 4K resolutions that way- for screens that support 4K resolutions, that is. If your screen doesn’t do that, the game will be rendered at 1080p, with a 15% supersampling boost.

But what about the base consoles? Well, the answer there is much simpler, and more aligned with standard expectations. On both the PS4 and the Xbox One, the game will run at a frame rate of 30 FPS. The PS4 version will sport a resolution of 1080p, while the Xbox One version will output at a 900p resolution.

Admittedly, it is a bit disappointing that the PS4 Pro version of the game does not support 60 FPS whatsoever, but it has to be said that the Xbox One X version of the game is looking impressive, at least based on those specs. Danger Zone 2’s launch is almost upon us- it launches tomorrow.

Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker

The vaunted Captain Toad has finally returned in a port of the Wii U hit. Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker isn’t your traditional Mario platformer. It focuses on navigating mazes, discovering Power Stars and outsmarting enemies en route to rescuing Toadette. Though bonus content has been added in the form of Super Mario Odyssey-inspired levels, the bonus levels from Super Mario 3D World have sadly been removed. Regardless, on July 13^th, Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker will be out on Nintendo Switch and 3DS, thus ensuring more players can enjoy its brilliance.

Octopath Traveler

Eight playable characters, multiple ways to play and a huge retro-inspired adventure – Octopath Traveler promises a sprawling RPG experience for fans. Developed by Acquire and Square Enix, the 16-bit sprite designs coinciding with HD effects and 3D environments immediately caught our attention. Since then, the development team has promised 80 to 100 hours of total gameplay from side quests to main story missions. Octopath Traveler is out on July 13^th for Nintendo Switch.

Sonic Mania Plus

Bigger, better and more colourful than the first outing, Sonic Mania Plus serves as the physical version of Sonic Mania for Xbox One, PS4, PC and Nintendo Switch. In terms of content, there’s plenty to look forward to. Mighty the Armadillo and Ray the Flying Squirrel make their 2D platforming return as playable characters with unique moves. Angel Island arrives as a new zone, Encore Mode remixes existing zones with different effects (along with character switching at opportune moments) and boss fights have had their difficulty optimized. Sonic Mania Plus will also be available as DLC to current owners on July 17^th so it’s well worth checking out.

Mega Man X Legacy Collection 1 + 2

No, this isn’t the long-awaited Mega Man X sequel but it’s the next best thing. Mega Man X Legacy Collection 1 + 2 brings all eight Mega Man X titles together in one awesome package on July 24th. Mega Man X1 to 4 represent the first Legacy Collection while Mega Man X5 to 8 make up the second collection. High resolution filters for the SNES and PS1 titles are available along with various illustrations, music and more from the series. The Day of Sigma OVA, detailing Sigma’s turn to the dark side, and X Challenge for fighting two Mavericks from the first six games at once have also been confirmed. Mega Man X Legacy Collection 1 + 2 will be releasing for PS4, Switch, Xbox One and PC.

The Banner Saga 3

Stoic’s epic saga of survival and Viking tragedy will finally reach its thunderous conclusion on July 24^th. The Banner Saga 3 will be available on Xbox One, PS4, PC and Nintendo Switch as players battle the Darkness in the capital city of men, Arberrang. Two caravans must be managed this time on two different fronts. Numerous endings, a new turn counter when embroiled deep in Darkness fights and more await. Whether previous saves carry over or not, you won’t want to miss this.

Red Faction Guerrilla: Re-Mars-tered Edition

Just when you thought we’d forgotten Mars, Red Faction Guerrilla emerges from the ashes with the Re-Mars-tered Edition. Along with the usual open world guerrilla warfare, the Re-Mars-tered Edition will include reworked graphics, better lighting and shadow rendering, post-processing and support for native 4K. Those who own the original Steam release will also obtain the remaster, completely free of charge. Red Faction Guerrilla: Re-Mars-tered Edition arrives on July 3^rd for Xbox One, PS4 and PC.

Defiance 2050

Trion Worlds’ Defiance has had a long history of poor development decisions but looks to bounce back with Defiance 2050. Touted as the next chapter of the online shooter, Defiance 2050 will be free to play with Founder’s Packs for unique outfits, titles and three day early access. The game itself has received changes to its progression, items and other key systems. Launching on July 6^th for Xbox One, PS4 and PC, we’ll see if the franchise can finally find success.

Earthfall

Already exhausted by Warhammer: Vermintide 2 and Deep Rock Galactic, to say nothing of upcoming co-op shooters like Overkill’s The Walking Dead and GTFO? Earthfall may or may not be your thing, as four players fight together against invading aliens. Drop in and drop out co-op, AI bot support and visuals powered by Unreal Engine 4 make for an intriguing experience but how fun will the final release be when it launches on July 13^th for Xbox One, PS4 and PC? We’ll have to wait and find out.

Danger Zone 2

If you’ve pined for the days of old-school Burnout, then Danger Zone 2 should provide that nostalgic kick. Developed by Fiona Sperry and Alex Ward, who created Burnout, Danger Zone 2 will head on to the open road for its vehicular mayhem with 26 levels across 17 different locations in the US and UK. Look for it to release next month on Xbox One, PS4 and PC for $19.99.

Warhammer 40,000: Inquisitor – Martyr (Xbox One, PS4)

NeoCore Games’ latest action RPG based on the Warhammer 40K universe hasn’t had the best launch on PC. Nonetheless, the developer has been working overtime to fix bugs, add new content like Global Events and prepare the endgame Warzone area. The Xbox One and PS4 versions were originally delayed but will now be launching on July 5^th. Even if you don’t pick it up at launch, it’s worth keeping an eye on Warhammer 40K: Inquisitor – Martyr’s progress in the coming days.