Interviews

Blade’s Debs Jones chats about The Hustle: Detroit Streets
By Michael Lafferty

“At various points of progression, the player’s avatar is mugged, arrested, the witness to two brutal killings not to mention rescuing the girl and killing the bad guy – all in a day’s work.”

The world is full of sharks; all of different variety, different colors and that is an allegory for professions that feed on others. There are many kinds, but perhaps one of the most common comes in the form of the pool shark – the hustlers and players in pool halls.

Activision and Blade Interactive Studios are gearing up for the release of The Hustle: Detroit Streets. More than a mere pool simulator, The Hustle is a combination of deep pool physics and a story that involves murder, kidnapping, revenge and respect.

The game is slated for release later this month on the PS2 and Xbox platforms. The PSP platform version released in late 2005.

According to the game’s official press release:

“The Hustle: Detroit Streets lets players take on the role of either Jack Stone or Kat Hudson as they make their way through the pool halls and clubs of Detroit. Players hone their pool skills and work their way to the top of the pool circuit through two different game modes - single-player story mode, playing as either Jack or Kat in their quest for respect and cash, or single-player single game, where they can practice their skills by playing one-off matches against AI opponents. Additionally, for the PSP system, players can play pool using multiplayer and multiplayer over Wi-Fi where they can try to run the table against other gaming pool sharks.”

But what exactly does this game offer players? For the answer to that, GameZone turned to the source – Debs Jones, Managing Director, Blade Interactive Studios.

Question: You have two playable characters in this game. Are there any things that will distinguish one from the other, any attributes, or are they essentially the same in terms of skill and evolution though of differing genders?

Debs: This question brings the focus onto one of the main differences between this game and any other Pool game ever created. The player is part of a story. It gives him/her an objective, a reason for playing the game. At various points of progression, the player’s avatar is mugged, arrested, the witness to two brutal killings not to mention rescuing the girl and killing the bad guy – all in a day’s work. To do this the player is initially playing as Jack Swift, a down on his luck Hustler. He is progressively introduced to the heroine, Kat Stone, who the player, once Jack is kidnapped by the mob, plays as.

Is there a difference in the way the characters play? In a word, yes, and it all focuses on their level of skill at different points in the game and the challenge of building respect and improving their game. At the outset the male character, Jack is new to town and has little respect. The crowd surrounding him will jeer and intimidate him. As they do so, the level of intimidation is reflected in a player-control system and makes his shots more difficult depending on the level of intimidation – this is pretty unique. Additionally, as the player progresses his/her skill increases, effectively making it easier for them to make more difficult shots, however, his/her opponents’ difficulty ramps up as well. When the player finally plays as Kat (to save her own life), she is playing against her kidnappers and has absolutely NO respect at all – so all her shots are extremely difficult.

Sorry; short question, long answer!

Q: Will players be able to create their own avatar for multiplayer head-to-head game play? What games will be available in multiplayer?

Debs: Absolutely! The game has a really sweet character creator where the player can not only create their own character from scratch, but also choose the clothes and set up their character’s personality.

As an aside in story mode, the player can also spend cash on clothes. But if the player dresses his avatar too dramatically out of line with the pool venue and its clientele then he/she will have a more difficult time earning respect.

The player can play head-to-head matches in multiplay including customized challenges and trickshots

Q: Will multiplayer be available on the PS2 and Xbox versions? Will there be a ranking system? What has been changed, added or improved from the PSP multiplayer elements?

Debs: Indeed, multiplayer is available on both the PS2 and the Xbox versions. We use the player ranking system borrowed from our World Snooker Championship products to effectively give the player a national world ranking. The biggest improvement in PS2 and Xbox multiplayer is the inclusion of online matchmaking. Now people can play their friends anywhere in the world!

Q: Will environments play a role in the way a game is played? By that I mean, if you are starting out, will the tables be, perhaps, a little rougher to play on, the sides may not have the same firmness as tables in classier establishments later on? What about the crowds?

Debs: Boy, yeah. Each environment is different and in story mode the player will have a reason for being there. The opponents differ greatly. In the fight club, for instance the opponents are very aggressive – winning their respect means competing in an equally aggressive way. While they spectate your game, fights may well break out! All the tables are different. Again, the game overall has a very urban feel to it – don’t expect to find too many pristine tables here!!!!!

Q: Does the game promote hustling, or are you trying to achieve ranking as a skilled player?

Debs: Oh yeah. The opponent AI is set to deliberately hustle the player and the player can also (and is encouraged) to hustle by return. Throw a few shots here and there, and you’ll come across as a worse player than you really are (respect reduces), but get the big bets then mop up the competition (big time respect). Your objective as a player is to get to a state where you have beaten the players in an establishment in a decisive way – each opponent has his own unique challenge by the way. You’ll know when you’ve reached this point because the ranks of spectators part and the “boss” character will enter to stand you down!

Q: Is there a way to skill up your character as you advance or otherwise customize him or her?

Debs: Yep. The winnings the player accrues can be spent on new clothes and new cue sticks.

Q: In terms of physics, what is the hardest element to capture?

Debs: There are two ways the player can take a shot. The first is to line up the shot, set the power, wait until the sweet spot, and take the shot. The alternative method is the “Quick shot” method. Pull back the joystick and push forward to shoot. The further back the stick is drawn the further back the cue is drawn. The faster it is pushed forward the harder the shot. Pretty simple, but what’s this got to do with physics? Everything. The former shot mode allows the luxury of pre-calculating the physics for max frame rate the latter means that EVERYTHING is done on the fly – real time with up to 30 characters animating in the background at full frame rate. Don’t forget once a shot is taken there can be up to no less than 16 ball simulated collisions taking place at any one time and these really must be accurate. With our heritage of creating World Championship Snooker for Sega, we have got this nailed to a tee. How do we do it? I’m not telling.

Q: How will the soundtrack add to the atmosphere of the game?

Debs: We have licensed the music of local bands (local to Manchester, England that is) to create a cool audio backdrop ….Ok, Manchester is a long way from Detroit – but cool music is cool music – right?

Q: How will the story drive the game? Are there subplots or will it be a matter of finding the right people and game to improve standing or ranking?

Debs: Back to story. The story gives the player a reason – an objective. It also links the venues in the game into a coherent structure. The player is not just playing at a hip hop club; the player is entering a hip hop club to find his friend’s killer. Of course no one will talk until you have their respect, which means thrashing the little buggers at Pool!