Split/Second
Split/Second: Velocity (released in North America as Split/Second) is a racing video game developed by Black Rock Studio and published by Disney Interactive Studios for Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in May 2010. In the game, players take part in a fictional reality television show consisting of a variety of events, each focusing on destructible environments triggered remotely by driver actions known as "power plays". Ported to the PlayStation Portable in November 2010 by Sumo Digital, and was later released for OnLive in June 2011.
Also recorded as Split/Second: Velocity
Split/Second
- Date
- 2010
- Publisher
- Disney Interactive Studios
- Language
- English
- Genre
- racing video game
VALÉORINE Encyclopedia
VALÉORINE documentary reading
Documentary summary
Split/Second: Velocity (released in North America as Split/Second) is a racing video game developed by Black Rock Studio and published by Disney Interactive Studios for Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in May 2010. In the game, players take part in a fictional reality television show consisting of a variety of events, each focusing on destructible environments triggered remotely by driver actions known as "power plays". Ported to the PlayStation Portable in November 2010 by Sumo Digital, and was later released for OnLive in June 2011.
Admitted source layer · organised and presented by VALÉORINE
Reference Check
Propose documentary evidence for Split/Second. A contribution is never written directly as fact: identity, source, rights and evidence gates still decide.
Sign in to contribute
World of VALÉORINE
Documentary connections
Only confirmed graph relationships appear here. Images are shown only when their identity and reuse rights both pass the documentary gate.
Documentary evidence
Documentary basis
Authority files
wikidata · Q187351 · wikipedia · Split/Second: Velocity
In this article
The object
The object
Additionally, the game can be purchased from the Xbox digital store and played on Xbox One and Xbox Series consoles through the Xbox backwards compatibility program. The game received positive reviews from critics but was unsuccessful commercially. It was the last game developed by Black Rock Studio before being closed by Disney in 2011.
Key facts
Key facts
• Title — Split/Second: Velocity • Developer — Black Rock Studio • Publisher — Disney Interactive Studios • Director — Nick Baynes • Producer — Alice Guy • Composer — Marc Canham • Artist — Trevor Moore • Released — Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, iOS PlayStation Portable • Genre — Racing • Modes — Single-player, multiplayer • Platforms — Windows PlayStation 3 PlayStation Portable Xbox 360 iOS OnLive
Gameplay
Gameplay
In Split/Second, players take part in a fictional reality TV programme where participants race for money and fame. Throughout a race, players can build up their "power play" meter by performing stunts, such as jumps and mid-air overtakes, and precision driving, such as drafting opponents and drifting. As players build up their meter, special events can be triggered, which create obstacles for other players, open up temporary shortcuts, or alter an entire section of the race course. These triggers are also activated by the AI opponents. • Illustration — Target-rendered screenshot showing cars driving past an exploding airport terminal Such events range from shockwave-inducing explosions to buckling highways and dam breaches. The severity of the events available to trigger varies depending on how full the player's meter is. The Level 1 events become available when one or two of the three segments of the bar are full, while the Level 2 events can only be triggered upon a full bar. Event locations, and the vehicles they will affect, are highlighted with blue icons for the level one power plays, and red icons for level two, and the player must time the action accurately in order to hinder the opposition as much as possible. The power play meter is used up by one segment once a level one event is triggered, so the player must also choose whether to activate the less destructive first-level events as soon as they are available, or save the power play energy and build it up further in order to trigger the top-tier actions. There are also certain power plays that can be reused, such as explosives dropped from helicopters, exploding tankers, and shortcuts, but some other power plays are permanent and can only be used once in a single race. Black Rock Studio also wanted to make the HUD as simple as possible by taking away all unnecessary elements such as the speedometer and the track map (rendered useless due to the dynamic nature of the track) leaving only the lap count (also the target time in "Detonator" and "Air Revenge" modes as well as target score in "Air Strike" and "Survival" modes), the position that the player is in, and the power play meter, all positioned behind the player's car to avoid detracting from the scenery. The game also has a multiplayer mode, with both 8-player online and 2-player split-screen offline available. There are 17 tracks in the standard game, most of which are located within or nearby a lifesize set of a city (shown under construction in the tutorial). Two tracks could be acquired as downloadable content, both of which take place in a quarry.
Downloadable content
Downloadable content
A "time savers" DLC pack was released upon the game's launch, which unlocks all cars, tracks and modes without the player having to unlock them by playing through the game's "Season" mode. The "High Octane Supercar" pack was released on 31 August 2010 as paid DLC, featuring the Cobretti Severus, the Ryback Vulcan, and the Hanzo Katana. In addition, the Elite Vehicle Livery and Ryback Cyclone Special (a stronger, upgraded version of a standard car) packs were released for free. The next paid download was released as the "Survival at the Rock" pack and included a new Survival mode track (Minepit Park) and a new multiplayer-only mode (Survival Race; a racing variant of the Survival mode). It was released on 12 October. Another vehicle pack, entitled the "Deadline" pack, was released on 20 October. The Deadline pack includes three new cars (the Hanzo Kanobo, Cobretti Centaur, and Ryback Javelin) and a new livery for the Ryback Coyote vehicle. Also included is the Deadline mode, a variation of Detonator (a time trial with automatically triggered power plays) where pickups spread across the track can pause the timer. The final known pack is the "Quarry Onslaught" pack, released to Xbox Live Marketplace on 2 November of the same year. Included with this pack are the "Quarry" race course and the "Onslaught" game type. During an Onslaught event, racers are challenged to pull ahead of the competition while the helicopter fires missiles onto the track. Points are awarded based on how close to the front racers are, and the game will end after twenty missile waves. All the downloadable content, with the exception of the two free addons, is available in Europe as part of the "Ultimate Edition", a complete bundle that also includes the digital version of the game.
PSP version
PSP version
The PlayStation Portable (PSP) version was released on 17 November 2010, with porting and development duties handled by Sumo Digital. The PSP version of the game features, among other changes, an extra track based on the "Docks" environment. The track (simply called "The Docks") is a composite course that takes the drivers through areas from each of the three other Docks environment courses (Dry Docks, Ferry Wharf, and Port Bridge) in a single lap. The PSP version also adds new gameplay modes that offer variants on the core game (such as drifting around the training course to earn points). It also offers some changes to the game itself, such as revamped physics to make driving easier on the PSP. Subtle changes to track design, event rules, and car statistics were also made. The PSP version supports ad-hoc multiplayer for up to four drivers.
Steam version
Steam version
As part of Disney Interactive's new offering on Steam in late 2014, Split/Second was included alongside other titles such as Epic Mickey 2 and Pure. This version of the game does not have support for online multiplayer matchmaking, but VPN services can be used to facilitate online connections through the game's LAN features. There are also game cards and badges from Split/Second that can be earned.
Sales
Sales
Despite positive reviews from critics, the game was commercially unsuccessful. It sold only 86,000 copies in the United States in its first 12 days.
Cancelled sequel
Cancelled sequel
After finishing Episode 12, a cutscene is shown in which power plays in the city are activated by unknown perpetrators in construction vehicles (with the panicked voice of a TV crew member claiming that the group "were taken off air in '82") followed by a black screen reading "To be continued...". In May 2011, Eurogamer spoke to an anonymous source that confirmed Disney Interactive Studios had made a reduction at Black Rock Studio's workforce. Due to Disney's new management, the game was cancelled in December 2010 despite attempts to fit with their new business model.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
- United Kingdom
Named but not plotted · 1
Split/Second is associated with United Kingdom.
Country
Critical reception
Split/Second received "generally favorable reviews", except for the PSP version which received "mixed or average" reviews, according to review aggregator Metacritic. During the 14th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards, the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences nominated Split/Second for "Racing Game of the Year".
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Joystiq. Split/Second: Velocity Release Date Announced.
- 2.Rose, Mike. Split/Second races onto iPhone in the US. Pocket Gamer. May 18, 2010.
- 3.Ryan Geddes. Disney Announces Split/Second. IGN. 2009-03-11.
- 4.Split/Second: Velocity blasting onto PSP and PSPgo in time for Christmas. 7 July 2010.
- 5.OnLiveFans. Split/Second Released on OnLive.
- 6.XBOX Backward Compatible Games XBOX. Xbox.com.
- 7.Xbox One Gets Two New Backwards Compatible Games. GameSpot.
- 8.Justin Haywald. Split Second Preview. 1UP.com. 2009-03-26.
- 9.Martin Robinson. Split/Second Hands-on. IGN UK. 2009-05-06.
- 10.john Tracey. Split/Second ' s Simple HUD [GDC 2009]. MTV. 2009-03-24.
- 11.Split/Second on Steam.
- 12.How to play Split/Second online. :: Split/Second General Discussions.
- 13.CBS Interactive. Split/Second for PlayStation 3 Reviews. GameRankings.
- 14.CBS Interactive. Split/Second for Xbox 360 Reviews. GameRankings.
- 15.CBS Interactive. Split/Second for PC Reviews. GameRankings.
- 16.CBS Interactive. Split/Second for PSP Reviews. GameRankings.
- 17.CBS Interactive. Split/Second for iOS Reviews. GameRankings.
- 18.Heyward, Andrew. Fictional reality TV: much better than the real thing. 1UP.com. IGN. May 17, 2010.
- 19.Welsh, Oli. Split/Second: Velocity - Bomb the race. Eurogamer. Gamer Network. May 18, 2010.
- 20.Kato, Matthew. Danger Lurks Around Every Corner. Game Informer. GameStop. May 18, 2010.
- 21.VanOrd, Kevin. This shallow but rambunctious arcade racer may have only one trick up its sleeve, but it's a really good trick. GameSpot. CBS Interactive. May 17, 2010.
- 22.Defy Media. Split/Second Review Text - GameTrailers. GameTrailers. May 18, 2010.
- 23.CBS Interactive. Split/Second Review - Giant Bomb. Giant Bomb. May 18, 2010.
- 24.Ziff Davis. Split/Second Review - Kart racing grows up. IGN. May 25, 2010.
- 25.McElroy, Griffin. Review: Split/Second. Joystiq. AOL. May 17, 2010.
- 26.Split/Second (ps3) reviews at Metacritic.com. Metacritic.
- 27.Split/Second (xbox360) reviews at Metacritic.com. Metacritic.
- 28.Split/Second (pc) reviews at Metacritic.com. Metacritic.
- 29.Split/Second (PSP) reviews at Metacritic.com. Metacritic.
- 30.Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences. 2011 Awards Category Details Racing Game of the Year. interactive.org.
- 31.NPD: Behind the Numbers; May 2010 . Gamasutra. July 6, 2010
- 32.Eurogamer - Split/Second studio lay-offs confirmed. Eurogamer.net. 4 May 2011.
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
reference work
Secondary witnessreference work
Secondary witness
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 16 August 2026.
Elsewhere in Collectables
20,755 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
- SplatterhouseWork
- Splatterhouse 2Work
- Splatterhouse 3Work
- Split FictionWork
- SplitgateWork
- Splitgate 2Work
- SPOGS RacingWork
- SpongeBob HeroPantsWork
Best supported in this field
For owners
Own a copy of Split/Second?
A specialist will read what you send and tell you what the house can establish, what it cannot, and whether the object is suited to sale. There is no charge and no obligation. The object stays with you throughout; nothing is shipped to us unless it is arranged in writing beforehand.