It covers the approximate area of Trinidad & Tobago, it’s larger than Hong Kong, Singapore, St Lucia and the Isle of Man put together. Innovative open-world racer FUEL – launching on June 5th for the PS 3, Xbox 360 and a Games For Windows edition to follow - boasts 5,560 square miles of accessible in-game terrain, making it officially the largest playable environment in a console game ever.

The accolade, presented to FUEL developers Asobo Studio, was confirmed by Guinness World Records, who have verified the record for inclusion in the next Guinness World Records Gamers Edition of the best-selling guide.

Guinness World Records presented Codemasters and Asobo Studio with a certificate that officially documents:
“Largest playable area in a console game: The largest playable environment in a console game is 5,560 square miles (14,400 km²), and is featured in FUEL (Codemasters, 2009). The area features rivers, deserts, forests and mountains and was demonstrated at the offices of Guinness World Records, London, UK, on 20 May 2009.”

To celebrate the award, today Codemasters has released a new video featuring David Dedeine and Sebastian Wloch, two of the co-founders of Asobo Studio, who explain gameplay features and the technical challenge in creating the record-setting FUEL. The video is available from www.fuel-game.com (in the Downloads section).

FUEL’s world is one of staggering size and beauty. To put it into perspective, if players choose to drive from one side of the map to the other, it will take over 3 hours straight. This unprecedented virtual playground offers 19 environmental regions and features some of the most dramatic weather effects ever seen in a racing game. FUEL’s free-roaming nature allows players to pick and choose their route, races and career progression, offering almost limitless ways to play.

Asobo Studio Team with Guinness World Record Certificate