Project Gotham Racing developer Bizarre Creations, which was acquired by Activision, has had a new racing game in development, but we knew that it would not be Project Gotham Racing 5 because Microsoft owns that IP. Our sources are confirming that the next new title from Bizarre Creations will be called Blur, and it will be the first title that the developer is hoping to build into a franchise for Activision.

Word is that Blur will be a mixture of PGR meets Mario Kart without the cartoon elements, which leads us to think it will have PGR 4-like graphics with the focus on Mario Kart style racing events. Lurkers in the shadows indicate that Bizarre has been working on an enhanced engine that will power Blur and will feature particle system technology as well as beefed up collision detection technology. With these additions it makes it possible to add Mario Kart-style weapons, such as shields and explosives, with realistic graphic results.

The news of Blur has to be an interesting development for Pure developer Black Rock Studios which has a brand new racing game in development called Split/Second that we have told you about previously. It would seem that Blur and Split/Second will be competing for attention in the racing game segment in the near future. While no release information has been suggested for Blur officially, our sources tell us that it is unlikely that it will arrive this year, meaning it could land in the first quarter of next year at the same time Split/Second is expected to be released, as well.