A video developer says it was a “huge challenge” to recreate Luton Town's stadium in the best-selling computer game, given that the real-life version is surrounded by densely packed terraced houses.
Fab Muoio is the art director for a team of over 200 people at Electronic Arts Vancouver, where he is developing EA FC 24, including the virtual Kenilworth Road.
He said: “I think its shape and size is a bit on the small side compared to some of our larger stadiums.
“I just looked at the nearby houses and confirmed that it works with the gameplay camera, but there are no playability issues.”
EA Sports FC 24 is the latest release in the game series formerly known as Fifa.
Hatter's Grounds joins over 100 other locations already available to gamers.
Tucked into Bury Park terraced houses, Kenilworth Road has been the club's home since 1905, but there are plans to move to a new stadium, the Power Court, in the near future.
The team behind the game uses as many reference photos as possible in addition to the schematics to get accurate measurements.
Muoio explained: “We need to do our best to recreate it as accurately as possible while ensuring playability.”
The developer said, “You can recreate some of the stadium's shapes and textures to bring it to life.”
Virtual Kenilworth Road includes updates made to the ground since the club won promotion to the Premier League.
The Bobbers Stand, which cost £10 million, will also be visible to gamers playing at the stadium.
Muoio praised those working on the developer's licensee team for keeping each location up to date.
He said, “Even the stadiums we've had in-game for years have been upgraded in the real world, and we try to match some of the stadiums in-game as much as possible.”
He said what was memorable about recreating Kenilworth Road for the game was how close it was to residential areas.
The art director described the stadium as “very unique” and with “great character”.
“It's definitely something that stands out and is cool…those are the most fun things to work on,” he said.
“When we create something unique, it’s always fun to recreate it, and it’s a great challenge for our team.”
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