Warzone 2100.com Interview by Larry Green
First off I would like to take the time to thank the Warzone 2100 team for taking time out to do this interview!
We will start off with Question from Warzone2100.com.
1: A lot of people are stuck on Campaign 1 part 6, can you guys give us some tips on this one?
Nick-
Basically you have to build a forward base. The area where this should be, is indicated on the map with a flashing blip. Without going into specific details, you need to build a certain number of structures, whilst defending yourself from enemy units which are being deployed by a transporter. I would suggest building a number of defensive structures……..
Alex:- Additionally, don't forget that you can't complete this mission without ensuring you've bagged all the bad guys. They'll quite often shoot off down the bottom left or top right corner of the map and set up on the oil derricks there. You need to make sure you take them out if this happens.
2: So who came up with the concept of Warzone 2100, the layout and the 3d and awesome camera?
Nick-
The original idea grew from a brainstorming session between Jim Bambra, Alex Mclean, and myself back in the summer of 1996. It was a game that we had all wanted to do for some time. We felt that the RTS market at that time was somewhat stagnant and that were many areas that could be improved. The movement into a three-dimensional environment was also a logical move. Combat in the real world takes place in three dimensions after all. Height and elevation play an important tactical part of Warzone 2100, as it does in real warfare. It is difficult to see how a 2D system, even when using a pseudo 3D look, could do this so well as a full 3D environment like Warzone’s.
Jim: In addition to a great single player game we also set out to create an exciting multiplayer game that we would continue to support and expand over the internet. We also wanted to give players lots of starting options, hence the different base set-ups and the add-on options of the starting the game at any of the three tech levels (watch out for CAM 3 tech trees next week).
3: How many hours (roughly) where put into this game's creation?
Nick-
It is easier to state this in terms of years. Let see that would be 45 man-years!
4: Everyone is saying this is the RTS game to have, To get that kind of recognition how does it feel? (Warzone 2100 has received higher marks then Star Craft, and Total Annihilation. (This is definitely something to say about Pumpkin Studios!)
Nick-
We are very proud about the critical acclaim that Warzone 2100 has received. One of the largest of the UK’s PC games mags, PC Gamer recently had an all time top 100 and Warzone was at number 15, the highest rated RTS game. Not bad for Pumpkin Studios first game. This sort of recognition is obviously what every developer hopes for and gives a real boost for a team when it happens. The other effect it is that it obviously creates a major incentive for us to strive for even greater heights in the future. Warzone 2100 is just the start. Expect to hear a lot from Pumpkin Studios as we continue to challenge the established order!
Alex:- It's great to get appreciative feedback and we've had that across the board here in the UK press for both the PC and PSX versions with review scores averaging around 90%. I think we've achieved in Warzone all we set out to. We'll continue to support it and make it even better. Already many of the suggestions that have appeared in the forum have made it into post-release versions of Warzone.
Jim: - It’s great to get the critical acclaim as it really helps to fire us up on best we can build and expand on the WZ experience. Knowing that there are gamers out there all with great ideas to include into WZ is also a buzz. We’ve got lots of great new stuff coming up in the next few months for WZ and it will all be available for download from the Pumpkin website.
5: What kind of info can you give us on the next Add-on pack for Warzone 2100? Also what is the next game in line in the Warzone 2100 series?
Nick-
Some of the updates have already been released. As people will know through the forum here, we actively seek out and listen to feedback and have tried wherever possible to act on this. Coming through very soon are some serious improvements to the Skirmish players. If a player sets the game to medium or hard, expect some very serious challenges. New maps are also coming through, including some of the large battle areas that people have been requesting. New units are also in the production process. There has been no end of great ideas from people on the forum.
Depending on how well Warzone 2100, does we would obviously hope to do a sequel. Watch this space regarding this one!
Alex:- Also, some of the newer maps have a very different look and feel to them. One in particular is very geometric and looks a lot like a spindizzy or marble madness level - look out for it in the near future.
Jim: - There’s some great stuff coming up in the next few months. In addition to Cam 3 tech and build order queing, there’s lots of cyborg reinforcements on the way, including thermite flamers, grenadiers, and the new super-cyborgs. These have heavy armor and carry heavier weapons such as medium cannons and assault cannons. If you never used cyborgs before these boys could very well be the ones that get you using them.
After that the NEXUS technologies will be available allowing players to steal technologies, capture units, and take over defensive structures. And the ultimate in WZ weaponry is coming soon - LasSats. If you finished Cam 3 single-player, you’ll know what I mean. If not you’ll just have to wait and see.
These are just a few of the new toys on the way - check back next Friday for a full list of what’s coming out in the next few months.
6: Who's idea was it to keep your base intact and have the map expand more as the missions go forward and always keeping the first base you built?
Jim - It was something I’d always wanted to do. Too many games have you build a great base only to take it away from you at the end of a mission. In WZ the base lasts from mission to mission which means you really care about it, plus you get to add new structures as the research progresses making your base and bigger and more impressive as the game moves on.
7: Is there ever going to be a possibility of a Unit Editor, or was the Design Unit feature added so this would never be an issue?
Nick-
The way the Unit Design works, means that we can basically release new components that can then be incorporated into the player’s designs. Part of the reason for doing the Unit Design the way we did was to allow for easy future expansion. We have some great things planned for this game!
8: How many Maps and Units does Pumpkin Studios plan to release, is there an set date to stop producing them?
Jim - Currently we are releasing two maps every two weeks. In June we begin the release of all the new units and technologies. At that point we shift to a monthly release schedule where we’ll release 3 maps per month. This is partly a basic QA resource issue, but also because we want people to have time to play with and assimilate the new updates. Also this helps avoid the logistic problems for MPlayer keeping up with the number of updates being released. Going to one update a month will ease this situation. We have some great plans for units coming through. In terms of numbers of units and maps, we will continue to support the game in this way for some time!
9: Is Warzone 2120 going to be just an add on pack or a whole new game, And what info can you provide about the project?
Nick-
If we go ahead with this project, it will be a whole new game.
10: We must ask who did the great New layout for the Pumpkin site?
Nick-
Pete Johnson (Senior Artist) and Pete Ball (IT Systems Manager). All the major revisions are very much down to their hard work.
11: What can we expect in the Patch, there seems to be some AI problems (minor) and a few other issues. Can you guys let us know what we can expect?
Jim - We’re working hard at fixing any problems that arise in the game. WZ has been such a huge project that a few areas slipped through the net. The forum has been brilliant at finding these and pinning them down. The skirmish AI has thrown up a few problems that are currently being fixed to make it a highly challenging game.
12: The support you guys have given the fans of the game is nothing short of "Un heard of" We would like to ask why, and will this continue?
Nick-
Okay this one is close to our hearts. I hope by now everybody who has followed this forum, realizes that for Pumpkin, Warzone has been a labor of love. It is simply not just another job for us. This is the game that we wanted to do for a long time. Like any proud father/mother, we were very anxious at the birth/launch of this game into the market. It matters to us, that people enjoy this game.
With many studios, there is far too much of a sense of them working in isolation from the people who actually play their games. This in my opinion, is short sighted.
It can be taken as read that at least initially the development team are the experts on playing the game. However, it doesn’t take long before this situation changes and fans can actually beat its creators (I know it has happened to me)! This often makes the fans real experts of the game and a rich source of ideas and feedback. In my opinion it’s crazy to ignore this.
Development teams should listen to their fans more than they do, we are after all, creating products which are intended to entertain! Hopefully Pumpkin Studios will help to set a new precedent with regard to the relationships between developers and their fan base. I hope so.
13: IS there any Expansion pack/Warzone 2120 Screen shots you guys can share with us for the readers?
Nick-
If we get the green light, then maybe quite soon!
14: Last part of the Warzone2100.com questions, Is there anything you guys would like to say to all the fans of the game?
Jim - Keep on playing WZ and give us feedback on the updates. WZ has lots of potential for new technologies to be added. Keep on telling us what you want, and we’ll do our best to deliver. We’re committed to making WZ the best multiplayer RTS, that means we need your opinions to help make it so. We’ve got a great game here - the plan is to make it even better.
Nick- Basically thanks for your continued support. We are actively addressing the major areas of feedback and improving the game still further. As I have stated elsewhere, we hope to make this product ‘King of the Hill’. With the improvements in the pipeline, which are very imminent, this is a very achievable objective!
Also spread the word. Warzone seems to have caught the market off guard. We are after all taking on the established order of the gaming universe. You never know, but with your help we could just pull it off!
Alex:- Thanks for all your support. When we hear feedback/suggestions and it's presented in a constructive way, we will take it on board and see if we can work those ideas into future releases. However, a lot of people need to release that we can't just add the feature they want in five minutes. These things need scheduling, assigning and testing. Some people often lose sight of this fact.
-Fan Submitted Questions-
Question: I heard that Pumpkin was throwing around the idea that they would release the AI code or some such allowing people to create their own skirmish AI opponents and perhaps holding tournaments pitting AI vs AI to see which was the best. Is this going to happen or not for Warzone 2100?
Alex:- We're still considering this. If we do it, then it needs to be presented in a easily accessible way and properly documented.
Question: Will there be a record mode in Warzone 2100/2120 allowing players to record their game for later playback like in Myth 1 and Myth 2? If not I'd love to see it implemented.
Alex:- Again, this is something we've talked about here. We'll see....!
Question: Are there any codes to remove the time limit?
Alex:- It's now a cheat code.
Question:Will there be a map editor for the game, and when will it be released?
Nick-
The map editor is currently being improved for release in a couple of months. We basically want it to be in a reasonably ‘friendly’ state before releasing it to the public!
Jim - Check the Pumpkin site on Friday 28th May for the release date!
Question:
Does the code in Warzone take advantage of the faster features of
the Pentium III in its 3D rendering? If not, will there be an update
for this?Alex:- No it doesn't. There's actually little to be gained in doing this since the drivers for the appropriate video cards should employ CPU-specific code to best use the processor in question. I'd expect nothing more than a marginal (if any) increase in actual framerate from doing render-specific code over and above what the driver's doing.
Question:
Was this game designed more for single player than mulitplayer?
Nick-
No, the multiplayer was designed in parallel with the single player game. However, the muliplayer game was designed to be expanded from day one, with new maps and units etc.
Alex:- From early days in development, the multiplayer code was in there. We didn't want to bolt on multiplayer code at the end. That kind of mistake can slow a games release or mean it never gets release.
Question: yes where is the 400 techs. that they advertise they sure aren't in the multiplayer version plus the maps for 4 players and up should be bigger is that in the plans where are the howizters I want my artillery not cheap mortars thanks great game too if it had the 400 techs. in multiplayer KANSAS I would like you to ask if this game is going to have a mission editor and if it is going to be able to have new units inserted in it and if these units can be 3rd party.
Nick-The Howitzers and Ripple Rockets have now been unlocked with the campaign 2 techs.
Jim - Cam 3 tech is available on Friday. Get those rail guns and missiles blasting.
Question: Great game, yes I am fond of understatement...but ( there's always a but
! ) the timer, give us a choice - you can always play the game slowly, with concentration -I HatE time limits, one eye on the clock, just like life - yuck !?! - it just ain't necessary and spoils a wonderful gaming experience. Even so this game is a joy - the best RTS so far - roll on the sequel.Nick-
The time cheats should give you the gaming experience you are hankering for!
Question: When will they unlock campaign two or three units in multiplayer when will they start releasing new technologies um when will they fix the europe mplayer problem?
Jim - see answers above
Question: In the screenshots it said debug on in the corner is there a debug code for warzone2100, and if so what is it?
Alex:- It was a debug mode that allowed us to do a lot of things in testing. You could put down units, structures, features, alter power levels, go into god mode etc etc etc. It's only available in code that has been debug compiled and not in the release version.
Question: Save Save Save!!! critical option for multiplayer games. The game is Fantastic but needs a save feature. Any plans for this?
Alex:- The save game feature is available for skirmish games on Friday.
Question: When you open the cover of the box ,there is a screen shot in the bottom left corner that is very odd.They are in the Design screen yet there seems to be many more chassis's then we have access to like the school bus. There is 4 menu's of chassis can please tell us what these screen shots are from?
Nick-
To do the screen shots they dropped into debug which enabled all the techs, including ones not normally open to the player. Maybe we could do this for a future update……….
Jim - If anyone’s interested in playing with the scavenger techs enabled, let us know. If there’s a big enough response we’ll unlock them for multiplayer.
Question: How much will does Warzone 2100 cost for playstation right now? And anytime soon will you be having a walkthu or guide to this game available? Thanks!!!
Nick-
Not sure what the stateside price will be. In the UK it is around £38.
Questions: I just got the game War Zone 2100 and love it . The graphics are really good ,the game is fun and you have alot of units that you not only get but you design and build. I think I'm in love. Here's my questions.
One is I'm in the desert as of now , and the scenery is kinda bland , are there other places that you fight in , and if so , what are they?
Nick-
The desert level, was intentionally left open to allow for fluid combat. If you compare it the urban levels you get a very different claustrophobic environment filled with buildings etc, to fight through. This makes for some very different gameplay. The mountain levels are different again. I think you will enjoy the range of combat options offered by the different environments.
Question: Are there any plans to allow saving in skirmish mode soon?
Alex:- It's done - being tested and will be out Friday
Question: On the PSX version of Warzone 2100, how many players does this game have? If it has more then one player, then would that mean you have to hook up two TV's and two Playstations in order to play with 2 players?
Nick-
Currently it is single player only, although we are actively considering other options for the future!