13pm
Water Chip? Been There, Done That
Playstation the Official Magazine posted their top 10 PS3 games for 2008. Fallout 3 is #5 and there's a short Q&A with Emil Pagliarulo on it. Some tidbits are transcribed and posted at GameFAQs board:
<blockquote>PTOM (Playstation the Official Magazine): For a Playstation audience whose only contact with the "Fallout" franchise might be BoS, what is Fallout, in a nutshell?
EP(Emil): "Fallout," as a franchise, is all about finding your way in an open-ended, post-apocalyptic world. There's good, there's evil, and there's everything in between. So for the player, it's all about doing what you want, how you want. There's always a greater good, a sense of nobility and selfless purpose that you can champion... if you want. If you wander through the rubble and be a complete ass, well, you can do that, too!
"Fallout" is also different from other post-apocalyptic settings in that the America that got destroyed wasn't our America, not as we know it today. It was the year 2077, and the country had developed into a much more of a 50's version of the future. You know, the "World of Tomorrow" ideal. Women with the beehive haircuts were driving around with their robots in nuclear-powered cars- and then they all blew up.
PTOM: Your resume includes the "Thief" series and "Oblivion" (particularly Dark Brotherhood quests,) so you like the sneak-and-stab style of gameplay?
EP: I love the subtlety of that type of gameplay, taking a break from the frenetic action to approach a scenario more methodically. So yeah, playing the sneaking, back-stabbing type of character is very possible in "Fallout 3." In fact, there's a particular stealth tactic made infamous in the previous "Fallout" games, and we're really psyched to have that in "Fallout 3." I'll give you a hint- it involves pockets and explosives.
Ah, and there are a couple of new Perks (special abilities you choose when leveling up) I think stealth-loving players are going to really enjoy...
PTOM: Given your experience with open-world game designs, what is the extra firepower of next-gen technology allowing you to do for gameplay, above and beyond the obvious graphical enhancements?
EP: Great question. I'll admit I've become much more of a graphics whore than I used to be, but I still take rich gameplay experiences and immersion over anisotropic filtering and specular mapping any day. So for me, it's all about using the tech to make the worlds more believable. Shiny graphics help with that, but so does full audio for every character, our Radiant AI system for a full range of character behaviors with full 24/7 schedules, and the ability to make worlds as large as they want. With today's tech, the little sandbox becomes an entire playground. For a game designer, that's a dream come true.
PTOM: How many creature designs did you produce for the bestiary? Any particularly dumb ideas that are worth recounting for comedic value?
EP: You know, honestly, it really wasn't like that. We had such a great roster of baddies to draw from already; the selection process was actually pretty smooth. So we've got lots of existing "Fallout" creatures, from the vicious Deathclaws to the brutish Supermutants. For those classics, our job is making sure we do them justice, making sure we bring them to life on next-gen platforms in ways that are consistent and respectful to the source material. And any time we've created a new character, we've been bound by the same principles. Does this fit into "Fallout?" Does this match the vibe of our unique world?</blockquote>Link: Fallout 3 Q&A transcription at Gamefaqs board.
Thanks scabble.
<blockquote>PTOM (Playstation the Official Magazine): For a Playstation audience whose only contact with the "Fallout" franchise might be BoS, what is Fallout, in a nutshell?
EP(Emil): "Fallout," as a franchise, is all about finding your way in an open-ended, post-apocalyptic world. There's good, there's evil, and there's everything in between. So for the player, it's all about doing what you want, how you want. There's always a greater good, a sense of nobility and selfless purpose that you can champion... if you want. If you wander through the rubble and be a complete ass, well, you can do that, too!
"Fallout" is also different from other post-apocalyptic settings in that the America that got destroyed wasn't our America, not as we know it today. It was the year 2077, and the country had developed into a much more of a 50's version of the future. You know, the "World of Tomorrow" ideal. Women with the beehive haircuts were driving around with their robots in nuclear-powered cars- and then they all blew up.
PTOM: Your resume includes the "Thief" series and "Oblivion" (particularly Dark Brotherhood quests,) so you like the sneak-and-stab style of gameplay?
EP: I love the subtlety of that type of gameplay, taking a break from the frenetic action to approach a scenario more methodically. So yeah, playing the sneaking, back-stabbing type of character is very possible in "Fallout 3." In fact, there's a particular stealth tactic made infamous in the previous "Fallout" games, and we're really psyched to have that in "Fallout 3." I'll give you a hint- it involves pockets and explosives.
Ah, and there are a couple of new Perks (special abilities you choose when leveling up) I think stealth-loving players are going to really enjoy...
PTOM: Given your experience with open-world game designs, what is the extra firepower of next-gen technology allowing you to do for gameplay, above and beyond the obvious graphical enhancements?
EP: Great question. I'll admit I've become much more of a graphics whore than I used to be, but I still take rich gameplay experiences and immersion over anisotropic filtering and specular mapping any day. So for me, it's all about using the tech to make the worlds more believable. Shiny graphics help with that, but so does full audio for every character, our Radiant AI system for a full range of character behaviors with full 24/7 schedules, and the ability to make worlds as large as they want. With today's tech, the little sandbox becomes an entire playground. For a game designer, that's a dream come true.
PTOM: How many creature designs did you produce for the bestiary? Any particularly dumb ideas that are worth recounting for comedic value?
EP: You know, honestly, it really wasn't like that. We had such a great roster of baddies to draw from already; the selection process was actually pretty smooth. So we've got lots of existing "Fallout" creatures, from the vicious Deathclaws to the brutish Supermutants. For those classics, our job is making sure we do them justice, making sure we bring them to life on next-gen platforms in ways that are consistent and respectful to the source material. And any time we've created a new character, we've been bound by the same principles. Does this fit into "Fallout?" Does this match the vibe of our unique world?</blockquote>Link: Fallout 3 Q&A transcription at Gamefaqs board.
Thanks scabble.
... Having been already stated that the char's dad is good and that the char MUST love him, the fact that you can play an "evil" game brings me to this conclusion: you can't play as a char with mental retardness, but you can play as a char with mental disorders.
