Editing Meta:A Brave new World for RPGs

This '''Q&A''' was posted to the website pc.ign.com by Rob Burman on March 28, 2007.<ref>http://web.archive.org/web/20070502071728/http://pc.ign.com/articles/772/772362p1.html</ref><ref>http://web.archive.org/web/20070524035529/http://pc.ign.com/articles/772/772362p2.html</ref><ref>https://www.rpgwatch.com/news/two-worlds--interview-ign-4428.html</ref>

==Questions and Answers==
A Brave new World for RPGs: IGN catches up with Alexandra Constandache, producer on Reality Pump's ambitious RPG, Two Worlds.

UK, March 28, 2007 - It's no surprise role-playing titles are some of the most popular games around. Clearly, compared to the tedium of the daily commute, pre-packed sandwiches and dress-down Fridays, the chance to don a pair of funny ears, fight a dragon and give yourself a name that sounds a bit like a Welsh holiday camp is a breath of fresh air.

Two Worlds, by Polish developer Reality Pump, is the latest game vying for the attention of RPG fans. Aiming to be "the pinnacle of its genre" and "the most dynamic and complex free-roaming RPG available", expectations for Two Worlds are high. It certainly has a lot of potential though, thanks to its massive world affected by the actions of players, a detailed career system that helps characters develop uniquely and an online element for those that want to hurl spells around with friends.

Ahead of the game's UK release in May, we clashed swords with producer Alexandra Constandache to discover more about Two Worlds.

'''IGN''': How difficult is it to create an original and interesting fantasy RPG in a very competitive market?

'''Alexandra Constandache''': The key to creating a truly original and interesting game is letting your own creativity take flight and delving deeper into your ideas, fleshing out details and giving them substance. We wanted to develop Two Worlds because of this. We wanted something that would give us a challenge and pull the player into the world with a real sense of fantasy. The game is a living, breathing world that has some of the most stunning weather and visual effects to date. We've even made the world 'feel' right by having it react to every decision and action made by the player. Alongside this we have multiplayer gameplay that gives players enough depth to keep them happily gaming for months and months.


'''IGN''': The game has seen a slight delay in America and Europe. What's the reason for this?

'''Alexandra Constandache''': Being gamers ourselves, we know what it's like to wait for a title, just to have it rushed and disappoint in the end. A perfect game takes time and we want to make sure that when Two Worlds is released, every moment we spent on the game is worth it and they result in the highest quality game we could possibly make. No other RPG has included multiplayer aspects like we've got and we also want to make sure that, straight of the box, the game is ready for action.


'''IGN''': How large is the map in Two Worlds?

'''Alexandra Constandache''': We have created a huge continent for players to discover. They will find forests, snow-covered mountains, rivers, deserts and even a sprawling underworld. The raw numbers are approximately 30 square kilometres of surface space and roughly 25 kilometres in the dungeons. As you can see, that's quite a bit of land to traverse but we've found an excellent balance between giving players the freedom to roam in combination with well-presented quests. They won't have to stray far to find a quest.


'''IGN''': Explain your unique approach to levelling-up stats in Two Worlds? Do you think there's an element of laziness in the way developers approach this particular aspect of their games?

'''Alexandra Constandache''': Two Worlds isn't about blindly fighting monsters and automatic upgrades. Instead, everything about your character is at your command. When you reach a new level you are rewarded with skill points that can be allocated as you see fit. If you are a warrior and you know you're going to be fighting on horseback, you want to increase your riding skill as well as your strength. If you are a mage, then you would increase your willpower and increase your Magic skills. Everything in the game has a natural and, more importantly, visible result. As you increase riding abilities, you are able to gallop, ride while fighting and even wield weapons in both hands while remaining mounted.

I don't think it's an issue of developers being lazy when it comes to leveling up, but more of 'simplifying'. I don't think anyone has found a good balance between customising characters while still having a user-friendly interface. But we've worked very hard to make sure that players have all the information they need right in front of them when they are making decisions on what to upgrade, no matter what direction they choose.


'''IGN''': We interviewed Pete Hines from Bethesda and he said that The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion didn't have an MMO element because it would spoil the single-player game. Presumably, you'd disagree with Hines' comment that "if you want an MMO buy an MMO, don't buy an RPG with an online mode tacked on"?

'''Alexandra Constandache''': I don't think that the inclusion of an MMO element spoils the story mode at all. They have almost no impact on each other whatsoever. In creating Two Worlds we wanted to make an immersive single-player campaign and give players the opportunity to play together online. Our solution to this was to create two separate gameplay modes. The single player game will be just that: a solo experience within the world - meeting NPCs and discovering the true destiny of your character. While the multiplayer offers players a wide range of races to choose from, plus new and different campaigns.

The story mode gives MMO players a reason to experience Two Worlds for its story as well as opening the world of MMO gaming to more traditional players. Everything that we're working on is for the benefit of the players and replay value will be almost limitless with an MMO element added into the game.

For developers this is a daunting task. It is essentially double the work - and we should know, because we're doing it. We're not creating a single-player game with an online mode that just recycles quests and adds more people. We're giving players two games in one. We're well aware of the amount of work that goes into developing such an expansive multiplayer element in addition to an epic story mode, but it's all worth it to us. I think Pete Hines is right in some ways: if you're expecting an MMO from a game touting 'online multiplayer' then you shouldn't buy it - but if they specify 'MMO', I see no reason not to look into it.


'''IGN''': At the moment the MMO mode has only been confirmed for PC. Can you explain some of the differences between the Xbox 360 multiplayer experience and the PC one? Potentially could X360 and PC owners play together?

'''Alexandra Constandache''': The PC is going to have an MMO element as it is much simpler at our end to set that up because everything is controlled by us. The real grey area is getting a console online. There is a lot of technical lingo and jargon, plus all the legal talk that goes on behind the scenes and that's where we're hitting a bit of a wall right now. In a perfect world, we would love to have PC and 360 owners playing together but right now details are muddy and the paper trails are very, very long.


'''IGN''': Are you planning on releasing downloadable content for either the 360 or PC version? Do you think there is too much pressure on developers at the moment to ensure they include some sort of downloadable content? Are developers holding back content to make more money at a later date?

'''Alexandra Constandache''': I don't think there's a ton of pressure on us to have downloadable content. I mean, if you think about it, developers have been offering 'downloads' to add/fix/complete games after release for years. I think the fact more consoles are now online is why people are finally starting to make a big deal about it. We are definitely going to have downloadable content for the PC version of the game.

For us, none of what we're doing is a money making scheme - we've spent over three years developing this game, we don't need a gimmick to make it a success. In general, I think downloadable content can be handled in two ways - either you do it for free because you are thankful to the people who have bought the game and invested so much into it, or you charge money. I think you can see where I stand on that issue.

==External Sources==
<references />

[[Category:Archive]]
[[Category:Interviews]]
[[Category:Pre-Release]]
[[Category:2007 Interviews]]
[[Category:Alexandra Constandache Interviews]]
[[Category:English Interviews]]
[[Category:Two Worlds Interviews]]
[[Category:Article Interviews]]