Meta:Two Worlds Vault - James Seaman Interview

This Q&A was posted to the website twoworldsvault.ign.com by jiggyj on August 2, 2007.

Questions and Answers

Two Worlds Vault got to recently ask James Seaman - Managing Director at Topware Interactive - some general questions about what players can expect when Two Worlds launches for the PC and Xbox 360. Here is what he had to say:

IGN: How long is the single player adventure expected to be if you simply played it from one story point to the next? How long is it expected to be if you complete everything in the game you possibly can?

James Seaman: If you were to burn through the game, focusing only on the main quest, you could probably finish Two Worlds in 20 to 30 hours. Completing every side quest in the game would take between 50 to 70 hours. So all told, you’re looking at a 20 to 100 hour gaming experience depending on what you want to accomplish…and that’s not including the online multiplayer experience.

IGN: Are there going to be multiple endings to the game depending on certain decisions the player makes, or will all players playing the game eventually reach the same game conclusion?

James Seaman: Absolutely, I don’t want to give anything away, but the decisions you make in the game will definitely affect the ending. You’ll have to be very cautious when you’re playing through the game to keep yourself aware of how you are progressing and how you could be steering your fate, even unwittingly.

IGN: How deep is the character creation system of the game going to be in terms of being able to choose your physical appearance so there aren't carbon copies of each other running through the game? Of course, not taking in the fact that armor decision will later on dictate appearance.

James Seaman: In the single-player game, you can alter your physical appearance, but only by so much. We’ve designed the story in Two Worlds around your character very specifically, to the point where if you didn’t have certain physical characteristics some plot points wouldn’t make sense. However, in online multiplayer we’ve completely removed all restrictions. You can be male or female, human or another race, skinny or fat, beautiful or ugly, and so on.

IGN: The lasting effects of your moral choices in the game is going to affect the world a great deal, such as the sample used on the Two Worlds website where you let Orcs invade a town and they take it over. Can you give another example of how your actions will change the world like this, and exactly how deep is this system going to go? Are there only a scattering of these moments throughout the game, or is the whole game built around the idea that what you do affects things in this manner?

James Seaman: Literally everything that you do will have an effect on the world, from simply having a battle with enemy creatures to life or death decisions made at the drop of a hat – you’ll see repercussions for it all. Ultimately any and all decisions that you make in the game can come back to either help or hinder you in your ultimate goal. This is the unique tinge we’ve built into Two Worlds; we want people to really think about everything that they do, even when having casual conversation. The reputation system keeps track of your good and bad deeds, and you’ll see the NPCs reacting to you accordingly. If you are a known criminal, you won’t be allowed into cities; in fact you’ll be hunted. On the other hand, if you’re a known hero of sorts, people will seek you out for help with their problems. This has other repercussions as well, since as a criminal you may miss out on some quests, whereas a hero may miss out on some of the more dubious tasks that await you in Antaloor.

IGN: In games like Oblivion the replay comes from rolling new characters as different classes, but you can be everything in Two Worlds at once. What's the game going to offer in terms of replayability?

James Seaman: Well for one thing, even if you’ve managed to take on the main quest, there is a TON of side quests in the game, but besides that we’ve included multiplayer as well. With the online multiplayer available on PC and Xbox 360, you’ll be able to play specialized quests with friends online for as long as you’d like. It’s a nice feature because it breaks up the gameplay – if you’re tired of playing through the quests for the day, take a breather and go get your game on with your friends online. Additionally, PC gamers will have an MMO feature that will allow them to play online with thousands of other players – for free!

IGN: Can you talk a little about where the weapon stacking system came from and how it was implemented? Also, is there a limit to how much you can weapon stack, where there just comes a point where you can't improve it anymore?

James Seaman: In many RPG’s out there you find yourself with a surplus of goods in your inventory almost regularly which, means you have to sell things or even worse – drop them – if you need room. We never really liked the idea of losing items, especially those we liked and wanted to save for later. That’s really why we thought stacking might be a great way to get around it while incorporating a cool new system into the gameplay. You can pretty much stack to your heart’s content. There is an eventual damage cap on all weapons, but it’s universal. It may take you 1000 low level swords to reach it, but maybe only 750 higher level swords, depending on which weapon you’re using. Even when you get to a point where stacking isn’t doing anything for you – you can always incorporate gems into your weapons, which will add on additional damage or status effects. For example, I like to use fire gems on my swords as they give it a wicked burning sting every time you hit an enemy, but there are also spirit, ice and poison gems at your disposal – it’s up to you how and where you want to use them.

IGN: Will later weapons you receive in the game ever be more powerful than the potential of your very first weapon just stacked multiple times? How are you balancing weapon stacking with the experience of finding new, more powerful weapons?

James Seaman: You can stack weapons almost infinitely in the game, but there isn’t a pre-made superweapon in the game that will supersede all others. There’s a certain skill involved in stacking and building up weapons that we wanted to keep in the game. You will find weapons as you go along in the game, some of which are so powerful that you’ll need to exceed a certain level in order to even equip it. It’s a choice that players will need to make – would they rather stack a low-level weapon 100 times or wait until they find the next big thing and then drop a weapon they’ve been nurturing since early on? It’s all part of the decisions and choices you’ll be faced with throughout the game. ;)

IGN: How many different magic "booster cards" are in the game and how will players go about acquiring them? Are "booster cards" one-time usage cards, or are you going to be able to remove a card from a spell if you find that combo isn't working, or you want to apply it to something else instead?

James Seaman: Booster cards can be purchased or found just like regular magic cards. They are permanent cards that’ll allow you to augment your existing “main” magic cards. For example, if you have a Firebolt and add on a Mana reducer booster card – you’ll incur less mana cost each time you utilize the spell. You’ll be able to jockey these cards as much as you’d like, trading their positions amongst your equipped spells as you see fit.

IGN: How is the combat system going to play out on both the PC and Xbox 360 version? The game isn't turn-based, but it isn't fully real-time either, thanks to its "half automatic" combat system. When we run up to our first enemy, how is combat going to play out in front of our eyes?

James Seaman: In both versions of the game, the combat system is virtually the same, the only difference is what’s in your hands controlling the action. The first enemy you approach will most likely see you running up and charge you first! Once you get within swinging range, attack them and watch how it goes! The AI is trained to use all of its faculties to fight you off and (if it can) defeat you. You’ll have to keep on your toes as they know some dirty tricks (such as kicking dirt in your eyes) and they’re not afraid to use them. It’s up to you to dodge these attacks (there is a dodge feature) and get the upper hand against them, but beware – they can dodge too! You’ll have to use a combination of both melee and magic skills to keep yourself alive as you battle it out with the enemies that you encounter. As you get higher in level and gain more skill points you’ll be able to unlock and improve special abilities that are “automatic” such as strong hand (which can break an enemy’s defenses) that will take effect during battle. These abilities will become more frequently used as you upgrade the abilities and increase their percentages.

IGN: What are the controls for both the Xbox 360 and PC version going to be in terms of general control? Movement, menu navigation, items, combat, etc.?

James Seaman: The PC version is exactly what you’d expect – WASD controlling movement with the mouse controlling your view and action (via the Left button). For the most part you can navigate the menus using your mouse, clicking on icons to move between your status window, inventory, magics and map screen as well as your mission objectives page. You’ll also be able to hot-key a number of different abilities and switch to them with a single keystroke. For example you’ll be able to quick-change weapons, attach a spell to your right mouse button or hotkey a trap to the number “4” if you’d like – the choice is yours. We have a similar control scheme in the 360 version; you’ll be able to hotkey certain skills, magic and weapons to a central circle that will allow you the same dexterity and options during gameplay as in the PC version. The general control scheme is what you’d expect with the left stick controlling movement, right stick controlling camera/aiming. The menu’s will be handled in a similar way to the PC version, where you’ll be able to explore each page in depth with your left stick and move/combine/equip with no more than clicking the X button. Overall it’s a very intuitive control scheme that keeps the game fun and still offers a great deal of depth for the hardcore RPG’er.

IGN: What's the Xbox 360 version of the game going to offer in terms of Achievements?

James Seaman: We’ve built in a ton of achievements from the simple like reaching certain levels, gaining new skill points to defeating monsters – we’ve got it all. If you want some specifics, we have things like Learn 5 skills, Reached skill level 10, Discovered 20 Locations, Visited all black towers, etc. Anything that’s worthy of an achievement, we’ve included.

IGN: One of the big monster types of the game are the dragons, who haven't really been used in games like Two Worlds all that much. How did the decision to include dragons come into play, and what's going to separate them from the rest of the beasts in the game? Are these rarer monsters in the game, harder monsters, more gigantic than the rest – what makes the dragons so special?

James Seaman: First of all, if you think about it how you can possibly have a medieval fantasy game without having dragons, to me it's heresy! There are a few different types of dragons in the game to give you some variation, but overall they’re rare creatures that you’ll only find in certain areas. Sand Dragons (which are the only type we’ve shown via trailer or screenshot) can be found in the desert areas, whereas you’ll find Lava Dragons and Stone Dragons in other locales. These guys are really tough, and they’re known for their fireball, which can be deadly to the unprepared warrior