Once again I had the privilege of being invited to a developer Q&A conference call. The call was regarding Saboteur, the upcoming release from Pandemic Studios. The game is based on stealth play and is a story centered on a single man trapped behind enemy lines in 1940's Paris.
Below are excerpts from the interview with Phil Hong (Saboteur Producer) and Trey Watkins (Saboteur Director) of Saboteur. A big thanks to Ryan Jones from Access Communications for organizing and moderating the call. Questions were pre-submitted by the Editors attending. All questions and answers are paraphrased unless direct quotes are used:
++++++++++++++++
MOD = Ryan asking the question
PAN = Phil and Trey paraphrased answer
MOD - The WWII genera has been beat to death? What makes Saboteur different and distinct?
PAN - We do not consider ourselves a WWII game, just happen to be set there. The game is about a guy and his personal story is set in WWII. He goes on a personal mission to get his vengeance, set against the backdrop of WWII. The uniqueness is in the story, which is personal revenge story (Paris on eve of Nazi invasion). Trying to do 3rd person open-world game, something fresh.
MOD - With so much effort into the game ("Will to fight" color scheming, large interactive world), is this the biggest game Pandemic has made?
PAN - It is really big and used more resources than any game previous to this....however, making open world game for next-gen consoles takes many resources. It was a team effort with members from across the entire Pandemic game line assisting.
MOD - How does Bioware's partnerships work out with this?
PAN - Bioware has given the ability to use things Bioware is good at (Story telling, etc) and is an amazing opportunity from both companies to share ideas and attack next-gen consoles. Probably categorize it as a Peer review.
MOD - How did the overall idea of Saboteur come about and in this setting?
PAN - It was a great market opportunity...with few games that played up fantasy and gameplay of stealth, undercover and behind enemy lines. It felt like a play for a sweet spot in market. Inspiration came from a character in a book. That inspired our hero (Sean, who is Irish and a Ducati race car driver in WWII era). Open world and WWII haven't been done, so took a fresh approach to tell one man's story in unique setting, which happens to be behind enemy lines. The "Will to fight" system was influenced by Sin City (Visual interpretation of it)
MOD - How does the "Will to fight" play into liberation of certain parts of the city?
PAN - Areas of the city will switch from black and white to color when liberated....Players will see the world visibly change (real time) as missions accomplished. It is a very simple visual reference for the player, helping them find where to go. Powerful symbolism.
MOD - As a saboteur, what sort of missions and acts can we expect?
PAN - Stopping Nazi weapons train, assassinations, fist fight on Eiffel Tower, high action moments. It is like a cult thriller being juiced up...but it isn't designed around blowing everything up. Players must identify weaknesses, find back door, stealth kill, disable an alarm, then they can start blazing away...
MOD - Talk about the fighting style, what type of combative techniques?
PAN - Primarily up close and personal, bar-fight style. Based on the setting, there are no round house type kicks. You can pummel, elbow, head butt, kick to the groin. Basically, use dirty street fighting tactics of an Irish brawler. As the Nazi's observe you (they are just occupying) escalating violence, then they will turn the gunplay on your character.
MOD - Can we expect vehicular action?
PAN - Yes, if you can see it you can get in it. Tanks, cars, motorcycles, bikes, airplanes, boats....
MOD - Is the "Clamoring system" real simple to use?
PAN - Sean is extreme dexterous and can move easily across roofs. Uses it to his advantage. Scales wall when Nazi patrol on street. He is somewhat acrobatic, can hang from ledges, scurry up drainpipes Guys is physically adept.
MOD - Talk about the faster feel of stealth action.
PAN - Suspicion impacts the overall game play mechanics. How Nazis perceive you in the world and the things you do raises their suspicion. Clamoring can be used to get around patrols and provide that stealthy feel.
MOD - Anything else you wanted to add?
PAN - We were not into doing dead body maintenance. We wanted to make stealth feel fast and happening in the world. give players the freedom to move and not feel frustrated. It creates more challenges in the environment...
A few other comments picked up from after the interview:
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Below are excerpts from the interview with Phil Hong (Saboteur Producer) and Trey Watkins (Saboteur Director) of Saboteur. A big thanks to Ryan Jones from Access Communications for organizing and moderating the call. Questions were pre-submitted by the Editors attending. All questions and answers are paraphrased unless direct quotes are used:
++++++++++++++++
MOD = Ryan asking the question
PAN = Phil and Trey paraphrased answer
MOD - The WWII genera has been beat to death? What makes Saboteur different and distinct?
PAN - We do not consider ourselves a WWII game, just happen to be set there. The game is about a guy and his personal story is set in WWII. He goes on a personal mission to get his vengeance, set against the backdrop of WWII. The uniqueness is in the story, which is personal revenge story (Paris on eve of Nazi invasion). Trying to do 3rd person open-world game, something fresh.
MOD - With so much effort into the game ("Will to fight" color scheming, large interactive world), is this the biggest game Pandemic has made?
PAN - It is really big and used more resources than any game previous to this....however, making open world game for next-gen consoles takes many resources. It was a team effort with members from across the entire Pandemic game line assisting.
MOD - How does Bioware's partnerships work out with this?
PAN - Bioware has given the ability to use things Bioware is good at (Story telling, etc) and is an amazing opportunity from both companies to share ideas and attack next-gen consoles. Probably categorize it as a Peer review.
MOD - How did the overall idea of Saboteur come about and in this setting?
PAN - It was a great market opportunity...with few games that played up fantasy and gameplay of stealth, undercover and behind enemy lines. It felt like a play for a sweet spot in market. Inspiration came from a character in a book. That inspired our hero (Sean, who is Irish and a Ducati race car driver in WWII era). Open world and WWII haven't been done, so took a fresh approach to tell one man's story in unique setting, which happens to be behind enemy lines. The "Will to fight" system was influenced by Sin City (Visual interpretation of it)
MOD - How does the "Will to fight" play into liberation of certain parts of the city?
PAN - Areas of the city will switch from black and white to color when liberated....Players will see the world visibly change (real time) as missions accomplished. It is a very simple visual reference for the player, helping them find where to go. Powerful symbolism.
MOD - As a saboteur, what sort of missions and acts can we expect?
PAN - Stopping Nazi weapons train, assassinations, fist fight on Eiffel Tower, high action moments. It is like a cult thriller being juiced up...but it isn't designed around blowing everything up. Players must identify weaknesses, find back door, stealth kill, disable an alarm, then they can start blazing away...
MOD - Talk about the fighting style, what type of combative techniques?
PAN - Primarily up close and personal, bar-fight style. Based on the setting, there are no round house type kicks. You can pummel, elbow, head butt, kick to the groin. Basically, use dirty street fighting tactics of an Irish brawler. As the Nazi's observe you (they are just occupying) escalating violence, then they will turn the gunplay on your character.
MOD - Can we expect vehicular action?
PAN - Yes, if you can see it you can get in it. Tanks, cars, motorcycles, bikes, airplanes, boats....
MOD - Is the "Clamoring system" real simple to use?
PAN - Sean is extreme dexterous and can move easily across roofs. Uses it to his advantage. Scales wall when Nazi patrol on street. He is somewhat acrobatic, can hang from ledges, scurry up drainpipes Guys is physically adept.
MOD - Talk about the faster feel of stealth action.
PAN - Suspicion impacts the overall game play mechanics. How Nazis perceive you in the world and the things you do raises their suspicion. Clamoring can be used to get around patrols and provide that stealthy feel.
MOD - Anything else you wanted to add?
PAN - We were not into doing dead body maintenance. We wanted to make stealth feel fast and happening in the world. give players the freedom to move and not feel frustrated. It creates more challenges in the environment...
A few other comments picked up from after the interview:
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