Forest Dweller
Smoking Dicks
- Joined
- Oct 29, 2008
- Messages
- 12,202
So, boys and girls, it's that time again. Next up are the developers of the new Deus Ex. So, DU, do you think you could send them an email asking for an interview? Because I have the questions.
As before, I'm posting them here first. If anyone has any corrections or suggestions, please let me know.
Unlike the Bethesda interview, this one isn't geared toward a specific person. Just anyone there who is in a position to adequately answer them. Also, unlike Bethesda, they don't have that kind of relationship with us, and they appear to have some Codexian sentiments, so these questions are less formal. They're certainly edgier as well. I figured that was okay considering who they are, but I can tone them down if people (i.e. the staff) think it's necessary.
Anyway, here they are:
As before, I'm posting them here first. If anyone has any corrections or suggestions, please let me know.
Unlike the Bethesda interview, this one isn't geared toward a specific person. Just anyone there who is in a position to adequately answer them. Also, unlike Bethesda, they don't have that kind of relationship with us, and they appear to have some Codexian sentiments, so these questions are less formal. They're certainly edgier as well. I figured that was okay considering who they are, but I can tone them down if people (i.e. the staff) think it's necessary.
Anyway, here they are:
- 1) First, tell me a little ahout yourself. And when I say tell me about yourself, I mean tell me what your role is on Human Revolution and what you’re directly responsible for. This way we’ll have someone to blame if the game doesn’t meet our expectations.
2) So, as we all know now, Human Revolution is a prequel to the original Deus Ex. One thing, of course, that Deus Ex is well known for is having three distinct endings that set the world on three very different paths. Deus Ex 2 tried to reconcile those three endings, but it was pretty half-ass and didn’t work that well. With that in mind, Deus Ex 1 has a story that begins with the world in a very specific place. I’m assuming (and I think this was mentioned by one of you at one point) that Human Revolution will also have different endings to choose from. If that’s the case, wouldn’t at least a few of those endings be incompatible with the opening of Deus Ex 1, or are they not as “momentous” as the choices in the first game? If they are incompatible, wouldn’t it have been a better idea to label Human Revolution as a reboot of the franchise, rather than an actual prequel?
3) Speaking of choices, you’ve done a good job so far of showing different ways to play the game, but we haven’t yet seen anything regarding story branching based on dialogue or actions taken throughout the game. Do you think you could give an example of one of those? Come on, give us something juicy.
4) For all its faults, there was one area where Deus Ex 2 improved on the original, and that was being more open-ended. From the beginning you had competing factions vying for your services. The only problem was that the game was too short to really flesh this out. Deus Ex is more linear in that regard, though of course there were choices to be made within that framework. Where does Human Revolution stand in regards to those two approaches?
5) Similar to the above question, will the progression of levels be linear like Deus Ex or will it be the hub-based structure of Deus Ex 2? Or something in between?
6) Okay, let’s talk about killing people. Deus Ex 1 let you kill almost anyone you came across, but there were a few invulnerable NPCs. Deus Ex 2 didn’t have anyone who was invulnerable, but they kept important NPCs alive by having them communicate to you at the beginning through hologram, as well as having various clubs that put a lock on your weapons before you entered. What’s the situation in Human Revolution? And what about kids?
7) I mentioned that Deus Ex 2 was too short earlier. It was about a 15 hour experience, whereas Deus Ex 1 was more like a 40 hour experience. So just how long is Human Revolution? Bonus points if you can avoid the usual “well it all depends on how you play” PR-speak.
8) Regarding mission objectives, it appears that at least some of them will have a time limit. One preview mentioned specifically that there is a mission to rescue hostages, and that if you dick around too much before undertaking the mission the hostages will be dead. Can we expect this kind of dynamic throughout the game, at least for those missions where it would make sense? And for those objectives that have it, will it be a binary success/fail outcome, or more of a gradient? Personally I think it’s pretty badass to have time limits even if it’s only for a few missions, since it adds a lot of believability to the world.
9) Okay, let’s turn to dialogue. In the leaked demonstration video, we can see Adam Jensen having a conversation with a bartender, who later turns out to be Tong. The writing was quite good, but I noticed that in that (rather lengthy) conversation there was only one dialogue option. Is this the standard for conversations of that length?
10) Like recent RPGs such as Mass Effect and Alpha Protocol, Human Revolution uses a paraphrase system for relaying dialogue options to the player. So what do you think is special about your system that sets it apart from those other games? Also, one preview hinted at NPC responses being somewhat randomized. Care to elaborate on that? The more details the better.
11) Social skills have been mentioned as part of the game, but no details have as of yet been forthcoming. What are these social skills, and how do they function?
12) And speaking of skills, it looks like both skills and augmentations have been rolled into one, for a grand total of 21 augmentations - correct me if I’m wrong. Can you go into a little more detail on these? Does each skill/aug have its own tech tree, or is it a straight level-by-level progression? Are there any branching options and/or mutually exclusive choices to make?
13) Alright, let’s turn to combat. First thing on the agenda: health regen. So, regeneration has obviously been confirmed, though exact details have not been forthcoming. It is stated that it “won’t be like CoD,” but doesn’t go into any more detail. So let’s just cut the bullshit and get right to it - how long does it take for regeneration to kick in and how fast does it work? For a reference, The Witcher is a game that had slow health regeneration. If you’ve played that game, can you compare it to the regeneration in Human Revolution?
14) Concerning the cover system, the FAQ states that it is optional and that you can either choose to activate it or not when you approach an object. Does this mean that sticking in first person and crouching behind the object is just as viable? It seems like you wouldn’t be able to do that special roll from object to object, which is fine except that crouch-running in first person would probably be slower. And it’s been confirmed that there is no lean. So would first-person really work as well?
15) What about takedowns? Can you do them in first-person as well, or will they always be in third?
16) Regarding enemy AI, it has been revealed that enemies are made up of squads which each have a leader. This is an interesting mechanic and I’d like to know more about it. What effects does the leader have on his squad, and how does taking him out improve your situation? And how are you able to pick out the squad leader?
17) It has also been stated that guards will become more alert if they detect an unconscious companion. What exactly will they do, and does this extend to being able to detect if a guard hasn’t returned from a patrol yet? Also, do guards ever call for reinforcements?
18) Another question about detection: how does the alarm system in Human Revolution work? The problem with alarms in most games (Deus Ex included) is that guards usually have a very short memory, so a player usually just needs to sit tight and wait for things to return to normal. Is Human Revolution taking any steps to address this issue?
19) Concerning platforms, Human Revolution was announced from the beginning as being on consoles in addition to PC. However, there was a rumor at one point during the game’s development that it was being elevated to PC only, due to it’s “complexity” or something along those lines. We now know that’s not the case, but I was wondering if there was any truth to that rumor. Was it ever considered making Human Revolution a PC exclusive, and if so, what made you change your mind? Was anything altered during development to make it suitable for consoles again?
20) Finally, I’d like to point out that there is a lot about Human Revolution that sounds appealing. An emphasis on the design tenants of the first game, choices and consequences, time limits…gosh, it sounds like you’re actually trying to make a decent game. With that in mind, what is your opinion of today’s dumbed-down market, and how do you see Human Revolution fitting into that?