PALGN: Firstly, can you please introduce yourself and your role on Two Worlds?
Miroslaw Dymek: My name is Miroslaw Dymek, Technical Director of Reality Pump. We are an established game developer, best known for the award winning Earth 21x0 RTS games. Our team has released quality games for more than 10 years. My job as Technical Director was supervising the development and designing of Two Worlds.
PALGN:Overall How has the game been received in Germany?
MD:Outstanding! We topped the sales charts of various organizations during the first three weeks after release. We are still in the Top 10 and looking forward to staying there for a while.
PALGN: What kind of feedback have you had from German gamers so far and how have you taken this on board for the releases in the rest of the world?
MD:Corresponding to the great sales, we also get a lot of feedback from the community. Role playing fans are especially interested in “their” game and forwarded a lot of interesting suggestions to us. Therefore we could make the game even better with some updates in the last few months. All these updates will be implemented into the upcoming console version of course.
Enter the door if you dare.
PALGN: Who wrote the story for the game?
MD:The idea of making an RPG was with us for several years and comes right from the heart. We just knew what we wanted to do it and what it would take. We’re excited and happy, and you know, all that stuff, but, well, it was so natural that we finally make an RPG. It had to happen sooner or later; too many RPG fans are the core members of the team. Of course we also hired a professional story writer who brought our ideas to life in the game.
PALGN: How can players influence the story, and what effect does this have on the game's longterm appeal?
MD:We attached great importance to a free world. There is no single reward for exploration. We lure the player with new, useful skills, equipment and tasks. Basically, we try to set the atmosphere of unveiling some kind of mystery, or rather several mysteries. Some of these mysteries are very important for the story, some of them constitute the world, but the players will have to search for the answers themselves. The more they seek, the more they learn. We base it here more on curiosity than pure economics, but still, the collecting/ upgrading/ powering motives will be as developed and engaging, as it is possible. There will be a kind of a guideline of course.
There is quite a lot interaction with NPC mainly through dialog, but some situations will force you to make a decision within a certain (small) amount of time. Taking no action is also a decision. For example, there is a situation where one of your employers is being hanged. Will you attack the guards and save him, kill him with your own hands, or just observe the executioner doing his job. Whatever you choose, the decision will resound with serious consequences later in the game.
PALGN: How does the character skill tree work, and what kinds of choices can players make using this?
MD:There are clearly defined classes like Warrior, Archer or Magician; but only in multiplayer mode. Singleplayer mode presents a human hero with free character development; so all the skills are equally available. The sheer number of development options is huge, and the same time the number of skill points is definitely smaller so that no two characters should be the same. It is up to the player where he wants to invest his points. Depending on his choice, the character develops in a certain direction.
PALGN: Why was it important for you to allow players to reverse decisions made in the skill tree?
MD:As in any role playing game, the character you control grows as you play. While you cannot reverse your choices that regard basic attributes (strength, dexterity etc.), the skill points that have already been spent can be recovered. Not for free of course! That would be no fun. Such move costs a fair amount of money, but it is worthwhile. Especially when you come to understanding that certain skills are not your style and different ones could be much more useful. Because the whole process requires a lot of effort to collect the necessary amount of money, it should be treated as alternative way to character development based on different mechanics and adding a bit more flexibility.
Oh look, a peaceful little village.
PALGN: What challenges did you face in developing the game for PC and Xbox 360 simultaneously?
MD:To be honest, it was much simpler than we expected. We had a special team that concentrated on the console version right from the beginning. They worked on the special things like interface or steering. As a matter of fact, we achieved a very smooth parallel development.
PALGN: Are there any differences between the PC and Xbox 360 versions?
MD:The story and main features are the same. There are some changes in the interface and steering options.
PALGN: How important is the multiplayer component of the game, and what affect does the persistent nature of the world in the multiplayer game have?
MD:It is a very important part of the gaming idea. We want to give the player a gaming experience that goes far beyond normal single player. So we decided to include the multiplayer part for free! This offers totally new features like PvP-Fights or quest solving with up to eight players.
PALGN: How does the faction system work?
MD:Every city and bigger location is populated with different factions. There are guilds offering training in magic, combat and survival skills. There are also organizations operating in secret where we will be able to learn forbidden skills, like necromancy or alchemy. Most of the factions, however, don’t offer any shops or trainers, but build a cohesive, complex and intriguing social context for adventures.
PALGN: How will a player's choices in regards to these factions influence the gameplay?
MD:There will be some quests that are locked until you have a special reputation at the corresponding faction.
PALGN: Why did you decide to go with a real time combat system in the game?
MD:Two Worlds uses traditional third person perspective, possibly the best action oriented solution for melee weapons to date. The combat system has been greatly inspired by console action games, with emphasis on spectacular and varied animation, easy steering, and the feel of sheer, untamed power in every move and strike. In the animation department, we decided to focus on dexterity and proficiency in arms rather than superhuman agility. “Two Worlds” is about heavy clad warriors so any high jumps, pirouettes or similar moves would look funny and spoil the effect of the clash of titans.
The combat runs in real time. Players execute simple attacks, build up sequences of them, use skills and cast magic. It is possible to change weapons on the fly, and highly recommended. Every weapon type has been designed to serve a different role. Pole arms are best against cavalry, axes can be used to destroy shields (which play a more serious role than an additional piece of armour), two-handed swords cut through several opponents, and so on. Unlike other simplified combat systems, we must take care of what we use in a situation, or many crucial skills will not be available at that moment. The combat mechanics treat the player’s dexterity and character’s skills almost equally, which means that certain weaknesses in character’s development can be made up with player’s wits and, conversely, lack of gaming skills can be easily covered with careful character management or more time spent in the game. While fighting on horse back, your hits are much more effective, especially when you are hitting enemies in full gallop. But, it is very hard to aim at this speed.
So do you want to hang out?
PALGN: How did you get Harold Faltermeyer involved?
MD: Our Vice President Business Development, Dirk P. Hassinger, has known Harold Faltermeyer for a long time and has worked together with him on quite a few projects. Harold was delighted to get creative again for a videogame. He finds it challenging to get involved in areas of new media and really loves to compose music for interactive formats.
PALGN: What kind of score has he composed for the game?
MD: We wanted to create a cinematic, but also interactive and tremendous, soundtrack. Therefore, we cooperated with the well known Hollywood composer Harold Faltermeyer. He composed a soundtrack with influences of various genres like Classic, Rock, Gothic or Folklore. The score is adapted to the various scenes and regions in the game. For example, very thrilling music during fighting and special Folklore sounds when entering a town in the north of the country.
PALGN: What can players expect in terms of expansions or updates to the game?
We have definite plans to release additional content for both the single and multiplayer modes, although sadly I can’t confirm anything at this time.
PALGN would like to thank Miroslaw Dymek at Reality Pump for taking the time out for the interview. We'd also like to thank Dave Kozicki at Red Ant for setting this interview up.
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