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id, Raven Developers Discuss New Wolfenstein
CVG is running an interview with Kevin Cloud, executive producer at id, and Eric Biessman, who leads Raven Software's programmers and artists, about the upcoming installment to the Wolfenstein series. They provide some detail about what kind of weapons will be available, what those crazy Nazis are up to this time, and BJ Blazkowicz's new ability to "shroud" himself.
"Press a single button, at any time, and you'll see the other side of reality: a green and violent dimension that's filled with strange creatures and whirling tornadoes of energy. Just being in the shroud gives you options: floating above the ground are 'collectors' - fleshy heavy metal album cover worms that are scavenging electrical energy. Pop them, with a single rifle round, and they'll blast apart, damaging enemies in the real world. They are essentially exploding, hidden, organic barrels. ...In shroud mode, too, occult symbols etched into the masonry are transformed into holes in walls that BJ can simply step, shoot, or lob a grenade through."
Yes, please - and missions and story. The shroud thing sounds ridiculous.
What was so great about the original gameplay? It was about as generic a shooter as you can get, level after level of identical looking mazes with identical looking enemies.
I don't know what it is with ID and their terrible 'revive our old games' thing.
Seriously, good as the engine was, doom 3 was a bad game, it lacked much of the gameplay associated with the original games. Obviously things had moved on in many ways, but it played more like an AvP knockoff to me, and not a well designed one at that.
Quake 4 was also pretty poor. There wasn't much to wolfenstein, so they can pretty much start from scratch and go any way they like. Looking at their recent track record in games sat atop their (undeniably excellent) engines, I won't be shelling out the pounds for this until its been around long enough to be cheap.
A learning experience is one of those things that say, 'You know that thing you just did? Don't do that.' - D. Adams
Enough B.J. Blazkowicz, let's talk about his grandson: Billy Blaze, best known as Commander Keen. How about a modern reimagining of the old games?
Circumcision is child abuse.
You obviously missed the "Electric Butts" in Return to Castle Wolfenstein. And zombie things. And lord knows what else I've might have forgotten.
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(=_=) Bani!
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You've never played Return to Castle Wolfenstein. Occult aplenty, including an unhealthy dose of zombies, and guards with superhuman eyes and ears that seem to detect you from 30 miles away.
For large sets, this will be our guide even unto death, for the LORD will work for each type of data it is applied to...
You're just opening yourself up to a comment about "yo momma".
Have you played Wolfenstein before? It was always about Nazis and the occult. Wolfenstein is the original WW2 and it's always had the same theme.
That and Nazis were actually tied to Occultism. This theme has been done before in other areas and it the whole basis behind the Indiana Jones movies.
So while it may not be the most realistic game it's not trying to invent something new to be different it's taking it's same twist on real facts about Nazis.
Even outside of Return to Castle Wolfenstein, Spear of Destiny had plenty of sci-fi elements. Wolfenstein isn't mundane by any means...
"He who can destroy a thing, controls a thing." --Paul Atreides, Dune
Wait, which "original" Wolfenstein gameplay are we talking about? RTCW-ET (Return to Castle Wolfenstien, Enemy Territory), the latest one of the series, if you don't include ET4-Quake Wars, is *still* one of the best gameplays out there.
Multiple Character classes (Soldier, Medic, Engineer, Field Ops, Covert Ops)
Each class with its own set of weapons and abilities
Multiple classes needed to complete any given map (which makes online multi-player gameplay actually compelling)
All of which creates the need to coordinate with strangers over the internet in real time to be able to win...
There is nothing like going covert-op, grabbing a uniform, and taking an engineer with you through the tunnel to blow the Fuel Dump while everyone else is still trying to construct the bridge and move the tank. It's better than sex (not that I know what sex is, being on Slashdot and all...). In any case, it's nothing like a generic shooter, it's nothing like identical looking mazes.
My favorite quote doesn't fit into 120 characters. Now no one will like me.