Vansau: Ok, so at the Sony press event, you revealed that an alien race has landed on the planet and started to invade territories-
Ted Price: Well, no, I didn’t say that; that’s what everyone assumes. We’re actually not talking about the origin for the species yet. That’s something you discover as a part of the game, and until then it pretty much remains a mystery. But you uncover more and more clues about the Chimera -that’s what they’re called- and the world: how it’s changed, how it’s different from our world, and of course about the main character.
V: So who is the main character?
TP: The main character is a U.S. Ranger named Nathan Hale, and you might appreciate that because he’s a descendent of the Nathan Hale from the Revolutionary War who was a patriot for the United States but a traitor for Britain. So, it’s kind of ironic that he’s helping out by going to England. But, he’s kind of unique because he’s one of the few survivors of the US’s initial foray into England. The US is hoping to to save the day, but they get slaughtered in the process.
V: So, you were saying that Britain is the last free European state, right?
TP: Right: the Chimera roll across Asia and Europe in a very short period of time and just rip them apart.
V: OK, now I realize that you may not be able to talk about this yet, but does Hale have any special powers or abilities?
TP: Actually, he does. You can see there [pointing to the demo on the floor] that he has regenerating health. There’s a reason for that, but you find out about it in the game; you can probably try to fill in the blanks on your own, but the story really drives the game. We spent a lot of time establishing what we think is a very comprehensive timeline leading up to the game so that we’re not leaving any gaps. One of the things that we’ve noticed about games that have a thin story is that when people don’t think it’s real it just falls apart. We’ve spent a lot of time making sure this is a story that works.
V: Now the story reminds me a little bit of another game from a couple of years ago called Iron Storm, which was a first person shooter by Dreamcatcher. Basically, the story was about how World War I didn’t end and was still going on in the 60s; so Resistance is similiar in that it is showing a Europe which is both familiar and completely different from what we know. Where did you guys get the inspiration for this?
TP: It was… [pauses] I can’t remember. I think it was that we were casting around for ideas and it just came up. We have a very collaborative approach to our design where a lot of people throw out ideas and those that make it through are usually really good ideas.
V: Now, does the game lead to anywhere else in Europe? Or does Resistance stay within English borders?
TP: The game takes place in England, yeah. You actually go through real cities: this [points at the demo again] is actually Manchester, and it’s actually laid out the same way that Manchester really is laid out. We went there and took pictures, got the maps, and if you lived in Manchester you’d recognize this… except that it’s blown to Hell.
V: Right, and I’m assuming London is a city players will get to go to.
TP: London is a city you go to, yes.
V: Are there any other landmarks from around the country that players will get to visit? Say like… well, OK, this is probably a bad example, but say somewhere like Stonehenge?
TP: Well, right now, I’m not talking about the particulars beyond these couple of levels we have on display right now.
V: Fair enough. Now, what was the thing you’ve enjoyed the most about working on this game?
TP: Weapons. Weapons and enemy design. I think a lot of us at Insomniac really love coming up with exotic weapons. We’ve got a lot of guys who’ve just gone nuts with the weapon designs. We’re only showing a few here, but we’ve got some in development right now that are going to be some great additions to the first person shooter genre. The characters have also been a lot of fun to design because the Chimera are not just humanoids.
V: Right! In the demo you’ve got that weird spider-like one that stuck a tentacle through some poor guy’s head. I’ve gotta tell you, that was one of the most horrifying screams I’ve ever heard… kudos on that, by the way. I definitely cringed when I first heard that.
TP: Good! We have much larger characters, too; building-sized creatures. With the Chimera, we’ve kept things very varied in the game. You’re not just going through a World War II shooter where you’re going up against the same types of foes all the time, they use different tactics and different attacks.
V: The other thing I noticed was the heli-carrier shown in the trailer. That looks a little different than your standard World War II technology.
TP: Good catch. That’s a good example of alternate technology. There are no helicopters in the game, there are no planes, but there are vertical takeoff and landing craft. That’s what evolved during this history.
V: So how involved is this history? I know you said you’ve tried to cover all the bases, but are you going to have a summary in the manual or is it something players will learn throughout the game?
TP: Yes, they’re actually going to be able to find out more about the backstory through the game.
V: All right, that’s it for my questions. Thanks very much for taking the time to talk with us!
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