September
16,
1998
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Babylon 5 reportedly will have first-person space flight sim combat and strategy elements.
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Babylon 5 appeared at ECTS recently looking very far from finished.
But what was on show looked polished and played well, implying that
Yosemite and Sierra have adopted a stance of producing quality, not
quantity. Concerning the game's progress to date, Next Generation Online
asked designer Marc Hudgins and writer/co-designer Randy Littlejohn for
the latest news.
On what platforms is Babylon 5 being released? What is the estimated
schedule for the date of release of the game?
MH : "On PC in Spring 99, and other platforms are possible."
I understand Babylon 5 includes both real-time first-person combat and a
strategy element involving ships. How do you hope to link them
together?
MH : "We've got it nailed down really well, but we don't wish to discuss it
at this time."
Is the game going to be mission-based, or freely explorable? How has
this been developed?
MH : "It will be mission based within a dynamic, freely explorable universe.
You will get missions, but how they play out, who is involved and how you
execute your mission is entirely up to the game and the player."
RL : "Both. We have devised something that we are calling -- for lack of a
phrase with more
bite -- an 'evolving universe' where the player has a great deal of
autonomy, but also the responsibility to live with his or her choices. You
won't be playing missions over and over until you get them right. You take
part in a scenario, do what you do, and get to live with it. The universe
continues to evolve."
How is multiplay going to be incorporated into the game? Will gameplay
be possible over the Internet via a web-site or gamers' forum?
MH : "Multiplayer has been an integral part of the game from day one. It
will be playable in several formats including campaign and melee. Internet
play is a definite."
Do the developers watch the TV show? Marc, you are quoted on the Babylon
5 website saying that you are working "to make sure that the game is as
visually faithful to the show as is possible within the limits of available
technology". How will this be implemented in the game? What characters,
scenarios, ships are included in the game?
MH : "We all are quite avid viewers of the show. It was a small bunch of
fans here in Oakhurst that first lobbied our management to do a B5 game. As
for simulating the look and feel of the show, we are using the original 3D
computer models from the show as templates for our game geometry. We will
be including as much of the B5 universe as possible in faithful recreation
(planets, stations, ships, politics, etc.) As for characters, that's still
in the planning stages as we write the script, but we will be including
many of the major characters in the game.
RL : "JMS (TV Show Creator Joe Straczynski) signs off on everything we do.
Regarding story, Christy Marx and I do the research (with much help from
Babylonian Productions), come up with story concepts, submit them to Joe by
FAX, and he sends back his approval and/or notes. Also, Christy Marx has
many years of working with JMS and wrote for the first season of the
show."
"Regarding ships, we are also adding new ships to our game for well-known
alien races in the show whose ships we have never seen. These ships were
designed by an artist who has designed other ships for B5 and these have
been approved by JMS. Our own Lightwave artists are creating these models
in-house.
"And finally, we are using the music of Christopher Franke, who of course
creates the awesome music for Babylon 5, and who is doing some original
music for our game. You'll be seeing characters from the show, but which
ones is TBD."
Following on from last question, how do the graphics (by Netter Digital)
and sounds (by Christopher Franke) help to recreate the show's environment? What (revolutionary?) techniques are used? How did they come about - from
where did these ideas come?
MH : "By using the same visual and musical elements as the show, we will be
far closer to the original source material than if we tried to recreate it
on our own. There will be literally no interpretation, it's all a subset of
the original material used in the show itself."
How were the missions/scenarios designed? Is there any (in)direct relation to
previous TV shows here, or are the plots in the game totally original? How
is the game presumably split into sections, rather than one continuous
campaign? Do actions from one scenario affect any further scenarios (i.e. how
linear and story-driven is the game?)?
MH : "The game's story is ostensibly a direct branch of the B5 story. That
is, we are continuing the saga, adding detail to the story established by
the show. Our story is carefully written to dovetail with the show. We
aren't just "using" the B5 universe as a setting. We are endeavoring to be
a part of the B5 cannon. We are working closely with JMS to ensure that
what happens in the game is plausible, allowable and true in terms of his
vision of Babylon 5.
"Our story is non-linear. We are creating a dynamic universe where all
actions and outcomes have consequences that ripple down the line. This
isn't going to be one of those games where you need to replay a mission
again and again until you succeed in order move the game forward. If you
fail, you will have to live with that failure."
RL : "The missions/scenarios/story elements are extrapolations from the
story over-arc that JMS created at the beginning, and re-creations of some
historical battles. The way that the game evolves, in terms of "sections,"
is under wraps, I believe. Everything the player does in the game has an
effect on the evolving universe. The single-player game is story-driven,
but it is uniquely non-linear and non-branching."
What marks this game out from its many competitors in the market? Are
there any features or characteristics taken from or advanced upon other
successful games of this genre? How does the team rate the competitors to
Babylon 5?
MH : "Without giving away things we are keeping under wraps, I'd have to say this game will be a landmark in the genre. In many respects we are
trying to redefine the genre. We aren't satisfied with creating a Wing
Commander or X-Wing clone. Those are good enough games, but we
think we can do better -- especially in terms of gameplay. Much of our design
philosophy has been to identify the things we like in the genre, and more
importantly identify and either fix or remove the stuff we think stinks.
It's all about making a FUN, immersive experience. Anything that gets in
the way of fun or immersion in the world can't be allowed."
RL : "We are doing our best to make this game a new benchmark. I have
confidence that it will be just that. Marc, Dan and I spent a great deal
of time before we started on the design surveying (in depth) what is out
there. We spent months arguing, kicking around the smallest details, and
otherwise submersing ourselves in game esoterics. And then we set out to
do it all better - so much better that two years down the road when it is
time to ship this sim it will be horrifyingly competitive. Well, we'll
see how well we achieved that goal this coming spring."