|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Based on the Resident Evil universe, SWAT Aftermath takes place in Raccoon City in the aftermath of an unsuccessful government-sanctioned nuclear strike to contain the viral outbreak. Players assume the role of Bravo Company, who were testing experimental equipment in a secret bomb shelter when the explosion devastated the city. There are a total of eight classes, each of which fills a specific niche in the game. I was given the opportunity to conduct an email interview with Redscull on April 25 2006. Azazel_: Why did you create SWAT Aftermath? Redscull: I was first introduced to the survival genre long ago by a RoC map called Night of Living Dead. I thought it was fun, and the core aspect of cooperating to fend off an onslaught of foes was very appealing. However, NOLD offered little depth and no replay value past the initial novelty. I created SWAT vs Resident Evil (SWAT1) because I wanted a survival game with a variety of interesting objectives, lots of strategic choices, and long-lasting replayability. I created SWAT: Aftermath (SWAT2) with the intent of taking what I learned to a whole new level of gameplay. My focus was on fully customizable heroes with unique roles, intense combat micromanagement, and teamwork-based strategy with scaled difficulties yielding virtually unlimited replayability. Azazel_: What were your greatest influences in the design of SWAT Aftermath? Redscull: NOLD was my original inspiration for SWAT1. You could say it opened my mind to the genre and got my gears turning. SWAT2 is the result of hundreds of hours of brainstorming what I thought would make an exciting coop game, refined by further countless hours of actual playing. And of course the SWAT community has helped shape many aspects of the game via their feedback. Azazel_: Tell us about the core themes of SWAT Aftermath. Redscull: Well, first you have your hero which you've custom-configured to your own personal style. This is the central role-playing aspect of SWAT. You attempt to win more challenging difficulties in order to increase his rank and prestige. It is important to note that while your hero gets more powerful, rank will never outweigh skill. Next you have the survival aspect. Regardless of the actual victory objectives, you must do your best to stay alive versus the ever-increasing threat of undead mobs and boss encounters. There are numerous scenarios which might spell disaster, and the harder difficulty levels are much less forgiving. Finally, there is an emphasis on strategy. Winning requires completing certain objectives, but knowing how, when, and in what order is something you continually improve at. You also must understand your individual role on the team and strive to get better at it by using all of your hero's abilties effectively. Azazel_: If you had the chance to do everything all over again, would there be anything different? Redscull: Nope, because I already did that (SWAT1 to SWAT2). SWAT: Aftermath, being the second game, has the benefits of a well-planned and strong foundation. As it stands, if there is something currently in the game which doesn't feel right, I change it. Azazel_: What do you think of the Survival (I am not sure if you would want to term your map as a survival) genre as a whole? Why are AOS maps more marketable and widely played? Redscull: SWAT is a survival game at heart, even if it has a stronger emphasis on objectives and hero-development than most. And I personally think the genre is a lot of fun. I love battling hordes of zombies with my custom hero whether I'm soloing or working with a competent team. The AOS genre benefits from being PvP. As rewarding as I my find it to defeat a challenging AI scenario, many players prefer besting other people. Also, AOS games generally require less time invested in both preparation and session length (a plus to people with shorter attention spans or a less serious interest). I actually enjoy the AOS genre too, but I haven't found one that I liked well-enough to play regularly. Azazel_: If somebody wanted to design a map like SWAT Aftermath, what advice would you have to offer? Redscull: First and foremost, be prepared to commit your time. I've spent over 1600 hours working on SWAT2, and that doesn't count playing it. Secondly, spend time doing design. Write down and flesh out your ideas ahead of time. Finally, don't do it unless you enjoy it! Creating games has been my hobby since I was a little kid, and SWAT is quite honestly my favorite computer game to play. I doubt you can finish a quality game if you don't have a passion for what you're making. Azazel_: How long would you continue to update SWAT Aftermath? Would you be creating a sequel? Redscull: My goal is to "finish" the game. There's very little design left to do (it's all recorded in my logs). I'm spending my time implementing those final additions. v2.0 will fully represent my vision of what SWAT is supposed to be. After that, I'll be making only minor updates if critically necessary. I will not be creating a SWAT3 because the gameplay is already exactly what I want, but I'm sure I'll eventually find some other project to consume my attention. |
| |||||
|
|||||
