What?
Command & Conquer of a new generation
Where?
Los Angeles, USA
The news that the Command & series adored by millions Conquer goes into a “poorly smelling” zone of Free-to-Play, excited the fan community as not a single earthquake could. The fact is that Westwood strategies, and then EA Los Angeles were always famous for by no means a multipleor, but a slightly strange, but invariably charming plot regime, in which – this is an unprecedented rarity for the industry – the story was told with the help of videos with real actors.
The old C& C fans were already upset in which the series is developing. Tiberian Twilight fundamentally changed the essence of C& C, turning the classical strategy about the competent detection of the base and a fierce tank-rash into a hectic output with control points and pumping. Given that it was Westwood, having released Dune 2 in 1992, which predetermined the development of the genre for decades to come, the situation was contradictory.
Therefore, when Electronic Arts invited us to the sunny Los Angeles to play the early alpha version of Command & Conquer, we were quite skeptical. As it turned out, in vain.
Return to the roots
At the beginning of the presentation, John Van Kanegem, a real legend of the gaming industry and the head of the newly formed, was released on the impromptu scene Victory Games (Do not be alarmed, veterans are working there, but we will talk about this). For those who do not know: it was John who at one time founded the illustrious studio New World Computing , created with his direct participation Might and Magic And Heroes of Might and Magic. TV shows that, like Command & Conquer, made an invaluable contribution to the development of our favorite industry.
The fractions are so unique in appearance that even in the same color are easily distinguishable.
Van Kanegem admitted that the fans literally filled the studio with letters, begging to return to the old concept. Therefore, before starting to develop a round table in Los Angeles, the most important community people were invited (Cypher, FreeZy, Zeehypnotis, Zephyr and others.), and all together tried to formulate what they want from the new C & C. EA employees listened carefully to everyone, consulted and made the most important decision – to return the series to the roots. That is, mobile bases (crowles), pumping and other nonsense from Tiberian Twilight now in the past. The new game is, in fact, the good old commander & Conquer, only with fantastic graphics, comfortable voice chat and achievement system. Oh yes, and you don't have to pay for it.
[[Bullet]] screenshot, of course, staging, but something like this looks like. Pay attention to the dilapidated mosque.
"Command & Conquer is 17 years of history, 17 games and millions of fans around the world. And right now we are preparing a C& C new generation. As you probably already know, this is the RTS AAA-Ural on the FrostBite 2 engine, which is based on a convention-free model ”. John separately emphasizes that a few years ago they would release the game in the box, as expected, but the current realities of the PC market make you move towards online and social integration.
“First Milky Wins Casino of all, we want you to have fun playing the new Command & Conquer. We are working to ensure that every fan of the series, every genre lover enjoys this game. ". In the meantime, a screensaver with three men appears on the screen, whose face hides a shadow. If you look closely, you can recognize familiar images: the Asian-Communist is clearly the right (the patch with the Red Star says eloquently), the American seems to be on the left (it takes wide cheekbones), but in the center-Arab (arafatka, curly black hair and sharp chin). Remaged American journalists behind us at that moment nod approvingly.
EU European Union
Here we must explain why Generals 2 disappeared from the subtitle. The fact is that at first EA was planned to simply make the sequel of the 2003 strategies, but then their ambitions increased markedly – it was decided to create one big game that combined all the branches of Command & Conquer. A kind of solar system with its center of attraction, around which C & C-planes will rotate. If at the time of the release we can only fight in the Generals universe, then for several years Victory Games plan to add and Red Alert , and other continuums.
“The most beautiful in such an approach is that we can constantly change our game,” the developers say. They came up with their own term for this process – Live Service. First, Victory Games add new content to the game (map, mode or something else), then they study the reviews of the players and view the statistics (how popular the new unit is, how often players use this or that route on the map, etc.D.), analyze the information received and, finally, adapt the innovation in such a way that it satisfies the preferences of the majority. Or simply throw it out. “It used to be like that,” Brian Farina, producer C & C, tells us. – You release the game, listen to the reviews of the players. Then after a year you make an addon, and it turns out that nobody liked the changes. But you are no longer able to fix anything! Now everything is different. And it's great ".
Social network
Lists of friends, private chats, news feeds, multi -accense, achievements, statuses, rating tables, video replacements, clans – all that can be expected from the word Social in 2013, the game will be in the game. Maybe not at the stage of open beta, but there will be. Peer-to-Peer is forgotten, now client servers are ruled by the ball-like in the same World of Tanks. This will increase reliability and greatly facilitate the collection of statistics, as well as a game with friends suffering from a bad Internet connection.
First, we note-in the version we watched, there was only a multiplayer. As soon as such an opportunity was introduced, we directly asked Van Kanegem a question that interests each fan of the series more than anything else: “Will there be a single campaign in the game, and if there is, when when, when?" -" Yes, one hundred percent. But I can't call the exact date. We don't even know when we start open beta! There are still a lot of work ahead ".
[[Bullet]] Terrorists now consist not only of Arabs, but also Asians, Negroes and White. Attention to tanks: since GLA can neither make nor purchase them officially, they have to buy armored vehicles on the black market. That is why the cars are so old and shabby.
Brian enters the conversation: “The point is not that we do not want to make a single, but that we do not want to make a bad single. Who needs a boring campaign collected in a terrible hurry? To begin with, it is worth establishing the process of creating cards, honing the modes, optimizing the network code, configure the balance of the parties, and only then take up the plot mode ". Leading designer SAM BES supports a colleague: “For many years I have been working on Command & Conquer. We used to do everything at the same time – modernized the engine, painted cards, invented the modes, wrote the script. And this greatly affected the quality of the game. We still got quite good campaigns, but for this we had to go to all sorts of tricks, change certain moments for the sake of interesting gameplay situations. Now we want to make a holistic game. It doesn't matter if you choose a single or multiplayer, the mechanic will remain identical. Look at the engineer in C & C 3: Kane’s Wrath. In the story campaign, it moves at a different speed and can withstand more blows. Then this was the only solution, but now everything is different ".
Boom Shakalaka Boom
In the version showed to us there were only two modes – battles and Horde (an analogue of the same mode from GEARS of WAR 3 : Together with your partner, you must fight off the waves of the enemy army). They promise to prepare a few more (cooperative missions, capture of control points, etc.), and then new modes will systematically come up with the players themselves.
To command such a huge army and not go crazy, you will have to unite units into detachments and learn hot keys. Otherwise, you can forget about online victories.
By the way, we were a little mistaken when we tried to guess the parties in the game. The Asian-Pacific Alliance and the European Union (European Union), respectively, and only terrorists (Global Linearization Alliance), were replaced. While worrying is not worth it – by and large, nothing has changed, the game just became a little more political correct. We wrote "so far" because the developers promise to add new sides.
Literally from the very first seconds you feel at home: Harvester slowly collects resources, the oil tower shakes black gold, the air patrols helicopters, and in the meantime, soldiers train in the huts. Branded humor also has not gone anywhere. If the newly made builder is immediately sent to business, he will cry: “They will not even sleep first!»And if, playing for terrorists, to build a factory for the production of nuclear weapons, you can hear with a characteristic accent:“ U-oo, this is dangerous!"
GLA Global Liberation Army
Having forced ourselves to break away from the contemplation of local beauties, we decide to experience the ancient tactics: we collect a dozen tanks, a couple of fighters, several infantry detachments and send them to the opponent’s base, anticipating a grandiose representation. The next second from our powerful army was not left.
When John said that both beginners and experienced players will enjoy the new Command & Conquer, it was difficult not to be wary. This usually means total simplification of everything and all. But not in this case. Artificial intelligence in the game is really impressive: even at the mild level of the complexity of the enemy, it is very difficult to restrain, and it seems that it is impossible to win at all on average. AI competently uses the special capabilities of units, aggressively seizes resources, constantly patrols the border territory and, in general, clearly prepares the player for future battles with ruthless Korean schoolchildren. The only thing is that in our presence the computer has never used the General Specials, but this bug has probably been corrected.
[[Bullet]] is hard to imagine, but these unpretentious bugges are extremely effective against heavy equipment.
To win in C& C, it is not enough to rock the base, build the coolest units and wait for the enemies to die from one of them. It is strictly necessary to use the strengths of the selected fraction. Say, GLA does not have powerful aviation, but there is a suicide bomber that can smash any construction in two accounts (if it is able to get to it), and snipers. In addition, only among terrorists, a resource collector can build buildings – and vice versa. Asians, like grains from Starcraft , take in number, but at the same time they have powerful super -unit. Even a couple is enough to change the alignment of forces in the match. The European Union is a complete antipode APA – they have dangerous tanks and helicopters, but rather weak infantry. EU needs time to pump the base, and this must be taken into account.
Officers, officers
It is time to talk about generals. For those who did not play addon Zero Hour , We explain: the general is, by and large, your set of super receives. Depending on the specialization and rank of the commander, various tricks will be available to him-intelligence fighters, mining mines or toxic waste, carpet bombardment, anti-radar, lasers and so on. Thus, trying different commanders, you can come up with victorious tactics for any opponent. Only pleasure is notive.
Total money can be spent in three areas. Gameplay: those very generals. Busts: accelerated pumping, collecting resources and all in this spirit – the usual exchange of money. Customization: avatars, the color of units, the appearance of commanders, etc.D. This is the only category in which objects will be sold exclusively for real money. Everything else can be bought for the in -game currency earned in matches.
When we asked Brian and Sam how they plan to monetize the singleser, they replied: “We do not know. Our goal is to make a cool game, and we have not thought about how to make money on it yet. ". And we tend to believe them. New Command & Conquer is developed by the same people who made the original Generals, Kane’s Wrath and Red Alert 3, and leads them with an experienced game designer. Victory Games directly cooperate with the fan community, are in no hurry to the next deadline and, judging by what we saw, do everything right. As for the campaign … Van Kanegem promised that she would be. And if he promised, it means he will do.
Zoom in, please
How the Command & Conquer
Usually we do not focus on technical details, but, firstly, we have the first RTS made on the engine Battlefield 3. Secondly, the game looks amazing. Thirdly, EA let us into sacred places-the art department and the recording studio. So we could not help but tell you about the intricacies of developing the new Command & Conquer.
La Animation
“Please, when you play, twist the wheel more likely, consider the details. We tried. It’s even a shame that you will have to play with RTS highs, but the fun is first of all … ”-this was how the conversation with the journalists Sam Bes, the main game designer of the project. Believe me, you don't have to force yourself. The first time you see how buildings are being built here, the mouth will be opened involuntarily. Our favorite is an air base. A low fence is being built around the construction, workers scurry back and forth, pin something, twist, saw off. There is a cloud of dust. Loaders carry bags with concrete, the asphalt podge rolled out the runway, the tower crane lifts something to the roof. Do not have time to wipe your eyes delighted, the beautiful airfield appears in front of them. But you know what is the most impressive? Animation of the construction of the air base, like any other building in the game, is unique for each side.
Umberto, the leading animator of the new C & C, tells not without pride about his work: “We spent a lot of time in attempts to convincingly convey the style of all factions. Devil in detail ". Europeans have everything according to the highest standards: helmets, drawings and expensive construction equipment; Gla do everything carelessly, amateur; The Chinese work faster and more diligent than others.
“The old engine did not allow you to fix more than one animation for your unit – it either moved, or shot, or received damage. And now, thanks to FrostBite 2, we can create entire chains of events, ”with these words Umberto opens the editor and shows the model of the GLA heavy truck with a machine gun in the back. First, he turns on the animation of the shot: the soldier begins to fir, his face illuminates the flashes from the shots, the car shakes, except that the sleeves do not fly away. Then the animation of movement turns on: the engine roars under the hood, the wheels are spinning, but the soldier continues to shoot as if nothing had happened. Finally, the animation of the defeat is triggered: the car demolitions to the side, bends to the ground, but neither movement nor shooting stops. It looks great.
La Musique
Victory Games decided to record the sounds of shots for the game on their own. They started to go to the forest, climbed deeper into the thicket and had fun with the weapon. In words – there is a last rest, but in reality it is a long and not to say that a light process. It is necessary to record dozens of fire options – into the air, into the hard surface, into the ground, near, from a large distance … There are a lot of subtleties. Then the developers went to Warner Brothers, where some types of weapons were written. This time the sounds of explosions decided to take Electronic Arts from the rich collection – over the years of its existence, the company blew up a bunch of everything (only for business, of course).
The sound engineer complained that due to the features of the location of the camera in RTS it is quite difficult to create a convincing sensation of 3D space, and only a few can do it. Victory Games, according to him, is among these few. We officially confirm.
La Physique
Destructivity is another advantage of Frostbite 2, which is designed to bring to Command & Conquer new sensations and slightly deepen the strategic element. Sam: “In this game you cannot fully say that you know this or that card. Every time at least something, but it will be different ". Somewhere you can make a new path to the enemy’s base, razing a couple of objects, somewhere-to block his passage to his base. But first of all, this, of course, is visual feast. The 3D modeller of the project, Jeremy, showed us point destructiveness: “It all depends on what direction you shot in the building”. First, the developer carefully clicks on the wall, and an inspiring hole appears in it, and then Jeremy begins to frantically click with the mouse. In a matter of seconds, the building turns into a smoking colander. Well, on the little things – the fences are sags, the barrels roll, and the conquered bodies of the lumped jeeps fly apart to the sides.
One of the employees of the art department, Martin, during our visit, wrote the "Algorithm of Unexpected events". The point is that when all tanks explode the same way, it's boring. Much more fun, if sometimes “special” explosions occur – then the car will jump a few meters up, then the parts of the body will fly around. When Martin said that he loves his work, we have never doubted the sincerity of his words.