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The
Interactive Environment
Hi, I'm Aatish Salvi. I'm the Director of Development on Asheron's Call
2, which is really just a fancy way of saying I manage the engineering
department. A typical day for me involves a lot of passionate debates (a.k.a.
meetings) with the various project leads during which we stir and spice
the rich soup of ideas the game is simmering in. My job is to take that
cauldron of creative energy and channel it into concrete task lists, project
schedules and strategies for the various phases of development. I work most
closely with Chris Dyl, the Principal Architect on the project and the criminal
mastermind behind our core technology, and with Katie Finin, the Lead Programmer
who's the motive force behind all the game systems in AC2. All in
all, I spend my days debating with creative, brilliant people about an incredible
game, fretting about project schedules and loving (almost) every minute
of my job.
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If there's one pet peeve I have it's that so many RPGs today have
very predictable and scripted worlds. When we sat down and brainstormed
the technical and design paradigms for AC2, this was a big
issue for us. The result--the world of Dereth is, in a word, alive.
It's an entity unto itself with its own vivacious personality and
tantalizing secrets. From day to day the monsters rethink their combat
strategies, political landscapes shift under your feet, towns rise
and fall, social alliances are created and dissolved--all of this
to the rhythm of a music system smart enough to be considered an AI
of its own. Most MMP worlds are dynamic, AC2 is downright vibrant
and I love it that way. |
Now that I've whetted your appetite, let me tell you a little about the
mirrors behind the magic. The AI system is a good place to start. Monster
AIs are composed of several decision-making units (called Finite State Machines)
that represent various goals or desires of the monster. These are constantly
fighting with each other to decide which one will exercise ultimate control.
Will aggression win over fear, will healing itself win over healing a wounded
comrade? No monster in AC2 will fight exactly the same way twice,
especially not if they're encountered in different locations. In one combat
a grievously wounded Drudge may decide to run and fight another day, in
another he may throw himself at you in heroic abandon and in yet another
he may decide to summon a dozen of his best friends to help him teach you
a lesson. Monsters form their own fellowships, choose leaders, heal each
other and use our path planning system to flank opponents. And if you're
really lucky, in their greed and bloodlust, they may even turn on each other,
doing half your job for you.
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In the midst of these epic battles are the towns and ruins scattered
across Dereth. Given the mouth-watering graphics that AC2 has,
we decided that we wanted the players to be much more involved in
making visual changes to the world. Heroes will be able to directly
and dynamically affect the appearance of certain parts of the town.
Some town items will accept resources from players and improve in
appearance and ability the more they get. A healthy, populated town
will be marked by a thriving craft trade as the town's forges and
mills, fed by its inhabitants, work at their maximum potential. In
less fortunate townships, the forges and mills may be decrepit and
uncared for, the crafters few and far between. . . that is, until
a band of heroes, fresh to the world, decide that this is the place
where they will make their mark and call home. |
The last system I want to talk about is one of my favorite systems in AC2--the
music system. I'm sure Jason Booth, the mind behind the music, will eventually
spill the beans on the whole system but I can't help making some small mention
here. Each type of landscape, like snow, grassland or desert, has its own
unique undercurrent of ambient music. On top of that comes a layer from
your avatar and the avatars around you. The avatar layer varies based on
whether the avatars are in pitched battle or just kicking it, relaxing and
discussing the finer points of life in Dereth. Suddenly enter the Drudge
and with him a more urgent and sinister sound layer. Enter his friends,
each with their own variations on the theme and suddenly you're surrounded
by a deep, multi-layered musical symphony that has your heart pounding.
Begin combat and you feel the tempo and scale change. The music system is
so unlike the “song that never ends” philosophy most games have that you'll
have to trust me (for now) that the effects it creates are simply amazing.
Well, that's all the time (and space) I have to effuse about AC2.
I hope I haven't been too incoherent and have given you some idea of why
AC2 is going to rock your world. Thanks.
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