Quake Wars engine

[denisv]

Has the team considered switching to the updated D3 engine used in Quake Wars? I don't know about the internals but the biggest changes seem to be the ability to render huge outdoor areas and excellent AI, both things a Thief-y game should benefit from.

[greebo]

No. If we were still at the beginning (i.e. back in 2004), this would be a valid option, but as I'm writing this we're passing the third year of development. Switching engines at this point would be a sure-fire way to push back any tentative release date, which is probably not what people like to see (both developers and player audience).

 

Have you ever played "Duke Nukem Forever"?

[New Horizon]

Switching engines 3/4's of the way through development is a bad idea.

[Macsen]

Why would huge outdoor areas be a good thing? Mr Thief moves like a snail, that's why most missions are set in narrow medieval streets and cramped buildings. I don't want players to have to run half a mile just to get to the mission (we're not charging by the hour like World of Warcraft).

 

Also I doubt Quake Wars' FPS AI would be much use?

[sparhawk]

You know, the only reason why we are not finished is, because every half year, there is a new engine coming out, and we tend to switch to it immediatly, because it's so much cooler then the old one. If we ever get finished, you will have the newest and coolest engine to play with. It's a bit hard to keep up with the coding though ...

[Nyarlathotep]

Why would huge outdoor areas be a good thing? Mr Thief moves like a snail, that's why most missions are set in narrow medieval streets and cramped buildings. I don't want players to have to run half a mile just to get to the mission (we're not charging by the hour like World of Warcraft).

Oh, silly! That's what a horse is for!

[Macsen]

Oh, silly! That's what a horse is for!

You have to be a level 40 Thief before you can get one, though.

[demagogue]

Unless you can steal one, of course.

[Nyarlathotep]

It's not that hard if you know what you're doing, i.e., be a developer or read a strategy guide. Without revealing too much, if you successfully steal one below level 40, you unlock a minigame to learn how to ride horses. I'm actually rather proud of how it turned out.

[Ishtvan]

We take the general approach that it's better for the player to use their own skills to overcome obstacles rather than rely on some random "dice roll" or look at a progress bar while their character "works on" something. To that end, we reach all new levels of interactivity by letting the player perform actions by pressing two adjacent buttons very rapidly. It takes enormous skill to press one button, then the other, rather than pressing the same button twice. By linking key game tasks to how fast the player can hit two buttons alternatively, and how long they can keep it up for, we give the player complete control over their character and immerse them completely in the game. Beta testers have reported that it's more real than reality.

[Crispy]

Beta testers have reported that it's more real than reality.

It also gives you real tendonitis more than reality.

[Gildoran]

It also gives you real tendonitis more than reality.

...just like how a real thief would get tendonitis from lockpicking too much. Ingenious!

 

It's great not just for lockpicking, but also for getting that extra boost of speed when running away from guards, and searching for items in your backpack (actually it's only part of the backpack rummaging minigame) and something else that the thief can do when alone (here's a hint, it's synergistic with the voyeurism associated with the Thief genre).

[Crispy]

Mmmmn.

 

Synergy.