Interview: Tribes: Vengeance multiplayer - Irrational speaks!

"Interesting", was our initial reaction to Irrational Games' announcement about its plan to partner an in-depth single-player action experience with online/LAN mayhem in its PC FPS Tribes: Vengeance.

By breaking from tradition - previously the Tribes franchise on PC has focused purely on multiplayer - the developer instantly opens up Vengeance to a wider audience, but it also leaves Irrational in the unenviable position of ensuring the title still appeals to the Tribes series' hardcore following while also having the sparkle to draw in a new wave of fans.

Irrational has already spoken with us at some length about its designs for Tribes: Vengeance single-player, but we've heard little from the developer about the multiplayer experience - until now, that is.

We recently cornered Irrational senior designer Michael Johnston and got him to blab about multiplayer action in the world of Tribes: Vengeance.

Why should gamers be excited about the multiplayer element of Tribes: Vengeance?

Johnston: For those who might not know, Tribes is a game where you have a jetpack at all times. It's a game about infantry combat in three dimensions.

You have a variety of equipment at your disposal that you can mix and match, allowing you to create unique classes according to your own individual playing style. You also have access to an assortment of gadgets, base devices and vehicles.

Tribes: Vengeance is a new Tribes game with new features but it's still, at its heart, a game about three dimensional combat across a variety of indoor and outdoor environments.

The goal with Tribes: Vengeance is to attract new players to the franchise while preserving the multiplayer excitement that existing Tribes players have come to love.

And for the first time ever you can play through a full story-driven single-player campaign to prepare yourself for online battles.

What new features are you adding to the multiplayer modes in the game? Can you describe the new "sports" orientated play styles?

Johnston: We're using a system we call Unified Game Mode (UGM). You can think of it like a sandbox. In this sandbox you can have a number of different toys.

Each toy can be used in different ways. So we have a bunch of UGM objects, like Flags, Balls, and Goals. Game types simply combine these objects in particular ways.

A conventional Capture the Flag game would combine Capture Flags and Capture Stands. A sports oriented game might combine Balls and Goals. Some experimental game might combine all of these objects and more. But the name of the game is always the same: use the objects at your disposal to score more points than the other team.

Could you reveal two of the new maps and, what features make them special? And can you explain how rag-doll physics will add to the multiplayer experience?

Johnston: We have one map that hasn't been shown yet which is a really long gorge surrounded by a relatively flat desert. The gorge looks great, filled with lush vegetation and bounded by rocky cliff faces. And it's pretty fun to jet and ski in. A bridge stretches from one end to the other with bases at either end.

Another map we have is completely underground, so you're jetting and skiing around stalactites and stalagmites as you travel between bases. Another map takes place in a massive outdoor arena reminiscent of the Coliseum, complete with cheering fans.

Rag-doll physics are just eye candy - they're a nice little visual reward for defeating enemy players. They're particularly fun to watch in a game like Tribes where you often nail your enemies while in the air at high speeds.

What new weapons will players be able to unleash in Tribes: Vengeance? Also, will you include classic maps such as Katabatic?

Johnston: There are at least a few new weapons, but we've only revealed details about a couple of them. The Rocket Pod launches a cluster of spiralling missiles that follow where you're looking after they launch, which allows you to control them.

The Burner shoots balls of burning flame that light areas (and people!) on fire.

We're not including any classic maps with Tribes: Vengeance but I suspect that the highly active Tribes development community will create new versions of these maps as soon as possible.

Are you being careful not to spoil what is a very popular online title? Can you be sure that old and new players will both enjoy Tribes: Vengeance?

Johnston: This is a tough issue. I played Tribes competitively for a few years so it's very important to me that we try to preserve what made the game special to so many people.

We also have people on our development team who didn't play Tribes at all, so we use their feedback to try and adjust the game to be more broadly appealing.

I don't think it's possible (or even, necessarily, desirable) to make the game appealing to every single person out there, but we're aiming for a sweet spot where enough new people like the game and enough existing Tribes 1 and 2 players like the game in order to establish a healthy online community.

What will be the maximum number of online players?

Johnston: We're aiming to support from two to 32 players.

What's your favourite bit in the new multiplayer side of Tribes: Vengeance?

Johnston: I'm a big fan of some of the new equipment that we haven't revealed yet. Stay tuned for more info!

Stuart Bishop