Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community - View Single Post - Huxley

Stiltzkin · 08-21-2005, 09:32 PM

I swear I did a search for this before posting, and did not find any results. So if this has somehow already been posted, I apologize.

Anyway, the game is called Huxley, and as you have no doubt gathered by now from the thread title, it is going to be a(n) MMO FPS.
http://interviews.teamxbox.com/xbox/...-Interview/p1/

Quote:

Before discussing the game, could you please introduce us to the Huxley universe? Does the game take place in a fantasy universe or in a sci-fi, near future setting?

Kijong Kang: Hello. I am Kijong Kang, the producer of the upcoming MMO FPS title “Huxley.” I work at H-Studio, an internal development studio of Webzen, Inc. Before joining Webzen, I developed a PC FPS title called “Nitro Family”.

Huxley, as its name suggests, is inspired by the novel “Brave New World.” I want to develop a game that delivers the excitement and freshness of “a brave new world” to gamers. Although it is a big challenge, I really look forward to sharing the exciting world of Huxley with the gamers out there.

The world of Huxley is not the same as ours. It is the world in our near future that both new and degenerate technologies exist together. Fossil energies are exhausted and everything is changed. People fight for new energy sources, and wars never end.

Will Huxley be an online persistent world? What are the most innovative features of the game?

Kijong Kang: Yes, it is based on a persistent world. We analyzed and customized the Unreal 3 Engine to make it suitable for a MMO and Persistent World (PW) game. We’re going to get the best graphics using that engine and utilize the proven network technology of Webzen. Thousands of people will be able to enjoy large-scale, fast paced battles in rich graphics. The result will be a first “true” massively multiplayer FPS game.

That basically outlines our goal. Other than that, it’s hard to speak about detailed game features at this time. This winter, players will be able to have the chance to see the game and tell us if the features are innovative and creative.

Considering the fact that Huxley mixes two genres, FPS with MMO; what games have you drawn inspiration from?

Kijong Kang: It is hard to say that Huxley has been inspired from any specific game from either genre. After all, MMO FPS is not an established genre--no footsteps to follow in. We are trying to make a new type of FPS game. While we’re mixing the two genres, we’re not simply combining them. Instead, we’re making a whole new style of gameplay and fun.

In what aspects will Huxley differ or be similar to games like PlanetSide, Tribes or the Battlefield series, and MMO games like Phantasy Star Online or the recent hit World of Warcraft?

Kijong Kang: Huxley is different from Tribes or Battlefield because it is a Persistent World. Compared with Planet Side, there are some common features such as MMO, PW, and FPS. However, the biggest difference is the level of action. Planet Side is an enjoyable game, but it is a strategy-focused FPS game rather than an action-focused FPS game. With outstanding features, Huxley is an absolute action game such as Quake or Unreal. This is why I would like to say that Huxley is a first true MMO FPS game. Of course, the intense action and speed will make it different from all other traditional MMO games.

Can you reveal anything about what kinds of characters we’ll see in the game? Will there be factions, character classes?

Kijong Kang: Due to the changing environment, human species are split into two races, Homo-Spiens and Homo-Alternatives. They oppose each other because of limited energy resources. In the game, we just call them Spiens and Alternative. There is another tribe called (Homo) Hybrid, a half-breed of Spiens and Alternative. Hybrid opposes everyone but themselves. I am afraid that I cannot provide any additional information regarding character classes at this time.

What types of missions will be available, and how are they played out on the battlefield?

Kijong Kang: Huxley has a single-player story driven mission, various types of PvP missions, Al squad lead type missions, etc. Players will choose the mission according to their goals-going for ‘level up’ or following ‘stories’. They can go to the battlefield on foot or by vehicle such as cars, choppers or by an elevator. It really depends on the kind of battlefield. Players also can fight while moving without severe lag due to the seamless technology of the Unreal 3 Engine.

What can we expect from the weapons and what role, if any, will vehicles play in the game?

Kijong Kang: Players can get various kinds of weapons from stores and other places. Also, they can get new weapons while fighting. They can store their weapons in the personal inventory and select them according to the kind of battle or mission.

Players can play various roles such as commanders to lead other gamers or operators to drive vehicles. They can also have their own vehicle as transportation.

What were your reasons in licensing the Unreal Engine 3?

Kijong Kang: We had decided to use the Unreal 3 Engine in May 2004. The Unreal 3 Engine is a progressive engine and supports base technologies that we need. It’s got great rendering quality and most importantly it’s proven to work well for both FPS games and MMO games. We have found, however, that some parts of Unreal 3 Engine are not suitable for our game, so our engineers are making extensive customizations.

I guess you’ll make an extensive use of UE3’s Seamless World Support feature, recently demoed at GDC. What kind of technology have you developed to adapt the UE3 to a MMO genre?

Kijong Kang: The most important thing is network technologies. As the Unreal 3 Engine is mainly designed for single player and MO games, we need to develop a network system that supports more than five thousands players per server. Our own network layer will be added.

While thousands of players connect to servers, real-time lighting systems of UE3’s Engine will be a burden to the servers. It’s our goal to develop new technologies to handle these issues specific to MMO game features.

Finally, UE3 is originally designed to be cross-platform. Hence, we are planning to add next-generation console specific technologies. I think this will be possible because UE3 is a good engine.

Speaking of UE3 features; do you plan to add support for AGEIA’s PhysX chip, the world’s first PPU, or use the company’s NovodeX Physics SDK (both being fully supported by the UE3)?

Kijong Kang: To tell you the truth, I had heard about AGEIA’s PhysX chip for the first time at GDC 2005. I think it’s a surprising idea, however, I have not considered supporting AGEIA’s PhysX seriously. We are currently using NovodeX Physics SDK.

As we are concentrating our efforts on rendering and working out network issues, it is not certain how serious system lag problems caused by physics will be. In accordance with degrees of system lag, we are going to decide soon whether to use multi-core CPU or PPU.

Any plans to license IDV’s SpeedTree foliage solution (another UE3 compatible toolset)?

Kijong Kang: We tested IDV’s SpeedTree and were satisfied with its rendering speed. We’re very positive about licensing it. Webzen is already using SpeedTree for other titles.

Webzen has developed state-of-the-art online games and client/server technologies. Are you using these technologies in Huxley? How do they get to interact with Xbox Live and Microsoft’s technology?

Kijong Kang: Webzen’s server component has been successfully used for other games. We are customizing it specifically for Huxley and adding a layer for convergence to Xbox Live. We are currently discussing with Microsoft about the best-fitted condition to link with the server.

Microsoft has mentioned many times that an XNA-compatible next generation game could allow PC and Xbox gamers to play each other without the risk of cheating thanks to the use of a common online service: Xbox Live.
Do you plan to release Huxley on PC too (UE3 is XNA compatible)? If so, would you allow Xbox 2 and PC gamers to play in a common environment?

Kijong Kang: We are developing a PC version of Huxley. We are also considering the possibility of allowing Xbox 2 and PC gamers to play together. We’re not sure if cross-platform play will work without any problem yet. Nevertheless, we trust Microsoft’s XNA.

Are you excited about the recent announcements made at GDC regarding Xbox Live, such as the Guide, the marketplace and its micro-transactions, etc.?

Kijong Kang: Microsoft’s recent announcements have left developers like myself with some great expectations. I think Microsoft has a more strategic market approach of Next-Gen Xbox than ever before.

Webzen has attracted over 56 million users and a half million concurrent users from the Asian market alone and the company is soon opening an office in LA. Do you plan to market this game worldwide? Will gamers playing localized versions of the game be able to interact with each other across the globe?

Kijong Kang: Of course, Huxley’s target is the worldwide market. Webzen has already successfully published a blockbuster line-up of online game in all the major Asian markets. Also, Webzen’s US subsidiary, Webzen America, in L.A. is already up and aggressively recruiting talent to start publishing games this year. With Webzen’s rapidly expanding publishing arms, Huxley will be available in all major countries worldwide.

Have you decided if the game will require an extra fee for Xbox Live subscribers?

Kijong Kang: Unfortunately, I can’t answer that at this time.

What are your thoughts on the varying next-gen strategies from the likes of Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo?

Kijong Kang: Microsoft’s next-gen strategy is focused on Live. Webzen welcomes their strategy as a network game developer. As far as Sony and Nintendo go, it is hard to comment due to the lack of information. They have not been as forthcoming as Microsoft when it comes to network games.

Finally, what state are you at in terms of development and when could we expect the game to show up in stores here in North America and the rest of the world?

Kijong Kang: The development progress of Huxley is in early stages. We have already worked on proto-types, and now we are going to create the gameplay. You can see Huxley in summer 2006. Look out for the new release!.

Thanks you so much for taking the time to answer our questions.

The game looks cool, but I have a few issues with this. First, for some reason this guy sounds like he's owned by Microsoft... second, a(n) MMO FPS sounds a bit unreasonable. Will there be massive lag? It's hard to see how they're going to overcome this obstacle. And even if they do, will it be fair? Will I be able to shoot someone and expect the bullet to hit them, or will I have to aim 100 paces ahead where I think they will be and hope that I hit them?

For more on the Physics Processing Unit (PPU) mentioned in the article:
http://www.ageia.com/pr_03082005c.html