Hellgate: London Interview Hellgate London Bill Roper

Bill Roper exclusive @ Hellgatelondon.de (en.)

We had the opportunity to ask Bill Roper some question about Hellgate: London. In the interview, he talks about Role-Playing and other really interesting things. The German version can be found here, the Czech version here.


HellgateLondon.de/gamona:
By announcing your new online-division you obviously decided to create an extensive online-component. We would really like to see extensive support, too. How are you going to get as close as possible to the international community? Are there any plans for a localized closed or open beta or even area-based community-websites which offer a platform for tournaments, ladders and content connected to the scene of the game? May we once again enjoy the advantages of a website like the "Arreat Summit", that features all the numbers, stats, items, skills, etc.? Will there be something like GMs and Community-Managers? And, for example, what will you do to prevent commercial selling of items, gold and characters?

Bill Roper:
We have a lot of plans for our online presence, both in and out of the game itself. We’re currently looking for world-class programmers and engineers to develop a high-performance client/server network platform and the essential online game functions for Hellgate: London. While we have already begun the work on our online destination, we’re at the stage where we need programmers to build upon our basic architecture and infrastructure.

In regards to the community, we definitely view this as a global commitment. We have always enjoyed spending time with and gaining valuable insight and feedback from gamers around the world. We currently run a fansite program that has members from the US, Germany, France, Brazil, Korea, Japan and – of course – the UK. Hand in hand with this localized interaction will be eventual closed and open betas in many different countries, as well as providing them with the information necessary to support Hellgate: London to the fullest extent possible.

We are also currently working on a huge upgrade to our Hellgate: London website, which is currently designed as a cornerstone site for downloadable content. We know that players want a definitive source for information on the game, and we are dedicated to providing that for them. We also will continue to work very closely with both the international press and our fansites to continue to get the word out about Hellgate: London and provide more details as we continue the development of the game.

As for our plans in terms of the online business model and provided support, we’re still evaluating our options and working closely with our publishing partners to determine the best path. Our goal is to provide a safe, fun and rewarding online experience and our dedicated online destination will reflect this.

HellgateLondon.de/gamona:
Will the game feature persistent parts? You mentioned that players meet in town-like areas to chat, trade and hang out, will there be one of these areas for each server, will it look more like in World of Warcraft, where there are different, geographically placed cities, or do you intend to create a world cut into acts like in Diablo2? Will the player teleport or travel between those areas, or do you "join" them like a game or an instance?

Bill Roper:
The economy, community and characters in Hellgate: London are persistent, as are the Underground stations (you can think of them as towns) where players and guilds come together to meet and interact. The adventuring areas are dynamically generated to accommodate the levels and numbers of characters adventuring in them, as well as to provide a focused and unique play experience. There is no “chat room” as in Diablo II, and there are also no vast static landscapes as in World of Warcraft. The interaction between the persistent and instanced areas of the game is closest to what was done in Guild Wars. There are, however, some major differences that we think players will find very exciting, chief amongst them being the completely randomized and dynamically generated areas where all the demon hunting and loot collecting take place!

As for the world layout / design, we aren’t dividing Hellgate: London into the strict confines of Acts as you saw in Diablo. We intend to have players travel back and forth between areas, evolving them as our story progresses. As for travel between the areas, we like to get players into the action as quickly as possible as opposed to forcing them to run long distances or take mass transit. We have a few different ways we allow players to get around the world very quickly, including the ability to instantly Recall to the last station they visited, or to quickly travel between any stations they have previously visited.

HellgateLondon.de/gamona:
Will quests/instances lead you through a connected, linear storyline of events you trigger by questing, like in d2, or will quests be more like in a MMORPG, only remotely connected to a main-plot, telling stories about the world and also involving a lot of "kill x, collect y"-quests?

Bill Roper:
The short answer is yes. Currently our quests break down into three categories: Storyline, Class-Specific and tasks.

Storyline

Unlike most MMORPGs, we have a definite storyline that we want players to experience. This means that every character in the game will share key events, but with our dynamic generation system, the journey between these points is unique for every player. We are creating a rich world and we want to tell a story with our game, so having a series of Quests that drive this is essential.

Class-Specific

These are quests that are designed especially for each character class. For example, there is a Templar NPC that has a chain of quests that not only reveal more about that NPC, but also about the Templar Order. Players need a certain amount of Faction within their character’s class/organization to do these quests, and there will be ways for players to gain a high enough reputation to go on quests outside of their own class. Obviously, this will take some dedication on the part of the player to gain the trust and respect of the leaders of these other classes. Speaking of which…

Tasks

Tasks are the generic, "kill x, collect y" style missions that provide short, directed goals with a clearly defined benefit. Apart from experience, money and items, some of these Tasks will also gain the player increased Faction with other groups. This will be one of the ways players can unlock class-specific quests outside their chosen organization, as well as discovering other secrets in the world.

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