things continue to advance for deus ex. a snapshot of the team last week would look like this:

the programmers just finished giving us a new version. included are numerous new features and game systems, large and small. plus this version includes a bunch of new characters and objects. since our game is really interactive, we need a lot of objects–things you can act on in the game with or without tools, with or without certain player-character skills. not just triggers and switches, but many inventory items, devices containing pieces of backstory and/or plot critical info, etc.

most of the artists have been cranking through 3d object generation–everything from security cameras, ATM’s and retinal scanners to various types of ammo and fire hydrants. some of the artists have been continuing the animations for our *huge* host of NPC’s. and a few artists are working with designers on some of the remaining textures for use in our 3d maps.

the designers meanwhile continue to build out the world, connecting maps with teleporters and travel map triggers. (our travel map, prototyped by norden and the programmers recently, is going to rock. it is functional now and already looks pretty damned good. the final version should be awesome.) also, designers are working to revise minor parts of their mission write-ups, doing things like ensuring that for each skill we support in our game systems we have enough uses for that skill in the actual maps. (not as easy as it sounds.) we are nearing the stage where raw map work ends and NPC and locational scripting begins.

in other sundry disciplines: christian, our writer, is working with individual designers to get the characters all saying the right things at the right times. not only is he writing the conversations, he is using programmer albert yarusso’s ConEdit (a really nice app) to put the NPC conversations into script form. peter is constantly tweaking the schedule based on what we accomplish on a week by week basis. and stan–the sound effects designer–recently came down to spend some time talking to us about the game’s sounds.

meanwhile warren spends most of the day working on this huge mashed potato sculture he’s got going in his office and racing his BMW up and down loop 360. **JUST KIDDING** he’s actually as busy as anyone on the team, managing this very slippery, many-headed development team, continuing to work with designers on their missions, making sure the plot still works in light of 3d location cuts & mergers, and ensuring that the design doc–the monstrous hog that it has become–does not get too out of date.

i was going to rant about a particular designer topic today, but i’ll save it for tomorrow, given the length of this update. (i came in today to work some on the paris catacombs map.)

ps–thanks to all the people out there–friends and strangers alike–who have recently expressed interest in deus ex and who have wished us well here at ion austin. you know who you are…

word of the day: gnotobiotic

the last few months have been good to gamers, at least according to my tastes. half-life, thief, baldur’s gate & the s.m.a.c demo have all been good enough to give me a stiffy.

but of course i must have more…something new. so now, looking to the far horizon of the coming year, there are several games that have me getting really excited.

system shock 2–they just released a series of new shots that i think look awesome. i can just *feel* the game-play radiating off of these images. every location seems to tell some story or imply some interesting interaction-possibility. friends at looking glass & irrational games say that shock2 is really shaping up. some members of the thief team have moved over to work with the shock2 team (i believe). both groups are made up of some of the people who were responsible for underworld, system shock, terra nova and thief. if that doesn’t get you wildly excited, you probably should not be viewing the content on this page. go here for the new shock2 shots. (also, saam runs a really excellent site called Through the Looking Glass. it’s another great place to get info on LG games.) TTLG.com.

anachronox–yes, i know i work for ION, but i work at ION *Austin*, so i rarely get out to the dallas location, the mighty tower that it is. (here with warren’s group, we work in a little bank strip plaza…from which we have nearly been evicted several times for reasons i’d rather not divulge.) anyway, i just went to the ION web site and looked over all the new screen shots for the game. so far, from the demos i have seen, the game itself seems like a really interesting blend of strategy and role-playing. so i was already hyped for the game. but now, after seeing the latest work they have done, i am floored. it just looks amazing–revolutionary is the word that comes to mind. like jack nicholson said in _as good as it gets_, “you make me want to be a better designer…” really. looking at those shots is like a kick in the ass–those guys rock. & they are going to raise the bar. so this game is another title i am eagerly awaiting.

diablo 2–baldur’s gate is cool & it consumed a lot of the last few weekends. but as far as stat based/character advancement/kill monsters/collect treasure/ gain levels games go, diablo is the best. (btw–as you probably know, i am personally more inclined to the other side of the RPG–plot, character, setting; this is more what Deus Ex is all about. so don’t be thinking our game is going to be some sort of hack & slash fest.) the new diablo 2 shots seem to show that blizzard has repeated much of the same goodness that made diablo so damned addictive. plus they’ve added a bunch more. something like 6 character types, new monsters, spells, etc. and the ease of their multiplayer access is nothing short of ‘the best in the world.’ i can’t wait to play D2–it’s all the stat based game-play of a game like baldur’s gate, plus it’s faster, leaner and with fewer annoyances. note to blizzard: you should avoid areas that force instant repeated reloads, features that take control of the player’s character away & NPC interactions that suck everyone in the adventuring party into someone else’s conversation. (imho, the 3 worst aspects of BG.)

word of the day: tatterdemalion