The Secret of Streamlining
The Secret of Streamlining
Interview - posted by VentilatorOfDoom on Fri 23 July 2010, 17:56:28
Tags: BioWareBioDoc Greg Zeschuk explains in this interview with Telegraph.co.uk that they're <span style="text-decoration: line-through;">removing</span> streamlining the RPG elements of their games to maximize the depth.
A lot of the RPG elements from Mass Effect 1 were streamlined for Mass Effect 2. Was this done to attract a wider audience?
Well I think it comes back to one of our main goals at BioWare: that we always try to improve the experience. It’s interesting, because one of the things we knew right off the bat that we wanted to do for the sequel to Mass Effect, was keep the same level of detail, but make it a bit easier to access. It wasn’t so much a case that we were going for a wider audience – we just wanted make a better game, which was easier to pick and play and enjoy. The potential to bring Mass Effect to a wider audience was a secondary consideration. The key thing for us was to make the whole thing better.
Looking at the success this system has had in Mass Effect 2, will BioWare look at making the RPG elements in games such as Star Wars: The Old Republic and the forthcoming Dragon Age sequel more streamlined too?
Yeah, to a certain degree. Like I said, we want to make each game better than the last and to a certain degree, the easier we can make the gameplay while maximising the depth of the game's detail, is something to aim for. We announced Dragon Age 2 a short while ago and of course we've been talking about Star Wars: The Old Republic for a while now – and people have had a chance to play it and probably see what some of our objectives are with the game. We try to do a lot of focus testing and usability testing with our fans. We're always trying to make our games as fun and easily usable as possible.
I'm glad to see that Greg still sticks to his principles, doing things for the greater good, to push the genre forward instead of merely aiming for more sales.
Spotted at: GB
A lot of the RPG elements from Mass Effect 1 were streamlined for Mass Effect 2. Was this done to attract a wider audience?
Well I think it comes back to one of our main goals at BioWare: that we always try to improve the experience. It’s interesting, because one of the things we knew right off the bat that we wanted to do for the sequel to Mass Effect, was keep the same level of detail, but make it a bit easier to access. It wasn’t so much a case that we were going for a wider audience – we just wanted make a better game, which was easier to pick and play and enjoy. The potential to bring Mass Effect to a wider audience was a secondary consideration. The key thing for us was to make the whole thing better.
Looking at the success this system has had in Mass Effect 2, will BioWare look at making the RPG elements in games such as Star Wars: The Old Republic and the forthcoming Dragon Age sequel more streamlined too?
Yeah, to a certain degree. Like I said, we want to make each game better than the last and to a certain degree, the easier we can make the gameplay while maximising the depth of the game's detail, is something to aim for. We announced Dragon Age 2 a short while ago and of course we've been talking about Star Wars: The Old Republic for a while now – and people have had a chance to play it and probably see what some of our objectives are with the game. We try to do a lot of focus testing and usability testing with our fans. We're always trying to make our games as fun and easily usable as possible.
Spotted at: GB
