Reddit Interview with Robert Bowling
RangerXML posted this link up about an interview on Reddit with Robert Bowling. I have gone through and selected a few of the questions and answers, but there are many more that can be read from the source link below:
As a follow up to E3 2011, @fourzerotwo » decided to host a questions and answers session for the community.
Robert Bowling, Creative Strategist for Infinity Ward, decided to follow up E3 2011 by hosting a public Q and A session». This event was held on the social media site Reddit, which is a social news site where members can share messages, images, videos and external web links. Bowling started this session mid-afternoon and has been answering community questions ever since.
Events like these allow the community to directly get in contact with fourzerotwo. It is faster than discussion via email or forums and there is not message character cap like there is on Twitter. During Black Ops development Josh Olin (Community Manager for Treyarch) hosted similar Q and A session via Twitter and alternative chat services. They are a great way to get additional details and clarification on what has been publicly released about the game.
Below you will find every question answered by Bowling, so be prepared for a long read. The topics covered include mostly single player, special ops and general develop questions, but there are also some multiplayer topics covered. Questions asked are in the blue and Bowling's direct answers are in gray. Let’s dive in!
Much thanks to site member GhOst.» for keeping this topic» up to date with the latest replies. Here are a few highlights:
Alot of the MW3 footage looked very similar to MW2, what is MW3 doing to differentiate itself from previous games both in terms of singleplayer and multiplayer?
From a story stand point, Modern Warfare 3 is a direct sequel - picking up just hours after Modern Warfare 2 ended.
The big difference, from a single player campaign standpoint, in Modern Warfare 3 is the scale of the levels you're fighting in. Like going through the streets of Manhattan both on foot and in-air, or Paris, or London, or parts of Africa. The sizes of the campaign levels are massive, which required a lot of work in terms of advancing the streaming tech to not only get to that level of scale but to maintain the game running above 60 fps at all times.
From a multiplayer stand point its all about polish and balance. Taking all the feedback from Modern Warfare 2, building up from the core design philosophy of Call of Duty 4 (the simplistic beauty of fast paced gun on gun focused gameplay), keeping what we loved, losing stuff we (including you) didn't, and adding in stuff that will change up the way we play.
The size is great, but are they more open? I like games like Fallout, where you can wander through surroundings, instead of being sheparded down a narrow path. If I'm in Manhattan, can I just turn down any street and run into a group of enemy soldiers, or is there a pre-determined route?
The single player campaign is all about delivering a cinematic experience with set piece moments and massive action. However, we know you want open (let me decide how to tackle this) gameplay and that is where we've really expanded on Spec Ops in allowing you to play out missions with objectives in more open areas that are not tied to the story. Furthermore, you can play every Spec Ops survival mission on ALL multiplayer maps that are completely open.
Will there be a MW3 MP beta?
There will definitely be an internal one, but we haven't decided or confirmed if there will be a public one. A public multiplayer beta is a give / take in terms of development schedule. It takes a good month out of your schedule to prepare it for public consumption and actually have time to incorporate the feedback.
In the meantime, while that's decided, I've been flying community members out to Infinity Ward to see the game (not play yet) but to see and discuss it and give feedback. Furthermore, we will fly out members of our glitcher community to give the MP a run through its paces later in development to try to find map holes, glitches, and other exploits prior to release. We also have a full-time QA department.
Will there be Dedicated server for PC?
I want dedicated servers for the PC version of Modern Warfare 3 and we are currently discussing how we can support them, however am not ready to confirm if they will or will not be part of MW3.
The decision to create IWnet was a simple one, we wanted to make the PC version of our game more accessible. We were successful in this by introducing matchmaking and a lobby system. You could quickly find a game, but you did not have the control and consistency that our PC players have come to enjoy.
Were you surprised at the backlash to COD: Elite?How do you feel about Battlefield's similar service?
I was not surprised at all, because it positioned poorly and misunderstood. If I thought I had to pay for stats, groups, clans, the ability to change my class on the fly online or on my phone, and all the other features they announced. I'd want it for free too.
Luckily, all that IS free for everyone, but people didn't know that.
I think these are services that all shooters should eventually have one day, and I'm stoked we'll have them free to everyone for MW3 and am glad that DICE is doing the same.
In an ideal world, I would like Modern Warfare 3 to have both. The ability to the mass PC user to quickly get in a game by default matchmaking via IWnet. However, I would also like to accommodate our users who desire a dedicated server experience, whether by direct IP input or server browser support.
These are the discussions we are currently having on how we can look at go back to our Call of Duty 4 philosophy of PC specific feature.
When can we see a preview of MW3 multiplayer?
There is no date yet for Modern Warfare 3 multiplayer reveal yet. I hope, starting today with this thread, to start addressing hardcore community questions regarding the direction multiplayer is taking, and hopefully start revealing things that won't change (like certain weapons, features, etc), however we can't start showing multiplayer until we get a little later and have it in its final iteration.
What would you say is YOUR favourite aspect about MW3 that differs from previous Call of Duty games?
Spec Ops Survival mode, solely because it brings a lot of stuff to the game that we've never done before, plus you get to use a lot of Multiplayer features without worrying about them being over powered (since its co-op and not competitive MP), so you get to do **** like have an awesomely powered ACR and take on bomb dogs with Juggernaut and it doesn't matter if its completely ludicrous since it all takes place outside the story mode. Its all about just having fun.
In multiplayer, will weapon attachments be unlocked like mw2, or blops?
Neither. We have a unique new way that weapon attachments and upgrades to your weapon are earned in Modern Warfare 3.
Will there still be a knife monkey class?(along the lines of mw2's commandopro/lightweightpro/marathonpro/tac knife/carepackgemarkerpreupdate)
Absolutely not. We've removed commando and have re-balanced the knife melee to be the "in a pinch" or "unsuspecting fool" tool that its meant to be, not a default go-to weapon choice. You should never bring a knife to a gun fight.
What are some examples of the loved and less-loved stuff you'll be removing/implementing in multiplayer?
Fourzerotwo: Loved: High gun damage, gun on gun focus, depth of features but simplistic in design.
Less-loved / removed: OMA, Commando, Overpowered Explosives, Nukes, Last Stand aka Second Chance perk.
Will there be something similar to the BLOPS theater mode for multiplayer?
Yes, but the exact implementation of it is not finished. Its important to look at features and make sure they're optimized in a way that does not affect frame rate or gameplay for the sake just having it.
So it looks like a lot of adjustments from previous titles. A lot of perks are changing or are gone. Dedicated servers are still in the air. Weapon adjustments are being re-done along with the kill streak system. Are all these changes for the good of Call of Duty? Could this be taken as a few steps back for better gameplay and balance? Could all this change again since the game is not released yet?
Read the rest of the questions and answers at the source link.
SOURCE
As a follow up to E3 2011, @fourzerotwo » decided to host a questions and answers session for the community.
Robert Bowling, Creative Strategist for Infinity Ward, decided to follow up E3 2011 by hosting a public Q and A session». This event was held on the social media site Reddit, which is a social news site where members can share messages, images, videos and external web links. Bowling started this session mid-afternoon and has been answering community questions ever since.
Events like these allow the community to directly get in contact with fourzerotwo. It is faster than discussion via email or forums and there is not message character cap like there is on Twitter. During Black Ops development Josh Olin (Community Manager for Treyarch) hosted similar Q and A session via Twitter and alternative chat services. They are a great way to get additional details and clarification on what has been publicly released about the game.
Below you will find every question answered by Bowling, so be prepared for a long read. The topics covered include mostly single player, special ops and general develop questions, but there are also some multiplayer topics covered. Questions asked are in the blue and Bowling's direct answers are in gray. Let’s dive in!
Much thanks to site member GhOst.» for keeping this topic» up to date with the latest replies. Here are a few highlights:
- The Dolphin Dive will not return to MW3
- Currently there is the ability to "quickscope"
- IW plans to fully support MW3 post-launch (includes hot fix ability)
- OMA , Commando , Second Chance have been dropped from MW3
- Spec-Ops mode is confirmed to only be 2 players max
Alot of the MW3 footage looked very similar to MW2, what is MW3 doing to differentiate itself from previous games both in terms of singleplayer and multiplayer?
From a story stand point, Modern Warfare 3 is a direct sequel - picking up just hours after Modern Warfare 2 ended.
The big difference, from a single player campaign standpoint, in Modern Warfare 3 is the scale of the levels you're fighting in. Like going through the streets of Manhattan both on foot and in-air, or Paris, or London, or parts of Africa. The sizes of the campaign levels are massive, which required a lot of work in terms of advancing the streaming tech to not only get to that level of scale but to maintain the game running above 60 fps at all times.
From a multiplayer stand point its all about polish and balance. Taking all the feedback from Modern Warfare 2, building up from the core design philosophy of Call of Duty 4 (the simplistic beauty of fast paced gun on gun focused gameplay), keeping what we loved, losing stuff we (including you) didn't, and adding in stuff that will change up the way we play.
The size is great, but are they more open? I like games like Fallout, where you can wander through surroundings, instead of being sheparded down a narrow path. If I'm in Manhattan, can I just turn down any street and run into a group of enemy soldiers, or is there a pre-determined route?
The single player campaign is all about delivering a cinematic experience with set piece moments and massive action. However, we know you want open (let me decide how to tackle this) gameplay and that is where we've really expanded on Spec Ops in allowing you to play out missions with objectives in more open areas that are not tied to the story. Furthermore, you can play every Spec Ops survival mission on ALL multiplayer maps that are completely open.
Will there be a MW3 MP beta?
There will definitely be an internal one, but we haven't decided or confirmed if there will be a public one. A public multiplayer beta is a give / take in terms of development schedule. It takes a good month out of your schedule to prepare it for public consumption and actually have time to incorporate the feedback.
In the meantime, while that's decided, I've been flying community members out to Infinity Ward to see the game (not play yet) but to see and discuss it and give feedback. Furthermore, we will fly out members of our glitcher community to give the MP a run through its paces later in development to try to find map holes, glitches, and other exploits prior to release. We also have a full-time QA department.
Will there be Dedicated server for PC?
I want dedicated servers for the PC version of Modern Warfare 3 and we are currently discussing how we can support them, however am not ready to confirm if they will or will not be part of MW3.
The decision to create IWnet was a simple one, we wanted to make the PC version of our game more accessible. We were successful in this by introducing matchmaking and a lobby system. You could quickly find a game, but you did not have the control and consistency that our PC players have come to enjoy.
Were you surprised at the backlash to COD: Elite?How do you feel about Battlefield's similar service?
I was not surprised at all, because it positioned poorly and misunderstood. If I thought I had to pay for stats, groups, clans, the ability to change my class on the fly online or on my phone, and all the other features they announced. I'd want it for free too.
Luckily, all that IS free for everyone, but people didn't know that.
I think these are services that all shooters should eventually have one day, and I'm stoked we'll have them free to everyone for MW3 and am glad that DICE is doing the same.
In an ideal world, I would like Modern Warfare 3 to have both. The ability to the mass PC user to quickly get in a game by default matchmaking via IWnet. However, I would also like to accommodate our users who desire a dedicated server experience, whether by direct IP input or server browser support.
These are the discussions we are currently having on how we can look at go back to our Call of Duty 4 philosophy of PC specific feature.
When can we see a preview of MW3 multiplayer?
There is no date yet for Modern Warfare 3 multiplayer reveal yet. I hope, starting today with this thread, to start addressing hardcore community questions regarding the direction multiplayer is taking, and hopefully start revealing things that won't change (like certain weapons, features, etc), however we can't start showing multiplayer until we get a little later and have it in its final iteration.
What would you say is YOUR favourite aspect about MW3 that differs from previous Call of Duty games?
Spec Ops Survival mode, solely because it brings a lot of stuff to the game that we've never done before, plus you get to use a lot of Multiplayer features without worrying about them being over powered (since its co-op and not competitive MP), so you get to do **** like have an awesomely powered ACR and take on bomb dogs with Juggernaut and it doesn't matter if its completely ludicrous since it all takes place outside the story mode. Its all about just having fun.
In multiplayer, will weapon attachments be unlocked like mw2, or blops?
Neither. We have a unique new way that weapon attachments and upgrades to your weapon are earned in Modern Warfare 3.
Will there still be a knife monkey class?(along the lines of mw2's commandopro/lightweightpro/marathonpro/tac knife/carepackgemarkerpreupdate)
Absolutely not. We've removed commando and have re-balanced the knife melee to be the "in a pinch" or "unsuspecting fool" tool that its meant to be, not a default go-to weapon choice. You should never bring a knife to a gun fight.
What are some examples of the loved and less-loved stuff you'll be removing/implementing in multiplayer?
Fourzerotwo: Loved: High gun damage, gun on gun focus, depth of features but simplistic in design.
Less-loved / removed: OMA, Commando, Overpowered Explosives, Nukes, Last Stand aka Second Chance perk.
Will there be something similar to the BLOPS theater mode for multiplayer?
Yes, but the exact implementation of it is not finished. Its important to look at features and make sure they're optimized in a way that does not affect frame rate or gameplay for the sake just having it.
So it looks like a lot of adjustments from previous titles. A lot of perks are changing or are gone. Dedicated servers are still in the air. Weapon adjustments are being re-done along with the kill streak system. Are all these changes for the good of Call of Duty? Could this be taken as a few steps back for better gameplay and balance? Could all this change again since the game is not released yet?
Read the rest of the questions and answers at the source link.
SOURCE
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