UFO 3 APOCALYPSE
Piotr Kurczak
Wszystkim *grajacym* inaczej dedykuje ten wywiad z tworcami UFO i XCOM.
Jest on ogolnie dostepny na stronach Ziff Davies (PC Magazine) i na
Unnoficial UFO Homepage. M. in. mozna nareszcie sie dowiedziec, jak to
bedzie z Real Timem w UFO 3. Wywiad w oryginale jest dokumentem HTML.
Piotr K.
pkur...@it.com.pl (chwilowo nieczynne), la...@it.com.pl
________________________________________________
X-COM Expert Expounds
Julian Gollop discusses the past, present, and future of Mythos
Games' X-COM
by Jeff James
Julian Gollop, the co-designer of X-COM along with his brother Nick,
recently took some
time to answer the questions of one of X-COM's biggest fans, Jeff James,
in an e-mail
interview.
X-COM literally caught the computer game industry by surprise, becoming
the "sleeper" hit of 1994.
During development did you have any idea that X-COM would become so
popular?
No, not at all. When we went to work at MicroProse in-house for a
couple of months to finish the
game they were pretty enthusiastic about it, but we later learned
that the project was nearly
dropped on two separate occasions--once early on when MicroProse had
some financial
difficulties and also following Spectrum HoloByte's takeover. The
game was not particularly
playable until close to publication and we had to work pretty hard to
meet the planned release
date. Neither of us had actually played the game very much--we relied
on feedback from
MicroProse's QA department while we concentrated on finishing the
programming and
debugging. The tactical system was based on some of my earlier games
and I knew it was a
popular concept, but the strategic element was very much untried and
we were concerned about
how the whole game would fit together.
What served as inspiration for X-COM? Any books, computer games,
role-playing games, movies or
other sources you'd like to name?
The first inspiration was to continue developing the tactical combat
system from my earlier games
(REBELSTAR and LASER SQUAD). We approached MicroProse with a demo on
the Atari ST
and they said they wanted a "big" game, so we suggested adding a
strategic aspect. It was Pete
Moreland at MicroProse UK who suggested the theme of UFOs. We agreed
that this was a great
idea. I was already familiar with some of the UFO lore, and the film
Communion was fascinating. I
went out and acquired quite a few books on UFOology and used much of
the material in the
game.
After the success of DOOM, the programmers at id Software invested some
of their hard-earned cash
in such items as expensive sports cars and homes. Have either you or Nick
splurged on any exotic
sports cars or castles in the English countryside?
No, we are investing most of the money into building a development
team with better resources. I
have bought a modest two bedroom apartment, and a Hi-fi to replace my
ghettoblaster (which
was stolen from the office recently). Nick is going to buy a car.
Unfortunately there are not many
habitable castles in England.
The tactical combat engine in X-COM seems ideal for use in other
settings, such as a squad-level
simulation of World War II, Korea or Vietnam. Will the X-COM game engine
be licensed to other
developers to develop these types of games, or will MicroProse UK develop
any and all products
based on the X-COM game engine?
The system is easily adaptable to other games. MicroProse has
licensed the X-COM system to
use with X-COM 2: TERROR FROM THE DEEP. Anything we do in the future
is, of course, open
to negotiation, but at the moment we are quite happy to work with
MicroProse.
How has X-COM been received in other world markets (outside of the States
and the U.K.)?
Quite well, but the impact seems to have been much greater in the
States where the PC strategy
games market is much more mature.
The current version of X-COM has some trouble with some 16-bit sound
cards, such as the Sound
Blaster AWE 32. When will the sound card patch be available for X-COM?
Well I would certainly like a sound card patch to run it on my PC.
Unfortunately we have to rely on
MicroProse for sound and music so it is out of our hands. I know that
the new sound drivers have
been written, and they will find their way into X-COM2, but it is
unlikely that the original will be
upgraded. Personally I would have liked to have spent a month or so
doing a general upgrade to
the game incorporating some of the valuable comments that players
have posted on
CompuServe and the Internet.
You mentioned that it "... is unlikely that the original will be
upgraded." The on-line support staffers at
MicroProse U.S. have been saying that the patch will be "shipping soon".
Will there be a sound card
patch for X-COM?
Well, this is really up to MicroProse because all the sound was done
in-house and there is nothing
we can do ourselves. I am sure they want to support their existing
customers.
Will X-COM be ported to any other platforms (i.e., Macintosh, Amiga,
Genesis, Jaguar, et al.)?
X-COM is currently available for the Amiga 1200 and CD-32. It will
also be available in a cut down
version for the Amiga 600/500. A Sony PlayStation version is highly
likely.
Given the current problems with the Amiga (i.e., ownership is still in
doubt), do you expect support for
the platform to continue? I have an Amiga 1200 myself...
The Amiga will probably continue because it is a strong machine in
Europe, but the Amiga games
software market has collapsed. This is a great shame because kids are
now growing up with
consoles rather than proper computers, but it looks likely that the
PC will eventually take over as
the standard home computer. The future of the CD32 is much more bleak
because it relies on
new software development to keep it going.
Terror at 20,000 leagues
X-COM 2: TERROR FROM THE DEEP is close to release. What is the latest
release date?
End of March. MicroProse is developing X-COM2 in-house using our game
engine. The game
scenario was designed by Steve Goss at MicroProse with myself and
Nick acting as consultants.
What is the basic premise of the game? Any major functional differences
between X-COM and X-COM
2?
The game environment shifts from the air and land to the sea where
dormant alien beings are
reawakening. The game will be functionally very similar to the
original.
Besides the undersea setting of the game and the expected accouterments
(e.g., subs, sea
monsters, scuba gear), what will X-COM 2 offer that the original didn't?
Considerably more variation in tactical terrain and more variety of
objectives. The research,
equipment, vehicles and aliens will all be new. The graphics and
sound are much more impressive.
There will also be less bugs.
Will X-COM 2 offer support for serial, modem or network play?
No, unfortunately. The system could be adapted for various
multiplayer configurations but this will
not appear until X-COM 3.
Will X-COM 2 be restricted to an undersea locale, or will players have to
also intercept and
shoot-down UFOs as in X-COM?
X-COM craft are capable of flying but the UFOs are really USOs
(unidentified swimming objects)
so the interceptions occur underwater. However there are plenty of
[above ground] missions in
sea ports, ships and oil rigs.
X-COM: The Next Generation
There has been some talk about X-COM 3, which will reportedly feature a
totally revised interface with
swimming, climbing and other characteristics. What can you tell me about
X-COM 3?
X-COM3 is being largely re-written from scratch with a totally new
tactical combat engine and a
new strategic combat system. We are including all the game elements
from the previous
games--tactical combats, research, base construction, production,
buying, selling, recruiting--but
we are adding several new elements. Firstly there is a semi-real time
strategic combat system
involving various types of vehicles. This part of the game is now
complete and works quite well.
Secondly there is a sort of role-playing element with a large number
of non-player characters who
have there own objectives and influence within a futuristic
megalopolis. The game is initially set in
this megalopolis, which is dominated by various corporations and
other organizations. The
interface will be totally upgraded with 'drag and drop' icons
replacing tedious menu access. The
tactical game will allow a much wider variety of actions, including
swimming, climbing, jumping and
crawling.
Will X-COM 3 reside in the same game universe as X-COM? In other words,
will the player get to
assault the alien's home world and put an end to their dastardly schemes?
The answer to this question is more difficult because I don't want to
give too much of the story
away. All I can say is that X-COM 3 does reside initially in the same
universe. The game is set
about 100 years in the future and X-COM has been revived as a small
secretive organization
based in a contained city environment. The world has suffered from
ecological disaster and the
nation-state no longer exists. The basic aim of the game remains the
same--to investigate and
deal with an alien menace--but the player will discover that the
situation can develop well beyond
the scope of the first two games.
Will X-COM 3 be in created in standard 320 X 200 VGA resolution, or will
it support higher screen
resolutions?
The screen resolution will be 640x480 with 256 colors. This
resolution is much better than
standard VGA for detailed strategy games. Overall the graphics will
be very impressive. X-COM3
will be a CD only product with video sequences for news reports and
an extensive, fully illustrated
UFOpedia covering every aspect of the game world.
Will X-COM 3 offer multi-player support?
Definitely, yes. I think this is a very important feature which we
simply did not have time to
implement in the original engine. The multiplayer options will
probably be with networks, null
modem, and modem play. In addition there will be a set of utilities
to enable players to design
tactical combat scenarios and maps.
What do you think will be the most impressive features of X-COM 3?
Flexibility and depth. Players should be able to play the game the
way they want to. The tactical
combat section will allow for turn based play, real-time and semi
real time. The multi-player options
and customizing utilities should add longevity to the game.
You mentioned that X-COM 3 would have a "....semi-real time strategic
combat system involving
various types of vehicles." Could you elaborate on that statement a bit
more? (i.e., what sorts of
vehicles, etc.)
In the city, X-COM has a number of road based vehicles including
cars, bikes, tanks, armored
transports and self-propelled artillery. The airborne vehicles
include hoverbikes, hovercars,
spaceships, and various attack craft. The view of the city is
isometric, with a strategic map for a
wider view. The player issues directional instructions to vehicles,
such as targeting a UFO or
moving to a building. The player can set rules of engagement for each
vehicle which determine
whether a vehicle pursues, avoids or attacks a given type of target.
The game can be paused or
speeded up as the player sees fit.
Do you have a release date for X-COM 3 yet?
Ahh, well you shouldn't ask such difficult questions! <g> The current
plan is to finish the game by
the end of summer in time for a Christmas release.
What does Mythos have in the works after X-COM 3?
We plan to develop multi-player on-line strategy games because this
is the kind of game that I
like. Telephone costs are still a bit prohibitive in Europe compared
to America, but as
communication costs fall and computer networks grow, on-line games
will be a major growth area
for the PC games market.
Character Development
How did you and Nick split the programming duties for X-COM?
I did most of the design and interface programming and Nick handled
the trickier bits such as the
AI.
How did you and Nick get started in programming? How old where you when
you decided to develop
computer games for a living?
I was 18 when I got my first computer--a Sinclair ZX81--in 1982. I
was already mad about board
games and role playing games so I was fascinated with the idea of
using computers to play
games with. As soon as I got a Sinclair Spectrum I started
programming computer strategy
games. I have being doing so until now apart from a break to go to
college. I recruited Nick to help
me with LASER SQUAD in 1988 after he left school.
One of my favorite games for the Amiga was LASER SQUAD. Besides that
product, what other games
has Mythos developed?
Mythos was formed in 1988, after I had spent some time programming
for the Spectrum. Apart
from LASER SQUAD we developed a magical strategy game called LORDS OF
CHAOS, which
did not see the light of day in America as far as I know. My Spectrum
games (NEBULA, CHAOS,
REBELSTAR I and II, LORDS OF CHAOS and LASER SQUAD) are available for
the PC using a
Spectrum emulator (which is available via shareware).
What is this emulator called and where can it be downloaded? Is there
anyway for someone in the
states to purchase your older Spectrum games for use with the emulator?
The emulator I use is called 'Z80' and is available direct from
Gerton Lunter, P.O. Box 2535,
NL-9704 CM Groningen, The Netherlands. The price is $23 (use an
international postal money
order). My old Spectrum games are now classified as freeware and are
available from various
Fidonet sites in the UK, along with shareware versions of the
Spectrum emulator. There is a
Fidonet conference called 'Spectrum' which deals with emulators and
games.
What games do you enjoy playing besides X-COM?
Mostly I play board games and I have built up a fair collection from
Avalon Hill, SPI, Games
Workshop and other publishers. I try not to play computer games too
much otherwise I would be
spending nearly all my waking hours in front of a VDU. Our favorite
recent computer games have
been MASTERS OF ORION, TRANSPORT TYCOON, TIE FIGHTER, SIMCITY 2000
and VGA
PLANETS.
I'm an avid Games Workshop fan myself, playing Blood Bowl, Warhammer and
Warhammer 40K.
Which GW products do you play?
I mostly play the earlier board games from GW, most of which seem to
be discontinued and are
difficult to get hold of (like APOCALYPSE, JUDGE DREDD, TALISMAN,
BATTLE CARS,
DRAGON MASTERS). I confess that I haven't played their recent
efforts, although
WARHAMMER and BLOOD BOWL are quite popular. Incidentally, one of my
early Spectrum
games, CHAOS, was originally published by GW in 1984 when they made
an attempt to branch
out into computer games. I was also due to write a Judge Dredd game,
which was going to be a
strategy game based on the GW board game. Sadly, GW wanted an arcade
style game which I
was not prepared to do so they went elsewhere.
On the topic of computer games, have you seen Origin's WING COMMANDER 3?
If so, what did you
think of it?
I have only seen the demo of WC3, and the acting is very good
compared to similar games. I will
reserve judgment until I have played it, but it seems to be a space
combat game with a movie
bolted on to create a story. I suspect that it's not really my cup of
tea, but then I thought the same
before buying TIE FIGHTER, and I ended up playing it for two days
solid.
Speaking of games from another company, what products in the game
industry impress you? Any
specific companies or products you'd like to name?
LucasArts is impressive for producing generally good quality games
and MicroProse for great
strategy games. We were very impressed with TIM WISSEMAN's VGA
PLANETS because of the
concept behind it.
What do you think of the debate over violence in computer games here in
the States?
Most computer games involve some kind of representation of violence,
but recently the selling
point of some games has been the graphic depiction of violence. As
graphics become more
sophisticated and realistic it is inevitable that they will be
subject to the same kind of classification
as films. The British Board of Film Censors already looks at computer
games because of the
recent Criminal Justice Act which requires any game containing video
style footage (whether
generated by real actors or not) to be classified. The European
industry now has a voluntary
classification system. Personally I support guidelines but not
censorship. Violence does not
automatically make a good game and I am more concerned about the
quality of games as we
move into the so called 'interactive multimedia' age.
If you weren't programming games for Mythos, what would the two of you be
doing for a living?
Driving race cars? Working for the British Military? Running for prime
minister?
I have always wanted to be either an artist, film director or a
writer. I am not sure what Nick would
have done with his economics degree.
Given your interests, what do you think of the current trends in computer
game design, with
computer gaming and Hollywood beginning to merge into a new medium? Do
you think computer
gaming will eventually reach the stature and acceptance of traditional
entertainment media? (i.e.,
films, television, plays, etc.)
I don't think the current trends are particularly encouraging because
the self styled 'interactive
movies' tend to be considerably less interactive than a good strategy
game. I have more fun
playing with my VCR than some of these games. The standard of acting
and artwork is
undoubtedly improving with recent releases, but the technology is an
enormously limiting factor. In
order to avoid linearity huge amounts of footage have to be
generated. Another problem is that
publishers tend to concentrate far too much resources on the visual
and aural aspects of a game
compared to the game design.
Eventually technology will allow fully interactive environments and
probably supersede films and
TV, but that is a long way off. The most important feature of genuine
interaction is the ability to
relate to other intelligent entities, and you can do this now by
playing a game with some friends or
you can wait for a dramatic advance in artificial intelligence. I
think that the key to improved
interaction in computer games is the development of AI, and there is
plenty of scope to do that
with the existing technologies. Sadly, most developers don't seem to
realize this.
If a young programmer asked you for advice on breaking into the game
development biz, what would
you tell him?
Nowadays, it really helps to get a computer science degree--as long
as the course covers C or
C++ programming. There are also some computer graphics degrees worth
looking at. Without a
degree many companies need two or more years experience in the
business. One way to get this
experience is by developing some small scale shareware games--but it
is a lot of effort to produce
something viable with scarce resources.
What off-the-shelf development tools did you use to create X-COM?
We used WATCOM C/C++32 version 9.5. This seems to have become a
standard for developing
computer games because it includes a royalty free version of Rational
Systems DOS extender,
which not only allows easy access to extended memory, but it also
uses protected mode (i.e.
genuine 32 bit code). It generates the fastest compiled code out of
all the compilers. The only
other software tool we used was DPAINT II ENHANCED for the artwork.
[Back to Computer Gaming World Home Page]
Copyright 1995 Ziff Davis Publishing Company All Rights Reserved. This
material may not be reproduced in
any form without permission.