Gabe Newell interview about HL2 (and TF2!!)
John Twernbold
Newell, originally published in a Dutch magazine. Possible spoilers, BTW.
------------------------------------------------------------
Author: X-Vector
Topic: Gabe Newell (Valve) interview in PCGP
posted 04-26-2003 11:11 AM
I'm translating PC Gameplay's interview with Gabe Newell from Valve for
your convenience.
Keep in mind that I've left out PCGP's questions that Newell is
answering (as they aren't really crucial) and that this is a
translation/interpretation of a translation/interpretation - although
I've tried to follow the PCGP interview text as closely as possible.
------------------------------------------------------------
We started work on HL2 immediately after the release of HL. This has
been our most important project by far, you can imagine how hard it was
for us to keep quiet about the game.
The HL2 team consists of a considerable number of people that also
worked on HL In addition, the success of our first title has enabled us
to hire a lot of new talent, which we think will be beneficial to the
quality of HL2.
The critical and commercial success of HL created a luxury situation. We
have obtained such a strong position that we can remain independent from
outside pressure, which for a game developer is fairly unique. No
producer to look over your shoulder, no impatient publisher to impose an
impossible deadline, we have been able to fully develop all our plans
for the game. Because of this, we're convinced that we're able to offer
gamers something they haven't experienced before and we're confident
that we can live up to the expectations that have been raised. This is
exactly the reason why you've had to wait for so long.
We don't want to spoil the story for you, but what we can tell is that
HL2 takes place some time after the disaster in Black Mesa and that the
aliens have continued their invasion of earth. The player will once
again take the role of Gordon Freeman and is assisted by the beautiful
Alyx and her father, a Black Mesa scientist called Eli Vance. Alyx's
mother was killed in one of the accidents at Black Mesa.
An important part of the game will play out in City 17, a typical
Eastern European town that is not only plagued by the aliens but also by
a corrupt law enforcement group. In total, there will be twelve
elaborate chapters in the game. City 17 is huge and the player will
visit places like the harbour, a jail, the suburbs as well the center of
town. This is just the tip of the iceberg though, other environments
will include a dried up part of a former sea and an icebreaker. There
are twelve chapters in total and you will certainly encounter a few
familiar places... that's all I will tell you though.
As you've mentioned it's difficult to come up with something original,
but we're convinced we have succeeded in doing just that. Enhanced
physics is the future of gaming and it's precisely this aspect of the
game that we've innovated. All objects in the gameworld will behave
realistically and are more than just window dressing. The characters have
also gotten much more depth, which will benefit the story. Aside from
that, we have included brand new and advanced AI and pathfinding routines
that you won't find in any other first person shooter. Let's not forget
our new Source engine that will blow you away and the powerful Hammer
editor that will enable you to create your own multiplayer levels and
mods.
Half-Life was one of the first shooters to include scripting. Nowadays
we have advanced a bit and come to find that using scripts limits our
freedom. That's why HL2 will make use of what we call "advanced
contextual AI", which is best explained as the game world telling the AI
interesting things to do in and with the environment. In essence, the
gane world 'talks' to the AI, which in turn will react appropriately.
Unlike HL, you won't come across any uninterruptible and non-interactive
scripted scenes in H2.
An example of the AI in the singleplayer game: let's say a radio is
transmitting an important message and an NPC (such as Alyx) heads over
to listen. In this situation the player can react the way he or she sees
fit - one possibility would be to destroy the radio, which leaves you
with a pissed-off NPC. Another example that you have seen demonstrated:
you're being chased by a Mechanised Commando and you take refuge in a
room close by. You close the door which then 'tells' the AI it can be
bashed in and the AI then reacts to this information. You will
experience different gameplay situations and outcomes according to the
approach you take.
The reason we developed our own Source engine is that we wanted to do
things that the then existing engines didn't allow us to. Sometimes
these were small issues, such as the easy implementation of shaders in
the gameplay. HL2's environments are so interactive that we had to write
our own tech, because most other engines treat effects like shaders and
bumpmapping as simple 'decoration' when it was necessary for the physics
system in the game to apply those effects to all kinds of dynamic
objects. The environment is integrated into the gameplay which means
it's a fundamental part of the overall experience. That is why we are
convinced this will raise both the graphics and the gameplay to a higher
level.
Of course the level of detail will be adjusted according to the
available system specs. If you're using a TNT2 video card, you'll have
to make do with a decrease in detail as opposed to those in possession
of the latest ATI cards. It won't be just the number of polygons that
makes the difference; because we're using advanced shaders and
reflections in for example the rendering of eyes and faces of NPCs,
we're able to reach a level of detail we couldn't even approach if we
simply upped the poly count. Of course, more important than the sheer
number of pixels and polygons you can push is what you do with them -
the old quality over quantity adagio. To be honest, we don't even keep
up an exact poly count, because there are so many other factors that
contribute to the detail of an in-game model. If I had to guess, I'd say
5000 polys per characyter would be a fair estimation. It's the eight to
twelve rendering passes we use on these 5000 polys that makes everything
look so good, though.
The scalable engine will allow the game to be played with anthing from a
TNT2 card and upwards. All known high end DX9 cards will also be
supported of course.
We only use motion capturing as a reference, because we feel that there
are severe limitations to the technique. Besides, mo-cap doesn't allow
for the fluid movements that we can achieve when programming character
physics.
Multiplayer is important to us, it's one of the reasons why Half-Life
was so successful. We'll continue to fully support the mod community and
will provide a number of mulitplayer modes and maps in HL2 itself,
although I won't be going into specifics at this point in time. You can
be sure though that it will al be there.
The movement speed of HL will be maintained in HL2, players will therefore
be able to once again make use of all their tactical abilities - although
we have a couple of surprises in this area...
Both the singleplayer and multiplayer modes will feature drivable
vehicles. On top of this, it will be perfectly possible for creative
modders to make use of the physics engine and to create lots of new
vehicles. The possibilities are endless.
I won't give out any information on the availability of bots in MP,
right now. We'd like to keep a couple of secrets left (*laughs*).
The Hammer editor will be included in the game, it's the successor to
Worldcraft Hammer is a very powerful editor that will allow you to make
your own maps, levels and mods.
The development of HL2 proceeded relatively smoothly, the biggest hurdle
was definitely deciding what to include and exclude from the final
version of the game. We had created so many fantastic, sexy things that
it was very hard sometimes to reach a decision and scrap some of them,
because for example the technology wasn't ready yet or they didn't fit
in to the freedom a player is allowed in HL2. It was heartbreaking,
*sob*, but I think I'm over that now...(*laughs*)
HL2 hasn't really been influenced by the other shooters that are around.
Our main strategy during the development of the game has been not to
look at what the competion is doing, but to rely on our own abilities
and also listen to the wants and needs of the fans. That's why you'll be
able to see a number of things in HL2 that you haven't yet seen in other
exponents of the genre. Being a gamer myself, I have to say that I'm
more than a little disappointed in the lack of progress the FPS has
shown over the last couple of years. Hopefully we will be able to
contribute to a much needed level of innovation.
STEAM will form an important part of our release strategy, accompanied by
the more usual form of distribution.
One of the reasons we've only now announced HL2 is that we wanted to be
sure we would be able to get the game out before Christmas 2003. We've
currently entered a stage of development where we can say with certainty
that we will make that date.
Like no other we understand the frustration of those looking forward to
TF2, the game was announced and all but disappeared off the face of the
earth. The reason you haven't recieved any information on TF2 in a long
time is that we didn't want to give anything about HL2 away. We decided
back then to use the Source engine for TF2 as well as HL2 and it was
impossible for us to show parts of TF2 without uncovering the technology
behind HL2, which we wanted to avoid at all cost. This isn't a factor
anymore though, so we can now reassure all you fans out there - TF2 will
arrive soon and will use the HL2 engine.
------------------------------------------------------------
--
Bold
aka John Twernbold
jtwernbold (at) yahoo.com
Mike Faust
out there - TF2 will
> arrive soon and will use the HL2 engine.
So Team Fortress 2 is basically going to be a MOD after all. Kind of ironic,
no?
John Twernbold
> So Team Fortress 2 is basically going to be a MOD after all. Kind of
> ironic, no?
Doesn't sound like that to me. I interpreted it as TF2 being a retail
product merely using the same engine (much like the Unreal and Quake
engines were used for other games).
Mike Faust
> product merely using the same engine (much like the Unreal and Quake
> engines were used for other games).
Team Fortress 2 will use the same engine as Half-Life 2. The game code will
be modified to reflect the new "rules" of the game. Team Fortress Classic
uses the same engine as Half-Life. The game code is modified to reflect the
new "rules" of the game. Team Fortress Classic is a MOD; Team Fortress 2
will be a MOD in its most basic form. I'm not saying this is a bad thing. As
long as the game is fun to play, who cares? It's just funny that it went
from being a MOD of Half-Life, to a stand-alone game (new engine and game
rules), and now back to a MOD of Half-Life 2. I'm sure it's going to kick
ass, regardless of how it is classified.
John Twernbold
> Team Fortress 2 will use the same engine as Half-Life 2. The game code
> will be modified to reflect the new "rules" of the game. Team Fortress
> Classic uses the same engine as Half-Life. The game code is modified
> to reflect the new "rules" of the game. Team Fortress Classic is a
> MOD; Team Fortress 2 will be a MOD in its most basic form.
Uh, I think you're confused about what the term "mod" means. A mod is a
FREE add-on to a retail game. Unless they give away TF2 for free (and I
doubt they will), then it won't be a mod. It'll be a retail product.
For example, QuakeIII is a retail game. Q3Fortress is a mod since it
uses the same engine, but is a free add-on which requires the retail
game. JKII *also* uses the same engine, but it is a retail game because
it's not free, and you don't have to own QuakeIII to play it. See the
difference?
The only grey area concerns products like CS, which are free mods but
also became retail products. However, it is unlikely TF2 will fit in
this category.
Strider
> One of the reasons we've only now announced HL2 is that we wanted to be
> sure we would be able to get the game out before Christmas 2003. We've
> currently entered a stage of development where we can say with certainty
> that we will make that date.
I can't wait that long, I'll ruddy explode!!
--
Scott Robson AKA Strider
scottmansfield at blueyonder dot co dot uk
http://coldsteam.no-ip.com
--
"Their infidels are committing suicide by the hundreds
on the gates of Baghdad. Be assured, Baghdad is safe,
protected." - Muhammed Saeed al-Sahhaf
Paul Catley
news:JF-dnY_e2dD...@comcast.com...
>
> Team Fortress 2 will use the same engine as Half-Life 2. The game code will
> be modified to reflect the new "rules" of the game. Team Fortress Classic
> uses the same engine as Half-Life. The game code is modified to reflect the
> new "rules" of the game. Team Fortress Classic is a MOD; Team Fortress 2
> will be a MOD in its most basic form. I'm not saying this is a bad thing. As
> long as the game is fun to play, who cares? It's just funny that it went
> from being a MOD of Half-Life, to a stand-alone game (new engine and game
> rules), and now back to a MOD of Half-Life 2. I'm sure it's going to kick
> ass, regardless of how it is classified.
By that reasoning, Half-Life is a mod of Quake.
;)
--
Paul
Lefty
Jethro[AGHL]
>
> John Twernbold proclaimed...
>
> > One of the reasons we've only now announced HL2 is that we wanted to be
> > sure we would be able to get the game out before Christmas 2003. We've
> > currently entered a stage of development where we can say with certainty
> > that we will make that date.
>
> I can't wait that long, I'll ruddy explode!!
Fire in the hole!!!
Heads up for the Geordie gibs.
>
> --
>
> Scott Robson AKA Strider
> scottmansfield at blueyonder dot co dot uk
> http://coldsteam.no-ip.com
>
> --
>
> "Their infidels are committing suicide by the hundreds
> on the gates of Baghdad. Be assured, Baghdad is safe,
> protected." - Muhammed Saeed al-Sahhaf
--
Jethro[AGHL] aka Phat_Pinger
Phat Clan: http://phats.clanpages.com
Reply Email: jeff (at) tibben (dot) ca
Strider
> Fire in the hole!!!
> Heads up for the Geordie gibs.
And you'd get an awful lots of gibs out of me.
Paul Catley
news:b8lq7u$bahor$1...@ID-137943.news.dfncis.de...
>
> > By that reasoning, Half-Life is a mod of Quake.
> > ;)
> >
> ;p
I, of course. It wasn't numbered :-P
--
Paul
Jethro[AGHL]
>
> Jethro[AGHL] proclaimed...
>
> > Fire in the hole!!!
> > Heads up for the Geordie gibs.
>
> And you'd get an awful lots of gibs out of me.
>
/sniff
Ewww... smells like skunky beer
Ben Cottrell
> > > Fire in the hole!!!
> > > Heads up for the Geordie gibs.
> >
> > And you'd get an awful lots of gibs out of me.
> >
>
> /sniff
> Ewww... smells like skunky beer
That would be the Newcastle Brown
lyset
> > Fire in the hole!!!
> > Heads up for the Geordie gibs.
>
> And you'd get an awful lots of gibs out of me.
>
> --
>
I can assure you all it wasn't my grenade it was Striders........
; )
lyset
Mike Faust
Usually, the modifications are just to the game rules; however, the engine
could also be modified. By definition, Half-Life is a modification of Quake
I. That is taking it to extreme terms; however, by definition, it's the
truth. Traditionally, yes, a MOD is a free modification of the game rules,
which usually encompasses new maps, models, sounds, etc. But just because
something is the 'norm', doesn't mean it can't be something else.
John Twernbold
> Simply stated, a MOD does not have to be free.
No, in all but the rarest of exceptions, mods are free and they require
the original retail game. The only exceptions to this are those oddball
cases like CS, and you can count these on one hand. In contrast, the
*thousands* of other mods fit this definition. If anything, the
exceptions prove the rule.
> By definition, Half-Life is a modification of Quake I.
While that *might* be true for the definition of the word
"modification" (and even that is somewhat suspect), it is NOT true for
the definition of "mod" as used in the computer gaming field. The
reason? HL isn't free, and it doesn't require Quake to play. C'mon, this
isn't rocket science.
> But just because something is the 'norm', doesn't mean it can't be
> something else.
I guess by that logic, a banana could be my great-great-grandfather,
huh? After all, the banana may contain the same atoms which... [snip]
Yeah, see how silly that is? Perhaps you should just admit you were
wrong and let it go. ;-)
Strider
> That would be the Newcastle Brown
No it wouldn't
Strider
> I can assure you all it wasn't my grenade it was Striders........
>
> ; )
Pah!
And you expect them to believe you!
With your reputation!!!
lyset
"Strider" <em...@signature.com> skrev i meddelandet
news:MPG.19196e946...@news.cis.dfn.de...
> lyset proclaimed...
>
> > I can assure you all it wasn't my grenade it was Striders........
> >
> > ; )
>
> Pah!
>
> And you expect them to believe you!
> With your reputation!!!
>
> --
; )
lyset
Strider
> ..but I'm right and you now it I just can't handle big guns under pressure.
>
> ; )
If I could I would admin-ban you from every CS server, everywhere! :)
Mike Faust
think you missed my original point (as this discussion is just getting
incredibly stupid), though.
John Twernbold
> I think you missed my original point
Apparently, since I couldn't find a point at all. :-)
I'm assuming you're referring to this:
"So Team Fortress 2 is basically going to be a MOD after all. Kind
of ironic, no?"
...which really doesn't make sense. If you find it "ironic", I'm
assuming it's because TF2 was originally going to be a Q2 mod? Or is it
ironic since TF2 was later going to be a HL retail add-on? Or is it
ironic because it... um, uses the same engine? Hell, I dunno what your
point is. 'Splain it to us?
If we assume that TF2 will be a completely separate retail game, I don't
see how this is anything different than what we've known (or presumed)
for the last several years. The only change is that TF2 will come out
*after* HL2, whereas up until now we had thought TF2 would be released
first and HL2 would use the "TF2 engine".
John Twernbold
> If you find it "ironic", I'm assuming it's because TF2 was originally
> going to be a Q2 mod? Or is it ironic since TF2 was later going to be
> a HL retail add-on?
Oh! I just re-read one of your previous points, and I figured out what
you meant:
"It's just funny that it went from being a MOD of Half-Life, to a
stand-alone game (new engine and game rules), and now back to a MOD
of Half-Life 2."
The problem with this is that TF2 was *never* going to be just a mod of
HL. As I said previously, TeamFortress Software was originally going to
make TF2 as a mod for Q2. Then Valve purchased/absorbed TFS, and TF2 was
going to be a retail HL add-on (in other words, *not* a mod). Then they
decided to expand it and create a standalone retail game still using the
basic HL engine, and released TeamFortress Classic in part to mollify
those who had purchased HL in order to play TF2, and also to test out
the mod-making process for HL. Then they decided to scrap the HL engine
and start over with a new engine, which is where we're still at. As I
said in my last post, the only difference is that HL2 will be released
first.
So yeah, I suppose it might've been funny... if you hadn't been mistaken
about TF2's history in the first place. ;-)
Mike Faust
believe you or anything, but you know how that is), and you are right. I was
thinking Team Fortress 2 was originally going to be a free MOD when I posted
that. Yeah, yeah, I know...."dumbass!" Go ahead, I deserve it. :P
John Twernbold
> Yeah, yeah, I know...."dumbass!" Go ahead, I deserve it. :P
Heh, we've all been there. The key is to cover up any mistakes with bluster
and technobabble; feel free to search my old posts for numerous examples of
both... :-)
Spyder Barques
"John Twernbold" <jtwer...@remove-this.yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:Xns936DB9DC5E...@24.94.170.86...
> Mike Faust wrote:
> > I think you missed my original point
>
> Apparently, since I couldn't find a point at all. :-)
Mike, old son, your last name may be Faust but you're totally out of your
league here.
Just let it go.
--
Thad
Spyder Barques
> Mike Faust wrote:
> > Yeah, yeah, I know...."dumbass!" Go ahead, I deserve it. :P
>
> Heh, we've all been there. The key is to cover up any mistakes with
bluster
> and technobabble; feel free to search my old posts for numerous examples
of
> both... :-)
Like I said, Mike.
Totally out of your league.
--
Thad
Neil Jones
<thad_e...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>
> --
> Thad
Hey, you're not offering points for your sleazy little 'Money' film
quote any more... I was gonna ride into town and relieve you of a
couple of them, but it seemed a bit of an unfair match-up. Anyone can
recognise a David Mamet line, surely...
___
Neil
AKA HighVis
"Looooooooooooooozzzzzzaaaaaaaaaasssssssssss
Bye, and Plonk, Plonk, Plonk...." - D Mamet
Mike Faust
> league here.
> Just let it go.
I may be out of my league, but you're a little late. =)
Strider
> I may be out of my league, but you're a little late. =)
Hello Mr Faust. Welcome to AGHL.
Paul Catley
news:010520032358413710%ne...@designumbrella.com...
>
> Hey, you're not offering points for your sleazy little 'Money' film
> quote any more... I was gonna ride into town and relieve you of a
> couple of them, but it seemed a bit of an unfair match-up. Anyone can
> recognise a David Mamet line, surely...
Where? Where? I would have had a go.
(/me searches)
Oh, that one. Got to be Glengarry Glen Ross, surely? Possibly Ed Harris?
(/me checks)
Wrong :(
(/me checks further)
Aah, so that's the answer. Sounds like a film I should see.
--
Paul
Spyder Barques
"Paul Catley" <paul....@virgin.net> wrote in message
news:b8t2ss$deend$1...@ID-36438.news.dfncis.de...
>
> Aah, so that's the answer. Sounds like a film I should see.
>
Actually, it's not. It doesn't live up to its potential, and became annoying
as it wore on. I just liked the 'money' line.
--
Thad
ffohkce at hotmail dot com
Louisiana's New State Slogan:
"We're Not ALL Drunk Cajun Wackos, But That's Our Tourism Campaign"
Spyder Barques
"Mike Faust" <MIKE...@comcast.net> wrote in message
news:QrGcnZASLLO...@comcast.com...
Only a little?
I'm getting better!
--
Thad
ffohkce at hotmail dot com
"I read somewhere that 77 per cent of all the mentally ill
live in poverty. Actually, I'm more intrigued by the 23 per
cent who are apparently doing quite well for themselves."
Spyder Barques
"Neil Jones" <ne...@designumbrella.com> wrote in message
news:010520032358413710%ne...@designumbrella.com...
> <thad_e...@hotmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > --
> > Thad
>
> Hey, you're not offering points for your sleazy little 'Money' film
> quote any more... I was gonna ride into town and relieve you of a
> couple of them, but it seemed a bit of an unfair match-up.
Nice left-handed request for points.
> Anyone can
> recognise a David Mamet line, surely...
Apparently not, since you're the first to comment on it.
--
Thad
ffohkce at hotmail dot com
"*Everybody* needs money, that's why they call it MONEY."