Interview about Quake Wars: Enemy Territory

In London where Splash Damage are located, CVG went and subjected lead designer Paul Wedgwood to an interview to learn the innermost workings of what Splash Damage are plotting.

Here’s the interview:
Can we kick off by getting a bit of background on the game – how it came about?

Paul Wedgwood: We’d just finished Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory with id Software and I’d worked through that whole project for a year and a bit with Kevin Cloud from id Software. He was lead designer on Quake 2 and executive producer on Return to Castle Wolfenstein and executive producer on Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory and we’d spent a lot of time discussing design ideas and things we’d like to have done in Wolf ET. So in much the same way as Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory came about as a result of the wish list of things that didn’t make into Return to Castle Wolfenstein multiplayer, there were ideas for Wolf ET that we really felt would improve the game.

We developed a high concept that was fired back and forth between id and Splash Damage, basically with the goal of a kind of general advancement in team play and technology and then situating it in a universe that was appropriate for the kind of gameplay goals that we had in mind. Because id Software owns the Quake universe and the Enemy Territory universe, it seemed like a perfect match because it gave us the asymmetry we wanted between the two teams which meant that the player would have the choice to fight as a member of a conventional military force or an invading Strogg army with high-tech weaponry.

So what’s the story, and how does it fit into the Quake universe as a whole?

Paul Wedgwood: The game focuses on the initial Strogg invasion of Earth which takes place in around 2060 to 2065. In essence you could think of this as Quake ‘Zero’, as a prequel to Quake 2 and Quake 4. The Strogg arrive via slip-gates on Earth and immediately start invading the planet. They’re a malicious and marauding force that’s just interested in gathering resources and ‘Stroggi-fying’ races. The Global Defence Force are a paramilitary organisation that’s seen a series of world disasters that have led to poverty and all kinds of problems and have really have become a kind of reactionary force, so they’re kind of cobbled together and that’s why a lot of their equipment is damaged and knackered and looks like it’s in really poor condition.

However, because of the tactics and strategy you can employ, there isn’t really the imbalance that you’d expect from an invading alien high-tech force against the humans.

Outside of the universe, what are the key ways in which Quake Wars will differ from the likes of Battlefield 2 and Unreal Tournament?

Paul Wedgwood: The first and most important thing is that Enemy Territory: Quake Wars has a focus on teamplay and pursuing specific military objectives. Each map is unique with unique objectives, a unique theme – like temperate or Arctic or arid environment – and a plot that drives you through these objectives, re-telling a story from the Strogg invasion. Unlike sports or arena-style games where you’re Deathmatching or you’re capturing flags, Enemy Territory: Quake Wars has a lot of focus on a specific frontline that progresses through the map. Players always know where the majority of combat is taking place, they always know what the next objective is that they’re pursuing and as a result we believe that there’s a greater level of satisfaction and enjoyment that comes about as a result of co-ordinating with other people and achieving these objectives.

What influence has Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory had on Quake Wars, both in terms of the experience you gained from that and the gameplay itself?

Paul Wedgwood: We learned a lot of lessons developing Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory. Obviously, because Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory was based on Return to Castle Wolfenstein, we started with a really big catalogue of assets and a pre-existing game to build upon. With Quake Wars it’s a brand new title so it doesn’t share any assets or technology with Quake 4 for example, we really just started with the basic Doom 3 engine and then started developing the additional technology in tandem with id. But the real advancement has been in gameplay. Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory was a really strong teamplay-focused game – we wanted to evolve that into larger, open areas. So in a sense it’s not really a direct sequel but it is a spiritual successor to that kind of game design philosophy of a focus on teamplay and pure multiplayer combat.

Also, Paul ‘Locki’ Wedgwood, joint owner of Splash Damage has also spoken to CVG concerning the 360 rumours and says: “We think that Enemy Territory: Quake Wars has great potential for next-generation console platforms, such as Microsoft’s Xbox 360, but right now we’re focused exclusively on the development of the PC version.”