Questions
by Cody “Micajah” Bye, Managing Editor
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Answers
by Jason Koerperich, Community Manager, Gravity Interactive, Inc.
When an individual walks into a horror movie, most people know exactly
what they’re going to see. Blood, gore, and overt sexuality
are all trademarks of the horror genre and are also the atmospheric
focus of Gravity Interactive’s latest MMORPG. Titled
style="font-style: italic;">Requiem: Bloodymare,
the game (which we previewed earlier this month) has received a fair
amount of attention from fans and the gaming press. Recently, Ten Ton
Hammer’s Cody “Micajah’ Bye caught up
with Jason Koerperich, Community Manager for Gravity, and drilled him
about Requiem and the many unique features the game brings to the
table. The pair discuss PvP, setting, game mechanics, and much more in
this extensive interview!
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Gore is where
Requiem hopes to really stand out.
Ten Ton Hammer: As a
mature-oriented 3D MMORPG, Requiem
is a far cry from your most popular game, Ragnarok Online. Why did you
decide to go the mature route? You already had a devout fan base
associated with your previous title, why did you want to step away from
that?
Aside from diversity being the spice of life, I think expanding the
breadth of our offerings to reach out to a wider audience will bring
more fans to MMOGs. We offer games that target young players
and anime fans – like Ragnarok and ROSE. We’ve
already have proven you can create hugely successful games with
millions of players like Ragnarok by expanding beyond the standard MMO
settings.
Now we are bringing in the fans of the horror genre into our
brand. We see a huge opportunity with games that target
mature players, such as in Requiem. Expanding into the mostly untouched
horror MMO genre is both extremely tempting and incredibly daunting and
we look forward to those challenges.
Ten Ton Hammer: There are
several horror games currently in development from a variety of
development studios. Each of these games hopes to cash in on the groups
of people looking for a more “gruesome” game. How
are you going to make Requiem: Bloodymare stand out from the crowd?
battles, big swords, severed limbs and heads flying off in all
directions, that’s how a Temperion does their work.
The Havok engine allows for some truly gruesome killing blows which
actually take into account the sword’s angle and momentum
when displaying the carnage. The best part is that others
will see the same result on their screens, so large parties wading into
battle truly can be witness to some truly epic, gory battles.
But we’re not relying on just being
“gruesome” to capture the market. Once
you get past the setting and start exploring the DNA, Beast Possession
and Nightmare systems you’ll find a unique game. We
have game dynamics that you won’t find in any other MMO on
the market that puts ahead of other horror titles.
Ten Ton Hammer: How do
players learn to transform using the Beast Possession system? Is it an
innate ability? Or will players keep a record of everything they
possess so they can transform into it later?
possession is a potential that all “Temperions”
(DNA and cybernetically-enhanced beings) possess. They will
unlock that potential during their careers as heroes via questing or
artifact hunting. Temperions must first find and then conquer
the beast to be able use its power in battle. From that point
forward, that beast is a facet of your character, growing in strength
as you do, ready to unleash its fury when you want it to.
Ten Ton Hammer: The DNA
System sounds equally as impressive as the Beast Possession abilities.
Can you describe this for us? How are players going to obtain this
genetic material and how often can they “enhance”
their characters?
Temperions are both cybernetically and DNA-enhanced beings, they can be
more easily modified than humans. The Xenoas (the scientists
of Ethegia) have figured out how to bring out subtle inborn abilities
of Temperions via DNA enhancements. They have evolved this
science to the point that a Temperion can have their DNA enhanced with
a simple procedure, all the necessary DNA and equipment provided by the
Xenoa. Of course, certain combinations of DNA enhancements
can bring out special latent abilities as well, but those combinations
have not yet been figured out by the Xenoas. Those will be up to the
individual Temperion to discover.
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Players will be able
to advance their appearance by equiping better armor and weapons.
Ten Ton Hammer: In
style="font-style: italic;">Ragnarok Online,
one of the big draws for many of the players was the ability to upgrade
your form at advanced levels (e.g. novice to archer to bard). Will this
be a part of Requiem
as well? Will there be any visual changes to the character?
Temperions start as a basic Temperion class. From level 10, two options
are given for 1st class -- depending on which Race the Temperion chose.
Later in their career, after sufficient power is harnessed, the
Temperion can branch off their 1st class again in 2 directions for
their 2nd class. There are three Races are currently available; Turan,
Bartuk, & Kruxena (more are planned already). All
together there are 19 classes; Temperion, two 1st classes for each
race, and four 2nd classes for each race. Your class does not change
your normal appearance; however your equipment choices do update your
appearance in very substantial ways.
Ten Ton Hammer: Being a
horror game, the atmosphere and “fright-factor” are
obviously incredibly important in setting the correct mood. How did
your artists and designers create this sort of frightening atmosphere?
How did the use of the Havok engine allow you to up the fright-factor?
good collision physics is one of the neatest things I’ve
experienced in Requiem
because that have been absent in many MMOGs I’ve played. The
Havok engine is responsible for that. From the limbs sent
flying due to a devastating overhand chop, to traps catching you from
the ground, all are adaptations from the engine the game is
running. As our ideas evolve, so will the use of the engine
to enhance the atmosphere of horror in style="font-style: italic;">Requiem.
I truly feel we’ve only scratched the surface of what can be
done to have the environment inflict its horrible intentions on the
Temperions. Our artists and designers have a wide pallet to use. The
world will truly be out to get you in Requiem, and if it does, you will
see it in all of its gory glory.
Ten Ton Hammer: How
important is PvP to the gameplay of
style="font-style: italic;">Requiem? Will it
only be available on certain servers and in high-end guild
environments? Or are you aiming for a bunch of PvP worlds?
servers there will be Dueling and “fields of
contention.” These are special zones set up to
allow cross server PVP battles on grand scale to take place, and of
course rewards for successful individuals and teams also play into the
attraction of the “fields of contention.”
are also planned as an option. Currently the open PVP server
system is being revamped to make it something that is more unique and
engaging for those that wish to participate in an open PVP
world. PVP does feel very natural in a game like
Requiem. Nothing quite gets the blood pumping like the
thought that someone or something may be stalking you just out of
sight.
Ten Ton Hammer: What sort
of gameplay options are available for higher-end characters? Will
raiding be the only activity open to level capped characters?
challenge and loot will always be an option for characters of all level
ranges, but so too will PVP fields. They will be a major attraction for
those that wish to prove their strength regardless of their home server.
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The Beast Possession
system allows players to tranform into incredibly savage monsters.
Ten Ton Hammer: In your
opinion, what’s the best gameplay mechanic or feature in
style="font-style: italic;">Requiem: Bloodymare?
Why do you enjoy it so much?
most gratifying things about Requiem is the gore factor.Having a tough
day? Go slay some scary beasts.
The satisfying crunch, slashes and blood are a cathartic release for
me, and apparently for our beta testers as well. The
impressive way combat pans out, with over the top kills and bodies
being torn asunder by the sheer force of the Temperion’s
strength, is something that I’ve not gotten tired of.
Ten Ton Hammer: Finally,
is there anything else you’d like to tell the Ten Ton Hammer
readers about Requiem:
Bloodymare?
the Beast Possession system, the DNA system and Nightmare mode. Now,
you didn’t really ask me about the Nightmare mode so
let’s touch on that for a moment. Just like the real world, style="font-style: italic;">Requiem has a day
and night cycle. Two hours in the real world equals to 24 hours in style="font-style: italic;">Requiem. Between 11
p.m. and 2 a.m., Nightmare strikes. Nightmare mode lasts 15
minutes in real time. Horrific monsters spawn during this time, all
with higher-than-usual HP and much higher damage ratings. Some of the
monsters defy description! And of course, if you kill Nightmare
monsters, you’ll get nicer loot as well. Normally
players will have to party up to take on Nightmare monsters. So if
someone ends up in a dark forest at night, alone, and Nightmare
strikes, they might not live to tell the tale…
Requiem is
not for kids and not for the faint of heart. If you are
looking for something more grown up, with an emphasis on blood and the
horror of battle, check out Requiem
(www.playrequiem.com)
when it is released later this year.
To read the latest guides, news, and features you can visit our Requiem: Memento Mori Game Page.
