Ten Ton Hammer - Taking MMO Gamers to the Next Level!

At gamescom 2011, Ten Ton Hammer took a break from the crazy announcements and million dollar tournaments to sit down with the creative direct of Funcom's The Secret World, Ragnar Tørnquist. In the process, we learned more about elder game PvP, the pervasiveness of Internet lore in the game, fast travel, and much more!

Ten Ton Hammer : Today we got a quick look at 'warzones' - The Secret World's large scale PvP encounter pitting dozens of players against each other. Numbers alone are greater than in the previously discussed battlegrounds of Stonehenge, El Dorado, Cimbala, and warzones are exclusively focused on endgame players. Given the size and scope of these encounters, what happens when a player dies in a warzone? What happens when an entire faction is put out of action?

Ragnar Tørnquist : Well, of course you still respawn and we have a variety of respawn points, but those can be captured.   But you are going to get sessions where people gang up and a faction gets kicked off the table temporarily.  I think the question that should be asked is – isn’t one faction going to dominate while the other two try to take their throne?   And hopefully the answer to that is no, because dynamic play is what everyone enjoys in PvP.

If you're looking for less orcs and trolls in your MMO, The Secret World will deliver.

TTH : When can players enter Warzones, and what rewards are associated with conquering and holding these areas? 

RT : It’s not the first thing you’re going to do when you jump into the game, you’ll probably head into the battlefields and get an understanding of PvP.  You’ll see the more experienced players competing there for certain.  As long as you have something to add, via specialization in a weapon type or the like, you can compete there.  Even after 40-60 hours, you’ll be a force and a benefit to your faction.

Also, the buffs from these warzone capture points are faction-wide, giving players all the more reason to pitch in to the fight.

TTH : In the presentation, Lead Designer Martin Bruusgard used the word 'persistent' to describe Warzones.

RT : They are not instanced and they are always active.  On each server, that warzone is persistent and possibly filled up.  As for how many we have, we’ve announced the one we have here – it's a city in China.  We don’t have a name for it just yet, and we’re not ready to reveal how many there are in the final product just yet.

You’ll also be gaining ranks within your secret society via missions in PvE and PvP.  Your relationship to your faction and your war against the other factions’ secret societies will be the focal point of the game to some players.  Each society will have its own story.  You will go to some of the same locations, and see what even seems like the exact same story—but different results and things will happen.  You’ll have to see it to believe it.  The full story can only be gleaned from talking to those of other factions who have seen the events unfold from another angle.

TTH : Will any of these missions that unfold differently have a PvP element to them?

RT : That’s something we’re still discussing.  It’s always dangerous to make some content PvP only.  A lot of players don’t want anything to do with that.  We’d like to do something with that though, so we’re still seeing if we can come up with some mechanics to make it work.