Anticipation has been building steadily for the upcoming release of
href="http://tentonhammer.com/gw2">
style="font-style: italic;">Guild Wars 2.
As time passes, more and more information is released to whet the
appetites of eager fans. Today, Ten Ton Hammer talks with Lead Designer
Eric Flannum about the engineer profession and technology in
style="font-style: italic;">Guild Wars 2.
style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">
style="font-weight: bold;">Ten
Ton Hammer: We
enjoyed the Commando class reveal on April Fool’s Day, but
the Engineer bears an certain resemblance. I have to ask: did any of
the April Fool’s Day feedback you received go into the
Engineer profession concept?
Eric
Flannum: The
engineer was designed and in development long before we even
thought about the commando joke. The commando is really nothing more
than an April Fool’s joke and has no hidden or deeper
meaning.
style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">
style="font-weight: bold;">Ten
Ton Hammer: Fans
at the game have expressed surprise at the technological leap embodied
by the Engineer. With the reveal of
style="font-style: italic;">Guild Wars 2’s
seventh profession, are we to understand that material technology (as
opposed to magic or magical technology) is now the dominant force in
Tyria? Should fans stop worrying and learn to love the bomb (and rifle
turret, and flamethrower)?
style="font-weight: bold;">Eric Flannum:
The engineer is representative
of the technological leap that is being experienced by Tyria as a
whole. During the fight against the Shatterer we saw guns, mortars, and
canons being used. In the charr video we’ve seen steam and
gear driven vehicles. Even 250 years ago we had cannons mounted on
giant beasts of war (Luxon siege turtles), explosive kegs of black
powder, and fireworks.
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/98704">
style="border: 0px solid ; width: 620px; height: 349px;"
alt="guild wars 2"
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/98704" />
Does
any of this mean that
technology is the dominant force in Tyria? Technology is a rising force
in the world, but there will always be magic as well. We have seen more
physical professions such as warriors and thieves embrace technology.
We have seen rangers move more towards magic and away from technology.
We have seen that engineers are adapting their tech to deal with magic
(the magic-absorbing device on their shield) and we may see some of our
users of magic dabble with technology as well. The best and brightest
of Tyria (as represented by our playable professions) are all dealing
with these advances in different ways.
We view the advance of
technology and its integration with the magic of Tyria as part of what
makes our world an ever-changing, living place. Could any
“material” technology continue to exist without
integrating with magic? Could any pure forms of magic exist in a
technological world? How do magic and technology influence and affect
one another? These are all questions that the people of Tyria must face
as their world evolves.
style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">
style="font-weight: bold;">Ten
Ton Hammer: The
Engineer seems to have a lot of ranged combat options – even
the flamethrower seems more like a line-drive-ball-of-flamethrower than
a close-in weapon from the video. What choices does the Engineer have
in melee range?
Eric
Flannum: It should
be noted that almost none of the engineer’s kits
and weapons have a minimum range associated with them. That being said,
the engineer does have fewer up close and personal options.
Flamethrowers are best at close or short range, whereas things like the
bomb and mine kit are definitely good for dealing with enemies who get
too close. In an emergency, the engineer can even smack someone with
their wrench!
border="0" cellpadding="10" cellspacing="2">
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/98488">
style="border: 0px solid ; width: 180px; height: 180px;"
alt="guild wars 2"
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/98488" />
Bomb Pack
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/98489">
style="border: 0px solid ; width: 180px; height: 180px;"
alt="guild wars 2"
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/98489" />
Flame Pack
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/98490">
style="border: 0px solid ; width: 180px; height: 180px;"
alt="guild wars 2"
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/98490" />
Health Pack
style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">
style="font-weight: bold;">Ten
Ton Hammer: Here's
hoping the wrench becomes the crowbar of a new generation! Will the
various kits (backpack kits, weapon kits, and tool kits) be
hot-swappable? Can an Engineer take on several different roles in the
same fight, or will there be a longer cooldown on kit switching?
Eric
Flannum: The kits
are very easily swapped between and currently have no cooldown
associated with them.
style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">
style="font-weight: bold;">Ten
Ton Hammer: Turrets
seem to work much like Ritualist spirits in the original
style="font-style: italic;">Guild Wars,
with the important addition of Overcharge. Are turrets meant to last
longer than one encounter? Does using the Overcharge special ability
take out the turret?
Eric
Flannum: A well
placed turret should be useable for multiple fights. The
overcharge ability does not take out or damage the turret in any way.
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/98702">
style="border: 0px solid ; width: 620px; height: 349px;"
alt="guild wars 2"
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/98702" />
style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">
style="font-weight: bold;">Ten
Ton Hammer: Engineers
make perfect sense for races like the humans and the Charr, who have
been fighting for centuries. It’s harder to picture a
Sylvari, fresh out of the pod, would go for Engineer. How do you
reconcile these seeming inconsistencies with race and profession when
ArenaNet has committed to the idea of no race-locked professions?
Eric
Flannum:
I think it is easy to forget that there is a difference between talking
about a race and talking about individuals within a race. Not every
member of a race will fit in with what is commonly accepted as being
“normal” for that race. Players in particular
represent very exceptional members of their respective races. Although
sylvari engineers may be rare, they do exist. Sylvari by their nature
are very curious, and while this usually manifests itself in magical or
natural studies, some sylvari are fascinated by machinery. You can use
these same criteria when looking at remarkable individuals such as Norn
Necromancers and Asura Warriors.
style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";">
style="font-weight: bold;">Ten
Ton Hammer: At
the mention of turrets and elixir guns, we couldn’t help
thinking about the Engineer’s potential in PvP. Do you feel
that the Engineer is distinctly suited to competitive play? Was that
consideration a part of the profession design?
Eric
Flannum: Part of our
consideration for every profession is in how it would work
in both PvE and PvP, so it has definitely been part of the profession
design from the beginning.
border="0" cellpadding="10" cellspacing="2">
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/98491">
style="border: 0px solid ; width: 180px; height: 180px;"
alt="guild wars 2"
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/98491" />
Health Turret
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/98492">
style="border: 0px solid ; width: 180px; height: 180px;"
alt="guild wars 2"
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/98492" />
Mine Pack
href="http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/98493">
style="border: 0px solid ; width: 180px; height: 180px;"
alt="guild wars 2"
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/98493" />
Rifle Turret
Players can look forward to swinging wrenches and sidestepping mines
when Guild
Wars 2 enters beta later this
year. Ten Ton Hammer thanks Eric Flannum and the
style="font-style: italic;">Guild Wars 2
team for taking the time to answer our Engineer profession questions.
To read the latest guides, news, and features you can visit our Guild Wars 2 Game Page.
