Killzone Mercenary

scuderiaT1fos1 · February 1, 2013

Am i the only one pissed at the launch date ?

VelivolusDas · February 1, 2013

Am i the only one pissed at the launch date ?

No.... I don't know why in the world R* had to change the release date for GTAV to September 17th.... :rant:

scuderiaT1fos1 · February 1, 2013

What is this GTAV you speak of?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

^^THIS

VelivolusDas · February 4, 2013

Killzone: Mercenary – behind-the-scenes interview, single player details

For a series that’s always been at the bleeding edge of modern FPS
design – both in terms of technical performance and muscular gameplay –
it’s fair to say that expectations are sky high for Killzone: Mercenary – the first PS Vita entry in Guerrilla’s acclaimed franchise.

Until last week’s reveal, all the studio had shown off was a brief teaser clip at Gamescom last
September. However, the wraps are now finally off the game, and you can
breathe easy – it looks absolutely stunning, packing all the visceral
grit and gristle of its home console brethren into the PS Vita with real style.

We sat down with Piers Jackson, who’s leading development at Guerrilla Cambridge (the same team responsible for the exemplary LittleBigPlanet PSP),

to find out more about the game, with particular attention paid to its
generous single player campaign. Read on below, and come back next week
for a closer look at multiplayer. And if you’ve got any questions
relating to how the game plays, feel free to ask away in the comments.

Where does Mercenary fit in the full Killzone narrative?

Piers Jackson: Mercenary starts shortly after the
beginning of Killzone 1. We commence the game with the battle for Vekta
in full flow – you actually start out in a destroyed Vektan city and the
opening few levels are all about liberating the planet. We then
transition into the Killzone 2 universe and the invasion into Pyrrhus.
The story itself wraps up at some point in the Killzone 2 universe.

The game looks phenomenal on PS Vita. Was it a challenge shrinking the full console experience onto a handheld device?

Piers Jackson: In some regards we’ve tried not to
shrink it at all – we’ve tried to get a full Killzone experience running
on PS Vita. The system is incredibly powerful – we’ve got graphics that
are comparable to Killzone 3 running on a handheld.

How easy was it getting the Killzone game engine up and running on the system?

Piers Jackson: It’s optimised in a lot of locations
but the core AI system is based precisely on Killzone 3. We’ve had to
replace a few of the audio and rendering systems but the back-end
leading into them is pure Killzone engine architecture. We’ve also got
certain things in the renderer that are unique to our system – we’ve
added reflection mapping on the floor and particle systems can actually
be lit as well.

There may be a few areas we’ve had to tone back a bit, but we’re
pretty convinced that we’ve come up with something that touches most of
the technical features from the main Killzone engine.

You’ve managed to retain that crunchy, weighty feel to the controls that really helped define the game on PlayStation 2 and 3…

Piers Jackson: So much of it is in the acceleration
curves on the controllers and, obviously, as we were using the Killzone
control input system, a lot of that came over for free. We needed to
rebalance it slightly for the PS Vita stick inputs – which are slightly
different than the DualShock – but that is the feeling you expect from
Killzone; that weightiness. If you don’t have that you’re not making a
Killzone game. It was imperative that we kept it.

How do you change your thinking when you’re designing an FPS for a portable system rather than a home console?

Piers Jackson: There are elements in terms of
visibility that you have to pay attention to – how far away you’re
positioning enemies, and what you’re positioning them against. When
you’re playing on a large TV screen you can get away with more. Having
said that, we have a really high-resolution screen on the Vita so the
characters stand out very well, even at a distance.

Multiplayer is obviously important but I know Killzone fans
are really hoping for a meaty solo campaign too. How much content can
they expect?

Piers Jackson: We have nine single player missions.
On average, on a first-time play-through, they’ll take between 40
minutes and an hour each to complete. So, it’s a lengthy game. It’s got a
full narrative too – every mission brief is set up as a full story.
There are twists and turns. It’s a very detailed single player
experience; it’s not cut back in any way.

How are you encouraging repeat play-throughs?

Piers Jackson: When you first get to a level,
there’s a standard play-through mode. Once you’ve completed that you’ll
unlock three challenge modes – Covert, Precision and Demolition. Each
challenge mode will dictate that you need to play the level in a
different way. You may have gone in guns blazing first time, but if you
take the Covert challenge you’ll need to be much more stealthy – you can
fail it if you get detected.

Precision is usually about accuracy and how you’re taking out the
enemy – headshots, melee kills, interrogations. There can also be a
timed element to it. We also have gun challenges in there as well, so
you may have to play the mission using a certain weapon.

Demolition is largely about exploding things, as you might expect!
You’ll have additional requirements in the mission that you’ll need to
destroy.

Big action set pieces are a key component of any great shooter. Is it harder to pull those off on a handheld device?

Piers Jackson: We’ve got some pretty hefty set
pieces in there. We have a halo drop, as you might have seen – that’s a
pretty epic way to open a mission! We really don’t skimp on set pieces.
We blow up giant cruisers, we have flight sections – there are all sorts
of big moments.

What new gameplay mechanics can fans of the series expect?

Piers Jackson: The shop is the biggest one for us
really – the fact that you can go into a level kitted out however you
want. You can then purchase new weapons as you go, to tailor the
experience as you see fit.

Stealth is another big one – we have light stealth in the game. If
you’re being quiet and using silenced weapons the AI will not pick up on
you. If you kill a trooper and the body is left lying around and
another enemy finds it, they’ll come and hunt you down. We’ve extended
the AI to cater for additional play-styles.

Those are the big ones, but obviously the melee system now uses the
touch interface. And outside of the core mechanics, I think the fact
that we’re showing the Killzone universe from a different angle will
appeal to core fans as they get to see the universe in a different
light.

You’re the first studio outside of Guerrilla HQ to develop a Killzone title. That’s a lot of pressure!

Piers Jackson: It’s worth pointing out that a good
number of our art team have been working on previous Killzone titles so
it’s not like the franchise is entirely new to us. When we embarked on
Mercenary obviously we worked very closely with the guys in Amsterdam to
maintain the continuity, and we’ve had a very tight relationship
throughout the process.

But it’s been great. It’s been a rush! It’s a big project, and a very
exciting one – it feels great to finally be showing this to people
outside the studio.