Dev QnA from the Bar - Page 2

Atheosim · 2012-03-07, 12:13 AM

Excellent Q&A. Thanks very much for doing it.

Warhound · 2012-03-07, 12:23 AM

Thanks Hamma!

Roy Awesome · 2012-03-07, 02:17 AM

We have 24 minutes of video from the reddit questions. mnementh went after us.

**Malorn** · 2012-03-07, 02:30 AM

Regarding empire hopping... Since the game is F2P it doesn't matter whether they have account restrictions anyone could just make a new account for free and empire hop. And probalby don't want to prevent it as each empire has its own feel its just a new way to experience the game. However I'd like to avoid seeing the "4th empire" behavior we saw in PS1 where an empire getting double-teamed and was just getting steamrolled had people jump ship to one of the other two empires whenever things didn't go so well.

Perhaps the real question is what sort of incentives are going to exist to encourage people to be the underdog and not jump ship whenever things go south?

Atheosim · 2012-03-07, 02:33 AM

Well if you bought a bunch of shit on your main with station cash then I guess it might be harder to switch over.

CutterJohn · 2012-03-07, 03:21 AM

Originally Posted by Hamma

Multiple account empire hopping is legit (ugh)

Outstanding! Now they just need to make single account hopping fine so I don't have to remember three passwords and maybe can keep the same name for all my characters.

Still will never, ever understand why people enjoy being locked to an arbitrary team.

**Malorn** · 2012-03-07, 03:41 AM

Originally Posted by CutterJohn

Still will never, ever understand why people enjoy being locked to an arbitrary team.

Several reasons. Its about building an identity as an empire. If it was as fleeting as a counterstrike team there's no sense of loyalty, no sense of that greater team. And switching at will creates other problems as we saw in PS1, namely empire-hopping because things got rough for one empire. Just made the problem worse and led to rapid population fluctuations. Rather than face the adversity, people switched to the winning side. Happens in FPS servers all the time that don't do auto-balancing or auto-shuffling each round.

There's lots of simple ways to make password management easy, I'm not going to go into them. Having multiple accounts isn't really that big of a deal in a free-to-play game either if its really that important to you. I don't believe empire switching on a regular basis is something they should encourage.

Captain1nsaneo · 2012-03-07, 05:40 AM

"O Muses, O high genius, aid me now!
O memory that engraved the things I saw,
Here shall your worth be manifest to all!"

I have come down from the mountain!
And with me come the words of the prophet Higby.
The one who sees what others may not.

Unbelievers and faithful hear my words!
For time is short and not all quandaries may be granted.
If you find no comfort in my writings seek out those who came before yet come after.
*coughredditcough*

-PS2 Poetry Slam

Alright, big thanks to Higby and T-Ray for sitting down and answering these. Also a thank you to Mnementh for having really fast thumbs and to Basti for the compiled list. For those of you who think that the twitter feed had everything I'm sorry to inform that there was a lot that got skipped simply because we were going too fast as there were 7 pages of questions. PR saved them at around page 4 though.
Btw, PR had a question for us. "If you hadn't played PS1, are you as excited now for PS2 as you were when you were watching PS1's development." I think I know my answer now, "No, because I'm old and jaded." However, I'm now wearing my new favorite shirt so I think my hype level went up a bit. (Aunty Em! Aunty Em! Stat boosts are real!)

Anyway questions:

Game Tech:

Will we be able to shoot out lights in/around structures/vehicles?
-Not currently

Will planetside 2 fully support 3 monitor setups - eyefinity / surround? ie Horizontal+ rendering and customizable/smart HUD, Menus and cut scenes.
-They would like to have eyefinity compatibility but at the moment it's not in the game.
-There are no cut scenes.

What version of DirectX will be required to run planetside2? Does it take advantage if you have Win Vista/7 and a DX10/11 GFX?
-They have it running on XP and DX9. There's a heavy focus on being backwards compatible so upgrading isn't necessary but he gave a bit when I poked him about needing good hardware to be seriously competitive in all arenas. Take that as you will.

Will vehicles deflect shots off of it's sloped armor?
No, but the angles you shoot at will change the damage. "If I had gotten a full rocket spam into the back of a tank it would have died."

What have you got in place to minimize lag/warping? Is it a simple case of upgraded hardware from PS1, or do you have systems in place that filter lag/warp out?
-Forgelight isn't just an engine. Turns out it is built for the sole purpose of supporting MMO style of games and everything that comes with that from networking up.

Can we get an option to use PS1's circumflexing compass rose on the minimap instead of the compass bar we've seen?
-There will be toggles for these and also ones for making the radar background spin or stay still similarly to how we currently have in PS1.

Can we expect to hear bass thumps from distant explosions? Doppler effects? Will the Vanu weapons make aggressive noises or be more 'pew pew'?
-There will be Doppler effects and everyone will sound badass.

Are weapons included in the player hitbox?
-Yes.

Gameplay:

In what ways can we use Smoke besides Smoke Grenades on the Light Assault class? Leader barrage unlock, vehicles, etc... ?
-Nothing concrete at the moment but there are a lot more smoke effects than just from smoke nades. An example given was that when you fired a rocket you'd be given cover by the smoke produced. Also I believe that there was an implied affirmative that vehicles can pop smoke which I believe was covered in an earlier interview.

Can you go into more detail regarding the mission system? (limitations, requirements, types of missions, etc.)
-There are limits to the types of missions that can be created. Over time they plan to add in more types that can be selected from.

How will leaders communicate with each other? Will command chat make it into PS2?
-They're working on this currently but there will be some way.

Are resources are gained both individually and by empire? will there be a correlation between them ensuring the players are mindful of both and not just their own?
-Resource gain is based on territory held by the empire and paid out like dividends to everyone.

What will the MAX crash dynamic be like in PS2?
-"Dynamic as fuck."

How will Infiltrators be able to sabotage enemy equipment?
-By blowing equipment up.
-Gens will now be interactive things and not require heavy fire power to bring down.

What is the max altitude air vehicles would be able to reach?
-I totally skipped this, my bad.

If you're going to enforce one empire per server, and the game is free to play, what incentive is there not to make second accounts for empire hoping?
-There is none. But things you buy for one account obviously won't transfer.

Can an empire capture large facilities in sections, or is it just the "one cc, all or nothing" gameplay like PS1? If they can capture a section, and they grab one that has a spawn point in it, can they now spawn at that spawn point?
-You can capture bases in sections and when you capture a barracks you can spawn there.

Is/will there be a system in place to prevent grenade spam. In PS1 is wasn't much of an issue since taking grenades had to be a choice, and it took up a weapon slot, but with every class having their own grenade types, plus any generic grenades, and grenades having their own "slot", could get out of hand really quick.
-Grenades cost in game resources. (It should be noted that Higby really stresses the difference between ingame resource cost vs station cash. Grenades will not be station cash items as that would make them pay to win items.)

Vehicles:

What functions can the Galaxy perform when in a landed state, as opposed to a deployed state? Specifically with regard to defensive turrets, terminals, and spawning. Expanding on that, do troops spawn internally, or externally, and is there an interferance radius?
-Difference between landed and deployed: "It looks different." (They're working on it, T-Ray was occupied when this was asked but Higby said he had a bunch of cool design ideas drawn up.)
-There will be an interference radius for deployment similar to AMSs. Higby agreed that there should be some way for pilots to see where they can deploy but there is nothing like that currently in the game.
-There will be an equipment term that becomes available when deployed. There will also be mannable guns that are "Powerful".
-Troops spawn externally. See GDC video for example.

In PS1 you couldn't ever choose which AMS to respawn at. You could only respawn at the closest one. Is this staying in PS2, or can we hop to whatever deployed Galaxy we want?
-Right now you can spawn at any point inside a radius around your death. If there is no respawn point inside the radius it grows bigger. You will always be able to respawn at the nearest biolab (should note that I don't know if he was using this as an example of the nearest base or that biolabs are unique in that they may always be spawned at.) There was also some mumbling about towers but that may have been related to a vehicle question. Maybe one of the 5 people who were hanging around at the time can give some input on this.

Will PS2 have the same deploy radius limitations for deploying Galaxies as PS1 had for AMS's? If it does, can we please ensure that Galaxy pilots are able to view the deploy radius for currently deployed Galaxies, so that you can land and deploy in a valid area
-There will be an interference radius for deployment similar to AMSs. Higby agreed that there should be some way for pilots to see where they can deploy but there is nothing like that currently in the game.

Will there be vehicle ownership system? If yes, will it resemble PS1 ownership system?
-Yes, Yes, will also have outfit lock in addition to squad.

Will the scythe drift when changing directions?
-Yes. Their goal with the scythe is to make it as UFO as they can.

Could you please explain your reasoning for going to "Jack of all Trade" type vehicles? Example: Why give Vehicles like the Vanguard the Option to go AA,AV,AI.
-Higby said they wanted vehicles to have options and not feel like "I really want to drive my vanguard but there's too much air out." It's all about trade offs, e.g. a tank that's good at AA will be easy to kill with an RPG.

Will vehicles still have specific entry points?
-You can not enter a Reaver from the tail but you can anywhere near the cockpit. Evidenced in GDC video.

Will vehicle occupants still need to get out to change seats?
-No

Will there be limitations on when pilots can get out of their aircraft?
-No, but there is fall damage when you lack upgrades.

Are there any plans to let driver/pilot and gunner mark targets for each other on their respective HUDs?
-Yes, there are spotting mechanics in the game.

Weapons:

What is the desired average range of infantry weapons and the engagements they'll often take place? (shorter range akin to cod, long as in a game like armed assault or the middle ground similar to battlefield.)
-For normal grunts 20m to 100m (middle). Sniper rifles are another topic.

How many slots will be upgradeable/sidegradeable for standard firearms (such as an infantry's primary weapon). Barrel, magazine, sight/scope, under-attachment? How will it work?
-2 slots for game modifiers, 2 slots for cosmetic.

Does the beamer fire a beam rather than a projectile, will the pulsar act in a similar way?
-Projectiles for both.

What kind of ES equipment will a pulsar have on it?
-No weapon ES upgrades, there will be ES sidegrades however. A difference would be something like the red dot sight styles. Some ES weapons can be upgraded to be better than the other two in certain areas. Like rate of fire for TR but everything comes at a price.

Since the Beamer has "self-charging" cells, does this mean it will never run out of ammo?
-This is a side grade. So yes, but you lose damage.

Will there be multiple fire modes for weapons? Specifically in regards to assault rifles (Full Auto/3 round burst/single shot)
-They want to have this but not currently.

Whats the difference in weapon handling "at the hip" versus aiming down the sights? Extreme like CoD (hip firing being essentially worthless at anything beyond point blank) or PS1 accuracy at hip with ADS being a slight improvement, maybe reducing CoF expansion?
-ES and Weapon dependant. E.g. TR have better hip accuracy.

How much control will we have over our ammunition? In PS1 I could go with a Gauss Rifle and 600 extra rounds and a phoenix with 1 missile, or I could go with a Gauss and 30 rounds and a phoenix and 55 missiles, or anything in between. Will it be like that or more like CoD/BF were I have 1 magazine in the weapon, 2 extras worth of ammo, an under-slung grenade launcher with 2 shots and that's it, no control at all?
-My notes say 1 thing: "Lots" not exactly sure what that means.

At this point we were limited to 1 question per page as it was getting late and the PS2 Dev team had to get up early to go back to being awesome somewhere else.

Classes:

What is the VS MAX special ability that's replacing JumpJets?
-Don't know yet.

Outfits:

What kind of features will the outfits have in the new game. What kinds of cool stuff./ abilities features goals beyond the cosmetic?
-Mostly a coordination system at launch. Such as an outfit mission system. Later they plan on adding more things (see outfit bases tweet). There will be no limit to the number of ranks you can create inside an outfit.

Post Launch:

It's no longer a 3 year plan, it's a 5 year plan.

Random:

Do we still have /em cabbagepatch?
-There are no current good dance emotes ingame but that's definitely on the list.

Will vehicles once again get riddled with bullet holes and blast marks on them?
-Yes, currently they lose their markings when repaired though. After some talk about awesome vehicles that lived for hours, Higby said he'd consider having the repairs not remove the bullet holes.

That's the formal list, I'll now cover the stuff that wasn't on the list but came up.

-Biolabs use teleporters to get from the ground floor to the top as stairs would take ~15min to climb to get up to the top.

-No common pool vehicle can currently float in water, they may change the Sunderer to be able to do this.

-There will be upgrades for aircraft (including gals) that when you bail from them you will deploy in drop pods rather than just falling. Drop pods will accelerate to the ground and will deal damage on what they hit. Higby said you could kill gals mid air with them by knocking them about. He also said that the balance team hate it as they can't find a spot to put it in their spread sheets but as Higby said "It's fun! You can't put fun into a spread sheet." These drop pods will also be aimable and will be the method that squad spawning works. Higby wants this to happen: "A squad leader is under fire and stuck behind cover when two drop pods fall and crush two enemies and then MAXs get out of the pods and tear up the attackers. And that's your trailer." These are effectively living OS.

-You can have a maximum of 3 implants and implants have tiers. They will be consumable similar to a buff. There will be an exp booster implant that can be bought from the store with station cash.

-PR won't let Higby post girls as they are wanting to use them for a cover of some sort it seems. Also there is a plan to use MAXs as a hype builder.

-And I'll leave the part about PR wanting Higby fired out as I believe that was just a running internal joke as both parties were present and were smiling about it. They actually seem to be quite amiable with each other.

-Certs are no longer the method that players are limited to roles. That job has been taken over by the class system and limits on what gear can be equipped at the same time. There was indication that certain combinations would not be allowed.

-T-Ray is a stickler for the art style and is making sure everything looks just right. This is another reason why he is awesome.

-Asked about only being able to pull the Gal from tech and warpgates as that would seem to make getting a new one difficult when neither is close. Higby said that they want the bases to have unique properties and that there will be other methods of spawning besides the Gal (e.g. squad, towers, barracks).

-If there's a quick image of an NC MAX in the GDC videos it is in fact a reskined TR MAX as the designs are not yet done.

Personal Observations:

-The entire team loves the game and wants to make sure that it's the best out there.

-The dev team does not get enough love for what they're doing and how accessible they are. The fact that Higby took the time to go through "tiny minutia" with me while the rest of the crew was watching the pool game involving some Devs and some players shows his serious dedication to the community. They were talking about how PSU is the first thing that Higby looks at in the morning and the man himself said how he was laying in bed that morning thinking of making a post about how much fan support means to the team.

-I have a new favorite shirt. (Thanks Danicia!)

-Tune into AGN for more. (maybe)

Atheosim · 2012-03-07, 05:51 AM

FUCKING AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Boogster · 2012-03-07, 06:17 AM

Guys, great job, really. So much cool information here.

And once again, massive props to the devs. Can't praise you lot enough. I hope you're all getting a sense of how grateful we are for the time you're putting into keeping the community updated.

DaddyTickles · 2012-03-07, 06:21 AM

Originally Posted by Captain1nsaneo

stuff

Good skills, that man.

Atheosim · 2012-03-07, 06:26 AM

Higgles when you read this in the morning I want you to know that you're my favorite dev EVERRRRRRRRRRR

TEEHEEEE!

edit: Woops, don't mean to inspire favoritism. The PS2 dev team is my favorite dev EVERRRRRRRRR !!!#!@!#%67125781utryu ertydc

Hamma · 2012-03-07, 09:57 AM

Awesome nice work Captain1nsaneo! I wasn't sure if you had made it or not.

Sentrosi · 2012-03-07, 09:57 AM

Unbelievable.
Incredible.
Jaw Dropping.
I honestly can't contain my enthusiasm for this game.

I've said it before on Twitter, and on Facebook, and even here. This game is a genre changer. It will bend the pre-conceived notions of all traditional FPS's. Years later I expect to hear how PS2 changed the dynamics of FPSs and PC-gaming as a whole.

I'm hoping that I'm right. Because if I am, we're in for one wild ride!

Hamma · 2012-03-07, 10:32 AM

I am doing up an official article for this - it will be up shortly.

As a result - I am locking this out.