Size Matters
GameSpy: Balrogs and oliphaunts are titanic in size, especially when compared to little hobbits. How does the team plan to manage scale in an action-oriented game?
Eric Gewirtz, Director: Our levels were designed from the get-go with the scale of the units in mind. Maps like Pelennor Fields, where you have gigantic oliphaunts, siege towers, flying fell beasts, trolls, horses, and catapults, we made huge. Other maps like Helm's Deep focus more on more intense castle-siege gameplay and lots of infantry combat.
Oh come on... how is this fair?!
GameSpy: The Star Wars Battlefront games mentioned in the press release have offered some cool modes for team play, can we expect the same basic types of modes from Conquest?
Gewirtz: We have all the game modes you would expect, in addition to a bunch more. We have Conquest (capture control points), Capture the Flag, Deathmatch, Hero Deathmatch, etc. In addition, we have some cool, new modes like Ring Bearer: One player is Frodo and the other players are Ringwraiths trying to hunt him down. The longer the Frodo player survives, the more points they get. The first Ringwraith to find and defeat Frodo becomes him. It's a cool, arcadey game mode that's tons of fun.GameSpy: Battles in Middle-earth traditionally involve thousands of troops on either side. How is the team approaching this? Can we expect bots to pick up the slack or are smaller, intimate scrimmages more likely?
Gewirtz: We are attempting to make the battles feel as epic as they were in the films without overwhelming the player with restrictive crowds. We have three times more units on the battlefield than Battlefront II, but because of the strong melee component, it feels even more intense. All the players are officers on the battlefield, with the AI representing both fellow officers and weaker "grunt" units.
