Lost Planet 2: Monstrous reptilian enemies, scorching deserts, and how the game draws inspiration from Call of Duty

• by Patrick Shaw
• September 17, 2009 00:00 AM PST

LOST PLANET 2: GamePro talks to Lost Planet 2's producer and director to find out everything you wanted to know about the game and more!

I recently got the opportunity to visit Osaka, Japan, home of mouth-watering omelet-like treats called okonomiyaki, one of the oldest existing Japanese castles , and Capcom's Japan headquarters. During my trip, I sat down with Lost Planet 2's director Kenji Oguro and producer Jun Takeuchi (who was also the producer for Resident Evil 5). They spilled their guts on a boatload of new Lost Planet 2 details, including the game's giant reptiles, a secret "Japanese" weapon that you won't expect, and what impact the new warmer environments have on gameplay. Read on to uncover the secrets of Lost Planet 2, PLUS FIVE EXCLUSIVE SCREENS you can only see on GamePro!

Patrick Shaw: How did the decision come about to drop the player's constantly depleting Thermal Energy (T-ENG), which was a huge part of the original Lost Planet, and how does this affect gameplay?

The first game was set in a freezing environment, so the thermal energy gauge was equivalent to your life meter and it forced you to be constantly moving in the game.

Things have now heated up on the planet so the thermal energy is not as crucial to survival as before. In Lost Planet 2, four players share the energy rather than having this gauge that's constantly draining.

We tried it for the first Lost Planet and it worked, but we wanted to take it in a new direction with the sequel where it's shared between four players and used to power weapons they pick up and the Vital Suits they commandeer.

We'd rather the players stay immersed in the game rather than having to worry about hunting for thermal energy.

Patrick: Multiple people can now ride on Vital Suit mechs. How else are the Vital Suits different in Lost Planet 2?

There are a great number of vital suits this time around. Instead of one person manning a VS mech, three players can operate one at once with two players shooting and one player steering.

I can also tell you that the vital suits aren't limited to the one size as seen before. Let's just say they run the gamut.

LP2's train mission is hands-down one of the most epic train levels ever put in a video game. Think of it as a mix between Gears of War's finale and the 90's action horror movie Tremors.

Patrick: A big change in Lost Planet 2 is the four-player co-op. How does Lost Planet 2's co-op work and how do players work together in the campaign?

Well a good example of this is the game's new support weapons and equipment such as the shield. One player holding the shield leads the attack, while the other players unload on enemies from the sides.

There are tons of weapons like that in Lost Planet 2 that require the team to work together to use them. One thing I want to stress too is that we didn't want to force the player to do that so they have the freedom to play how they want to.

This is one of the ways we're encouraging players to want to play through the game multiple times as there are a multitude of ways to overcome obstacles.

Patrick: Is the co-op similar to Resident Evil 5 where you can assist downed allies?

In Lost Planet 2 you don't assist your allies as you did in Resident Evil 5. The data posts are where players spawn after dying, which are also the game's checkpoints.

I'd also like to add that there are weapons you can use to shoot thermal energy to your teammates to replenish their supply -- so that's how you're able to aid your allies.

If you like mowing down foes with guns that are friggin huge, Lost Planet 2 was made for you.

Patrick: Speaking of RE5, which also introduced a big change for the series by implementing co-op play; did you learn anything from the development process of that game that you applied to Lost Planet 2?

The development of Resident Evil 5 and Lost Planet 2 actually overlapped. RE5's two-player co-op and Lost Planet 2's four-player co-op were developed simultaneous and the teams shared technology and tricks in making this run as smoothly as possible. As far as gameplay, these are independent as Resident Evil 5's is its own thing as is Lost Planet 2's.

Patrick: What about competitive multiplayer which was featured in the original game... what changes have been made to competitive multiplayer?

Creating four-player teams has allowed us the take the competitive multiplayer to the next level. You're going to see teams working together a lot more as a cohesive unit to take down the enemy. Something I wasn't prepared for was the way in which you never know what line of attack your enemies will take.

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