GP Q&A: Crackdown downloads, sequel possibilities
- February 08, 2007 15:20 PM PST
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We spoke with Phil Wilson, producer for Real Time Worlds' upcoming Xbox 360 game Crackdown.
GamePro: Comparisons to GTA are inevitable. What does Crackdown do to extend the formula?
Phil Wilson: That is a question that we get asked a lot, and to be honest, that is what we're doing because David Jones (the head of Real Time Worlds) was the man behind Grand Theft Auto. So, we don't shy away from talking about that because it explains some of the pedigree of the company.
But, at the same time, what we've made is an open-action game. In that sense, it is like GTA. In the other sense, it's very unlike GTA in that GTA did allow you to go anywhere in the city, but the actual progression through the game was actually quite a linear experience. You don't have the freedom you have in Crackdown. We wanted to go all out and maximize freedom for the player so you can take on any mission you like at any time.
We spent a lot of time building a very big city, but also one that is very detailed. You can find a lot of great routes up to the rooftops by developing your ability skills, which also differentiates us from GTA. When you reach higher level agility skill levels you can jump from rooftop to rooftop in a Matrix-like fashion. We didn't want a gangster-style game. We wanted the player to be more of a super hero.
GP: Does Crackdown have a better memory than GTA? If I stack ten cars on top of each other, run a mile away to get more cars, and come back, will those cars would still be there?
Wilson: That was one of restrictions of working with older hardware, but we don't have to do that anymore. Dave Jones' philosophy of making games is to make a playground. The Xbox 360 was a great feature for him because he really pushed it hard. In the end, we realized we actually pushed too hard on the system with the size of the post-apocalyptic world, explosions, and what not, [so we had to scale back some of the interactivity].
GP: A lot of people are going to be talking about the look of the game. We've been told if the words "Cell shaded" are mentioned, you're going to crack skulls.
Wilson: We're really okay with that term, but it's the art director guy that will be pounding at your door. We did go for a very distinct graphic-novel style, but it was just so appropriate for a really over-the-top superhero action game. So photorealistic wouldn't really work for us. The reason the art director gets so upset is cell shading is a lower process intensive way to do things, were we have applied all the modern, cutting-edge 3D-graphics techniques and given it that hard outline and stylization.
GP: Do you have a name for this "stylization"?
Wilson: We just call it "graphic-novel style."
GP: Are there any particular inspirations from graphic or regular novels within Crackdown?
Wilson: Matrix and Blade Runner, in terms of big influences. In terms of the visual art style, definitely Blood: The Last Vampire.
GP: Any thoughts on a Crackdown sequel?
Wilson: Crackdown was designed from the ground up to be a franchise. We're looking at more mini-games, obviously, to play around with by yourself and cooperatively, introducing cool, new gadgets, more vehicles, and so on. There will be a few surprises there, and that's all I can say.
GP: Will there be downloadable content and how will it work?
Wilson: We have no idea as of right now what the pricing structure will be.
GP: Exploring any possibilities of getting Crackdown onto Windows XP or Vista?
Wilson: It could happen, but as of right now it's not in the works.
