Dead State Interview

Plot is Gameplay’s Bitch (good name) sits down with developer Brian Mitsoda to talk some Vampire: Bloodlines, but also to talk about his upcoming project, Dead State.

Okay, let’s talk about Dead State [previously known under codename, ZRPG]! The reason I’m excited by the project is you guys seem to really know what should make a good zombie experience. It’s not about explosions and mad professors; it’s about the small scale, that-could-be-me tales that put human nature under pressure to see what comes out. Though maybe some explosions help too. You guys move fast, can you give me a quick run down of your goals and where the game’s at now?

Dead State is coming along pretty quick these days, because honestly we have an amazing group of people working on the game I’m really excited for players because I’ve seen what they’re going to experience. The quality of the work the team is turning out pleases my manager, designer and gamer sides, and that’s just such a good feeling to have when you’re working on a game. Really, if you’re following the game right now, go onto the forums and thank the team in advance you’re going to love what they’re doing.

Our goals for the game are lofty, sure, but we’re designing around our limitations, so if people interpret our goals as (the most ambitious game ever) it’s mostly just smoke and mirrors. We planned this out carefully and thought of the easiest way to implement our systems with tech that had already been used for another game, so we’re not trying to go to Mars here. Our main concerns are that the combat is fun (rather than (good for what it is)), the game is reactive, the characters are memorable, and that players each have different experiences. We want them to be able to go through the game again and have a different set of challenges and different interactions with the characters each time. We picked a setting that allows for a lot of structural freedom the world’s falling apart, law is what you make it, and morality is based on survival. It’s a really easy contrivance to make the game bend to the player’s whims and for dramatic situations to arise.

Thanks Blue’s News.