Interviews

TRAITOR’S
GATE 2: CYPHER

Interview
With Nigel Papworth of Daydream Software
Conducted by Randy Sluganski

Nigel Papworth is the founder of Daydream, the company the developed
the
popular and very successful Traitor’s
Gate
and fan favorite Safecracker.
Traitor’s Gate 2: Cypher again features the intrepid Raven,
a ‘secret’ agent whose methods, while successful, are
sometimes questionable. It is adventure gaming on a hire-wire as
all of the thrills of action gaming are present, without any of the
gunplay.

JA – Are you still on target for a November release?

Mmmmmm…what month
is it now? Last time I looked up from my test machine it was May!
Joking aside, yes all things point towards
a finished product in a matter of a few days.

JA – Is it necessary to have played Traitor’s Gate to understand the storyline of Cypher?

No, but it would certainly
help to give the right mind set- I think people who have played
my previous titles might have an edge in that
they know a little of my design style…but then again, I’m
doing some weird new stuff in this title.

JA – Can you give our readers a synopsis of Cypher’s
plot?

Mmm…in one sentence?
Ok, here goes… Devious
foreign scientist creates devastating computer virus in underground
bunker
that in turn is slated for lone agent infiltration by our intrepid
hero via ancient and labyrinthine ruins in the vicinity :-).

JA – Will Raven – the star of the original Traitor’s Gate – reveal
any more about his mysterious past?

In the game? No! He will, never the less, be venting his rather
pithy humor from time to time.

JA – What were your sources of inspiration in creating Raven and
his world of espionage?

I like the idea of powerful organizations messing up and then having
to clean up their own do-dos. It also allows us to place some stringent
rules of behavior on the player without spoiling the suspension of
disbelief. This in turn actually makes for more challenging and better
gameplay.

JA – Given that the name “Traitors Gate” references the
entrance to The Tower of London – featured in the first game – why
is the name being used again? Is there any direct connection between
the two games?

The Traitors Gate concept
is basically: put a well-trained, highly intelligent agent (the
gamer 🙂 ) into an accurate historical environment.
Mix in some high tech systems and some wacky booby traps and let
the fun begin. We had some heated discussions about the name, and
went through no end of alternatives. But, we always came back to
the strength of the original title. Each scenario (and I have a few
more up my sleeve) begins with an act of betrayal by some one in
the Pentagon, so hence the traitor. It’s logical to continue
with the title as long as we retain the basic premise of the plot.

JA – What was the reason for switching from 1st to 3rd person perspective?

The main change is the use of full real time 3D instead of pre-rendered
pictures. This in turn affects the style of gameplay presentation
and content. The third person view just seemed to be the most logical
way of putting the character into the environments.

JA – Will Cypher feature timed elements?

In that we are working
in ‘real time’, instead of presenting
choreographed sections, timed elements is one of the tools we can
use. I have always disliked challenges where an arbitrary time restriction
is present, so I try to design any time based puzzle so that the ‘ticking
clock’ is an integral part of the mechanism.

JA – How
about any combat elements?

As Raven’s character is all about cerebral skill and stealthy
cunning, the successful formula for completing the game is to avoid
direct confrontation. There are plenty of games that rely solely
on the ‘my Dad is bigger than your Dad’ mentality of
gameplay. We try to be a little more creative.

JA – What is the most enjoyable part for you in creating a game?

All of it, apart from
Beta testing :-). Actually my biggest thrill is sitting down with
a blank piece of paper and a rough scenario
and knowing I have three days to invent 30 hours of gameplay. Scary,
but I do get to play God for a short while.

JA – Have the Tombraider games had any influence on the sequel?

When we decided to go ‘real time 3D’,
I had a look round at the kind of games that were in development
(Splinter Cell, etc.)
as well as going through the back catalogue. I had always admired
the Tombraider games and thought them well ahead of their time. My
only frustration with them was the balance between shooting squeaky
bats (which got a bit tedious) and trying to unravel the trigger
door mechanisms. I always felt that the later part could have been
pushed much further; this project is my chance to see if I was right.

JA – What do you think are the differences and similarities
between the Traitor’s Gate series and Eidos’ Thief series?

In think the modern setting
and ‘realistic’ gadgetry
give me more scope as far as the plot lines are concerned. I am inclined
to include a fair bit of literary content as well (for those that
like to peruse the written word), though without the gameplay being
dependant on it.

JA – Will the majority of the game be played with an over-the-shoulder
perspective or will the gamer be able to move the camera?

As this is the best view
for understanding what is going on, yes. However, the mouse can
be used to move the avatar’s view angle
so that the player can study the environments with the same freedom
as a first person camera.

JA – What is your opinion on working with the Gamebryo engine in
general. How would you compare it to other game engines such as
the Jupiter?

My experience with the
technical side is limited; I am just a lowly gameplay designer.
So you’d have to interview one of our strange
programming-type people (try the second Friday in the month when
we let them out of their locked cellar for a shower).

JA – Will it use mouse for inventory management and manipulating
things in the environment or is it all keyboard controlled? Or
a combination of both?

We have decided on using just a few keys (enter, shift and arrows)
to control inventory and in game action/steering, reserving the mouse
for the camera control described earlier.

JA – How do you think you have improved as a developer
since Safecracker – your
very first game?

I knew absolutely nothing
when I designed Safecracker, which was maybe an advantage. The
problem now is that I don’t want to
repeat my self. So, when I start a new project I have to search for
a completely new angle of attack. The big advantage I have now is
a more intuitive understanding of the possibilities and limitations
of the programming side.

JA – Do you find that there is a difference between the European
and American markets and how they respond to your games?

I was surprised that these
games sell so well in North America, as the reputation suggests
the market would be more suitable for
FPS’s etc. But, strangely, the most difficult market for these
more ‘intellectual’ games is the UK. Still, having grown
up there, I should have known. After all, it is the society that
gave us the football-hooligan, the deep-fried candy bar and Mr. Bean!

JA – On that note
we’ll take leave and begin counting the
days until we once again team-up with Raven in Traitor’s Gate
2.