A unique group of pint-sized heroes is ready to save the world. G-Force, the video game inspired by the highly anticipated feature film “G-Force” from Walt Disney Pictures.
G-Force is available on Wii, XBOX 360, Playstation 3, PlayStation 2, PSP, Nintendo DS and Windows-based PC.
G-Force is the first game for next-generation systems to fully feature three-dimensional game play. On the Xbox 360 and PLAYSTATION 3 system versions, players can turn on the 3-D features at any point throughout the game to experience the special 3-D features while wearing 3-D glasses. Every G-Force game for those two systems comes with two pairs of special 3-D glasses.
Ghostfire Games' Scott Merriam recently spoke to The Wiire about Rage of the Gladiator, and explained what we can expect on WiiWare.
Helix, a dual-Wiimote dancing game, was released by Ghostfire Games for WiiWare about a year ago. Taking the experience they earned from the game, Ghostfire Games has returned with a new title, Rage of the Galdiator.
Rage of the Gladiator is a first-person fighter that pits you against various monsters in an arena. One of the special features of the game is that each stage is a boss fight. There are no "fodder-enemies", but instead over 20 boss fights. One half of the fights are played, then the second half unlock in a new mode called Challenge Mode. This mode will bring back the same bosses, but change their attributes.
You play as a gladiator who wields a hammer and shield, and has to strategically strike and block, in an attempt to locate each boss' weakness. Each boss will have different strengths and weaknesses, which you will have to exploit to achieve victory.
Recently, The Wiire had the chance to interview Scott Merriam, the Director of Marketing and Creative Design over at Ghostfire Games.
The Wiire: How far into development are you with Rage of the Gladiator?
Scott Merriam: We are very far along in the development process, and expect to be releasing the game sometime this fall. However, we are taking the Blizzard approach of not releasing it until it is completely polished. We are very proud of this project and want to make sure we are providing the best gaming experience possible.
Now that Ghostfire already has a game under its belt with Helix, is developing Rage of the Gladiator easier?
Scott: Things always get easier once you learn the ropes. We really benefited a lot from the experience of making Helix, and learned many tips and tricks about how to cram a ton of content into a 40MB download. The result is we were able to include many hundreds of hand-crafted custom animations, great-looking 3d graphics, full voice acting, 4 epic soundtracks, and a whole lot more.
Are there any key inspirations for the game? Any specific movies or other games that Rage of the Gladiator pulls from?
Scott: There are many specific games and movies that inspired us:
• Our combat system is inspired by some of the best ideas from games such as 1980's Punch Out
• Our soundtracks are inspired by movies such as 300
• Our combo system is inspired by games such as God of War
• Our over-the-top combo finishers are inspired by Final Fantasy’s cutscenes
• Our customizable skill-trees are inspired by Diablo or World of Warcraft.
What is the overarching story of the game?
Scott: In this game, you play a noble prince named Gracius who lives in a fantastic world of creatures and magic. One day, all the fame, power, and comfort of that life is taken away from you and you are forced to fight for your life in the arena. To find out more, you’ll have to play the game. The story is revealed in “layers” as you progress through the game through a series of flashbacks. Only at the conclusion of the game do you find out what’s really going on. The story has some nice irony in it.
The game is a first-person fighter, it would seem natural that you'd use the Wii controls as your hands (i.e. Wii remote is your hammer, the Nunchuk your shield). Is that how it controls? Will there be Wii MotionPlus support?
Scott: That’s a good question. We spent many months debating internally which control scheme to use, and heavily tested each option. In the end, we made the decision not to use the motion controls. To play the game, you hold the Wii-remote sideways (like Punch Out). Punch Out fans have proven that is the most accurate way to play a fast-paced game. As the game has a very retro feel, we also felt as though using the controller like an old-school Nintendo game would be the most fun way to play.
The controller mappings took us a LONG time to get right. For the longest time we tried using the Nunchuk+WiiRemote and we eventually realized that simpler is better. It feels really good when you play it. Even though some people might want motion controls, sometimes you need to draw a line in the sand and make the best decision for your game, and hope that people will understand once they play it.
Ghostfire seems to pride itself on creating a game entirely of boss fights. In between these boss fights, how does the game flow? Will there be cinematics, or will it jump right into the next boss battle?
Scott: Yes, we do pride ourselves on having the game consist entirely of boss fights. We feel that this is the most fun part of the game, and making a game that we ourselves would want to play, we took that approach. After the first boss fight, there will be a cinematic cut-scene with a narrator’s voice, introducing you to the world, and starting to explain what you are doing. From that point forward, after every few fights there will be another cut-scene, continuing to tell the story. The game flows very smoothly.
Can you tell me a little more about the leveling system? There are skill trees of Offense, Defense, and Magic that players invest points in. Will they be able to max out every skill by the end of the game? Do their skills carry over into the challenge mode?
Scott: Each time you defeat a boss, you gain skill points to customize your character in the three skill trees. That’s how you acquire new powers, such as conjuring a raging tornado or summoning a fiery meteor. You will NOT be able to max out your skill trees by the end of the game, but that is one cool way to replay the game: you can build your character in different ways to try out new spells and take a different approach. Once you beat the game you get to fight all of the bosses over again in Challenge Mode, where they get new powers and feel like completely different fights. Your skills DO carry over to challenge mode and you can continue to build your character in Challenge Mode.
Do you have a release date (or window) yet for the game?
Scott: We don't have a release date yet. It’s hard to give an exact timetable due to the process for approving a game by Nintendo, but we are expecting Fall 2009.
What countries will the game release in? Any pricing details yet?
Scott: We expect to release in the US and Europe.
The price of the game has not been set as it is determined by Nintendo.
Rage of the Gladiator is shaping up to be an intense first-person fighter, full of difficult boss fights. It is shaping up to be packed with action, a solid soundtrack, and a story that helps keep the game flowing.
Check out the trailer below.
The Wiire would like to thank Scott Merriam and the team over at Ghostfire Games for taking the time to answer our questions.
