Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning Community Q&A #13
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Q: How will attacks work on the PC? (What buttons are currently used in place of let's say X, Square, O and Triangle on the computer?) What steps did the Reckoning team take to make sure PC combat without an XBox 360 controller is as fun as combat on the consoles? By Kaloris
A: We've spent a large chunk of development time, and more importantly, play-testing time on getting the PC controls to feel right for Reckoning. At different stages of the project's development, we've put the game in front of players from outside of the studio. During these sessions, people will go hands-on with the game for a few hours or more with no guidance from us. Meanwhile, I (or another designer) watch through a one-way mirror and takes notes. Many of those players have been playing with a mouse and keyboard instead of a controller. That is where we have gotten a lot of our most useful feedback on what we are doing right and wrong with our PC controls.
Attacking in the default PC control scheme doesn't have an exact 1:1 remapping from the gamepad-based control scheme. On a controller you can attack with one weapon by hitting X (or Square on a PS3 controller), and attacking with your second equipped weapon with Y/Triangle. On the PC, your weapon attacks are tied to the left mouse click, and you have one weapon available at any given moment on that click. However, you can quickly swap to a secondary weapon by scrolling the mouse wheel, similar to switching from an assault rifle to a handgun in a first-person-shooter. The right click on the mouse is used to cast your active spell. This "left-click weapon, right-click spell" setup allows you to quickly mix weapon and magic attacks mid-combat.
You can map additional spells to your keyboard's 1 through 0 number keys, which gives you 10 options to quickly swap to as your active spell. This is a big difference from using a controller, where you just have 4 magic options to quickly switch between (one for each face button X, Y, A, B). The rest of your basic combat suite is rounded out with dodge on the Spacebar and blocking controlled by holding down Shift. By Justin "perezidente" Perez, Systems Designer
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Q: What type of interaction can we expect to see with NPC's? Would some develop throughout the game or will NPC's only have a few things to say and then nothing new again? By HolyKnight
A: There are many interactions you can have with the NPCs in Reckoning. Aside from being able to use the services that certain NPCs may offer (whether it be healing services, training services, or some other type of service), you will also be able to engage in conversations with them. You can ask NPCs about certain topics aside from questline-related topics, and you may also find some can be swayed by using the Persuasion option.
Many NPCs dialogue will, in fact, be affected as you progress through the game. This could stem from choices you made during a quest, how much of the main quest-line you have completed thus far in the game, or even what time of day it is. Certain NPCs will also change their responses about a particular topic, so speaking with them multiple times about the same topic, at different points in the game, will sometimes give you more insight to how that NPC feels about a specific action that you or those around them have made.
Some NPCs may even offer to play a mini-game with you, and others still may give you the option to bribe them. There are a few that might offer insight on fellow NPCs nearby, or advice on who to speak to if you are looking for a particular service. NPCs are not always stagnant, either, and they may move around the town based on the time of day. If you can't find a particular NPC you spoke with in town during the day, perhaps you should check the local inn or the NPC's home at night. Even NPCs need to rest occasionally, too. (Although, you may find a few of them stumbling around the local tavern in the evening as well!)
The NPCs in Reckoning also participate in many different activities. Don't be surprised to find that some are skilled lute players whose tunes entertain tavern guests, or that others keep busy tending gardens or praying by shrines. There are even situations where you may find NPCs living, and later find them deceased in their homes. This is a great reason to revisit some of the towns you may have already been to. Things could change by the time you return; some may change for the better, some for the worse.
Of course, there is always the option that you might also choose to take your rage out on a town's NPCs, and assault or murder some of them too. In that case, you should be stealthy about it, or else be prepared to have the town's guards start hunting you down to serve out some hard time in the local jail! By Kitty "Neko" Hughes, Level Designer
