Telepath Tactics Interview
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Here's a snip:
Rampant Coyote: How long have you been working on Telepath Tactics already? What's done, and what's left to do?
Craig: I've been working on Telepath Tactics off and on for about two years, and much more regularly since February (when Telepath RPG: Servants of God was finally released).
The game is still in alpha, but a lot has been done. The game has fully functional local multiplayer with three game types and a load of customization options; the start of the single player campaign; global lighting; weather effects; walking animations; five tilesets; a dialog system complete with scripting; a music / sound effects engine; swimming; elevation effects; the ability to push, pull and throw characters off of cliffs and into water or lava; 22 character classes; numerous unique items; and (last I counted) just shy of 100 unique character attacks and abilities. The AI is coming along well too, with the majority of major routines in place.
Oh, and mod support: that's already in-game and working beautifully, complete with a slick, functioning map editor.
There are only a few core things left to code: asynchronous online multiplayer, point lighting, and improvements to the enemy AI being the big three. (I won't be satisfied until the AI gives players nightmares on its hardest setting!) Most of what remains, frankly, is content: attack animations, sound effects, music, character portraits, individualized attack icons and other GUI assets, and the remainder of the single player campaign.
Rampant Coyote: What lessons have you learned in your previous games that you are applying to this one?
There are so many; perhaps the biggest has been the importance of modularity. A modular approach to developing the game's systems has made it very easy for me to create new content, craft a brutal enemy AI that plays by the same rules as the player, and of course modularity has allowed me to offer mod support.
I've also learned the importance of focus. I'm just one guy; I can only do quality work if I can avoid spreading myself too thin. To that end, I'm contracting out most of the work of asset creation and concentrating on providing a high quality, linear experience. Attempting a nonlinear wRPG at the same time as I break ground on a brand new, complex tactics engine is just asking for problems. Luckily, thanks to that whole modularity thing, I'll be able to keep extending the Telepath Tactics engine going forward, allowing me to branch out in interesting and ever-more-ambitious directions.
Thanks, RPGWatch.
