Seraphim Interview

AT: BTW - Out of pure curiosity, what does Kinetic stand for?

JP: Kinetic: Relating to the motion and energy of objects. Basically it means, in game terms, that stuff is going to go really fast and blow up real good. Often you'll hear someone describe an action movie sequence as kinetic. Battles in Seraphim are all about speed and unleashing vast spells of energy on each other, dodging incoming attacks and not being in the same spot too long.

AT: Could you give us more detail on the RPG elements? How big of a part does it play in the game?

JP: Basically Seraphim is a mission based action game. But the character creation element of the game is based on a more RPG style system. The player will have options for armors and weapons, but he will also be able to choose his spells, and tweak out his basic stats, such as flight, spell casting or strength. And he will do this through a system similar to Experience Points that he earns by completing missions and objectives.

AT: What are some of the improvements/tweaks made over the original UT code? It seemed to me that the scenes are a lot brighter than what you'd find in the current UT engined games; with more vibrant colors, and crisper images...

JP: Thanks. We are getting under the hood of the engine and learning what makes it tick, and then we are adding what we need when we need it. As we get into the project many more adjustments will be made for Seraphim's specific needs, such as really destructible environments. Epic has been a real pleasure to work with, and so it has been very easy for us to really get in there and make their engine work for us.

AT: Did you have any influences when doing the artwork? In other media; comics, TV, etc.

JP: Anyone who's played our first game, SepterraCore, can tell you we are into things like anime, science fiction and fantasy films. I think that winged warriors have been something that some of us on the team have been thinking about for a long time. Movies such as "The Prophecy", the fantasy sequences from "Brazil", manga like "Bastard!" and anime like "Evangelion" have really made an impression on our style, with fallen angels sporting sleek armor, majestic wings and oversized shoulder pads combined with massively destructive spells..

AT: Tell us more on the aerial combat. Did you come up with any new gameplay features based on the inclusion of the aerial battles?

JP: The flight in Seraphim is really loose and free, in the sense that you are a god-like being that can fly in any direction, strafing and moving backwards, using magical energy boosts to kick your speed up, or change direction on a dime. It provides for an intense action experience that is some sort of combination of dog fighting and Japanese anime mecha combat, wrapped up in the form of human sized warriors going after each other with swords, hammers and axes that they use to sling spells at each other. And for multiplayer it adds all kinds of new strategies not only in terms of what the player can do, but also in terms of map design! We have even played Unreal Tournament with our characters, and I can tell you it's a very different game when you can wield the power of a god.

AT: Is Seraphim mission based, or does it include seamless plot transitions?

JP: As Seraphim is really an action game, it is mission based, but each mission will have various objectives within it. The player's performance and choices during the missions will change the course of the game and the plot. Plus, each of the clans will have its own set of potential missions and its own story, which will tie into the other clan's story arcs as well. So to really experience the entire plot and see the entire game, the player will want to play each clan.

AT: Finally, any news on the playable demo, or the release date?

JP: No news on a playable demo yet. We're still too early for that. The game is currently in the design phase, just at the beginning of development, with a tentative release scheduled for 2002.