Darkfall Unholy Wars Interview - Exclusive

Yes, there’s no mistake in home: we’re here to show you yet another exclusive feature. This time, it’s a Darkfall Unholy Wars interview with Aventurine, the Greek software house that created Darkfall Online and recently published this new release, now available on Steam as well. Our questions were kindly answered by Tasos Flambouras, Vagelis Kalaitzis (Designer) and Nick Kasolos (Lead world builder); as such, we’ll identify them as the Aventurine Team.

WORLDS FACTORY: First of all, thanks for taking your time to talk with us. Obviously Darkfall: Unholy Wars has been a big project for you. How has it changed since you announced Darkfall 2010, then Arena, 2.0 and now UW?

AVENTURINE TEAM: Thank you for your interest in Darkfall Unholy Wars, we are obviously very happy to discuss our project with you and your audience. Italy has been one of the countries that has earned our attention due to the number of Darkfall Online players and the strong community feeling we get from it. To answer your question:

Back in 2010 we were in the process of taking Darkfall to the next level. As time went by and the scope became bigger and bigger, it was decided that applying all the changes as an expansion would not be the appropriate course of action. Firstly, many of the changes could not be made due to limitations of the system; secondly our ideal vision for the game required new development and finally, we wanted the opportunity of working on a new project. Our goals for this game are very ambitious and we believe we have the platform that will allow us to keep Darkfall Unholy Wars evolving and pioneering the MMO genre.

 

WF: A common complaint is that Unholy Wars doesn’t have enough additional sandbox features, save perhaps for the contract system. Is there anything more that players can expect in this regard in the foreseeable future?

AT: We believe that the sandbox features it inherits from Darkfall Online are a good start and we are also excited about features and additions we are planning that allow players to generate their own content like contests, tournaments, events etc. The future of Darkfall Unholy Wars is definitely that of a sandbox game, and we’re looking forward to the many great things we have planned for the game. Another element for the evolution of the sandbox nature of the game is our player feedback based on their player experience which has already inspired many additions and changes in the past.

 

WF: Crafting is just one of many systems that have been reworked for this new release. Some players have been asking if the role system developed for combat skills could also be extended to crafting skills – many players think it would increase player dependency thus favoring trading. Would you consider this, going forward? What’s your stance on this matter?

AT: While we understand the importance of player dependency we do not want to introduce artificial barriers for crafting professions. For one, extending the role system to crafting may not achieve much, as roles can be switched at any time with a short cool down. Increasing the cool down could be an option, but considering the fact that you only have one character, we feel it would not be appropriate. At the same time, prowess cost and material requirements for crafting items and purchasing masteries will certainly serve to separate dedicated crafters from players that craft to be self-sufficient.

 

WF: We just briefly touched trading. We know that you have listened to the complaints about the market system, which is why it was delayed from release and it will be implemented soon according to your last update. Many are wondering what will be replacing this feature, though. I remember from a Community Q&A published by Paragus at MMORPG.com that you talked about adding player/clan vendors in capital cities, where there would be competition to secure a spot, and possibly even in player cities. I would personally love this feature and I’ve read many similar opinions on the forums, it would help immensely to create more lively cities. Is there a chance that you might still go in this direction, or did you cook anything else?

AT: For now we are implementing a market system that will operate though a market building that already exists in each racial capital. We chose this route for reasons of simplicity and to also help make capitals the hub of activity they should be. This would be the first version of such a system in Darkfall and we are looking to the initial results and the community feedback which will be very important as far as the direction we take with this.

 

WF: Another couple of things mentioned in that Q&A were armor/clothing dying with craftable colors, and the upcoming support for DX11 and multicore processors. Are these still planned to be patched in Darkfall: Unholy Wars at some time?

AT: We have been discussing dyeing for a while now, and since Darkfall Online. We have decided to implement it in Darkfall Unholy Wars. At the moment it’s just a matter of priority, and we’ll add it as soon as our backlog allows it. As for DX11, that’s the direction we’re heading but implementing it is a lengthy and difficult, so we need to time it right.

 

WF: Speaking of PvE, you have confirmed that the mythical Demi-God bosses will be featured in the game, and that some of them will be roaming. However, these do not seem to be in the game right now – are you still planning to implement them and if so, when? Also, if so, can players expect something like “dynamic events or invasions”, where these Demi-Gods lead minions attacking NPC/Player cities from time to time?

AT: The Demigods belong in the previous game, for Darkfall Unholy Wars we call them epic mobs. There are two already in the game, the fire and ice dragons and there are 4 more to be added, one on each subcontinent. In addition to those there will be one in each one of the 5 epic dungeons (4 located on each one of the subcontinents, which are almost done, and one in the mainland which is even more massive and needs more work). We will add these, most likely, via events in the game.

 

WF: Ships have always been quite important (you even dedicated a whole expansion to them) for Darkfall, and they are being rethought for DF:UW – can you give us an example of how you’ll make naval combat more relevant to the overall metagame?

AT: Apart from reintroducing some of the ship types we had in Darkfall Online in their DFUW form, we are adding new ones, some of which we have mentioned before. The Sea Scrapper and fishing trawler for example will have an impact on the economy especially when the cooking profession is implemented fully. Apart from the new ships we’ve planned additional sea based PvE content and we’re working on tying naval warfare to the territory control system.

 

WF: In the latest update you have also stated that you intend to modify the mounted combat to be more useful and fun – can you give us more insight in how you plan to do that?

AT: When I first saw the mounts in Darkfall Online, I was amazed just thinking about the possibilities. I had never experienced mount mechanics like that in any MMO. Even so we envisioned much more.  So the first goal is to make mounted combat more fluid, fun and engaging. The role system also offers an opportunity for introducing a school that is specifically designed for mounted combat. Due to time constrains we were not able to explore this option fully before but we’re doing it now. We’re also working on visual and usage variations of mounts which will add more tactical layers to combat.

 

WF: Finally, what’s in store for Darkfall after this launch? Will there be smaller but frequent updates, or larger but slower expansions, and can you talk briefly about some of the features that will be added in the future?

AT: We’ve been patching on a daily basis addressing bugs and issues our players are reporting. At the same time we’re working on the features we want to introduce, like the market, naval warfare, siege machinery, resource monoliths, more schools, more roles and others. As soon as we’re caught up with the features we need to add to the game, we’ll focus on planned bigger patches and expansions that will take the game to the next level.