Command and Conquer Junkie

Me and Nod Avatar had a little chat with our EP/Art Director, we came to some resolutions quicker than the health care debate, stay tuned

There was a secondary benefit to crystal gathering, which is that it played into the mode’s objective based gameplay. Both sides were tasked with capturing different control nodes, which would further provide a stream of points for your side: the more nodes under your control, the faster the points came. These could be augmented by collecting crystals or destroying enemies. The latter was vital, because the more heavily armored or technologically advanced the unit was, the more points you received for destroying it. For example, taking out an enemy crawler was worth fifty points, with the added benefit that it removed an opponent from the field of battle for about thirty seconds. The first side to reach the currently set limit of 2500 points won the match, meaning that players could acquire victory with effective defense or overwhelming offensive tactics.

Speaking of tactics, players could use some of the included environmental objects scattered around the level to their advantage. While I was told that there would not be any mutants that could be pressed into service for one side or another, there would be neutral turrets found around the battlefield (frequently near control nodes and crystal collection points) that could be captured for your side. These weapons would automatically fire at any nearby threats, bolstering the firepower of forces nearby. Players were also able to take advantage of a tunnel network that ran from north to south on the map, allowing players to quickly deploy troops from one section to another without being subjected to attacks or forced to trek across the land. Each tunnel under GDI and Nod control had their own advantages as well, with GDI tunnels being protected by a shield and Nod tunnels emitting a cloaking sphere around its exit so units could deploy silently.

1. Will there be any weather effects such as snowing or ion storms?
Yes, we will have a variety of weather effects, including Ion Storms.

2. Have any new hotkeys been implemented to improve a player’s ability to manage his forces?
Several new hotkeys, and several behaviours on existing hotkeys have been added to help players with managing their army in C&C 4. The Q key, which selects all combat units also has a second mode. If the player double taps Q, it will not only select all of their combat units, but all of their units on the entire map. The E key has been changed to select all healer and engineer units on the map. The G key has been added and allows players to set a unit to guard another unit or area. Healing units are especially useful as guard units as they will prefer to heal the unit they are guarding. The R key now selects the player crawler, and if double tapped centers the camera on the player crawler. Additionally, the special ability hotkeys have been changed to use the Z, X, and C keys, to allow players immediate access to the unit abilities.

3. Are there any unit specific upgrades?
There are two different types of unit specific upgrades. Each player class has a set of upgrades at Tier 2 and Tier 3 that affect a single type of unit on that class. If you like using Flame Tanks, Nod Offense has an upgrade for them which provides an additional special ability which provides increased speed, and causes the flame tank to leave a burning trail of flame behind it. In addition to these upgrades which are purchased using your upgrade points, there are upgrades on individual defense structures unlocked at Tier 2 that provide additional weapons, armor, and special ability to the structures. The Nod Tier 1 defenses can be upgraded to burrow under the ground, allowing you to hide a base underground, and then unburrow and surprise your enemy when they come near.

4. Will there be faction specific audio tracks?
There won’t just be faction specific audio tracks…There will be a completely different music score depending on who you are playing as. GDI are orchestral. NOD are electronic and vocal. I’m hoping the music will put you in a completely different mood depending on which faction you are playing!

5. What decisions affect unit scaling? Is this still being tuned?
When we look at unit scaling, the first thing we ask is: will this unit/structure/object be readable and readily distinguishable at game height? Cues given by the shape of the unit and its weapons are key to creating an understandable gameplay experience, especially in the heat of battle, and we want to make sure that these cues are easily visible to the user. This is generally when we establish when a unit is “too small” or “too large.” After some balance work is done and most of the art is in, we go back and take another look at the units. This time, we’re looking to ensure that the size of the unit is appropriate to its attack power or defense, and that the unit sizes amongst different size categories can be differentiated. We’re just finishing up our second major resizing pass on units, and will continue to make slight adjustments as we polish everything up.

Well, this certainly went through a lot of deliberation, let me tell you. But after scoping through thousands of names, we’ve landed at the one we think makes sense from a gameplay and fictional standpoint.

The Forgotten Mutant Bus will now be known as the Forgotten Scrapbus

At the end of the day, this name choice was a fine line between something that is easy to remember and understand on the battlefield, and something that works with the fiction and visuals of the unit.

Thanks for playin!
-APOC