Exclusive: Postal 2 - Share the Pain Q&A Feature

Are you slightly confused with what is new and what isnâ??t? Having heard about a number of Postal 2 releases, the controversial PC shooter, with another one on the way we thought the best solution was to speak with Vince Desi, CEO of Running With Scissors, to find out the current state of affairs.

TVG: Youâ??ve shipped Postal 2 a year or so ago in Europe and you are now releasing a revised new version in Europe, what new additions have you worked and improved on?

Working with hell-tech of Greece, we will be shipping 2 products, the first is the full new POSTAL 2: Share The Pain, a combo CD, which includes new single player features and the first time ever Multiplayer. Also, we are making available a new Upgrade only CD for all the current POSTAL 2 owners; here are some of the new featuresâ?¦

Single player:

Includes an enhanced version of the original single player game with:

• Two new levels: Underhub and Tora Bora
• New Weapon of Mass Destruction
• New difficulty modes: Insano and They hate me
• New bullet tracers show source of incoming fire
• Faster load times
• Improved weapon damage and accuracy
• And more!

Multiplayer:

4 game types:

• SNATCH: featuring the Postal Babes! Snatch the enemy's babe and SCORE!
• GRAB: 10 bags, each makes you stronger than the last! Battle to get them all!
• Deathmatch: Choose from 25 characters including Gary Coleman and Osama!
• Team Deathmatch: Choose from 17 insane teams, including Team Taliban and The Gimps!

• 14 new multiplayer levels including landmarks from the single player game and brand new environments!
• In-game browser for finding and joining games.
• Dedicated and non-dedicated server modes with remote admin.
• Customiseable game settings and modifiers to enhance the game types.
• Next generation level editor - make your own maps!

TVG: The team must like courting controversy, so what tasty, NOT Politically Correct, ideas have gone into Postal 2 and where do you try to draw the line?

As for drawing the line, thatâ??s easy â?“ we believe in good old adult entertainment, but that means NO KIDS, we will not use children in our games, period.

As for controversy, we donâ??t design POSTAL with controversy in mind. We have a simple rule â?“ is it fun to play and is it funny to watch and listen too, thatâ??s it, that simple. Now, of course, the new cool feature in P2 Share The Pain is the Postal Babes. Instead of CTF, or capture the flag, weâ??ve introduced our own new RWS version, we call it SNATCH, where you have to snatch the other teams ***, or Postal Babe.

TVG: Getting all this media attention is obviously great for sales but as a team does it not depress you that your coding is not seen as being impressive and possibly future publishers do not take you seriously?

Most important is that our fans take us seriously. The AI in P2STP is awesome, itâ??s much deeper than most games, the problem is that most game reviewers or testers only play a game for an hour or 2 at best. POSTAL 2: STP is a large open environment, where you can interact with pedestrians, animals, explore the inside of buildings, you can play in several different modes, itâ??s a very endless game, but you have to invest the time to find out all the cool hidden features. Let me give you an example, recently a game reviewer, at a publisher, was evaluating the PC version for future licensing, their summary was it was boring cause all it offered was chopping heads and pissing, I told the Director about 4 different things you could do like train the dog, use cats, play as a cop, and you know what he said â??Oh no one played the game really, they only heard about itâ??. This is the problem with our industry too many people in important positions only know what they like, and thatâ??s why you see so much of the same crap all the time. Weâ??re looking for a console publisher who wants something new.

TVG: What are some of the more serious weapons on offer?

The WMD - we found the weapons of mass destruction in Paradise, AZ, where the P Dude lives, and trust me heâ??s not a democrat or a republican.

TVG: Will you summarise one event in the game that is really attention grabbing?

I know when 2 Postal Babes dance on a bed it gets ATTENTION.

TVG: Where does RWS go from here? Will we see more of the same or a new direction for the team?

Currently we are working on a new add-on pack, after that I think we need a vacation, maybe in an asylum or a long stay in a whorehouse.

TVG: Youâ??ve had some disappointing reviews; how would you counter their comments of â??poorâ???

Whatâ??s important is the reviews we get from our fans and gamers, not from the establishment. Iâ??ve had reviewers tell me they really like the game but sorry dude I have to give you a shitty score, thereâ??s no way the magazine will let me give it a good rating, that would be like an endorsement. So much for Freedom here in the States.