Postal 2 Interview Part 1 of 2 Feature

Courting controversy is not always a good thing in the video gaming arena for many believe it is done to deflect away from the actual inadequacies of the game. To get a game banned conversely can add to the media hype and it sells more merely because people want to see what is so outrageous. It can only be done once which means the game has to be good if there is a sequel. <br /> <br /> Not many may remember the release of POSTAL a few years back, published by Take2Games/Gametex which went on to sell 200,000, even though it was eventually banned. Over the top ‘in game’ violence, innocent bystanders getting killed for no reason, added to the mass hysteria of the title. Looking at the game clinically, it was a very accomplished piece of coding and the team hit the market at just the right time. With the climate worldwide looking towards political correctness will the news of POSTAL 2 cause much concern? Derek dela Fuente met up with the team to find out more about the POSTAL branding and take a look at its sequel! A nightmare ensued! <br /> <br /> The original POSTAL was released in 1997 a year after the team had formed. Most of the team had been around for a number of years and some even started their days coding on the Atari 2600 system (Yes, they are true veterans.). RWS was formed for the sole purpose of making POSTAL - they simply wanted to make a game that was different. Their name comes from an old American saying, basically when you’re a child and your mother is telling you not to do something, like ‘run with scissors’. <br /> <br /> Vince Desi, Co-founder and Biz Guy (VD): ‘Here in the US we have another saying ‘Goin Postal’ which means going off and killing innocent people, preferably your boss, supervisors and the like. It originated in 1986 when some asshole got pissed off to the point he shot up his boss and fellow employees in a Post Office. Several others thought that was a neat lifestyle choice for them so they shot some people up too.’ <br /> <br /> It can only happen in the USA, I hear you saying!! <br /> <br /> Nathan Fouts, Lead Programmer/ Special Effects (NF) continues: ‘We decided not to continue the flimsy storyline from the first game, but rather chose to invent a new flimsy storyline. Though it would be fun if by POSTAL 10 The Dude was a half-demon cyborg in the year 2099 found frozen on an abandoned space station by teenage space campers or something... Naw, that would be stupid. Forget I said that. I’m high. We are doing all kinds of things in Postal 2 that weren’t possible a few years ago! POSTAL 2 takes a fresh look at the life of an average guy who faces the same annoying situations we all face every day but he has a choice, he can either take the abuse or he can decide to Go POSTAL! So the <br /> situation is similar but greatly expanded and with far more depth.’ <br /> <br /> Postal is now in glorious 3D and is being developed using the latest version of Epic Games’ Unreal 3D technology coupled with MathEngine’s Karma software and already the game is looking visually interesting. Mike Riedel, Co-founder and Project Leader/Game Designer (MR): ‘The use of this engine will add many things to the game, some cool, some nauseating and some absolutely reprehensible. We are trying to use the power of 3D to express details that have never been seen before, especially in the area of bodily fluids. (Try not to get any on ya!) Most of our effort is in the direction of creating a detailed, living environment for players to run amok in. When moving from 2D to 3D it’s inherently more complicated, but it does offer much more in terms of game play. Now you can be on rooftops looking down on all the hapless pedestrians before you start shooting (or you just sit there and voyeuristically watch them live their lives).’ <br /> <br /> With the team on what appears to be an adrenalin high I will explain the background scenario to the game and let them calm down a little. <br /> <br /> The story is pretty simple, you’re having a bad day and you’ve got errands to run. No vampires, no zombies, no mutant/alien/demon/lesbian/cyborgs, no government conspiracy. You’ve got to buy milk. But, just like in America, you get to own guns if you want, and just like reality, what you do with them is up to you as long as you’re prepared to deal with the consequences. The focus is fun! It’s kind of like a giant amusement park with napalm and you get to make up the rules. (Hmm, I appear to be taking on the team’s wicked persona and mannerisms!) Interacting with the people around you is the bulk of the game. Again, just like real life, what you do with all those people who talk to you each day determines the fun you’ll have. <br /> <br /> The one thing you soon notice about the team, apart from their sarcasm and wit, is that they really understand about coding and what makes a good game. Underneath it all they are a clever bunch, as was highlighted when I spoke about the constant ramblings of developers spouting on about the virtues of their new engine and the fact there is nothing that discernable to see! <br /> <br /> Steve Wik, Game and Lead Level Designer (SW): ‘So you noticed. Look POSTAL 2 is different, very different, not only in looks but in game play. I have no problem with other games, except some developers should be in the copy business, whatever happened to originality? Making games shouldn’t be a monogamous experience.’ MR, added, ‘We’re focusing more on the content than on the technology. That was why we decided to use the Unreal engine. We let Epic take care of the technology so we can focus our energy on the content: what the player can do, how the characters react, and giving the game a unique overall look and feel.’ <br /> <br /> Moving on to what the team might feel offensive did not come with a short pause but a deluge of dialogue some which can’t be used. VD: ‘…….This is real important – we don’t put sex, vulgarity or beating women in our game for cheap thrills, that’s boring. As far as a rating goes, shit, we just might have to create our own ratings system, let’s start with F (for F U N), you have a filthy mind; you thought I was going to say something else.’ <br /> <br /> Now if you are worried that the guys are merely putting together an overthetop bash without any forethought then read on. <br /> <br /> <b>SW:</b> ‘There will be a very unique brand of tactical forethought required for our game. Not in the standard ‘should I snipe the guard before dynamiting the door’ sense but in the ‘how deep in the crowd can I get before anyone notices me pouring this gasoline under their feet’ sense. Tactics and strategy are absolute requirements. If all you do is spray out a hail of bullets as you run down the street then you’ll quickly be overwhelmed and killed. You need to plan your assault, find and use cover to your advantage, watch out for team-based AI, make sure you have an escape route and lots more. And that’s all just to get a damn carton of milk. All the ‘over-the-top’ stuff is just the icing on the cake. I will also add, we are trying to find a balance between really cool things in the game and knowing that everybody doesn’t have the absolute latest and greatest PC. Most things in our game scale up or down according to the hardware, so the better your hardware, the better the effects will look, but even people with older PCs will still be able to appreciate it. There is nothing more frustrating than reading all about a game and all its effects, then finding out you can’t run the game or see it in most of its glory! <br /> <br /> To be continued!