Sudeki Q&A Feature

PC owners will shortly have the opportunity to experience the delights of Sudeki that only XBOX owners have seen and played until now. The PC version of Sudeki remains faithful to the original but takes the adventure to an even greater level with improved visuals and richer sound.

Sudeki features four uniquely talented heroes - a sultry wizardress, soaring gunslinger, mighty swordsman and dark huntress - and we are told transgresses the traditional boundaries of role-playing games with bigger worlds and more powerful characters than ever before. Our resident PC man, Derek dela Fuente, spoke with Mark Simmons, Producer on the PC project, who has the same position on the Xbox offering.

TVG: Sudeki was a moderate success on the Xbox. Can you briefly explain the backdrop story to the game and what elements of the game do you feel appealed?

The story depicts a war that is raging in the realm of Illumina. The Aklorian armies have laid waste to the farmlands and soon they will be attacking the castle. The peopleâ??s only hope is a mystical machine that can resist the magical powers of the Aklorian forces, but time is running out and the machine is not complete.

Your party must fight for Queen and country to obtain the coveted Illumina crystals which can power the machine, before the end arrives. But all is not what it seems. Treachery and betrayal lurk deep within the hearts of some, and the story will twist and turn as it develops. You and your friends are special. The last link between Illumina and four fallen Gods of Sudeki, or so the legend tells. Maybe you will summon the powers of these forgotten Gods to help you in your long battle to save Sudekisâ?? subjects.

The key elements are that the game is fast, furious, and that Sudekiâ??s combat system is unique. It is fast and chaotic, especially when you are fighting 10 guys at once, but has the tactical depth of a true RPG. The sweet spots come when your character pulls off really well timed combos, such as spinning through the air and then making an enemy explode when your sword comes crashing down.

In Sudeki you control all your party, all the time. You can switch between melee and ranged characters in real time, switch to Tal to wield his sword, then to Ailish to shoot her staff from 1st person, all at the press of a button. All your party friends act under the advanced AI when you are not controlling them directly, and you can configure their behaviour in real-time to help you in combat.

There are awesome spells! The biggest attacks link the characters in the party together, fill the entire screen with effects, and can obliterate everything you can see. It is very satisfying when all your enemies explode in front of your eyes.

TVG: Can you tell us about two tasks that are undertaken in the game that you feel show off the real nature of the game?

In the Temple of Mo all 4 player characters are required to combine their unique abilities to solve the puzzles and progress through to the crystal guardian Queen Gara (a huge spider the size of a house!). Elco flies with his rocket pack, Buki climbs sheer faced walls with her claws, Ailish dispels magical illusions and reveals hidden magical objects, and Tal pushes huge physical objects around the dungeon floor. All must work together to get the coveted crystal.

In the shadow realm the party fights huge armies of undead anthropomorphic warriors in one of the most intense battles of the game. The fight can last half an hour or more with you having to constantly think about every skill attack and choice of combo move. This all culminates in the parties joining forces to defeat the immense demonic wolf from Farex Lores tomb. It sums up what Sudeki is all about. Multi-character control in huge intense battles, all in real-time.

TVG: The game is big, in terms of size, how would you quantify this and can you tell us two interesting facts about the world you are set in?

The world is huge. There are three realms, the light realm, dark realm, and shadow realm. You will visit many large locations when travelling through the world and in some cases you will visit the dark world versions of locations you have previously visited in the light world. They exist in parallel, but in the dark world, all the light and colour have been sucked from the landscape, and the characters you meet are quite twisted.

There are many sub-quests aside from the main story path that allow the completist player many extra hours of play time. There are some great goodies to be found if you take the time.

TVG: Expand on the battle system and some of the nice touches you feel gamers should know about?

The melee combat system has its own rhythm. Combo moves are pulled off by linking three light or heavy attacks in sequence. The combination of three attacks will give you a unique combo move as long as you hit the buttons in the right rhythm. This natural rhythm provides a very smooth animated combat style where each swing flows into the next, which also gives you time to think in between each swing. Every combo move has a strategic advantage. Some are devastating against one enemy, and others are great against multiple foes at once. Some allow you to attack enemies far away, each one is unique. You have to think fast and choose the right moves to really master the system. Combine this with blocking, rolling, weapons which all have their own unique properties, and status effects that can apply effects such as boost, poison, slow, and regenerate and you have a fast, furious, chaotic battle where you have to think on your feet to become the ultimate sword master.

TVG: You are part of a party of 4. Can you tell us the main attributes of each character?

Tal - An adept swordsman, a member of the Illumina elite guard. His father is the captain of the Illumina forces. His attributes are based around strength and melee skills, and he has a special ability to move huge physical objects.

Ailish - A powerful sorceress and princess to the realm of Illumina. She is prim and proper, spoilt, and demanding (like her mother, the Queen). She attacks with the end of her staffs, and her skill attacks are powerful spells that can help the whole party in combat. She can reveal hidden objects that others cannot see, and detect and dispel illusions.

Buki - Half woman, half cat. From the Shadani Mo tribe, a race of anthropomorphic people who believe their race is destined to find the shadow lands, a place said to be the link between two parallel realms in the world of Sudeki. She fights with huge claws attached to her wrists, and is all about agility and speed.

Elco - The Queenâ??s head scientist, employed to build a huge machine to protect the realm of Illumina from the Aklorians who constantly battle the gates of the castle and raid the farmlands. He has gadgets for everything, including a rocket pack on his back that allows him to fly. He builds his own guns, and his skill attacks utilise his huge array of inventions.

TVG: How do skill points work and how are they gained?

Skill points are used up whenever you cast a Skill Attack. Each character has a number of strategic smart-bomb type attacks. Each attack is designed to be useful in a specific tactical situation. If used correctly they can be devastating, if not that can be very wasteful on your resources. Skill points are replenished via potions and items received, bought, and found throughout the game world.

The largest attacks in the game, called Spirit Strikes, require the characters in the party to link up their magical power and summon the Gods to help you in combat. To perform Spirit Strikes you need to build up your Spirit Strike Bar by performing well in combat.

TVG: If you had to pick one innovation within the game what would it be?

Sudeki has a unique dynamic cinematic spell system. The spells play out in one-time, a unique timing system developed for Sudeki where time is slowed down Matrix style but your character is sped up. It allows us to do the sorts of huge special effect saturated attacks that you see in turn-based RPGs, like Final Fantasy, but in Sudeki it all happens in real time. The cinematics are dynamic, so the cameras and effects you get are based on your situation and the environment.

Having failed to capture the success that Microsoft and Climax originally envisioned on the Xbox, Zoo Digitial will certainly be hoping that Sudeki finds a more receptive audience amongst PC gamers. Scheduled for release on March 25th, weâ??ll have a closer look soon.