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Black & White Creature Isles Feature Feature
Derek Dela Fuente
00/12/0000
TVG spoke with Jonty Jones, the project leader, at Lionhead concerning what Creature Isle is all about.
Flushed with the success of Black & White, easily the biggest selling PC game of 2001, we shall see a mini sequel data disc released before Christmas to top up the excitement and add a new dimension to this game. Derek dela Fuente spoke with Jonty Jones, the project leader, at Lionhead concerning what this title is all about, along with the teamâs thoughts on the whole B&W experience.
Discover a new land populated by many strange and wonderful Creatures who live as a Brotherhood. It's a realm of mystery, a place without Gods. As you bring a Creature to a brand new world and challenge the Brotherhood, this elite band of Creatures will test him, and you, to the limit with a series of Trials. Succeed at each Trial and you will win the respect of the Creature who set it. Not only can you fight with that type of Creature whenever you like, but you can swap it as well.
On offer are new Creatures, new fighting skills and new miracles, and if by chance you impress the Brotherhood enough, you will join them. Not only will you be awarded an emblem that will forever mark your Creature as a member of this special band, but you'll have extra powers to take on-line or to use on the Isle of Creatures.
If you thought that Black & White was a one off, chances are this could run for years. Why create new games and titles when experiences and challenges can be created within the Black and White world. Jonty spoke about this first then highlighted the many pluses and even some critical comments as the team steamrollered on.
"Indeed, we have had a number of internal discussions on how the world and technology could suit a number of strong concepts, but we cannot spread ourselves too thinly. There has been a suggestion of making the game an open source to people who propose their ambitions to make a game, which uses the B&W world. This is something we are still considering. As you'd guess we're not going to devalue the game, so whatever happens has to measure up to our standards.â
"I must say we have been pleased and in some cases moved by the feedback we got about Black & White. As well as positive comments we have received some negative ones. The most disappointing element for us was of course the bugs that were in the final version of the game. This was very upsetting, and something we felt that was unacceptable - we believed we had submitted a stable version of the game to our publishers, and we never imagined there would be such problems. It was really sad, as we were excited and exhausted after three and half years' hard work. However, since the release of the patch we haven't had such problems. It's also true that the B&W community has been absolutely amazing. We never expected to get the volume of emails from people who were so attached to their Creature, especially so many as a response to their creature being captured in the game!"
"In the end, very few people swapped their Creature once they had taught it to behave. The tales people have told on our forums about their Creatureâs behaviour have amused and sometimes even shocked us. People have printed out images of their Creature; have given them their own homepages packed with info that, frankly, goes beyond what exists in the game. As well as some great tattoos on Creatures, people have designed totally new Creatures and skins, which we certainly didn't expect. I seem to remember an extremely impressive set of Tigers dressed as Super Heroes! The players out there have created some truly amazing content. It's those people, the players, who have really made all the hard work worth it.â
The team has been working on Creature Isle pretty much since they finished Black & White. Already having long-term ambitions for B&W, Creature Isle, came as a response to the research they did with the B&W players, and the ambitions the team had after B&W. Initially they considered two mini-sequels, as players seemed to fall into two camps, one centred around real-time-strategy gaming, and the other centred on the Creature. After much pondering and hard thinking they found that although many people wanted a more battle-led game, an awful lot more wanted to expand on the Creature and to have more focused and challenging Trials involving him. So with that in mind they went ahead with Creature Isle, saving their plans to ramp up the competitive element for Black & White 2, with enormous conflicts and much-improved battling, both between Creatures and between towns.
Ok Jonty, give us a bit of inside info on Creature Isle. "Well, the aim of Creature Isle is to find your Creature a mate, so your Creature can breed and start a dynasty. To do this you must complete the other vital element. You must join the Brotherhood of Creatures, and convince them that you are worthy of joining their collective elite. Upon success only then can you get to meet Mercurio, who is the boss of bosses, and is also the Guardian of a Creature who has targeted you as a potential mate." As well as the new Miracles, new objects, tasks and abilities in the Isle, the Creature AI has significantly improved, with new fighting skills and the ability to aid villagers in many more ways. For example, with the construction of buildings."
It has always been Lionheadâs ambition as a developer to push technology as far as possible, with their goal of making the most entertaining software we can. Both B&W 2 and Project Dimitri are massively ambitious in terms of AI alone, and although the team is sworn to secrecy concerning the new project, the scope for challenging technology is thoroughly exciting to them. As we are now accustomed to with any Lionhead game there are a few secret surprises on the Isle. The thing about B&W is, because the player is able to do what they like, as well as the hidden features there a number of features that they are unlikely to see. So players will be surprised by things that we don't think are hidden, but they only stumble upon later. âOn Creature Isle you will find that the Brotherhood, this elite band of Creatures will test your creature, and you, to the limit with a series of Trials. Succeed at each Trial and you will win the respect of the Creature who set it.â
These Trials are set up to be enjoyable tests of brainpower, Creature speed, dexterity and even sly thinking. For example, there's a race to run against the fabled Tortoise. He may well cheat, so you could find a way to get even by cheating yourself. These are only a few surprises in store, another being, your Creature also gets the chance to meet his perfect mate, and to breed, giving you a new generation of Creatures to take further in the ever-expanding world of Black & White.
On the Isle you'll also find such diverse tests as blasting the Marauders with a cannon, going bowling, playing a board game and even skeleton hunting in the dead of night.
And on top of all this, you still have to be a God to this new land, playing as much or as little a part in the daily lives of your followers as you want. As in Black & White, both Creature and player have the freedom to behave as well or badly as they choose. Only this time there's a new Creature to influence as well. A quote from Peter Molyneux, the man behind B&W, summarising what is on offer, makes this one not to miss. "We have pushed the AI, set a whole new range of Trials, added another Creature for you to train, as well as your own and even give your Creature the chance to breed. We also fixed a few points and let our imaginations run riot with the improved graphics and engine."
