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Exclusive: Perimeter Q&A Feature
Derek dela Fuente
16/03/2004
Learn why Codemasters are getting very excited by the eastern european developed RTS...
Codemasters, the purveyors of great games, has a host of superb titles lined up for 2004. One of their next releases, on the PC, is Perimeter from a little known but impressive Eastern block team â“ K-D Lab.
Although we have covered Perimeter a few times we thought that a chat with Andrew Wafer, Game Designer - External Studio, Codemasters â“ would present further interesting facts and insight behind this inventive RTS.
Perimeterâs story centres on various civilisations that have abandoned a dying Earth, each in search for a new home world. Gameplay sees players commanding these civilisations as they travel between planets, gathering energy resources to continue this epic explorative journey. A focus for gamers is built on territory seizure, where players must terraform diverse landscapes in order to extract vital energy supplies. Energy reserves are required to power the player's structures, units and perimeter force field. A first for the RTS genre is that the landscape is a tactical participant in combat and base development and not just a static background, as players and indigenous natural forces fight to change the physical structure of the game world.
TVG: Andrew, how did Perimeter come to the attention of Codemasters, what impressed you about K-D Lab and how much has Codemasters helped their creativity and added to their technology side?
We have been building a strong relationship with the Russian developer and publisher 1C, who introduced us to KD Lab at the beginning of last year. They already had a fantastic 3D engine, which theyâd been working on for quite some time, and the innovative concepts and gameplay mechanics featured in Perimeter made it very appealing to us. Since then weâve been working with them to further shape their vision, sharing our experience in game design and production to help complete the game.
TVG: The game has been in development for what appears a very long time. Can you give some of the reasons and what has been the main focus over the last 6 months?
Over its development cycle Perimeter has evolved and been refined many times.
In the last 6 months the gameâs development has been worked on considerably with overhauls in many areas. The main focus has been working on the single player campaign and multiplayer balancing.
TVG: Would you give a brief overview of the main task for the player and what you see as being innovative about the game in the RTS genre, seeing there is a lot of competition?
The player commands a nomad civilisation moving from planet to planet trying to make their way to a new home. In order to travel to the next world the player has to collect energy from a planetâs surface. To do this they must first use special units to terraform the planetâs surface. Perimeter has a real-time terraforming engine, which can shift a massive numbers of polygons, this not only makes terraforming possible, but also allows us to create some spectacular effects with underground units and geological activity. Once the surface has been terraformed the player can put down energy cores, which suck energy out of the ground.
The game also uses whatâs called âNanomorphâ technology. What this means is that the units can be morphed into different classes of units whilst in combat. So if youâre attacking with a ground based missile unit, like the R-Projector, and the enemy comes up with a way of countering your attack, providing you have enough energy you can instantly morph your units into an aerial laser attack unit like the Gyroid.
The Perimeter itself also makes gameplay a lot more interesting. Each energy core is capable of generating a force field. This can be used to protect vital buildings and units from the enemy, or even capture enemy units inside it. Its use becomes very tactical when opposing bases are right next to each other!
TVG: One of the first requirements for the player is to build a base but clearing land and placing structures need a little planning for you canât just whack in a base. Can you explain this process a little for the player?
Sure, The playerâs main spaceship is called a âFrameâ. The Frame is the heart of the playerâs base and is home to their civilisation. It also houses 5 special units, collectively known as the âMulti-Modular Platformâ. These are capable of morphing into two different types. One type is called the Brigadier, responsible for terraforming, and the other is called the Buildmaster, responsible for building and repairing structures.
To build a base the player has to select the area they want the Brigadiers to terraform. The player will have to strategically choose where they want to terraform, some areas of the terrain will take longer than others to be processed. Once the Brigadiers have terraformed the area the player can convert them into Buildmasters to create structures. Structures can only be built on terraformed terrain and energy can only be extracted from terraformed terrain. Energy cores can then be built to extract energy from the ground (these structures also generate the Perimeter). Energy cores need to be placed in such a way so as to maximise the extraction of energy from the surface. Each energy core needs to be linked in a chain to the playerâs Frame. If it becomes disconnected by attack from the enemy then it, and all the buildings connected to it, can be captured. Perimeter is a very territorial game, and to master the game the player will have to consider all of these aspects when building their base.
TVG: The game has a real focus on the commodity âenergyâ and terraforming.
Can you explain how the management of energy works and how important energy is to the game and then also a little bit about terraforming?
Energy is the sole resource in Perimeter. It is used for generating the Perimeter force shield, building structures, powering all weapons, creating and morphing units. Without energy the player will be vulnerable to attack, unable to create units and unable to morph their units into different types. The units they do have wonât even be able to fire their weapons. So energy is very, very important!
TVG: To continue on from the last question, how does the relationship between terraforming and energy work?
Terraformed land equals energy; the more land a player has terraformed the more energy they can ultimately extract.
TVG: You can control troops via command groups of up to 250 individual units.
How easy is it to acquire new troops and how beneficial is it to have as many as possible?
Basic troops are very easy to create. There are three types of basic troop - soldiers, officers, and technicians. These are built in unit factories, the more factories the player has the faster he will be able to create them. The actual number of soldiers, officers and technicians is not as important as the ratios in which the player builds them. Another new feature of Perimeter is that the player will be able to morph their units into different types of units. For example, with the correct technology researched a player can morph 7 officers and 3 technicians into 1 âScummerâ a powerful underground units that boils the terrain above it (handy when in an opponents base). That means 70 officers and 30 technicians can be morphed into 10 âScummersâ. Alternatively the player could build 12 technicians that can be morphed into 1 âLeechâ. The âLeechâ can drain energy from the enemyâs reserves. Basically this all means that players have to tactically think out how they build units. The morphing aspect also means that players can instantly convert the units into different types with different combat techniques, whilst in combat, adapting they strategy to the circumstance.
TVG: How does the balance between your expansion and growth and that of the enemy and them attacking you work? Is there a complex set of parameters to your progression that will affect their behaviour and possibly aggression towards you?
When bases start to expand, especially in multiplayer, unoccupied territory starts to disappear. Anyone who controls more territory than the other players is going to have an energy advantage, so at the start of a game players will scramble to secure as much as they can. In single player the A.I. will also try to do this. Nobody wants to be in a position where an opponent is gaining superiority. In Perimeter you can expect to be attacked very regularly from opponents who have the same adaptive morphing abilities as you.
TVG: Can you give us one intriguing occurrence that could manifest itself with your battling against other civilisations and indigenous species?
I was playing a few days ago and Iâd managed to terraform land in a strip extending from my base towards the enemyâs. Iâd been using the Perimeter to shield certain areas of this terraformed strip of land while I built laser and missile turrets on it close to my enemyâs base. What I didnât know is that the A.I. had sent a task force of units capable of making heavy units invisible into my base. The next thing I knew my power to the strip of land extending into the enemyâs base had been disconnected, he had taken out the energy core link. I dispatched some units to take care of the aggressors but my turrets and Perimeter powered down. Suddenly the A.I. rerouted its power into my discounted network, capturing my turrets that were now pointed at me! It was the first time Iâd seen the A.I. use this technique and it caught me a bit off guard.
TVG: What one single aspect of the game would you say the gamer should focus on when playing Perimeter?
Making sure they always have enough energy to morph troops!
Thanks
With not long to go before the Perimeterâs release, and itâs in the top ten most anticipated PC games for 2004, it could well be worth the long wait!
