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Shadow of Rome Q&A Feature
Chris Leyton
26/01/2005
TVG chats to Keiji Inafune about the impending release of Shadow of Rome...
Shadow of Rome is an action adventure game where the player will assume the role of two switchable characters - Agrippa and Octavius. It transports players to one of the most perilous ages of man, an era when Caesar was hailed as the leader of the Roman Empire and whose sovereignty dominated all of western civilization. The most obvious comparison to the game as can easily been seen is the epic Gladiator film. A spectacular presentation of battles, confrontation, and plenty of blood are on offer. Playing Agrippa lends itself more to action, while taking control of Octavius opens up the stealth and adventure elements of the game.
To remain true to the Roman era, players will have to use environmental objects and weapons of the day such as stones, slingshots, spears and swords in order to progress through the game. Also, situations will arise when Agrippa or Octavius will rely on nothing but their hands in order to combat those impeding the quest to absolve Uesnius.
Shadow of Rome uses an impressive sound combat system and this is essential for the action and fighting on offer which is extensive. TotalVideogames was given the opportunity to speak with Keiji Inafune, Producer of Shadow of Rome, just a few weeks before its release.
TVG: What has inspired the game and why do you feel there have been so few gladiatorial games as it seems a perfect subject matter?
Ancient Rome was a fascinating period of history and many of the events that took place in that time I believe provide great potential for a backdrop to a videogame. As to why there have been so few gladiatorial games before maybe it is because Ancient Rome and Gladiators were not seen as interesting subject matter to a mass audience. I think peopleâs views changed following the global success of the Ridley Scott movie.
TVG: How close to historic detail in both visuals and actions have you tried to be?
We have tried to make the game look and feel as realistic as possible. Obviously recreating some of the buildings was a difficult task as they do not exist anymore, but thankfully there are many drawings and pictures for us to refer to. As for the gladiatorial action, there is no doubt that most of the things that took place in the arena were incredibly violent and gory and this is what the crowd came to see. This relationship between the gladiators and the audience was very interesting to me and this is why we have included a gauge which measures the crowdâs reaction to the various attacks. The gorier the attacks the more the crowd is pleased and when Agrippa salutes them they will throw weapons or food into the arena.
TVG: The chariot racing looks great. What kind of physics and body deformation is on offer and what are the kind of tactics and strategies to be considered?
We have used physics to reproduce the real movements of the chariots. The essential tactics of this event is also to please the crowd and make them throw in useful items just like in the gladiatorial ring. As your chariot gets damaged whenever you run into another chariot or the walls, one of the strategies here could be to try to disperse the damage equally on the both sides of the carriage so that you can remain in the race.
TVG: The game has a very strong storyline but how can you ensure the storyline is one that gamers focus on and what is the basic plot?
Let me first explain the plot â“ Agrippa is a Centurion fighting the Germanic hordes when news reaches him that Julius Caesar has been assassinated. On returning to Rome Agrippa finds that his father has been falsely accused of this treasonous act and sentenced to death, with the executioner being the winner of the next gladiatorial contest. Agrippa therefore takes it upon himself to train as a gladiator and become the next gladiator champion. At the same time Octavianus, a long time friend of Agrippa, tries to gather evidence that will prove Agrippaâs father is not guilty. Because we switch the action and therefore the storyline between Agrippa and Octavianus I do not think there will be a problem with gamers not following the plot.
TVG: How do you ensure the game is not played purely as a hack and slash? (What extends certain gaming events?)
If you play the Agrippa stages as just a hack and slash then you will find them pretty difficult. There is certainly a need to be tactical in your attacks, knowing when to defend and when to strike will be crucial for success. Also, some of the arena levels require Agrippa to pull-off a certain number of special attacks which will need the player to do more than simply bash buttons and swing his sword randomly.
But the main reason that Shadow of Rome is more than a hack and slash title is that the player also takes control of Octavianus for a large part of the game. Octavianus has to rely on stealth and subterfuge to get the information he needs to prove Agrippaâs father is innocent so he doesnât even get access to a sword.
TVG: Could you tell us about one stealth event in the game to look out for?
I want the players to realise that a stealth event has not only one solution but many. Try out your ideas; you will be surprised that there will be always a new way to solve a problem.
TVG: How important, critical, to succeed will be the gaining of weapons â“ even from the crowd - for ongoing success, and does the game offer a progression line?
Agrippa will either start each fight with a weapon in his hand or he will need to pick one up from the arena floor. Every weapon in the game is limited to a set number of attacks, after which it breaks so gaining new weapons is crucial. Agrippa can get new weapons in a couple of ways - either by physically taking them from opponents or by pleasing the crowd as I have outlined above. Weapons range from the basic Gladius (sword) up to giant blades that can chop a man in half with one blow.
TVG: What has been the hardest element so far to get right?
I wanted to create Shadow of Rome as âa game with new approachâ from a Japanese creatorâs point of view. We started out studying European history and especially focused on the time of 2000 years ago. Obviously, we understand Japanese history, however, absorbing ancient Roman history, including the assignation of Caesar, which is still surrounded by many mysteries, required a huge amount of research.
In addition, I wanted to incorporate two good features from the Japanese and the Western games, namely âplayer friendly designâ and âfreedom of playâ respectively. Therefore, we worked hard to keep the balance of those features in one game with the result that we produced a new type of Japanese game.
TVG would like to thank Keiji Inafune for taking the time to answer our questions; weâll have more on Shadow of Rome soon.
