GenCon: Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning’s Juicy Bits

Our Gen Con reporters, Staff Writer Kevin Stoner and Guest Contributor Alan Patrick are back from the event, bringing with them their impressions of the games shown at Gen Con Indy this year. Alan Patrick is first out with his report, focused on the upcoming Warhammer Online.

The scene: Downtown Indianapolis, Indiana – Indianapolis Convention Center

The setting: A stuffy, humid day with several thousand gamers and millions of dollars worth of game supplies – and tens of dollars of deodorant between them.

Kevin and I managed to weasel past the rabid gamers and into the convention center with little issue. Tucked away in the southeast corner of the exhibition hall we knew that we could find the Holy Grail of the convention: the electronic games exhibit.

This year marks the first year that GenCon has really embraced the online and electronic gaming format. While companies such as Blizzard and Sony have at the very least sent representatives in the past, 2007 included the brand-new Electonic Gaming Initiative – a collaborative effort between new and old gamers and designers alike. Peter Adkison, the former president of GenCon, LLC was almost as excited about the developments as the convention-goers (for those that don’t know Adkison, he’s excited all the time).

Our first appointment for the convention was to meet with the designers of the upcoming Warhammer property, Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning. Jeremy Dale, the lead animator for the title, was to be our tour guide for this whirlwind visitation to the battlefield.

First up I tackled him about his thoughts on how to seperate Warhammer from the rest of the MMO pack; what could bring Warhammer to the front and decimate the competition? His response was simple and confident, not to mention packed with information:

• Animations! Not just players, but the creatures and environment will be more reactive than players are expecting.
• Gear. The weapons and armor are really geared to the class that the player has chosen. There will be less “generic” gear, and as players progress through the game they will visually become more and more like their counterparts in the established printed sources. Not only will the gear take on the look of the class, but the items and weapons will also capture the feel and flavor of the class in new ways to enhance the experience.

With these things in mind I had to ask him about the learning curve for the history and lore. With any pre-established game world or campaign – especially one as well loved and well-known as Warhammer – there seems to be a certain amount of knowledge needed in order to get the full experience out of the game. According to Jeremy though, no outside
information or pre-existing knowledge will be needed. The game will certainly have some story bits that longtime players will notice, but entry level players will absolutely be able to have a saitsfactory experience.

As players progress further into the game, the subject of quests definitely comes to mind. In Warhammer, players will find a plethora of quests – and during those quests, the choices and decisions that the player makes will actually influence the way that the game world responds. Unlike many other games where completing a repeatable quest adds a few measly [ insert small cash coin here ], Warhammer takes your increasing fame and notoriety and allows the creatures and opposing mobs to respond – in force. Kill the privates and a corporal comes out; kill him and a big ‘ol beastie or event pops out. This certainly goes a long way to keep the game fresh for higher-level players and not just the new kids in the starting zone.

As many Warhammer fans are already well aware of, warfare plays a huge part in the game (hey, who would’ve thunk it, right?). Realms face off versus neighboring realms; players are actively encouraged to participate in PVP elements and quests. Each player’s individual fame level directly affects the status of the realm versus realm efforts. Players are not just limited to killing other players and repeating their quests – the real gem of this system is that you will all be looking at the very real chance of participating in the sacking of the capital cities of your opposition. Everyone’s going to be doing it, and let’s hope that you’re gonna be in the front lines and not caught in the privy when it happens.

Oh yes. Sack it. Burn it down, raze it, and destroy their shops. Invade, make it go boom, and rush in before their reinforcement can arrive and reorganize.

I tell you, wide-spread destruction has never looked so lucrative.

And, a closing thought:

The MMO Gamer: A Magus with a Disc of Tzeentch, Chuck Norris and Vin Diesel enter the steel cage. Who leaves?

Jeremy Dale: [laughs] This isn’t fair at all, the Magus and the Disc count as two. I would think that the Disc would definitely take them all – the Magus included if possible. The Disc definitely wins.

You can find further official information at WAR’s website: http://www.warhammeronline.com