Argyll and Operation CO-IN

[Munro]

Today we speak to the project leader of the impressive looking
Operation: CO-IN modification for
the Half-Life 2 engine. [br]
[br]
Halflife2.net: First do you mind introducing yourself and your role?

Argyll: I am Argyll: the Project Leader and Founder of Operation: CO-IN.
I also design/maintain the website, map, 2D Art, and any other jobs that need
filling in.

<p>
Halflife2.net: Could you describe your mod in a short sentence?</p>

Argyll: Op: CO-IN is based on Modern Infantry Combat, primarily the Sub-Conventional
warfare between a Paramilitary or Guerrilla unit and a larger and more high-tech
Nation (such as the USA or Great Britain).

Halflife2.net: You mention on your site that it is set in modern times (post
1945). Do you have any plans on including events and actions from these earlier
years? (Pre 1970s, say)?

Argyll: That is a possibility, but the primary focus is around the last
decade and a few years into the future.

Halflife2.net: You mention that realism will be a major focus of the mod...
could you give an example of the trade offs that you are making between that and
game play?

Argyll: Game play is also a very important aspect along with realism in
the mod. How we envision the game play is to have a high replayability factor
and promotion of teamwork. We will not sacrifice fun or other essential game play
elements for the sake of 'realism.'

Halflife2.net: But to what extent will the mod be realistic?

Argyll: When we say 'realism,' we are referring to the style of game play
rather then the features commonly associated to a 'realistic' game such as Iron
Sights or weapon damage. We will include those features, but also the promotion
of Teamwork along with objectives that would be seen in an actual combat scenario
(i.e. capturing certain ground or structures instead of flags or other items seen
in most games). We will encourage teamwork and real tactics as much as possible
in order to create a 'realistic' experience in a game.

Halflife2.net: How will the different nations &quot;packs&quot; integrate and affect
the game? What purpose do they serve?

Argyll: Myself being Canadian, I am tired of always having to play as the
Americans in games. So, we are developing a system where players will be able
to customize their team to appear as they are playing as a soldier from their
nation. We plan on adding additional nations in the future. For the first release,
we will have the U.S.M.C., British Royal Marines, a Paramilitary Force, and Guerrillas.
We plan for the future: Canada, Russia, Australia, and Germany.

Halflife2.net: So will some players see themselves as American, and some
as Canadians?

Argyll: That is correct, but they will still be able to play in the same
game at the same time.

Halflife2.net: Will someone who is playing as the USMC see the other players
as USMC players, even if they see other players as Canadians?

Argyll: If a player would like to play as USMC, they will see all that
team as the USMC. If a player wants to play as Canadians, they will see all that
team as Canadians.

Halflife2.net: Will this have an affect on weapon selection and effects?

Argyll: The weapons will have general characteristics that are similar
with multiple weapons. A British SA-80A2 is a Full-Automatic, 30 round, 5.56mm
Rifle with a scope; the Canadians use the C7A1 which has the same characteristics.

Halflife2.net: Your mod seems similar to
<a href="http://www.americasarmy.com">America's Army: Operations[/url]
could you describe how OP: CO-IN differs from it?

Argyll: I find it actually hard to compare the two. At first glance, they
do seem similar, but the details are quite different. [br]
1. AA:O you are always the Americans, no matter what team you are on. We are having
separate teams.[br]
2. More realistic objectives in Op: CO-IN.[br]
3. We are more based on the Infantry, but AA:O does concentrate greatly on Special
Operations.[br]
4. We will include more nations than just America, to appeal to a broader audience.[br]
5. Vehicles transportation including Truck, Jeep, APC, and Helicopters.[br]
Those are just the main points. The overall style and way that it is played we
intend to be much different.

Halflife2.net: Well, many of those differences you mentioned seemed like
cosmetic differences, such as the different nations. Will these differences provide
a major difference in game play? Also, what do you mean by more realistic objectives?

Argyll: Realistic objectives are more like what the Infantry would do.
For example, instead of having to rescue hostages, or reaching one point, or capturing
a flag... you have to work more as a team rather than an individual to gain control
of certain areas of a given map. This could be anything from a single, but large,
building (apartments, government, etc.), to a city block, or a small town/village.
[br]
[br]
There can be multiple objectives on the maps as well. But, not only just capturing
and holding areas... the Guerrillas will need to rely on weapons caches in order
to resupply, so that becomes another priority in order to win.

Halflife2.net: Your &quot;Squad based Teams&quot; feature interests me. Could you describe
how it will work?

Argyll: We are modeling the teams around a Platoon. There will be a Platoon
Commander that will co-ordinate the different Squads. They are basically there
to have a general picture of the battle and how the team should carry out the
mission. There will be Squads of 8 soldiers. Two fire teams of 4 within that Squad
and controlled by a Commander. They will take orders from the Commander and carry
them out as the situation determines. We believe that this Squad based system
will be ideal for clan and League play.

Halflife2.net: These systems sound ideal for clan play, but how do you foresee
it will hold up on public servers?

Argyll: We realize that this ideal will not always work out in a Pub server,
but the overall objectives of the map will require the necessary teamwork. Objectives
will require a minimum of 4 soldiers to be in the designated area for a certain
amount of time. So, if the members of the team are looking to win, they should
use this system to their advantage.

Halflife2.net: Sounds good in theory, but I’m still not convinced. I've played
a lot of online games in my time, and it strikes me that the majority are playing
to be the highest in the scoreboard. There will of course be a great following of
team play lovers I’m sure, but have you any plans to help enforce team play over
personal frag count?

Argyll: We are aware of that, because even I'm guilty of pursuing a high
kill count in DoD. However, we plan to not have stats (kills, deaths, etc.) while
the player is alive. What we are going to do is have either round-based games
or very few reinforcement waves (map determined) and once the round is over or
the player has been eliminated for good, the stats will be available to them,
so they can evaluate their performance.

Halflife2.net: Excellent, I was hoping for something along those lines. Best
of luck to you and your team. Well, I don't have any further questions, do you have
anything you'd like to say in closing Argyll?

Argyll: I would just like to thank the Op: CO-IN Dev. Team... they are
absolutely outstanding! They can pull off great quality work and meet the deadlines.
Also, would like to thank our very dedicated Community on the Forums (http://forums.opcoin.net)
and GameSurge IRC Channel: #opcoin.[br]
[br]
We are also hiring positions in the following areas: Map Prop Modelers, Vehicle
Modelers and Skinners, 1 Weapon Skinner, Mappers, and of course... Programmers.
More details can be found at our website: www.opcoin.net.

We would like to thank Argyll for taking time out to give us this interview and
wish the Operation: CO-IN team good luck in the future.