GameSpy's prior to E3 2004 video with Doug Lambardi

[ScopeD]

In the video GameSpy gets to talk with Doug Lambardi from Valve software and he clears the air a little by answering some questions.

He says the game is currently in alpha stage and going for beta and they're planning to release the game in mid-summer roughly! This is more convincing when viewed full screen than from the rumours. Also he explains that Gordon will in fact team up with the scientists against the aliens and combine..so there's 3 different sides basically in war with each other. He also speaks about the physics implemented in the game, such as the fact that you can now pick up an item and shoot it anywhere you like which affects the thing it hits and so on.. which kinda explains why there is some much testing to do, not to let everything collapse at a blink.

Video can be downloaded here: http://www.fileplanet.com/files/140000/140453.shtml

 

[PvtRyan]

Nice interview. Doug doesn't seem like such a bad guy, he clearly stated that 9/30 was too ambitious after all, that's enough for me.
I hope they don't go too far into the story at E3, like he states 'at e3 we wanna show more of the gameplay and take you into the story a little further'.

 

[ScopeD]

Mods, please delete this! I honestly pressed the submit button only once :/

 

[Polykarbon]

You know what I love...all of the Doug/Gabe/Valve/ haters who think every single word they say is divine intervention.

OMG DID GABE JUST SAY THAT THE CROWBAR WILL HAVE WINGS?!?!

*crowbar doesn't have wings*

OMG WTF YOU SUCK GABE

Lamers--

 

[eddie500]

lol ^^, downloading now

 

[Polykarbon]

By the way, just for reference now. Can we spare Doug and his comment on the exact date? I am sure they will give a month time frame, or even a few weeks within a month. Don't flame him to hell if he doesn't tell us the month, day, minute, and second to the release...

 

[Dagobert]

Nobody noticed he states the Gman has commisioned you to go to City 17?

 

[SD1]

i think that video gave away too many spoilers....


SD

 

[Dougy]

To be honest Gabe in a fit or stupidity could release a video detailing the intro of the game and the end of the game and id still watch it.



Im completely bored.

 

[Polykarbon]

You guys are so hardcore about your spoilers =p.

What is the difference in finding out LITTLE minor things now of finding them out in the game.

1. you read/see it in a video
2. you use your keyboard and mouse and hear/see it in game--that one spoiler you would see in game would happen in a 1-10 minute time frame. Then from there on out you don't care anymore. Are you that hardcore? I /bow to you if you are.

I could understand crazy major things...but I mean cmon...you gotta admit you guys take it too far sometimes.

OMG GORDON HAS THE TITLE OF DR. OMGZ

 

[Ashton]

hey can anyone of you type out the whole interview for us 56k modem users. I know it might take a while, but we all here would love to read it. :angel:

 

[Polykarbon]

Sure, I will do it right now...lemme finish coding...gimme 10 minutes then I will start typing it.

 

[UKchaos]

Yeah it would be nice if there was an audio-only version. I dont have 56k, but half a gig is a bit too much for an interview.

 

[Polykarbon]

Opening--

Doug Speaking - we just went to alpha about 5 weeks ago, in mid march, and were right now heading to beta as we approach e3 and
we are targeting completion of the game about mid summer roughly. At alpha state we were basically able to play the everything all the way through, and we're really sorta going through right now and doing fine tuning and looking at what the play testers are reacting to in postive ways and neg ways and turning up the volume on positive things and turning down volume on negative things or completly replacing the negative thigns; and really sorta getting the the pacing and art ready to ship.

We found from talking to people who played the first game that the way that half-life 1 started by bringing you in on a train and introducing you to the characters worked pretty well for a lot of people to setup the context for what was going on. So since half-life 2 takes place a few years after what happened at black mesa, and you gordon freeman as the player dont know what is happening, we thought it would be fun to start the player off the same way, on a train ride into city 17, and slowly introduce some of the player and mood and what happened since black mesa along that path.

as soon as you arive at city c17 you notice that combine soldiers are keeping everybody in check, there are scanners and cameras everywhere and keeping eye on you and everybody around you.. as you move around you run into a character named dr. breem, who is telling you about life and everything that is happening at city 17

I kept the writing in the context of human speech, so read it like you are talking to someone[someone is talking to you]

That is just the main opening. I didn't realize how much was actually said until I looked back. Although that only took me about 1 minute to type...let me know if you still want the rest.

BTW I did change/skip some words...and uhs...and words that really should not of been said...but I didn't change the context to fool you.

 

[Ashton]

cool thanks alot you are the man
:bounce:

 

[Ashton]

yes please send it all if you have the time thank you so much

 

[CptStern]

yes as much as you can type would be great, I'm at work, boss would kill me if he saw me watching video....thanks in advance

 

[Polykarbon]

sure, all I needed was a reply, I'll keep posting as fast as I can type it.[120 WPM] programmer =p

 

[Ashton]

cool you are the man

 

[Polykarbon]

Doug Continued--

In the first game we didnt do cut scenes or easter eggs...but we did do things like where you hit the elevator button right after the accident in the first scene/opening and scientists came down screaming arrrr![Doug flails arms in air and screams like scientists] and people really liked that. and there was one point where the scientist peaked his head out of the garbage can and was like "I'm not going any further"[<< talks like a scientist again and acts it out] then he slammed it shut and stayed there. That was sort of the dark humor or intricate details of that game that people told us that made black mesa fun or better. It made it feel more alive then a lot of the shooting gallery games that they had played before that.
so that is really improtant for us to inject as much as that as possible into the game. and those attention to details as people like Mark Laidlaw[Writer/Gamedesigner], some of the designers...I think are what set half-life set apart from sort of their counter parts in this genre.

Writers note--god he talks pretty fast without pausing =p

BTW I apologize for writing errors. I just wanted to "inject" the writing as fast as I could, so I am ignoring most capitalization, etc.

More to come...

 

[Polykarbon]

A good portion[of the game] takes place in city 17, however you do find yourslef moving to smaller towns and dock towns in and around city 17. There is also some injection of alien life and the supernational that is now existing on planet earth. So we dont take you off the planet to xen but we do sort of bring a little bit of xen and that type of game play to earth; to inject that type of gameplay so its not all sort of down town stuff.

Question --

What is Gordon doing in city 17 in the first place?

Doug speaking again-

Well the g man is at work again and the g man has sort of commissioned you to sort of move foward in this stand off. and as the game moves on you find out that the scientists and the combine and the aliens are sort of...theres this 3 way power struggle going on so obviously the scientists are your colleagues so at the start of the game you sort of naturally move to ally with them. Throughout the game you find out that different aliens are not necessarily aliied with all aliens and there is sort of a alot of play[plague?] going on with the 3 way relationsships that you assume you understand at the beginning to keep the game fresh and interesting as you move on through the game.

Question

On vehicle use and physics...

Doug speaking again--

First we put you in the buggy and we start letting you drive...and this is a great thing that many first person shooters are starting to finally put into gameplay after years of gamers asking for that.so we have the physics based vechicles...so then as you start to get going...we have things shoot at you and distractions...but we thought it would be really fun if we had these roller mines that are sensitive and are sensiitive yo your proximity and when you get close to them they attach to your vehicle and their attack is to rattle the vehicle aound and sort of move your vehicle off the road. So, you sort of have to get in[the buggy]...and figure out and if I have these attached to me, how can I deal with them...or how much further can I make it. A great way to deal with them is with the manipulator gun..which we specifically designed to expose the physics so you can pop those things off and shoot them in the water or dispose of them any way you like.

 

[CptStern]

cool, great job!