Ultima X: Odyssey Combat Interview, Part 1

Among the elements that helped the Ultima series to attain its position of honor in the history of electronic gaming, the foremost may be its incorporation of a philosophy or system of ethics based on eight characteristics collectively known as the Virtues. These are derived from three principles. Truth is a quality that is inherent in all things, Love the kindness and beauty that lie within our hearts, and Courage the inner spirit and determination that drive us to act for the greater good. From Truth comes Honesty, Love leads to Compassion and Courage to Valor. Truth and Love combined create Justice, Love and Courage produce Sacrifice, and Truth and Love engender Justice. All three together result in Spirituality. Pride, which is caused by the absence of the principles, is not a virtue, but it's opposite is Humility, which is.

Officially announced in late August of last year, Origin's Ultima X: Odyssey holds the promise of a return to this core aspect of the hallowed single-player RPG series, but within a persistent state environment wherein gamers will have the chance to create their own epic legacies by embodying the Virtues and ascending to the status of Avatars. As for some other notable features, there will be six playable races ranging from Humans to Elves, Gargoyles, Orcs, Pixies and hamster-like Phoda. The game's adventure system will encompass both quests and missions, with some taking place inside private areas. Combat is reportedly fast-paced and strategic, with an intriguing twist being "intelligent" weapons that can level up and improve. Our mammoth four-part interview last year only whetted our appetite to know more, with this topic at the top of our list.

Rick Hall: Trying to put it as succinctly as possible, the primary high-level goal for the Odyssey combat system was interactivity. We've noted before that we perceived a distinct lack of required player participation in existing massively multiplayer games. We began referring to this situation as "sandwich combat", and judging by the number of players and even developers who've picked up the term and started using it themselves, it seems that many agree with us.

Of course, part of the reason for a simplified combat system in first generation of titles was a result of the difficulties of latency. Typical combat designs in standalone games depended a lot on the player's reflexes and hand-eye coordination. But ping times on the Internet are notoriously unpredictable, so console game and standalone game thinking simply wasn't going to work, at least not in a massively multiplayer environment.

However, as developers have learned more about the medium they're working with, we're starting to learn how to deal with this kind of difficulty. With Ultima X: Odyssey, we very much wanted combat to be a central part of the game. The main reason for this is because it's an area where we felt we could make substantial improvements over the existing status quo. Our intent in this regard is to provide the next evolutionary step in online world combat and adventure.

Jonric: Still at the high concept and design level, how much emphasis will your game place on player vs. environment compared to player vs. player?

Rick Hall: Odyssey focuses more on PvE than PvP. When we set out to design the game, we felt that it was possible to actually achieve a single-player feel in a massively multiplayer environment, and the key to that was in developing a very comprehensive PvE experience. If you think about it, the notion of making a player feel "heroic" is more easily achieved in a solo game, where the player is, in a very real sense, the "center of the action and the universe." However, with that said, don't get the impression that PvP won't be supported, or that the game will not be massively multiplayer. It will include both of those elements. At its heart, it is definitely a massively multiplayer experience. We've simply tried to provide an environment where it "feels" as heroic as the experience you'd get in a solo-player game.

Jonric: What do you see as the main challenges that must be addressed in order for both forms of combat to work well within a single game?

Rick Hall: The main challenge in trying to make a game that supports both PvE and PvP is the fundamental difference in balance. With a PvE design, you have a lot more control over the both the power and skill of the opponents. For instance, a level 20 character is likely to target only those creatures near his own level, and once he gets used to the AI, the creatures become predictable enough for the player to develop tactics and strategies that "always" work. In order for PvE to be fun, it requires a level of consistency in both of these areas.

Conversely, PvP is on the other end of the spectrum. It's difficult to guarantee the power (i.e. level) of the opponent you're going to run into, and basically impossible to guarantee his level of skill. Every player you run into is going to have his own technique, his own level of aggressiveness, and his own tricks up his sleeve. PvP fights are often lopsided in that the numbers of opponents on opposing sides are often quite different. How often do you find your group of four friends facing eight, 10, 12 or more enemies? That's a very different scenario than you'll find in PvE.