Ken Demarest (aka Tseramed), author of Foreboding in Sylvani has been interviewed at NWVault. Interestingly, Ken was a programmer with Origin on the famed Ultima VII and also Wing Commander among other titles. Here's a snip:
You've obviously leveraged your skill in developing when you created this module. What would you say are the most innovative features?
My first love was programming, so I scripted extensively for 'Foreboding.' This resulted in a long list of innovation, including swimming, underwater adventure, a windy cliff edge that blows out torches and knocks players to the ground, torches that keep Shadows and Shadow Lords at bay. I enjoyed creating the elementals in the game: Fire elementals leave flaming footprints, burst suddenly from normal fires as you pass, and hate water elementals more than they hate you. Earth elementals burst from the ground, and water elementals swim. I revised the henchman AI so that your companion would sneak with you, hold back when needed, and avoid dying needlessly. Finally, I added cut scenes at crux moments in the story to enhance the immersion in the game. Oh, and there is ship sailing, gem cutting, magic weapon upgrades, and ballista firing. |