Dungeon Siege 2 Interview
Moriendor, 2004-10-07

Dungeon Siege II, the sequel to Microsoft Games' and Gas Powered Games' (GPG) debut title (you can read our Dungeon Siege review here, and the "debut" part is only true for GPG, of course), is currently scheduled for a spring 2005 release. We were recently given the opportunity to chat with GPG's Kevin Lambert to find out more about this promising action RPG that strives to be more attractive to RPG lovers than the original game...

RPGDot: First of all, thanks a lot for the opportunity :) . Could you please introduce yourself shortly and give us an idea about your involvement with Dungeon Siege II?

Kevin Lambert: I'm Kevin Lambert, Lead Designer on Dungeon Siege II. Before I came to GPG, I was at Monolith working as lead designer and/or lead programmer on a few projects.

RPGDot: It appears like fairly little is known about the setting/story of Dungeon Siege II so far. Can you tell us a little bit about where we start off? Will there maybe even be an import option for characters from the original Dungeon Siege or is Dungeon Siege II just too different from its predecessor?

Kevin Lambert: The back story for Dungeon Siege II takes players back to some significant events that happened about a thousand years before the first Dungeon Siege. In DS2, Your main hero starts off as a powerful mercenary with many more options for character progression than DS1 had. Beyond that, the engine and game code have gone through too many changes to support importing characters.

RPGDot: Dungeon Siege II is supposed to have an all-new character development system. How is it different from the original game? Will leveling still be action-based?

Kevin Lambert: Experience-by-doing (as opposed to choosing a class at the outset of the game) is still a fundamental element in Dungeon Siege II. The big improvement in DS2 is that this experience now gives players skill points that they can spend on any of the four classes skill trees. Then there are the Powers. Powers have level and skill requirements and allow characters to do amazing things in and out of battle.

RPGDot: Will there be an option this time to create a party right at the beginning or will you still have to pick up your followers along your travels?

Kevin Lambert: One of the key improvements the team wanted to bring to DS2 was a deeper story with more compelling characters. Along this vein, players will still be able to create their main hero at the beginning of the game, and they will meet all of the potential party members during the journey. Some characters will offer to join your party immediately while others won't offer to join until certain events transpire in the world.

RPGDot: Combat in the original Dungeon Siege was very action-oriented. Are there any plans to add more depth or tactical options (beyond the known formations and AI settings)?

Kevin Lambert: Absolutely. Two of the biggest improvements that add tactical options to battles are the addition of Powers and a new "aggro" system where some monsters will get angry and are more likely to attack characters that do certain things such as healing, using powers, or stealing loot from the ground.

RPGDot: We have heard from our true role-playing fans that they were a little disappointed with the depth of the story in the original Dungeon Siege. Will the player be more involved in Dungeon Siege II? Do you have some good news for the RPGers out there?

Kevin Lambert: It was great to hear that fans of the original Dungeon Siege were excited about a deeper narrative because this was an area we also wanted to improve. The quests in DS2 are deeply intertwined with the story, the party members all have distinct stories and personalities, and occasionally they speak to each other. We've also added roughly four times the amount of dialogue that DS1 had and there are many more interactive and non-interactive cut-scenes to tell the story. We have definitely taken a step towards the more classic definition of RPG, but have also struck a balance to keep the action element as well.

RPGDot: Are there plans to make the quests more interesting? Will players have to revisit NPCs this time? How about multiple choice dialogues or a more involving dialogue system in general?

Kevin Lambert: In addition to the quests being tied more closely with the story, we definitely wanted to give the player more to do than simply "go out and kill stuff". The team had some great quest ideas that, when combined with our new multiple choice dialogue system, should make for some very exciting quests.

RPGDot: The original Dungeon Siege was fairly linear. The path that led from beginning to end was pretty narrow and didn't leave much room for exploration. Will this change in Dungeon Siege II? Will players be able to roam the world more freely?

Kevin Lambert: The towns in Dungeon Siege II are much larger than in Dungeon Siege I and they often act as a hub that the player will return to multiple times over the course of the game as different events unfold. There are also plenty of side-quests that once exposed, players are free to explore at any time.

RPGDot: How large is the world in Dungeon Siege II compared to the original game? How many maps or distinct regions will the players be able to visit?

Kevin Lambert: The original Dungeon Siege took place solely in the Kingdom of Ehb on the continent of Aranna. With the addition of teleportation in DS2, players will travel all over Aranna to gorgeous indoor and outdoor regions such as a jungle Dryad town, mysterious corrupted forests, vast deserts, ominous catacombs, and a castle stronghold in the snow.

RPGDot: Are there plans to make the world feel more "alive" in Dungeon Siege II? Will you be using scripted events? Will NPCs have schedules and go to work, bed etc.?

Kevin Lambert: One of the big improvements we made to the Dungeon Siege engine was the addition of the Flick scripting system. Using Flick, we're able to create interactive and non-interactive sequences easier than ever before and our level designers have developed some really impressive scripted sequences!

RPGDot: How about physical player interaction with the world? Will players be able to fiddle around with more objects and will some quests involve such interaction?

Kevin Lambert: After playing the original Dungeon Siege for weeks and weeks on end, I remember thinking the combat was awesome, the world was gorgeous, and it sure would be cool to have a little something to do other than killing monsters. Not a lot mind you, as that would risk defocusing the overall experience, but just a pinch of occasional world interactivity sprinkled in for some variety. Fast forward to DS2, and that's exactly what we've added.

RPGDot: Do you know yet how many hours it will take an average player to finish the game?

Kevin Lambert: For single player, we're shooting for a 20 hour experience for experienced players who barrel through the world, never veering off the main path, and ignoring all the dialogue and optional quests along the way. For most players, however, DS2 should hit much closer to 30-40 hours if not much more. And that's not including time spent going back looking for items, replaying quests, leveling characters, and of course multiplayer.

RPGDot: Are we going to see a return of the infamous packmule? Details please... :)

Kevin Lambert: You bet! In my opinion, the Packmule was one of the greatest ideas in the first Dungeon Siege. It was just one of those quirky characters that seemed to attach really well to the game. In fact, just the other day I got an e-mail from a friend who referenced an old Penny Arcade comic referencing Dungeon Siege with a donkey in it and said, "See? It's all about the Packmule!" Anyhow, we'd be nuts not to bring the Packmule back. And not only is he back, but this time he'll be kicking more butt too!

RPGDot: Can you share some info about the Dungeon Siege II engine? How much has it changed compared to the first part?

Kevin Lambert: It's really hard to list out all the changes and improvements the engineering team have made, but a few include the addition of Shader 2.0 support, a new effects system, the Flick scripting system, support for multiple party members in multiplayer, and plenty of enhancements to the new DS2 gameplay features (skills, powers, etc).

RPGDot: Are you planning on releasing a new Siege Editor with Dungeon Siege II? If so, will mods made with the original Siege Editor be compatible with Dungeon Siege II or vice versa?

Kevin Lambert: We're definitely interested in supporting the mod community. There's talk of releasing Siege Editor II, but the exact details are still in discussion. Keep your eye on the GPG website for more information.

RPGDot: What are the plans regarding multiplayer and Dungeon Siege II so far? Will players be able to play through the game in co-op mode for example and will the party/quest status be saved at all times?

Kevin Lambert: The major goal of DS2's multiplayer mode is to allow players to bring multiple party members into the game and be able to play through the single player experience together or against other players, each with their own party. The focus is definitely on co-op, but Dungeon Siege II multiplayer will also feature a PvP option as well.

RPGDot: Are there any plans for Dungeon Siege II expansion packs yet? Or plans for free add-ons that will be made available for the modding community after release?

Kevin Lambert: Regarding DS2 expansions and the release of Siege Editor II, we're still discussing the details and nothing is final yet. We will definitely make an announcement as soon as we have some final decisions in this area.

RPGDot: Thanks a lot for sharing all this information with us :) . Is there anything else you would like to tell our readers in regards to Dungeon Siege II and especially why RPG fans should keep an eye on it?

Kevin Lambert: Check our website for updates on the latest and greatest information... and definitely be sure to sign up for the newsletter!