» Mon Sep 20, 2010 12:46 am As Gameinformer’s http://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2011/01/24/skyrim-building-better-combat.aspx Article explains,
" In game development, the visual improvements, non-player character AI tweaks, and new storytelling philosophies are all for naught if the base activity the player performs the most frequently is uninteresting or unrefined. In the case of an action role-playing game like The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, those activities are swinging swords, shooting arrows, or casting spells..."
"Aware of the combat shortcomings and exploits players used in Oblivion, the developers at Bethesda Studios went back to the drawing board to forge a new direction for Skyrim."
"With Skyrim's combat system, Bethesda wants to restore the visceral nature of hand-to-hand combat. “We wanted to make it more tactile in your hands,” game director Todd Howard says. “I think if you look at our previous stuff I sometimes equate it to fighting with chopsticks – you sit there and swing them in front of yourself.” Don't expect button-mashing marathons where the attacker with a bigger life pool wins the war of attrition. "
"Keeping in line with the philosophy of making the combat more tactile, Bethesda took inspiration for its spell casting from an unlikely source in Irrational Games' BioShock. Fighting his way through the city of Rapture, Howard was impressed with how Ken Levine's team visualized the power of the plasmids in your hands. They're adopting a similar approach for Skyrim. “Before when we had magic, it never felt to us like you were actually doing it,” Howard admits. “It was a separate button, it flew out of your fist, and you could have a shield in your hand or a two handed-weapon – you could do it with anything.” By forcing players to equip a spell with one of their hands, players must make more of a commitment to learning the arcane arts.
Here are some Screenshots of the more visual Bioshock-esque spell casting effects.
Magic Spell Casting using one hand and Sword: "Battlemage" approach. http://i51.tinypic.com/sxm61i.jpg & http://i54.tinypic.com/jjtuv6.jpg
Magic Spell Casting using both hands: http://i51.tinypic.com/72fxnd.jpg & http://i54.tinypic.com/a4psgx.png.
Magic Spell Casting using Staff/Scepter http://i.imgur.com/rrYEf.jpg and http://i.imgur.com/942wA.jpg
Magic Spell Casting using both hands: http://i51.tinypic.com/72fxnd.jpg & http://i54.tinypic.com/a4psgx.png.
Magic Spell Casting using Staff/Scepter http://i.imgur.com/rrYEf.jpg and http://i.imgur.com/942wA.jpg
Now from what we've read and seen from the trailer and screenshots I can't help but see a resemblance similar to, but not exact copy of, Dark Messiah of Might and Magic, which was released in 2006 and developed by Arkane Studios. The game is a first-person action combat with RPG elements. Not exactly like The Elder Scrolls but similar in some regards. It wasn't that great of a game but the way they approached combat visually and gameplay wise is personally some of the best first-person combat I've ever seen.
DMM&M Combat Video 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vL20ElnIsWM
Video 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEjYt6t2hu4
Video 3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3G4ujM_JaQ
Video 4 - Magic
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bv7WeZmj2G0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vL20ElnIsWM
Video 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEjYt6t2hu4
Video 3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3G4ujM_JaQ
Video 4 - Magic
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bv7WeZmj2G0
When I read ZeniMax Media acquired Arkane Studios in August of 2010 I started to think maybe there is somewhat of a connection here? So I did some research and I found out I'm not the only one who thought this. They are widely rumored to be assisting Bethesda Game Studios with development on The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.
According to a press release
August 12, 2010 (Rockville, MD) — ZeniMax Media Inc., parent company of noted game publisher Bethesda Softworks, today announced it has completed the acquisition of veteran game developer Arkane Studios.
Founded in 1999, Arkane has offices in Lyon, France and Austin, Texas and is led by co-creative directors Raphael Colantonio, Arkane's founder and CEO who will also serve as president of Arkane, and Harvey Smith, lead designer on Deus Ex. Arkane's first title, Arx Fatalis, was released in 2002 and became a fan favorite with its highly detailed environments and innovative gameplay. In addition, Arkane developed Dark Messiah of Might and Magic (PC version), and has collaborated on a number of high profile game projects, including Bioshock 2.
Arkane is currently working on an unannounced project with Bethesda Softworks.
Founded in 1999, Arkane has offices in Lyon, France and Austin, Texas and is led by co-creative directors Raphael Colantonio, Arkane's founder and CEO who will also serve as president of Arkane, and Harvey Smith, lead designer on Deus Ex. Arkane's first title, Arx Fatalis, was released in 2002 and became a fan favorite with its highly detailed environments and innovative gameplay. In addition, Arkane developed Dark Messiah of Might and Magic (PC version), and has collaborated on a number of high profile game projects, including Bioshock 2.
Arkane is currently working on an unannounced project with Bethesda Softworks.
This "unannounced project" as of August 12, 2010 could have been The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim right?
What we have seen from Skyrim so far is a very reminiscent of Dark Messiah's more visual combat style and when you consider that Arkane was acquired by ZeniMax and then for about a year and a half have had nothing new to announce only citing work on an "unfinished project" for Bethesda, what other conclusion could you draw but that they are involved with Skyrim. Plus it's not their first time they've been brought on to help with a bigger AAA project. In July 2009, 2K Marin announced that Arkane was signed up to help with Bioshock 2 development, more specifically "design, animation, and art" and as we read above Skyrim's combat, especially the magic, was partially influenced by Bioshock and their distinct visualized plasmids in the power of your hands. I would think a company that actually worked on Bioshock 2 to some degree would be very useful or beneficial to Bethesda Studios in their development of Skyrim.
I hope they integrated some of that Dark Messiah combat or at least influenced and correlated in the development of Skyrim's combat.
Combat was the best part of DM:M&M. It managed a balance of normal attacks, power attacks, and manual dodging and blocking very well. Something Bethesda wishes to have in Skyrim. That give and take back and forth style of combat that Skyrim has been said to have. (see spoiler)
Spoiler
Repetition can be a game developer's worst enemy. As players move through the world slashing at enemies thousands of times, the gravity of the action dissipates to the point where it becomes as thoughtless an exercise as flipping a light switch. With Skyrim's combat system, Bethesda wants to restore the visceral nature of hand-to-hand combat. The first step? Changing the pace of the close quarters battles.
In the early stages of development, Bethesda watched fighting videos to study how people react during melee battles. The team found that most encounters featured more jostling and staggering than was present in past Elder Scrolls titles. Using the Havok Behavior animation system, the team is more accurately mimicking the imbalance prevalent in melee combat by adding staggering affects and camera shake. Don't expect button-mashing marathons where the attacker with a bigger life pool wins the war of attrition. If you're not careful on defense you may get knocked around, losing your balance and leaving yourself exposed for a damaging blow that can turn the tide of the battle. Knowing when to block, when to strike, and when to stand your ground is key to prevailing in combat.
...
A good offense must be accompanied by a good defense. To make defending a less passive activity, Bethesda has switched to a timing based blocking system that requires players to actively raise their shields to take the brunt of the attack.
If you hold down the block button, your character will attempt to execute a bash move. If you catch a bandit off guard with the bash while he's attacking, it knocks him back and exposes him to a counter or power attack. Players can block and bash with two-handed weapons as well, but it isn't as effective as the shield. Warriors who prefer the sword-and-shield approach can increase their defensive capabilities with shield perks that give them elemental protection from spells.
Repetition can be a game developer's worst enemy. As players move through the world slashing at enemies thousands of times, the gravity of the action dissipates to the point where it becomes as thoughtless an exercise as flipping a light switch. With Skyrim's combat system, Bethesda wants to restore the visceral nature of hand-to-hand combat. The first step? Changing the pace of the close quarters battles.
In the early stages of development, Bethesda watched fighting videos to study how people react during melee battles. The team found that most encounters featured more jostling and staggering than was present in past Elder Scrolls titles. Using the Havok Behavior animation system, the team is more accurately mimicking the imbalance prevalent in melee combat by adding staggering affects and camera shake. Don't expect button-mashing marathons where the attacker with a bigger life pool wins the war of attrition. If you're not careful on defense you may get knocked around, losing your balance and leaving yourself exposed for a damaging blow that can turn the tide of the battle. Knowing when to block, when to strike, and when to stand your ground is key to prevailing in combat.
...
A good offense must be accompanied by a good defense. To make defending a less passive activity, Bethesda has switched to a timing based blocking system that requires players to actively raise their shields to take the brunt of the attack.
If you hold down the block button, your character will attempt to execute a bash move. If you catch a bandit off guard with the bash while he's attacking, it knocks him back and exposes him to a counter or power attack. Players can block and bash with two-handed weapons as well, but it isn't as effective as the shield. Warriors who prefer the sword-and-shield approach can increase their defensive capabilities with shield perks that give them elemental protection from spells.
More on DM:M&M's combat and lets switch our focus to the magic. As you can see in http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bv7WeZmj2G0 magic was used in a variety of ways. You could shock and freeze opponents, lay down traps and lead the enemy into it, or even lead them into a narrow walkway and then cast a flamethrower spell burning everything in front of you to the ground. This is the same approach the new and improved magic system is for Skyrim. (see spoiler)
Spoiler
One of the more alluring changes to the spellcasting in Skyrim is how you can employ spells in different ways. For instance, you could http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bv7WeZmj2G0&t=1m8s, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bv7WeZmj2G0&t=3m09s, place a rune on the ground to create an environmental trap that spontaneously combusts when an enemy steps on it, or equip the spell with both hands to deliver high damage fireball attacks that drain your magicka reserves quickly. The shock and frost spells give players an equal amount of flexibility.
The Havok Behavior technology gives the spells more visual flair than we've seen in past Elder Scrolls games as well. If you cast a frost spell, you'll see the effects on the enemy's skin. If you're wielding the flame spell like a flame thrower, http://i51.tinypic.com/281su9h.png and burn anything that comes into contact with it.
More so than in Oblivion, Skyrim’s new magic system also gives players legitimate benefits to using one attacking spell over the other. Fire deals the highest amount of damage, lighting drains the enemy’s magicka, and frost drains stamina and slows down enemies physically. This gives players more incentive to use particular spells against specific enemies. Why shoot fireballs at a wizard when you can simultaneously drain his heath and magicka with a shock spell? “There’s a gaminess to it that we didn’t really have before,” Howard says.
If you come face to face with another wizard, you’ll want to keep an attacking spell in one hand and improve your defense by equipping a ward spell in the other. Suddenly, magic duels become much more interesting, as you must attack at the opportune time, use the ward as a shield when your opponent is casting spells your way, and manage your magicka level by consuming potions. The ability to equip two different spells on your left and right hand raises the question – can you combine more than one spell? “We're not talking about that,” Howard says with a smile. "
The Havok Behavior technology gives the spells more visual flair than we've seen in past Elder Scrolls games as well. If you cast a frost spell, you'll see the effects on the enemy's skin. If you're wielding the flame spell like a flame thrower, http://i51.tinypic.com/281su9h.png and burn anything that comes into contact with it.
More so than in Oblivion, Skyrim’s new magic system also gives players legitimate benefits to using one attacking spell over the other. Fire deals the highest amount of damage, lighting drains the enemy’s magicka, and frost drains stamina and slows down enemies physically. This gives players more incentive to use particular spells against specific enemies. Why shoot fireballs at a wizard when you can simultaneously drain his heath and magicka with a shock spell? “There’s a gaminess to it that we didn’t really have before,” Howard says.
If you come face to face with another wizard, you’ll want to keep an attacking spell in one hand and improve your defense by equipping a ward spell in the other. Suddenly, magic duels become much more interesting, as you must attack at the opportune time, use the ward as a shield when your opponent is casting spells your way, and manage your magicka level by consuming potions. The ability to equip two different spells on your left and right hand raises the question – can you combine more than one spell? “We're not talking about that,” Howard says with a smile. "
I think a lot of that shows that Arcane Studios is probably working with or collaborating with Skyrim in the development of it's combat.
See http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vL20ElnIsWM&t=3m3s. Not convinced enough? Look at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bv7WeZmj2G0&t=2m45s and then look at these... http://i51.tinypic.com/72fxnd.jpg & http://i54.tinypic.com/a4psgx.png.
Nothing has been said regarding their involvement officially, and that could be an indicator that they are not involved at all since Bethesda has gone into more detail regarding the new combat without mentioning Arkane one single time, but the similarities and sudden change of their magic and combat system by Bethesda after the acquisition of Arcane leads me to believe there is only one conclusion.
