[Puke]

from avault:

Thursday, September 12, 2002 - 6:12 am CT
MOO3 Development Update
Reported by: David Laprad

If game development were an exact science, ambitious games would never be delayed. And if there were never any delays, Master of Orion 3 might have been out eons ago. But when it comes to dealing with an ever-changing master design and the volatile waters of fan expectations, science is nowhere to be seen. With that in mind, the Adrenaline Vault on Tuesday spent a few moments on the phone with Infogrames' senior producer Constantine Hantzopoulos to find out where Master of Orion 3 is on the production line and when it would reach the end.

When asked how much of MOO3 was done, Hantzopoulos said the game is approaching the alpha stage of development, which he defines as "feature complete" and when a project is "playable from start to finish." Although it's surprising that MOO3 hasn't reached alpha after 27 months of work, the senior producer says Infogrames and Quicksilver are still aiming for a Quarter 4 2002 release for the PC Version. "Fans will be playing MOO3 during the holidays," he said.

This will give the publisher and creator about two months to balance and play test the product before it hits stores. Look up the word "crunch" in Webster's dictionary, and you might see a picture of the MOO3 team, which Hantzopoulos said is busy locking up the game's final features. The Last items to be completed: The laws for the Orion Senate. These will allow players to bend or break MOO3's rules for a certain amount of time. After that comes extensive and highly scrutinous play balancing.

All of which, Hantzopoulos said, will result in a MOO game with deeper politics, richer diplomacy and better espionage than the 4X genre has ever seen. He also promises robust artificial intelligence: "While playing the game this weekend, I launched a ground assault with a huge armada and tons of troop transports. The AI misled me, outflanked me and destroyed my troop transports, which left me with nothing but my long- and short-range attackers. The computer went after my primary tactical element, which was cool."

Players hoping to get their hands on MOO3 before it hits stores may be disappointed to read that Infogrames is not planning for a public beta test or a demo. Instead, the publisher is focusing on getting the game out the door. "It'll be out soon. We won't make quarter 3 because we're holding it back for a little more polish. We're committed to making MOO3 bug free and well balanced," said Hantzopoulos, who leaves soon for a three-week trip to Quicksilver to "bring the game home." Infogrames is planning a private beta test utilizing about 25 people.

In Master of Orion 3, the sequel to one of the most acclaimed strategy games of all time, players become the controlling power behind an entire galactic civilization.