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Interview with Strategic Simulations Inc.
SSI is currently developing Panzer General 3 Assault,
the sequel to the highly acclaim Panzer General 2.
Black: Steve
Lieb of SGO Red:
SSI
Reading the CDMag preview,
the Panzer General 3 Assault approach to combat seems to be broader - has the
focus/scale changed to a more strategic level?
No, sir. The game will still function
on an operational level. We are dealing with units of armies, not whole armies.
Is the focus still on units rather than individuals?
Absolutely. The influence of the
leader will affect a unit’s performance, but the meat of the game still involves
proper manipulation of the units themselves.
Clearly, there is an effort to address command and control
as a critical element in the management of battles at the sub-strategic level. How complex
will the command tree be? Will there be corps and division commanders in addition to unit
commanders - will this help or limit the player's ultimate flexibility?
There will be campaigns where you
work under the orders of a famous general: Patton, for instance. However, once the
campaign is chosen, the command tree is based on one branch, unit leaders. You follow the
general’s orders by your command of the unit leaders.
Since leaders will be so critical (and the screenshots show
one KIA) I'm presuming they can be killed - what are the consequences when this happens?
The well being of a leader is
ultimately dependent on that of his unit in battle. A leader may be shown as KIA or MIA,
but there is a chance that they will turn up after the scenario is completed, providing
the unit under his command survives. On the other hand, if a unit gets destroyed, the
leader dies with it.
Have you seen Imagic's North vs South?
No, sir. No one has had a chance to
inspect this one.
Will the command point implementation be anything similar
to this? Better?
Command point implementation is based
on leader promotion and their subsequent action points. The player will be able to choose
who gets promoted and to what level.
One of the best features of the PG series was the
management of unit experience - will this also apply to leaders (i.e. will they improve
over time?)
Currently, promotion is not
automatic. As the "divisional" commander, you promote leaders and assign special
abilities as you see fit. This system is being checked for balance now.
PG has always been a ugo-mego turn based game. Any
consideration to make PG3A a mixed-turn based game using unit (or in this case,
leader) initiative like 101st Airborne?
This game will use a true turn-based
system, not phased. The difference from the previous versions of PG is that there will be
much more flexibility in how you maneuver your units during your turn.
The pair of screenshots we've seen look nice, but don't
tell us much about the actual play of the game - will the 3d engine be a true 3d, allowing
free rotation, panning, etc?
That is affirmative, sir! This game
will utilize true 3D with a mobile camera view. Panzer General III Assault is the
real thing.
Internet multiplayer has grown significantly in the last
year. Will PG3A implement real-time internet play? Will it be only competitive,
or will coop/multiplayer per side be possible?
The multiplayer game will still be
turn-based. There will be different types of MP games, but the specifics are still in
development.
Will there be an editor available for players? Units and/or
maps?
Bearing in mind the major changes in
the graphics and gameplay, this game is a huge leap beyond its predecessors. We want to
make sure that the core elements are implemented correctly. Because of this R+D needs to
focus on executing these innovations properly. They did not want to risk the success of
these revisions by diverting limited resources towards an editor.
PG3A - Q3A. Coincidence?
**Wry Chuckle** Pure coincidence, I
assure you.
Will there be a railgun in PG3A? :)
No, but who needs railguns when
PGIIIA’s got Ghurkas! That’s right, Ghurkas. A couple of other new features that
might interest you are:
Equipment Limits—Material resources will be at a
premium regardless of the player’s prestige.
Force Customization—Flexibility in leader promotion
let’s you refine your armies exactly how you want them.
Simplified Rating System—All of the ratings used in PG
and PGII will be calculated in the background, but the player can quickly assess a
unit’s strength with one simple number.
Love to see it when it comes out.
Our thanks to the SSI team for taking time
to answer our questions!
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