Since the release of the original Quake, mods have become an important part of PC gaming. Almost any big release on the PC will support modding, and from that you'll find some amazing games that take on a life of their own, sometimes superseding the game it was created on in popularity. I got a chance to talk with the team behind Fortress Forever, the fan-made Team Fortress Classic follow-up on Valve's Source engine that also adds a few new tricks for new and old fans alike.
When you were coming up with Fortress Forever, was it always intended to be a faithful TFC port to Source?
Yes and no. We definitely wanted to stick to the fast-paced gameplay we loved about TFC, but we didn't want to do a straight port. TFC was an outstanding game, of course, but it suffered from a somewhat steep learning curve, and certain player classes tended to be somewhat less useful than others. The goal of Fortress Forever, in part, was to make the more "advanced" TFC skills more accessible -- such as concussion grenade jumping, bunnyhopping, etc. We've accomplished this, at least in part, through FF's hint system, visual grenade timers, and more lenient jump timing. Also, we added a number of new abilities to TFC's somewhat less "favored" classes: radio tags for the Sniper, cloaking and sabotaging for the Spy, and a much easier-to-use flamethrower for the Pyro, just to name a few.
While I admit, as a former and avid TFC player, I largely ignored FF for quite a bit, but after trying 2.0 I just had to say I'm incredibly impressed. The movement is almost down pat, and everything seems to be going smoothly. What do you have planned for the next releases?
It's always tough to say what is going to be in each patch (or exactly when a patch will be released), but currently we're working on a number of balance tweaks to some of the classes, such as the Pyro, Sniper, and HWGuy. In addition, we've been tweaking the Scout's jump pad to prevent griefing (blocking) issues.
On the mapping side, 2fort is really shaping up -- it should be in the next patch (but no promises!).
On the graphics side, we finally fixed a bug that was preventing players' swim animations from being played, so no more "running" through deep water as well as re-enabled player and object shadows. Also, we hope to adopt a better (and more consistent) graphical style, in particular for our character models. People typically see a game first through screenshots, and if your game doesn't really stand out in some way, it will often be dismissed before the potential player even tries it.
In the longer term, we're still working on a robust training mode to help ease new players into the TF "style" of play. We've never been happy that certain techniques (like conc jumping and bunnyhopping) have been effectively "hidden" from new players. The first thought that runs through a new player's mind, on seeing a conc jump, shouldn't be "Is that player cheating?" Rather, it should be "Wow, that's cool!" This was a big problem in TFC, and we hope a good training mode will help alleviate it. In addition to training, we're working on an "objective icon" feature that mappers can use to "tag" a map objective. Hopefully the old "Where's the cap point?!?" question can finally be put to rest.
Anyway, we just recently brought on a bunch of new dev members. There's going to be a requisite period of acclimatization (as everyone gets up to speed), but after that, things should really get rolling!
I'm sure you've been asked this a lot on your forums or in other interviews, but how did you feel when TF2's beta was announced?
The feelings were a bit mixed, but mostly positive. When we started Fortress Forever years ago, it looked like Valve would never actually release TF2 -- or if Valve did, TF2 would be wildly different than TFC (it looked like TF2 was going to be what Battlefield 2 eventually was). Still, we knew TF2 being released was a significant possibility, and we decided early on that we'd keep working on FF if and when that happened. When the "modern" TF2 was finally announced, we (like everybody), were quite surprised at the route Valve took. But, being huge TF fans, the majority of us were quite excited.
It was a bit funny though. It turned out that the date Valve picked to release the TF2 beta was exactly the same date we had been planning to release FF. We shifted our release date up a few days, but it was still a rather bizarre coincidence, considering how long each game was in development.
It seems to me that TF2 and FF are so different that they can co-exist just fine, and in fact maybe share each other's player-base. Do you think this is the case?
Sure. TF2 may have all the "same" classes as FF (barring the Hunted), but they all play wildly differently. Personally, I enjoy playing both FF and TF2. I think the main problem comes from some gamers' perceptions. I saw a similar thing happen quite often in "World of Warcraft versus Guild Wars" forum topics. Gamers often felt the need to unfairly bash the game they weren't playing -- perhaps to justify to themselves that their own choice was correct. But, if those gamers could objectively sit down and play both, I bet they could find quite a lot to enjoy.
Are there any plans to include skill maps in the official releases?
Not at the moment, but the possibility still remains. The mappers in our community have released several really excellent skill maps. You can find them in our forums, or by joining the right servers.
What do you think about the FF scene right now? What needs to change?
It's a bit tough to be a new player in the current FF scene because a lot of people currently playing FF have been playing TFC (or even TF before it) for years. Those players are already well-versed in the advanced techniques, and those players know the standard maps inside and out.
To help with this, we need to introduce new, fun, and intuitive gametypes. Some of the more popular game types like the standard "Capture the Flag" are not a perfect fit with public server play. This is because, quite often, players tend to forget the objectives (the flags) and just deathmatch. Which is fun in its own right, but a lot of players want to complete team-based objectives in a team-based game. Contrast this with Attack-Defend styles of gameplay, where the new player typically helps his team (at least to some extent) just by being there and shooting at the enemy. That's not to say that one style of play is superior to another, but a new player's instinctive reaction to an enemy (kill him!) should benefit the team -- which often is not the case in standard CTF.
Is there anything else you'd like to say about FF to our readers?
For those that have never played before, you're missing out. Games that require this much focus and skill are few and far between these days, but if you're wanting a game that can actually challenge you, this is the place to be, and it's easy to find your niche with all the different game types available.
If you've played before, you have a good idea what to expect. We're working on a laundry list of improvements, both in the game itself, and in general playability. If you weren't completely satisfied with the first releases, now's a good time to get back in the action.
I'd like to thank the Fortress Forever team for taking the time to answer my questions.
Comments
Zip on Sunday 20th July 2008
Get the game come play remember you need source sdk base. Have a lot of fun fragging/capin/concin/ and a whole lot of other s**t.
Surge on Monday 16th June 2008
I overheard people talking about FF in a TF2 server the other day and decided to look it up and d/l it. I had never played TFC or anything like that before and am relatively new to FPS online, but man I have to say...It is so much funner then TF2...I can actually play non stop and not have to worry about dying within one or two shots or waiting for 15 seconds to respawn. This game has my thumbs up!
exoskeletaL on Monday 9th June 2008
Fortress Forever and ever and ever!
Peon on Monday 9th June 2008
One thing not mentioned about FF, is how deep the experience is. Every class has so many abilities and options, that it's hard to imagine ever mastering any of them. With all the variances in gameplay, and fast paced objective driven play style, this is one game that's hard to get bored with. Just when you think that you done everything, you find a new way to attack a map that you never thought of. Let's also not forget that the ingame tactics and strategies change rapidly during the course of a match, leaving you to adapt quickly or suffer a rash of points scored against you. This is the closest thing to a sport you're going to find in a video game.
Scuzzy on Monday 9th June 2008
The game is an excellent, well crafted, fast paced first person shooter. Our TFC clan eagerly awaited the FF released and could not be happier with the game. Download it today: http://www.fortress-forever.com/wiki/Downloads Then join us on The Old Timers server: 69.12.25.32:27016 The Old Timers Clan www.oldtimersclan.com
Add your own +
More comments (6 total)