- Reaction score
- 1,697
'We're gonna develop our own language that fits within Star Wars, but also feels unique to this game'
I had the chance to sit down with Bit Reactor art director, Daanish Syed, and technical director, Ryan McFall, to talk about their priorities in designing a strategy game. The two weren't authorized to directly discuss the studio's upcoming Star Wars project, but they did weigh in on how they see the genre, and what its major hurdles are.
"I think there's definitely a perception there—I think folks have a limited view of what a strategy game could be," said McFall, who previously worked on Firaxis' XCOM reboot series. "That is one of the things we want to try to do: expand people's perception of what the experience actually is of playing a strategy game."
Syed expanded on this, homing in on how difficult it is to break into the genre as a new player: "Like any genre, there is a spectrum of complexity. Some genres might fall toward one side or the other, but there's still lots of variation in-between.
"If you look at the racing genre, you have arcade racers, you have simulation racers, and people aren't scared by that, because they've seen the spectrum. I feel like strategy games potentially have not been exposed in the same way where players haven't seen what strategy games can be."
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I had the chance to sit down with Bit Reactor art director, Daanish Syed, and technical director, Ryan McFall, to talk about their priorities in designing a strategy game. The two weren't authorized to directly discuss the studio's upcoming Star Wars project, but they did weigh in on how they see the genre, and what its major hurdles are.
"I think there's definitely a perception there—I think folks have a limited view of what a strategy game could be," said McFall, who previously worked on Firaxis' XCOM reboot series. "That is one of the things we want to try to do: expand people's perception of what the experience actually is of playing a strategy game."
Syed expanded on this, homing in on how difficult it is to break into the genre as a new player: "Like any genre, there is a spectrum of complexity. Some genres might fall toward one side or the other, but there's still lots of variation in-between.
"If you look at the racing genre, you have arcade racers, you have simulation racers, and people aren't scared by that, because they've seen the spectrum. I feel like strategy games potentially have not been exposed in the same way where players haven't seen what strategy games can be."
Devs on the upcoming Star Wars strategy game want to make a good first impression: 'We're gonna develop our own language that fits within Star Wars, but also feels unique to this game'
You need a good UI that eases in new players, and also to overcome the genre's reputation for complexity.
