We recently
had the opportunity to chat with Brett Tosti from
LucasArts about their upcoming FPS
Jedi Knight® II: Jedi
Outcast™.
Tell us a little bit about yourself and what you
do for LucasArts.
BT:
My name is Brett Tosti and I’m the LucasArts
producer for Star Wars Jedi Outcast Jedi Knight
II. My responsibilities include working and
consulting with Raven on the game design,
characters, scheduling & budgets, marketing
issues, etc…
This sequel is bringing back Kyle Katarn, as the
main character, and Jan Ors. Have any other
characters been confirmed?
BT: Jedi
Outcast features a ton of established and
recognizable characters. Here’s a small list of
confirmed characters/enemies: Luke Skywalker, Mon
Mothma, Stormtroopers, Stormtrooper Officers,
Imperial Officers, Rodians, Grans, AT-STs, Weequay
and a wide variety of droids just to name a few.
In addition to the established characters Jedi
Outcast includes a large number of new and unique
characters and enemies. We will be releasing a
comprehensive list of characters and enemies early
next year.
We’ve read that when you activate the saber, the
camera automatically switches to a third-person
perspective, but that it will be possible to wield
the light saber in first-person mode. Can you
explain more about this and how it works?
BT: Sure. By
default the camera switches to third-person
perspective when the player activates the
lightsaber to allow the player to see
peripherally. This helps locate attacking enemies
behind you and to the sides. But if a player
chooses to play in a first-person mode instead
they need only to toggle off the setting in the
option menu.
Tell us some more about the
Jedi Mind Trick feature.
BT:
The Jedi
Mind Trick can be used for various situations. You
can use it to distract an enemy, convince an enemy
that you are not a threat and even have them help
you solve puzzles.
All force powers have three experience levels. At
the first level the mind trick simply confuses a
single enemy for duration of time. The second
level has a wide cone of influence and can confuse
multiple enemies. The third level…well this isn’t
the level you want to know about…….you should go
on the to next question…....Move along. Move
along.
Will
Jedi Knight II take advantage of the new Geforce 3
cards as well as the new Radeon II 8500?
BT: We won’t have any
content or special features specific to these
cards but the engine does support the higher
resolution modes allowed by these cards.
A lot of
action shooters today are being released as single
player only. Will Jedi Knight II have multi-player
capability?
BT:
Jedi
Outcast will definitely support the multi-player
experience. The game will contain standard
multi-player game formats like Deathmatch and CTF.
Jedi Outcast will also include some new game
modes. It includes the wide range of options that
were common in Jedi Knight such as using Force
Power and Saber-Only battles.
Have you been surprised at the feedback and
responses you’ve received on Jedi Knight II from
QuakeCon and E3?
BT:
We’ve
been very pleased with the fans’ excitement and
enthusiasm for Jedi Outcast. Many fans of Jedi
Knight, as well as ourselves, have been waiting a
long time for the next Jedi Knight game. All the
excitement about the product shows what high
expectations and passion the community has for
Jedi Knight and the team has been working hard to
make sure that Jedi Outcast will be an exceptional
continuation of the Jedi Knight story.
Where does Jedi Knight II
stand in the development process? Can you give us
some idea when it will be available?
BT:
Jedi
Outcast has just reached its Alpha stage. We are
still on track to release in Spring 2002.
For those gamers who are not Star Wars fans, what
reasons would you give them to spark their
interest in Jedi Knight II?
BT:
Beyond
the deep compelling story and high-paced action,
Jedi Outcast has some very unique game features
not seem in other FPS’s. Your ability with the
lightsaber to not only attack but to defend
yourself adds a different gameplay element. And of
course the wide range of force powers intermixed
with the conventional weapon arsenal not only
makes for an interesting single-player game but
adds a whole new level of depth to the
multi-player experience.
Thank
you very much for your time. We look forward to
playing this game soon.
BT: Thank you. And may the
force be with you.
You can
checkout the official Star
Wars® Jedi Knight® II: Jedi Outcast™
website
here.
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