STACK Magazine December Issue 122

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GAMES
DECEMBER 2014 JB Hi-Fi
FEATURE
036
activities. We wanted every player to be able to
live their own adventure while progressing with
their friends. If you want to team-up with them
for a few missions then go back to exploring
the world alone, you must be able to do so, but
you shouldn’t end up behind them next time
you meet. The choice of a specific activity over
another should never appear as something
slowing down your progression.
Another major challenge was the story line,
and creating unique experiences for each player;
a problem most developers working on MMOs
are familiar with. As each player will be going
through the same story missions, it is important
to offer a large variety of gameplay elements,
allowing for a custom experience at the same
time.
With such an extensive play area, what
activities can we expect to be playing outside
of standard race events?
The game features a large amount of activities
for every player to enjoy.
Missions are the narrative glue of the game
and you’ll find seven different types of them:
from races to takedowns, from collect missions
with items scattered across an area to delivery
missions with specific constraints.
Skill challenges will put your driving
capabilities to the test, focusing on eight
different types of skills. Whether it’s precision,
speed, drifting or managing your boost, learn to
master all of them to become a complete driver.
PvP will take different forms based on
whether you’re playing alone, in a crew, or even
as a representative of your faction.
Finally, exploration – it may just be sightseeing
– will offer another range of activities, unlocking
every secret the game has to offer or visiting
landmarks.
Will the game cater for players who prefer to
compete alone as opposed to with a crew?
Every activity in the game will be playable
solo or in co-op. But that doesn’t mean you
necessarily have a greater chance of success
in co-op. Drivers willing to put in the effort to
develop their individual skills will definitely be
rewarded for it. One of the best examples of
that is actually in skill challenges. In those,
you’re comparing yourself to every other
player in the world through online leader
boards and ghosts. It’s about your capacity
to top the others.
Sure, having a few friends ramming
into traffic vehicles that could hinder
your performance in a slalom challenge can be
of some help, but overall, the difference will be
made on your individual driving skills.
Can we expect to find secrets throughout
the game? Perhaps hidden cars a la Need for
Speed: MostWanted?
Yes, there will indeed be “secrets” scattered
around the world for players to find. And it might
very well unlock new cars
Obviously the game will feature some form of
narrative? Can you tell us about this?
Without getting too much into details, there
will indeed be a story. We’ve been working
with Christian Cantamessa, writer on Red Dead
Redemption and more recently on Shadow of
Mordor.
Players will be taken on a road trip across the
country, starting in the Midwest and travelling
across every region of the map. As those of you
who played the beta already now, it involves
infiltrating a gang of illegal street racers in order
to reach its head that got your brother murdered.
Is there a limit to the customisation options
for a particular vehicle? How far can you go?
Customisation is really deep; we wanted
players to make meaningful choices
between car parts, just the
way they would do in a more
traditional fantasy-based
MMORPG. In that regard, we
split the customisation in two
main aspects: cosmetic and
performance.
The cosmetic part is only
about the looks but it’s what
will actually make your car
different than the others while you’re
on the road. From rims to stickers, fenders and
wings, you can change every element of your
vehicle. Even the interior can be customised for
a total of nine different parts on the cosmetic
side.
The performance part is where the RPG
mechanics kick in. This is where you choose to
focus on specific stats and enhance your vehicle
to perform better. From engine to chassis,
eleven different parts can be customised on the
technical side.
How do you see a game like The Crew
developing as a franchise?What direction
would you like to see the game go?
Of course launching the game this December
is only a start for us. We definitely want to keep
developing the IP on its current pillars and we
already have several ideas regarding new ways
to expand the game. We’re also very curious
to see how the community will react and what
they’ll be looking for in the future.
• The Crew
is out now
visit
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