Interview: Gauntlet Legends for PlayStation

We recently interviewed Atari Games producer Howard Lehr about the upcoming PlayStation version of Gauntlet Legends, the coin-op update of the classic 80's arcade series. Here's what he had to say:

GameSpot News: The first thing people say when they hear "Gauntlet for the PlayStation" is, what about four player? How do you address a two-player Gauntlet game?

Howard Lehr:Gauntlet LegendsAtari Games675 Sycamore....

Seriously though, the decision to go with two players was technical. The details are tedious and wouldn't make fun reading for anyone except a hard-edged PlayStation programmer. When all the bits and bytes are pushed, we are taking advantage of what the PlayStation does well to provide the most awesome PlayStation game out there. The two-player configuration is one of hundreds of technical decisions we made to get that result.

GSN: In what way was the development of the PlayStation version different from the development of the N64 version?

HL: The code is completely different, from the most basic level. Neither product uses the coin-op code, because that code was so well optimized for the arcade hardware. Both console engines are platform specific at their very core. Therefore, the art is also made from the ground up in a different fashion.

That being said, the game design was different. Though both versions share a basic storyline and many gameplay elements, the difference in storage media alone drove game design decisions to diverge. Movies and the way the two platforms treat them, is a good example, but it's only one of many. Check the games out to see what I'm talking about. (Read this as a shameless plug to get people to buy the games.)

At the end of the day, the short answer to the question is, "Totally."

GSN: How are the two versions different for the gamer?

HL: The graphics and storytelling movies are different for the reasons mentioned above in answer number 2. Sound will be different as well, again based on the different storage and playback hardware. Length of play will be different, but it's not easy at this point to say how. The PlayStation will offer more traversable terrain, but how that translates into time in play is very much up to the individual player.

In the end, however, the experience will be very much the same, from a heart-thumping, yelling-at-your-buddy-to-go-where-you-tell-him-to, puzzling-through-the-Legends, and fighting-hordes-of-vicious-enemies standpoint.

GSN: How far along is the game's development, and how do you plan to spend the remainder of the cycle?

HL: The development is a little less than half-done. We plan to spend the remainder of the cycle polishing the game into a super-clean A+ title. Anything slightly annoying or less than completely kick-ass will be fixed or replaced.

GSN: What's been the most difficult part of building Gauntlet for the PlayStation?

HL: Going from a game as good as the arcade version is a challenge. In the first place, the arcade team made a game that used every last resource of a very powerful arcade machine. This made the technical challenge considerable. In the second place, adding consumer oriented elements to the game without losing the core fun aspects of the action-oriented arcade game is a delicate balance. In the third place, the competition on the PlayStation is more than a little stiff. I can't tell you which of these three aspects has been the most difficult. It's the combination of all of them that makes our job difficult.

GSN: Did you take liberties with the sound on the PlayStation? Obviously, the CD can handle more than the cart.

HL: Yes. We have taken advantage of the best audio tools the PlayStation has to offer, and the results are impressive.

GSN: You mentioned the memory card play model. Could you explain that in depth here?

HL: I like to call it the "Gameichter" system, though I haven't got a trademark on it yet. My critics, who are numerous, say I shouldn't bother. :-) It goes like this:

1. Player 1 (we can call her Jane) plays at home, builds a buff Valkyrie, and saves it on a memory card.2. Player 2 (we can call him John) builds a burly Warrior and saves it on his own card.3. Jane goes over to John's house, and they both plug their characters into John's PlayStation. The game starts with all of John's saved items and accomplishments (opened world doors, found rune stones, items of legend, pieces of stained-glass window, special power-ups in inventory, and so on). The great part is that all of Jane's similar accomplishments are also there while she and John play together.

But wait, there's more....

4. Now, John and Jane go back to their respective houses to continue playing alone. Now Jane has all the accomplishments she brought to the game with John, plus any achievements they secured as a team, but none of the accomplishments John brought to the game that she didn't have. This way, players can enjoy playing together without completely wrecking the game for each other. Jane can't just play with an experienced player and have 80 percent of the game "done" for her, and neither can John. This encourages players to mix and match their buff characters, without the fear of "polluting" them with someone else's accomplishments.

GSN: What would you say about Gauntlet PS's replay value?

HL: There is a bountiful boatload of it. The game is much longer than the arcade game, and there are tons of new features to keep people interested. Legends, new rune stone hiding places, new creatures, new puzzles to keep you scratching your head, the list goes on and on. Very few people will have the spare time needed to replay Gauntlet Legends to find all the features.

GSN: What have you done with graphics and lighting in Gauntlet that's notable?

HL: The short answer is: "Added heaps of new graphics, and we made all graphics from the ground up for maximum PlayStation quality." The long answer reads like a graphics theory text, but all the theory is applied. I will add that the lighting scheme is very robust. It supports more lights per level than are needed and colored lights that shine on everything around. The lighting adds a smoothness and realism to Gauntlet Legends that makes the great art downright beautiful.

GSN: How does the single player game hold up to the co-op mode?

HL: Very well. In my opinion, single player is never as cool as cooperative play in any game, but Gauntlet Legends for the home will be so full of adventure elements, single players will have a deep interesting world to unravel. The key to this, however, is that the single player will still be playing a fast action game, not a plodding adventure-only game. He can pay only as much attention to the details as he feels like.

GSN: Tell us about the levels. What does each level, respectively, offer the gamer?

HL: I'm a little uncomfortable answering this question, as any level that doesn't come up to snuff at the end of the day will be removed from the game. We will not put inferior or "just good" content into this game, but I'll give you my take on the proposed worlds. I say worlds, because with more than 30 levels split into eight different world themes, you can't give me enough space in your magazine to encompass the myriad descriptions.

Mountain World, Desert World, Castle World, and Forest World: All these worlds offer the same kind of feel arcade players enjoyed, with graphical and gameplay improvements, including new legends, new rune hiding places, and new puzzle elements to keep the mind as occupied as the reflexes.

Ice Dominion: A completely different look and feel than anything seen before in "Gauntlet Legends." This world is huge by comparison to the other giant "Gauntlet Legends" worlds, and it has some very exciting never-before-seen gameplay elements. There are also some very unique and awesome new creatures in this world.

Sky Town: The storyline of this world is particularly compelling. Skorne's evil minions have gassed a once-peaceful town and created an army of zombies.

Again, a new level and style of graphics are there to draw the player's eye, and the other new elements will keep them on their toes. My favorite detail is probably the new ankle-biters, but that's a personal pet issue, couched in a huge mass of other coolness.

Battlefield: A medieval siege is a raucous and violent affair. Perfect for a hero or heroes to wade into and demolish. Undead critters from the underworld swarm and bring along with them some very interesting equipment. More graphical freshness, more new enemies, and more unique brain bending. This is the final stretch, and is even more challenging than the parts of the game seen before.

GSN: What is your favorite level and who is your favorite character and why?

HL: It's too hard to pick my favorite level, because they all have so much diabolical fun, and there are so many of them. However, I can tell you my favorite character is the archer. Her looks are an obvious appeal, but her speed and fast-release projectiles are the main draw. In the end, I'm mostly greedy for treasure.

GSN: Tell us about the game engine. The PlayStation version handles a lot of characters and special effects onscreen at the same time, so how will you address the frame-rate issue?

HL: I'm not going to bore you with a geeky discussion of cache usage, DSP optimization, down-coding to assembly code, and all that other nitty-gritty. Suffice it to say an army of programming talent has spent a lot of time and genius making a high-performance PlayStation engine. There will be no frame-rate issue to address, unless people want to sit around and talk about how fast the game runs.

GSN: What do you plan to do with the cameras? Player control at all?

HL: If it ain't broke... We don't plan on changing the super-cool, hassle-free camera developed by the arcade team.

GSN: Will the game be Dual Shock/Analog compatible?

HL: Absolutely, with some surprises included.

GSN: What's the release date?

HL: Summer 1999.

GSN: What's the most difficult part of making a console version of an arcade game that was well received?

HL: Living up to the name and dealing with different technologies all at the same time.