Imperium Galactica III: Genesis Q&A

Since the release of the original game back in 1997, the Imperium Galactica series has been known for its solid strategy gameplay and incredibly detailed plots, which provided more than ample background for various races that appeared in both the original game and its sequel. However, in the case of the original game, the story was so strong that it almost completely overshadowed the rest of the game, making it the sole incentive for progressing through the game. Imperium Galactica II sought more of a balance between story and gameplay and for the most part was successful in doing so with drastic improvements made to the interface and various elements of gameplay. The development team at Philos hopes to strike a similar balance with its upcoming project, Imperium Galactica III: Genesis, which will feature a deep story, refined gameplay, and of course, cosmetic improvements. We had a chance to speak with Zsolt Hanula, designer at Philos Laboratories, to learn more about what the team has in store for the third game in the Imperium Galactica series.

GameSpot: Can you give us a little background on the development team working on Imperium Galactica III?

Imperium Galactica III will use in-engine and pre-rendered cutscenes.

Zsolt Hanula: At the moment there are 25 people working on this project. We work and play hard. Philos is a relatively new development team, but our members have come from a variety of different backgrounds with broad experiences in the games industry.

GS: Though the storyline was less prevalent in the second game, the previous Imperium Galactica games had very strong storylines. Will Imperium Galactica III continue that tradition?

ZH: The narrative behind Imperium Galactica III has been designed by the acclaimed Hungarian fantasy and SF writer Zsolt Nyulaszi, creator of many role-playing games like MAGUS and Codex. The story is set in the not-too-distant future. An alien entity has invaded Earth. A small resistance is all that remains, leaving [the resistance] to gather help from other alien species and galactic multinational companies. While traveling through the universe, it is up to you to decide whether to conclude an alliance with them or to attack them. Every kind of relationship with alien races means a new story, although not necessary to complete the game. You can be sure interesting twists and rewards are there for the keen explorer.

GS: There were three races--Solarians, Shinari, and Kra'Hen--to select from in Imperium Galactica II, each with its own campaign. Will any of these factions make a return appearance in Imperium Galactica III, and will they have separate campaigns?

The ships within each race will have a unique look.

ZH: Since the story of the game is a sequel to the history of mankind, the player will only be able to play as a human. While shaping the alien races we aim at creating living communities; that is, the whole of their technology, world order, way of life, and thinking, as well as their AI, have to be in accord. We hope we can come up with highly detailed, authentic, and truly interesting races living up to the quality of the best sci-fi novels. However, I'd rather not get into detail regarding their characteristics, as one of the players' goals will be to get to know and become familiar with these alien races, find out their strengths and weaknesses, and alternatively even come to terms with them.

We didn't take any of the races from Imperium Galactica II.

GS: Will there be race-specific units?

ZH: Every race will use its own typical ships, weapons, and tactics against them.

GS: One of the more notable aspects of Imperium Galactica II was that its interface was relatively intuitive and easy to use. Does the development team want to take the same approach with Imperium Galactica III, or will it take more time to learn how to use the interface this time around?

ZH: As the engine is completely new, frankly speaking, nothing has been taken over from the previous parts' interface. In spite of this, you'll be able to spot the similarities. The concept behind the interface is that it always depicts deep space, and the background is entirely 3D.