FaceBreaker -- Character Issues Q&A

Characters make boxing. Sure, there's plenty to like about the technical side of two guys in the ring slugging it out; the sweet science, and all of that. But, in the end, one of the best aspects of boxing is the drama and flair that the boxers bring both in and out of the ring. That same thing definitely holds true for boxing video games too, especially arcade boxing games like EA Sports' upcoming FaceBreaker. To learn more about the roster of pugilists in this upcoming fighting game, we got ahold of FaceBreaker producer Todd Batty.

GameSpot: The trailer is jam-packed with characters. Can you give us a tale of the tape of who we're looking at: name, origin, that kind of thing?

Todd Batty: You have already been introduced to Molotov, the demolitions expert, and Romeo, the Latin lover. Molotov is a Russian-born boxer who has found a home in the good old USA. He has had a fascination with explosives since he was a kid and brings this fascination along with him into the ring. Romeo, on the other hand, has only been fascinated by women and himself. When he gets in the ring, he has two goals: The first is to win and the second is to look damn good doing it.

Without ruining the surprise too much, some of the other characters in the trailer are Voodoo, a 300-pound witch doctor who fights for his ancestor's honor and also happens to moonlight as a pirate...(so much for all that talk about honor). Steve is a guy who has invented his own style of ninja boxing, which is a cross between traditional boxing and kung fu. He doesn't know anything about either one, but he's seen a lot of movies. Finally, we have Tokushu, a sweet, flirtatious, pop culture-loving dancer who was almost laughed out of the tournament before she knocked the guy at the registration desk out cold--a true wolf in sheep's clothing. There is a whole whack of other characters that round out our cast, but I can't give everything away now. Believe me, though, you'll like them. And if you don't, at least, you can break their faces.

GS: When we look at the trailer, we think of two things: professional wrestling and Jean Claude Van Damme's finest film, Bloodsport. Can you tell us about the influences that the development team has drawn from for the characters in FaceBreaker?

TB: [Laughing] I'm not sure that was exactly what we were going for, but I do appreciate the Bloodsport reference. I'm going to assume that you're referring to some of the more over-the-top moves you see in the trailer. I can tell you, it has been fun trying to come up with as many signature attacks as possible that stay true to the characters we've created. With the characters themselves, we wanted to define them by what they do when they are NOT fighting, and this led us directly to their signature attacks and general fighting style. The end result is a true ensemble cast of characters, each of whom is cool enough to have their own action figure. Not that we're going to be making actual action figures anytime in the near future, but you get the point.

GS: How do the characters interact with one another in the game (beyond, you know, punching each other's lights out)? Are some characters more prone to dislike each other and will that affect gameplay at all? Does each character have his or her own storyline?

TB: Each character does have his/her own storyline, and we will be releasing these in the upcoming months. As far as how this affects gameplay...without giving too much away, I can tell you that every character has his/her own fighting style and signature attacks, and some of these match up better versus particular opponents. This is the first time they have all been brought together to fight in the tournament, so they have no history. Yet.

GS: Looking at the body language of the different characters, it seems like the mo-cap sessions for the game must have been fun. What can you tell us about those? And what were you were looking for from your mo-cap athletes?

TB: The mo-cap sessions were definitely a lot of fun and laughs, particularly when capturing some of the facial animation and between-rounds sequences. I have to give a huge shout-out here to the animation team of FaceBreaker, who hand-animated the majority of the actual gameplay animations. It has taken world-class skills to really bring these characters to life while still remaining technically accurate for a fast, responsive, balanced gameplay experience. It is one thing to animate a punch with a particular visual style, but a completely different challenge to do so in less than a second.

GS: What can you tell us about the fighting styles of the different characters? How will one character "feel" different from another from the player's point of view?

TB: At this stage, I can't give away too much detail regarding the actual gameplay mechanics, and we're actually still in the process of differentiating the characters' styles from one another. What I can tell you is that each character will definitely have some strengths and weaknesses, and that discovering these attributes (and how to exploit them) will be a whole lot of fun. Look for more on this topic as we begin to release details of how the actual gameplay mechanics work.

GS: Who's your favorite character in the game, and why?

TB: For me, that would have to be Steve. He is sort of a Jack Black-meets-Chris Farley boxing ninja who still lives with his mom. He is incredibly un-athletic and awkward when he's kicking your ass. Basically, he's a fat nerd. Everything he does is awesome.

GS: Thanks for your time, Todd.