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MMOsite: Could you introduce to us some details about the combat system in BattleForge? How does it set itself apart from other RTS games?
Kevin O'Leary: Again, the cards are the star here. They allowed us to do away with timely base and resource management, getting you to the action in seconds, literally. I've been playing with our QA team, and I've finished matches in about 5 minutes because the pace of the game is high from the start – I won't tell you that I always see the victory sign though, lol. The ability to play new units near anything that you control on the battlefield layers on a whole, new strategic element to the RTS genre and it's very well balanced so it adds to the fun and really tests your strategic abilities.
MMOsite: As we know, community is vital to the success of any MMO. So what kind of community support will be available in BattleForge? How will you encourage player interaction? What can players do with the community system?
Kevin O'Leary: There are a ton of features built right into the game for the community's use. The primary one is the marketplace where you will be able to buy, sell, and trade your cards with other players. Also, since the game is online only it allowed for the expansion into uncharted RTS territory – 12 player co-op matches. Partnering up with your friends and/or guilds players will face some of the toughest challenges here, but also get the best rewards.
MMOsite: Some players are worried that item selling model may ruin the game balance, what's your comment?
Kevin O'Leary: First off, the game comes with over 150 cards which is pushing double the total available units in many other RTS titles, in which you are limited to X number of units in your class/race, so players never need to spend any extra money if they don't want to. Secondly, since the game is fully supported online, we have the ability to tweak the balance of the game if we see certain patterns emerging. Finally, you can't "buy" your way to the best deck, if you put a fully upgraded deck in the hands of an inexperienced player, a seasoned BattleForge skylord would be able to beat them with a basic deck. The strategic element of the game translates directly from how you build your deck which is why it's so cool to build an army completely tailored to your own play style.
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MMOsite: We are really amazed at the wonderful graphics, stunning combo effects and special effects of BattleForge, and in the meanwhile, should we be worried about our computer specifications?
Kevin O'Leary: On the high end, we support DX 10.1 and have seen a 30% boost in the graphics department when running on a high spec machine. However, I have a 1.6 duo core laptop with 1GB RAM and Vista and can still play the game. Experiencing the visuals on a super spec machine is great, but those of us with average hardware will be able to enjoy all of BattleForge with nothing lost.
MMOsite: How often do you expect to have new content available for players? I mean, such as new maps, new card additions, or even an expansion?
Kevin O'Leary: We're planning on releasing maps every month for free so players will have a solid steam on content to look forward to, not to mention that each map has three difficulty levels, where the harder challenges yield better rewards, so there will be many more battlefields to conquer against your enemies. We are also optimistic about doubling the amount of cards in a year, pushing out new editions of cards every couple of months.
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