Alexey Leshev's interview about project "Kreed"
Author: Victor Kotov aka Goodman
Translated: Artem Kuznetsov aka Kaa
Kreed’s release is not far off. The site Aspero News has asked a number of questions to scriptwriter of Burut CT - Alexey Leshev to find out current status and to learn more about this promising project.
Aspero news: Who is the protagonist? Is he adventurer, anti-ascetic, or super-agent, professional, or bayard?
Alexey Leshev: Daniil Grok is slightly like his antipode – Theofrast Rumi. They are both destroyers and they have sharply defined ego. They are representatives of “revolutionists of the other side” with unprecedented persistence storming prickles, that seem to be unassailable. However, unlike to Rumi, Daniil Grok is much more individualist, “passion partisan”, who is ready to dive into deep to perform his task. Rumi needs surroundings that supplies energy to him, Rumi sweats everything off it.
Daniil Grok doesn't care a damn about what Rumi sends thousands of faithful legionaries to face certain death for. It’s no more than caprice of fortune that he was thrown into Kreed (because, Grok could send anywhere). Certainly, he heard about it a lot (they speak about Kreed in his world the same as all mass media tell over and over again about the “possible nuclear weapon of Northern Korea” now), but he never attached importance to that. It is probable, that just similar "ignorance" has allowed him to pass all circles of a hell and to survive.
Daniil Grok is the personification of eurasian ideal of character, and absolutely different from destructive western stereotype, and he made a revolution without realising it.
Aspero news: Is it no contradiction that player should kill the apostate, who has exclusive knowledge about Kreed?
Alexey Leshev: Yes, it may seem the protagonist have to kill the wrong person. Our “main villain” – The great Legion Master Theofrast Rumi – really approached to the MOST, ABSOLUTE, UNIVERSAL KNOWLEDGE (but he haven’t the total one), and he can offer all for the sake of it without hesitation. Rumi had to do so. In fact, he wading through slaughter guided by his own thoughts.
In his character and actions there is something from the Templars – the medieval knights of Tamplier Order, who has a great number of mysteries in their history. Templars had been turning both light and dark side of being looking for certain material and spiritual benefits for themselves. Theofrast Rumi in rough looks like Jacque de Mole - the last Great Master of the Order, and he has a little strains of the english thinker, and black magician, astrologer and cartographer John Dee, who lived in the end of XVI – the beginning of XVII century. He is a “stranger-nomad of the dark side”, he looks KNOWLEDGE and PERFECTIONS, that he is consider as a catalyst of coming reformation of the Universe.
Aspero news: Who or what is meant the name "an absolute enemy?"
Alexey Leshev: The “Absolute enemy” is an abstract concept, it is more suitable for literary part of plot of the game, where they call an anomaly Kreed there.
According to prehistory, it was called such by high priests of Triglave, which is a protector of the Legion. They saw a coming of the Last Test Hour, when only Faithful people could survive in future nightmare of Armageddon.
Apocalyptic Jikreed Brotherhood founded the Cult of Kreed, they proclaimed a near coming of the New Universe, that will cleared off every ramshackle, decrepit and imperfect thing. The “Absolute Enemy” is an embodiment of an higher wisdom and a universal perfection for them, while usual world is an “outrage of Primary Light.”
The Legion called Jikreed’s doctrine as “deadly heresy” and declared blood-and-guts war against them. In the “Bible of the Sacred War”, which includes its history, laws and dogma they frankly called the Kreed is an explicit encroachment on the being itself because it’s nothing but the “Absolute Enemy”, which shown its true face at last.
Aspero news: Give us some examples of interaction of enemies and player with an environment. What about its interactivity?
Alexey Leshev: The interaction with an environment promises to be rather versatile.
It is necessary to note that it will not be direct dialogues, as they realize in RPG, there (all dialogues will be present in script scenes). However player will read diaries and messages from monitors, and also look through holograms. He will also a chance to use numerous devices and vehicles, there are a conveyor, a powerful battle droid and a automatic platform among them.
There are also a number of destructible objects in the game. So, the player can break glasses, monitors, lamps, grates, some doors, barrels and individual walls. For example, he destroys a heavy container, which stands on his way, with a powerful experimental gun. The player breaks a wall with the battle droid and keep on his way.
Enemies has also some “surprises” for the player. They will fire on him from stationary guns, operate the battle droid, activate traps, switch on/off force fields.
Aspero news: Will player use cutting laser or anything available but weapon?
Alexey Leshev: Besides weapon player will take a infrared scanner, power sources (like battery) and electric flashlight. As I told above, he can use stationary guns, the experimental gun on the testing area (that is hard enough to control), a transporter, an automatic platform and the Battle Droid.
In the final mission the player will take an original alien invention the “scanner of phantom energy”, which allow to see clear the enemy phantom creatures, which nature is radically different than physical laws of our dimension.
Aspero news: Can the player contact with the Legion in the game? Or it will the back of beyond, where he has count only his own force?
Alexey Leshev: The protagonist of “Kreed” Daniil Grok has to act in the absolutely god-forsaken place, completely isolated from “centre”. It seems, he is no more than a “potentially dead”, who is deserted somewhere with no aim. But it is far from being so. The protagonist is sure subconscious he will necessarily accomplish his task and come back for the cost what it may.
Aspero news: How will be passage between locations, it will by means of script scenes?
Alexey Leshev: The passage will by means of script scenes between locations. They’ll be unobtrusive, considered and atmospheric. So, when the player reaches the end of the level, he will see one or another script scene and find out something and keep on moving.
Aspero news: What location are most populous?
Alexey Leshev: There are not poorly populated and monotonous areas in the game. Each of them has its unique types of enemies, which have their special features and way of behaviour. I doubt whether the player will bore even in the location where there is only one type of enemy.
I can give an example of Confederate Battleship “Tokugava” which crew was infected with strange epidemic, that change a flesh into sore. Mazy modules of the ship extend for good ten kilometres (you really need stray there for a long time). At every step the player is trapped by the dodge and well armed enemy, which is inferior to non with him. They are infected (or “plague-stricken”) confederates in the beginning, then mad confederate soldiers who despairingly decided to start up a reactor trying to break free the dead place. During the whole Mission the player will search keys, open number of blocked doors, pass laser traps with maximal risk to life, drive the transport in the huge labyrinth, and power off reactors, and he will need to kill enemies on the four sectors and two levels of gigantic Reactor Bay.
Another good example is an infernal planetoid Heilig that populated by martial heretics Jikreeds. They are peculiar “techno-talibs” of XXX century A.D. In the beginning we need to force with battle through numerous “bioprojection creatures”, which annihilated well equipped expedition of Legionaries. Directly after that you will battle against fury religious fanatics Jikreeds, who transformed almost every metre of their citadel tower into unassailable fortress. This enemy is dangerous in twice. It is not only has a perfect weapon but also is firmly grounded "ideologically". So, every Jikreed mostly takes a martyr to “gain future salvation and rebirth in Kreed”, than takes disgraceful retreat.
Aspero news: Will multiplayer maps situated in the same locations as single ones?
Alexey Leshev: There will be different maps, that will not yield to singleplayer maps in terms of aesthetic and effectiveness.
Aspero news: Is the game locked at videocards of sixth generation? Or it will be just recommended requirement?
Alexey Leshev: For optimal playing with all options enabled it is required Pentium III-1000 MHz, 512M of RAM, sixth generation videocard (ATI Radeon 8500, GeForce 3). You can play with minimal requirements: Pentium III-600 MHz, 256M of RAM, videocard of fifth generation. But some visual features of the game become unavailable.
Aspero news: Will BURUT CT actively advance of mod-community, or will it some sort of initiative support?
Alexey Leshev: We are very interested in support and help of mod-community. In the near future every owner of the game will have an opportunity to create his own mods. An editor will be released after the game. You can make partial changes starting at bot set and weapons to total changes right up to creating your own game, that could much different from original Kreed. BURUT CT will help every player, who would like to create a mod and it’s just a matter of time.
Aspero news: Have you refused of some features for the last months of project development? Is it possible to put off the release date?
Alexey Leshev: Release date of Kreed is planned on spring 2003. Debugging and tuning of created parts take much time.
Aspero news: Enemies number is still 65?
Alexey Leshev: Yes, number of enemies remained without change.
Aspero news: Does the plot of Kreed imply a sequel?
Alexey Leshev: It’s too early to speak about that.
Aspero news: How much endings are in the game?
Alexey Leshev: There is only one final in the game and it promises to be very designing and philosophic. It is possible that somebody may originate from it associations with great “Space Odyssey” by Stanley Cubric, where last shots are amazing with their inexpressible mystery (it’s enough to remember the scene of contact of the character’s and Higher Space Race minds). In the final scene we introduced a light vivid “pastel” of Solaris, where the character tries to realise who is he deal with.
Aspero news: Are you ready the Kreed will not only ordinary game and will be beginning of a “cult”, a movement, an ideology, or it is impossible?
Alexey Leshev: It’s hard to say. There are advantages and lacks of the cult concept in the game industry. For example, when they say the “Generation QUAKE” they have in mine not only game fans but style of life, that the popular writer Victor Pelevin calls “Generation P” (i.e., an amorphous “Generation Pepsi” that hasn’t a common connecting core and they don’t live a full life but exist indulging to silly entertainment). Alas, it’s true. In fact, the QUAKE became a revolution, marvellous game in the beginning, but then it came to not and became an ordinary product poorly distinguished from Coca-Cola or double cheeseburger of McDonald's. So, the revolution should be of other sort and has a “elitist nature” (by the way, as an example of such “elitist” is Russian developers from the “Transcontinental laboratory” who creates an aesthetics of new nation “kitezhan” where a techno-futurism and a spirit of Tradition supplement each other in harmony.) However, it would not destroy the man itself leaving him a freedom of choosing. Otherwise, we are waited with a post-human, cyberpank hell of Matrix.
In theory we would tell a player that just he is capable to glance for a side, not just to overcome a “virtual monster”, but himself. If someone will tell – “I’m a Generation Kreed”, than our game could change him. It’s a matter of time if the generation Kreed will be.
We think the future belongs to games that could destroy the Matrix.
Aspero news: Is it possible to make a film on a plot of Kreed? Did you think of that?
Alexey Leshev: It isn’t possible to take a film because there are not enough financial base (remember the history of making such cult films as “Final Fantasy” or “Resident Evil”). The Kreed could be very spectacle, if we could fully realise some ideas.
Aspero news: Would you like to publish a Kreed scenario, I’m sure it is better and more interesting than a game plot?
Alexey Leshev: A small literary work is written on the Kreed universe which events are happens in the world-fortress Burg, the settlement of Legionaries.
Aspero news: I know a game “Battlefield 1942” is very popular in BURUT CT, is it just a sympathy or do you get any ideas and examples to be realised in the Kreed?
Alexey Leshev: The “Battlefield 1942” is like a strong drug for us. Frequently after the intense working day our office is filled with loud crying, many of them could be really “artistic”. It’s a 100% relaxation. Each of us feels by other man, flying on the Japan “Zero”, fire enemy coastal fortifications from the ship guns, landing off the boat, driving T-34 or hiding with sniper rifle or faust cartridge for one or two hours in the game. You feel sometimes as you really firing at American battle-cruiser guttural crying out “Thanno henka banzai!” (Long live emperor!)
There are many things to learn of “Battlefield 1942”, and it is a realistic environment, a good team tactics, and using of various vehicles (it is amazing when you can use almost every thing!!!)
Aspero news: Thank you very much for very interesting and detailed answers! We are to looking forward to release!
Alexey Leshev: Well, we are doing everything in our power, that it happened as soon as possible! ;)
Official "Kreed" site: http://www.kreed3d.com.