We were lucky enough to divert Greg Black (EA's balance designer for Command and Conquer 3) long enough from balancing the game to answer a few questions for us all on himself, balance design, and the latest patch for C&C3. Here's a sample of the exclusive interview:
Gamereplays.org: Hi Greg, first of all, for those that don't already know, would you mind introducing yourself and explaining what your role in the C&C3 development team is?
Greg Black: My name is Greg “Platinum” Black. I am the lead balance, multiplayer map, in-game user interface, and command and control system designer on C&C3.
Gamereplays.org: Do you sometimes find yourself needing to make balance changes that go contrary to the game's design intent? Or can you always find a happy solution to every balance problem without sacrificing the way the game was meant to feel? In other words, where does design end and balance begin?
Greg Black: This is a tricky question. There are times where the design of units, abilities, or game systems seems to contradict good balance principles. Generally we’re able to identify these types of problems in the paper design phase and redesign accordingly. When we catch these types of problems late in the development cycle it’s usually rectified with a compromise solution between the lead designer and I. Ultimately I feel that balance should trump design intent, but I don’t always win that fight.
Read the rest of the very informative interview here.
This post has been edited by DarkMorgulKing: May 15 2007, 14:40 PM
We were lucky enough to divert Greg Black (EA's balance designer for Command and Conquer 3) long enough from balancing the game to answer a few questions for us all on himself, balance design, and the latest patch for C&C3. Here's a sample of the exclusive interview:
Gamereplays.org: Hi Greg, first of all, for those that don't already know, would you mind introducing yourself and explaining what your role in the C&C3 development team is?
Greg Black: My name is Greg “Platinum” Black. I am the lead balance, multiplayer map, in-game user interface, and command and control system designer on C&C3.
Gamereplays.org: Do you sometimes find yourself needing to make balance changes that go contrary to the game's design intent? Or can you always find a happy solution to every balance problem without sacrificing the way the game was meant to feel? In other words, where does design end and balance begin?
Greg Black: This is a tricky question. There are times where the design of units, abilities, or game systems seems to contradict good balance principles. Generally we’re able to identify these types of problems in the paper design phase and redesign accordingly. When we catch these types of problems late in the development cycle it’s usually rectified with a compromise solution between the lead designer and I. Ultimately I feel that balance should trump design intent, but I don’t always win that fight.
Read the rest of the very informative interview here.
This post has been edited by DarkMorgulKing: May 15 2007, 14:40 PM
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