Q: What the hell is Red Fackage?
-From the creators of the award-winning Freespace series comes Red Faction. Every FPS gamer has wondered what it would be like to unleash his weapons not just on unworthy opponents, but on the very walls that constrain them. With that in mind, Red Faction introduces Geo-Mod technology - real-time, arbitrary geometry modification that drastically enhances realism and diversity of gameplay. Framed by impressive features including an astonishing physics engine, controllable vehicles, intense graphics, kick-ass weapons, unique natural environments and a hugely involving storyline, Red Faction is the next must-have title for serious gamers. top
Q: Okay, what the hell is a Red Faction then?
-Red Faction is a coded name for the rebellious faction within a Mars mining facility of the evil Ultor mining corporation to which you, the player, as Parker, become a part of. top
Q: So, what does Red Faction basically feature?
-Features:
- Geo-Mod engine - the only FPS with real-time, arbitrary geometry modification.
- Advanced physics simulation - supports falling geometry, particles and liquid.
- Six land, sea and air vehicles to commandeer and control.
- An immersing and compelling storyline.
- Stealth and action driven objectives.
- Varied environments including natural settings unique to the genre.
- Object shadow casting and more.
- Advanced AI behavior in 20 dynamic 3D levels.
- Real-time skeletal deformation and interpolation for silky smooth animations.
- Location-based damage system.
- Proprietary level editor that is faster, easier and more advanced than any on the market.
- Multi-player support for LAN and TCP-IP.
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Q: When is the game coming out?
-The PS2 version has already been released and is in stores now. The PC version is expected in the fall of 2001 with the Mac version following thereafter. top
Q: Will there be a demo?
-There has already been a demo of the PS2 version, which has been discontinued and is no longer available. There will be a demo of the PC version which can be expected sometime around when the game is ready to launch (currently fall 2001). No word on whether there will be a Mac version of the demo, but it's doubtful. top
Q: What are the minimum system requirements?
-We won't know the exact requirements until much closer to launch; however, an unoptimized build of the game runs decently on a PII 400, Voodoo 2, and 128 megs of RAM. It was also running on an old PII-300, 128MB RAM, and Voodoo 2 card. Again, exact requirements won't be known for some time though. top
Q: How long has this game been in development? How's it coming along?
-The game has been in development for quite a while now, and was tentatively dubbed Descent 4 until it was renamed and redesigned as Red Faction. The PS2 version has been released to much critical acclaim and has reached a blockbuster status. The PC version is coming along swimmingly and is shooting for a Q3 release in 2001, with the Mac version to follow thereafter. top
Q: What are the main influences for Red Faction?
-The story and consistent design of Half-Life was definitely an influence. After we started developing the story and game, we saw some similarities between Red Faction and the movie Total Recall. This has influenced the game somewhat since then, for example the inspiration for our driller vehicle comes from the drilling machine in Total Recall. top
Q: What is the motivation behind making Red Faction?
-Volition asked its employees what sort of games they wanted to make. Some people wanted to make an RPG, so we started Summoner. Another group wanted to make an innovative first-person shooter. We knew from the beginning that we wanted to add modifiable environments and cool physics to the game... So that is the path we pursued. top
Q: How will the PC, MAC, and Playstation 2 versions of Red Faction be different or the same?
-The PC/MAC versions will be about the same. The PS2 version will be about the same game as the PC version, but it has a less comprehensive split-screen multiplayer function as well as no modding or editing capabilities. There are also some other minor differences, such as the PS2s auto-aim option and some different textures. The PC version will have the standard array of graphical additions (higher resolutions and such), but will be virtually identical content-wise. top
Q: Will the PC and Mac versions be released simultaneously?
-No. The PC version will be released first, with the Mac version to follow sometime thereafter. top
Q: Will the PS2 version come out before the PC or Mac versions?
-Yup. The PS2 version has already been released. top
Q: I'm sure that you realize that a lot of Descent fans have expressed certain feelings on Red Faction. Is there anything you'd like to tell them to dispel the notion that Red Faction won't be as good as, say, a Descent 4? Are you worried about alienating loyal Descent fans?
-Well, it's hard to live up to people's conception of a game that doesn't exist. We're doing the same thing we did with Descent and Freespace. That is, we're trying to create the best game we know how. I think Red Faction is going to be a great and original game. People who are looking for something to continue the Descent story or the Descent-style of gameplay will be disappointed though. With that said, am I worried about alienating loyal Descent fans? Yes. Unfortunately, sometimes you can't choose. In our case, making Descent 4 the game we wanted isn't, and wasn't, an option. I hope those fans will give Red Faction a look. I have no doubt it will be a great game. Whether it will be the kind of game they want to play is up to them. top
Q: How do/are you going to test the game? Are you going to get locals to test it out, or are you going to just have some fun yourselves?
-Well, we do sometimes call in local gamers for focus groups, to check out games in development and give us an outsider's viewpoint. We also have in-house QA going on all the time and THQ does QA for us as well. top
Q: Will there be a beta, and if so, when?
-Whether of not there will be a publicly available beta test of any kind is still undetermined. top
Q: Will the source code be released like Half-Life?
-Mike Kulas, resident Volition bigwig and head chef said, "I don't know whether the source code will ever be released. It's not just my choice. If it is released, I would think it would be at least a couple years after the initial release of the game." top
Q: Wouldn't this game need a massive processor?
-No. Volition has been able to run an unoptomized version on a PII 450 MHz machine with little slowdown. A decent machine should have no problem. top
Q: Isn't Red Faction still Descent 4 though?
-No. Red Faction was at one point very early on in development Descent 4. However, the game changed so much that it really wasn't a true Descent sequel anymore (or prequel as it was originally planned). Also, the fact that a change in publishers occurred kind of forced a name change onto Volition. top
Q: Is Red Faction going to use DirectX 7 or DirectX 8?
-Well, just for the sake of keeping up to date, it would probably ship with DX 8 whether it totally utilizes the new features or not. top
Q: Will THQ Publish the Mac version?
-No. top
