Stevivor met up with Fatshark Games’ Gordon Van Dyke last week to talk all things Viking ahead of Paradox’s War of the Vikings’ first alpha test, taking place at the same time as Gamescom in Cologne, Germany.
Just as they travelled around Europe planning for War of the Roses, Fatshark consulted extensively with a Viking archaeologist to get the tone of the 64-player multiplayer game just right. That means Vikings – more of an ancient profession than a race, by the way (so I’m not sure why we capitalise it, but that’s beside the point) – won’t have horns on their helmets. That also means you’re going to see a lot of female Vikings beat up the opposition too. You have to respect a group of seafaring folk who already had equality in the workplace, considering they were at their best way back in the 9th Century.
War of the Vikings has been created by a small but determined 13 man team, Van Dyke confirmed — joking that when he was working at DICE, they had animation pods bigger than the entirety of Fatshark – using the same engine built for War of the Roses. The second game in the Paradox-coined War franchise, War of the Vikings will offer both 64-player and no mercy 32-player multiplayer modes. Those taking part in 32-player battles won’t get to respawn when they die, so it’s not exactly for the unskilled gamer.
That being said, Fatshark are adamant they’ve learned from War of the Roses. Van Dyke explained that Fatshark have made War of the Vikings “more accessible and deeper” at the same time. That means newcomers will be able to score kills easily enough, but will need to work at how to best veterans. “Even as you die, you’ll know exactly why, and you’ll be able to plan how to improve next time,”Van Dyke said. “Players should always understand how they can improve.”
As you get more comfortable with the game, you’ll be able to employ advanced strategies like javelin throwing to disable enemy shields, or timing powerful attacks that deal heavily damage but leave your character with a heavily depleted stamina bar to match. Fatshark have also ensured that techniques that excelled in War of the Roses, such as spamming attacks, have been balanced, so they’re not always going to be successful.
The gameplay tweaks have not only been done to get newcomers interested, but to present a balanced game for competitive play, Van Dyke confirmed.
As you take part in battles across a Saxon-inspired European landscape, you’ll work through an unlock system that provides aesthetic bonuses, but not upgrades that affect your character’s performance. The unlocking system encourages a game that’s (again) balanced and fair, but also provides a benefit, of sorts, to skilled players. “Unlocks are cosmetic and about vanity,” Van Dyke said. “Players can realise your success using those visual cues.”
And, almost sadly, those unlocks apply to outlandish fantasy weapons, too. “You won’t be seeing Thor’s hammer or anything of that manner as a unlock,” Van Dyke promised. He’s also made a firm stance on keeping non-realistic helmets out of the game too. So, get used to the idea of hornless Vikings.
All up, the short hands-off time we had with the game showed that it has quite a lot of promise. Paradox will let gamers go hands-on in a series of alpha tests that begin very shortly. Van Dyke said that both team deathmatch and arena game modes will be part of the alpha, and that Paradox pledges to have Australian servers to decrease lag. Those interested in signing up for the alpha can do so here.
War of the Vikings has a 2014 release date on Windows PC.
This article may contain affiliate links, meaning we could earn a small commission if you click-through and make a purchase. Stevivor is an independent outlet and our journalism is in no way influenced by any advertiser or commercial initiative.
