The New Era

FS: One issue brought up by a number of UT1 vets moving into 2k3 is weapon balance. In UT1, some weapons were obviously better than others in some situations, but all the weapons were still useful in some capacity. A lot of folks feel that just isn't the case with 2k3. What are your opinions on this?

ViolentJ|HV: I think the complaining about weapon balance is simply people who are not willing to accept change. It is true, the weapons in UT1 weren't balanced. The Shock Rifle was easily the best weapon (for 60% of the community). I think what people mean to say when they bitch about weapons is that UT weapons were NOT Quake weapons. Unfortunately, with 2k3, it seems that the game is looking a lot more like quake. Instant rockets, much more useless shock-rifle, more useless translocator, and a very
railgun like Lightning Gun...these are all things that resemble the game that UTers don't enjoy. Make 2k3 and quake the same, and all of the old school UTers are gonna be pissed.

FS: Another major issue, particularly for CTF, is the translocator. It's been significantly changed compared to UT1 and "Transwhoring" isn't half as effective as it was in the past, is this for the best? Is it appropriate given the changes in movement?

ViolentJ|HV: Well, what made CTF in UT much more fun than in Q3, was the ability to catch up to a flag carrier that was already past you. In quake, either you couldn't move fast, or the carrier AND the people trying to get their flag back both had the stupid grappling hook. When you whimp the translocator you are taking away a big part of CTF - the ability to get your flag back.

As far as transwhoring, I never really saw it abused in UT. It was a loooong time ago, but epic patched the game so people couldn't translocate as fast as they could hit a key. But, translocator kills were a fun part of the game, mostly based on luck, which I did see save a few games for us. So as far as killing people with the translocator, I don't see it being a huge issue. It's mostly just movement.


FS: How do you feel about the addition of adrenaline? This is one of the major additions Epic/Digital Extremes brought in, is it superficial? Or does it change the game for better/worse?

ViolentJ|HV: Adrenaline I think is a really fun idea, kind of like relics. As far as official match play goes? It's stupid. In CTF/BR, speed is ridiculously good. In 1v1, invisibility and booster are too good as well. It just makes it that much harder for someone to make a comeback in a 1v1. 1v1's aren't about raw talent anymore anyway, just about timing/camping/whoring. Adrenaline promotes that. I'd like to see it taken OUT of the game.


FS: If you were making a patch focusing on gameplay changes, as inevitably Digital Extremes and Epic will, what issues would you make a priority?

ViolentJ|HV: The first thing I would do if I was Epic would be to fix the netcode. Currently, the netcode is trash. The second thing I would do, is wake up and realize that there's a lot of stuff that you can do with the engine that either they are ignorant to, or simply too lazy to learn. Epic had an opportunity to let my team play-test their game. We would have told them all of this then, and showed them hundreds more things that needed to be changed. They obviously have more important things on their mind than putting out a quality game.