4D Rulers Interview - News and Siteseeing

Indie game developer 4D Rulers have released a number of games over the years and even created their own graphics engine AMP to power the games. Now the developer is moving in a different direction, creating a version of their best known game, the sci-fi FPS, as a free title along with other projects. FiringSquad got a chance to chat with 4D Rulers founder Joel Huenink to find out more about their plans for the future:

FiringSquad: First, 4DRulers generated a ton of press for its plans (since pulled) to fund a game partially by fan contributions. How did this come about and why was this plan pulled?
Joel Huenink: Well I had learned that there might be some laws and a lot of paper work to legally acquire investors, so I yanked everything and we found some other funding sources to get us over the hump. Also after educating myself on in game advertising, the plan did not look as rock solid. Basically your game has to have a large number of users before an in game advertising company can even consider doing business with you, and I wasn't willing to borrow a bunch of money from investors or loans, release our game for free, hoping an ad company will pick it up. Way too risky. So we're going to test the in game advertising waters with our first game "Gore - Ultimate Soldier" and re-release it for free download and hope it can build enough users to get an ad company to sell ads for it.
FiringSquad: Gore remains 4D Rulers's best known title. Are there any plans to re-release the game now that the company has the rights back from Dreamcatcher?
Joel Huenink: I don't really have the rights back, but Dreamcatcher has given their consent to re-release the game.
FiringSquad: Will there be any improvements or additional content added to the free-to-download version of Gore?
Joel Huenink: Yes, we used the Gore engine to make Patriots, and will be reconstructing Gore using the new code base, so hopefully some improvements will propegate into Gore during that process. If it makes us some decent revenue with ads then we'll naturally add new levels and content to keep the game alive. One big change to it will have is an auto patch/update system we've developed so that we can add new levels, fix any bugs that come up and keep all the players in sync. We plan on licensing this auto update techology to other software developers since it adds such great value. In my mind there is nothing worse than getting an email about an old bug you fixed 5 years ago in a patch but your users cannot find the patch or don't know how to install it, etc. Or if you add a new level and a player doesn't have it, they get kicked from the server. Our auto update technology will solve all that, and allow us to change the levels, textures, skins, code, or whatever we choose at any time and keep all our users up to date and minimize bug reports. I always have to ask them if they have the bonus pack installed or if they are patched up, what version they have, etc, and this will eliminate all those redundant support issues.
FiringSquad: How will the in-game ads for the free version of Gore work?
Joel Huenink: Basically the company we are partnering with has an SDK that delivers ads that are downloaded to the client, and then rendered on walls in the game, or in the menus, etc. But the game has to reach around 75000 users before the ads will actually get turned on. So initially there will just be fake ads or ad placeholders, something of that nature.
FiringSquad: What hints can you give us about a possible Gore II if it does go into development?
Joel Huenink: The way I'd like to do it is to make it multi player only, and release a basic version early on, and get people playing it. Use auto update to constantly improve the game and add new levels and features, and just listen to the player community. So really I just want to give players what they want. I don't think a small team of guys can match the feedback of thousands. With it multi player only I think we could develop it this way without any real hitches or spoilers other than reading what everyone says about it all the time. I have fans that could run polls and collect data for me so I think it would be manageable. The Gore community is the reason we're still in business. Their undying support has kept 4D alive through some tough times. I'd love to give them a sequel and let them be part of the Gore II development.
FiringSquad: How did the idea come about for 4D Rulers' upcoming game Death Row?
Joel Huenink: I had it ages ago. Basically we were brainstorming about some fun mods or small games we could make and this idea came up. Now seems like a great time to do it. The idea is very simple. Remember the old Atari paddle controlled game Kaboom? There was this mad bomber who dropped bombs on you faster and faster until it got insanely hard. Well the idea is inverted and wrapped into a first person shooter. You are a prison guard who has to shoot escaping prisoners. Mindless arcade style fun with realistic graphics, a score board, bonuses, hidden powerups, etc.
FiringSquad: What can you tell us about the storyline for the game?
Joel Huenink: You are a prison guard with big guns and your job is to stop anyone trying to escape, which will be 1000's of death row criminals making a mad dash for a bombed out hole in the prison yard wall. Not really any story; just a lot of fun and pure adrenaline rush trying to stop everyone from escaping. They will attack the player on the harder rounds so it's not all execution, the player will fight for their own life at a harder level.
FiringSquad: What sort of locations and setting will Death Row have?
Joel Huenink: Lots of various fictional prison yards.
FiringSquad: What sort of weapons and items will the game have?
Joel Huenink: M4A1, Sniper rifle, grenades, etc. We're wanting to keep it somewhat simple though, so its not certain if we'll bother with bunches of weapons yet. The main idea is to just blow guys up by the masses with grenades and go for as many head shots as you can get, so its not clear how many weapons we really need beyond the M4A1 rifle and a grenade launcher.
FiringSquad: What kinds of enemies will Death Row have?
Joel Huenink: Convicts of various stature with make shift weapons. The convicts might have some outside help (the guys that blow a hole in the wall) that have weapons and try to help the escapees.
FiringSquad: Will the game have any multiplayer features?
Joel Huenink: We're tossing an idea around about co-op where you can join a friends game and try to out score the other player or work together to see who can get the higher score. The main focus though is a casual fun single player game though and we'll explore multi player if it makes sense and the time allows for it.
FiringSquad: What other unique elements will Death Row have?
Joel Huenink: Well for a casual game it will have a great graphics engine, Amp II. We'll also throw in several modes for each level so that the player has to clear each round to progress to the actual next level. Head shot awards, unlocking of new weapons or power ups, easter eggs, bonus rounds, lots of fun stuff like that.
FiringSquad: 4D Rulers uses their own AMP II engine for their games. What can you tell us about additional engine features that will be added for Death Row?
Joel Huenink: Mostly some special AI features that will allow prisoners to hide in shadows or act as a human shield to other prisoners, etc. The engine already can do 99% of what we want.
FiringSquad: How will the game be distributed and will there be a free demo released?
Joel Huenink: We're going to sell it on our web site as a digital download only for 9.99 or 14.99. No box, no CD, no mess, no fuss. We'll release a free demo once the game is ready. We're excited to see how it will do. We're open to traditional publishing as well, but we're just going to make the game and start selling it. If a publisher comes along between now and then and present a win/win deal for us, we're fine with that too, but the plan is to just bust this out and see what it does.
FiringSquad: Currently what is the scheduled release date for Death Row?
Joel Huenink: Some time in April.
FiringSquad: Is the company still licensing AMP II to other developers and if so what are the terms to license the engine?
Joel Huenink: Yes, we are. Engine licensing options are listed on this page http://www.4drulers.com/amp.html but we also hold a bi-weekly silent engine auction where the bidder can email me joel@4drulers.com a silent bid, and if it's the high bid then they walk away with an engine at the price they bid. Minimum bid is 10% of the list price. So basically if someone wants the professional version which is 1,000.00 USD, they can bid 100 and if nobody beats that bid by the 15th or end of each month, (the bidding period) they can get a license for 10% of the cost or whatever they bid, provided nobody out bid them.
FiringSquad: Finally is there anything else you wish to say about Gore, Death Row and 4D Rulers in general?
Joel Huenink: I'd like to say that we're excited to be making our own intellectual property again, and be able to talk about them freely. Part of the problem we've faced before is trying to fight all the industry giants and dealing with publishers. Your typical AAA FPS will take a 30-100 person team or larger, a state of the art engine, cut scenes, Hollywood voice acting, and AAA budgets 100x the size we get. So instead of trying to compete with that, we're going to carve our own niche and make games that are completely different in some regard, yet still bank on our skills and leverages that people liked about Gore and our engine. Gore was our most successful product because we loved the game we made, and I don't think you can create that kind of love in a publisher/developer relationship unless they are giving you a fat budget, a lot of time, and total control of the product and media relations, and we've yet to encounter that situation. So we're back to operating at a level where we are in control of the games we make, and there are no obstacles between us and our customers money, the media, etc. I see this as a win/win situation for us and our customers.

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