Interview with TJ "PAINGOD" Wagner,  Producer: Microsoft MechWarrior 4: Vengeance

ActiveWin.com: What gameplay differences were you out to make when you designed
Mechwarrior 4, compared to Mechwarrior 2 or 3?

TJ "PAINGOD" Wagner: Our main goal was to make ‘MechWarrior 4 more accessible the action audience while maintaining the SIM aspects that the ‘MechWarrior community expects. We were also aiming for a more balanced game that made all of the ‘Mechs unique and serve a particular purpose. Last but not least, we set out from the beginning to bring a robust and exciting multiplayer experience to the masses. All of the feedback we have gotten so far shows that we were successful these areas.

ActiveWin.com: Are there any details on a forthcoming patch, and if so, will we see
any new features added to the game?

TJ "PAINGOD" Wagner: We are working on releasing an update to the game. Right now we are exploring all the issues and requests.

ActiveWin.com: Some people complain that the Gauss Rifle is too powerful in
Mechwarrior 4, do you believe this is inaccurate?

TJ "PAINGOD" Wagner: I’ve also heard that LBX’s, Large Pulse Lasers, LRM’s and PPC’s are too powerful as well. This tells me that the weapons are well balanced and people are experimenting with lots of different configurations.

ActiveWin.com: Are there any plans for future addons or updates?

TJ "PAINGOD" Wagner: In addition to the update I mentioned we plan to release a mission editor and a suite of tools to the community. This will allow users to create both single player and multi player missions to distribute on the web.

ActiveWin.com: Do you plan to make it available for third parties to modify the game,
given the existence of a "Mods" section of the Mechwarrior 4 Multiplayer
Zonestats?

TJ "PAINGOD" Wagner: Right now we are investigating how much of the game we can let the users modify. They will be able to make their own game types and scoring. How this will figure into the Zonestats page has yet to be determined.

ActiveWin.com: How long was Microsoft Mechwarrior 4 in development? How many people were on the development team?

TJ "PAINGOD" Wagner: The main part of the development was 18-20 months. The core team was made up of 28 artists, designers and programmers.

ActiveWin.com: What is your favorite part of this game?

TJ "PAINGOD" Wagner: Definitely Multi-Player. My personal favorite is playing "No Return" team games at night.

ActiveWin.com: Were there any features that personally you would like to see in future releases that aren't in the current version?

TJ "PAINGOD" Wagner: I would like to see Co-Op campaigns and more mulitplayer game types.

ActiveWin.com: Are there any new cheats available in this game?

TJ "PAINGOD" Wagner: No, the only cheats we put in the game we put up front in the Options screen. If users want to play with unlimited ammo or invincible, let them (but only in single player).

ActiveWin.com: Do you have anything else to add?

TJ "PAINGOD" Wagner: Just want to thank everyone who bought the game. It’s a blast to go online and finding thousands of people to play ‘MechWarrior 4 with.

Links

• Microsoft MechWarrior 4 Vengeance Website
• Microsoft MechWarrior 4 Vengeance Review - ActiveWin.com

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