E3 2006: Indiana Jones Eyes-on - IGN (original) (raw)

First, a brief clarification: it is one thing to look next-gen, and it's quite another to play next-gen. So far, plenty of games have looked a step above the last generation, but few have actually played differently. Fewer still have offered any kind of evolved gameplay. And virtually none has proved that the games industry occupies next-generation space.
It looks like that time has come and gone. And who better to welcome a new era in entertainment than Indiana Jones? Perhaps more than any other hero, Indiana Jones personifies the kind of escapist fantasy that defines both the movie and games industry. So in a way, it's only fitting that he star in one of the first games to really put next-generation hardware to good use (the recently released official trailer that hit the net just moments ago doesn't even come close to what the game actually does -- the trailer simply isn't any good... we honestly don't know what happened there). But first, a word on game basics. Or rather, the fact LucasArts didn't really offer any. At this point, it has engineered the technology to make the game run, and it has ironed out the story. But there's little in terms of specifics. And speaking of story, it does tie in to the upcoming movie. Developers said George Lucas gave them a chunk of the script for use in the game. But in terms of how many missions it'll have or exactly what kinds of puzzles and obstacles to expect, is unknown. What LucasArts has said, though, is that the game will include everything fans have come to expect -- including plenty of brawling, lethal traps, artifacts and moments of death-defying coolness.

To prove the point, LucasArts demoed its Indiana Jones title at a private event in San Francisco. And sorry, there's no official title, so no one hoping for hints on the upcoming film will get any. For now, it's only known as "Indiana Jones 2007". Not that it matters. At its current state, the technology behind it is so impressive, you could call it Indiana's Fairy Princess Adventure and it wouldn't deter our interest any. And by "current state," you should understand the game is more than a year away from completion.

As such, developers have only finished a small portion of the actual game. As absurd as it sounds, however, it's the technology behind the game that's what is truly exciting. It's so for a very simple reason too: it just hasn't been used until now. But after watching a 40-minute demonstration it's abundantly clear it has the potential to change the way you play games. All of this may sound like obscene hype. It may be. But If LucasArts winds up meeting its goals and delivers exactly what it wants when Indiana Jones ships, then it's not hype; it's simple honesty.

Now for the good stuff. Indiana Jones stands on two pillars of wicked-cool technology. Each lends the game an extreme degree of unpredictability; the first through advanced physics and the other through artificial intelligence. Tech number one, called Euphoria, deals strictly with character behavior and artificial intelligence. It lets NPC characters interact with their environment realistically. Beyond this, it grants them the tools and intelligence necessary to accomplish their own agendas, whether that's helping Indy or trying to kill him.

Fortunately, this technology is well out of the planning stages. In fact, it's up and running on actual development kits. As such, LucasArts treated its guests to a live demonstration to prove how advanced Euphoria really is. The scene took place in 1939, inside of San Francisco's China Town. Indy appeared in the middle of the screen, with three enemies approaching from a nearby ally. They cautiously walked up and started throwing punches, which, at first, wasn't too exciting at all. It looked great, like most next-generation titles, but it didn't seem innovative by any means.

Half an hour later, opinions had shifted in a major way. Throughout the entire demo, enemies reacted differently to every attack. Every time Indy grabbed someone and tossed him through a window or door, he'd react in another way. And that's because there isn't a single canned animation in the entire game. Behavioral intelligence dictates every gesture, punch, kick and grapple.

Say you punch an enemy and he falls. Not only will he fall differently every time, but he'll stand up differently also. Enemies will use tables, cars or anything else available to help them get their bearings. Again, it's not a canned animation. Enemies simply know that an object is an easier way to get back up. As such, you'll toss villainous thugs through all manners of stuff and they'll try to recover from your attacks with whatever is available to them.

Now, apply this artificial thought process to all computer-controlled characters. What you wind up with is highly dynamic gameplay that's never the same. Even the most mundane action becomes spontaneous since characters have to deal with an array of physical and environmental factors. Here's another example: say Indy grabs an enemy by the shirt and begins pushing him. The enemy won't use a series of leg animations to make it look like he's struggling. The leg animations you'll see represent a genuine attempt by said thug to keep his balance... and yes, LucasArts demoed this live during its presentation.

Then came the explosive barrels. Since part of the game takes place in Chinatown, it's only fitting that barrels full of fireworks litter the streets. While it's unclear exactly how they'll react in the finished product, theses barrels explode whenever something touches them. This, of course, includes enemies. Toss one on top of a barrel and the multi-color explosion sends him flying dozens of feet in the air. Opponents could end up on a rooftop, huddled behind a dumpster, or even get sent several feet above you -- holding on to a fire escape for dear life. Self preservation dictates these behaviors, not a pre-defined routine. It's possible that you'll only see enemies react a certain way once, and never again.

The demo then shifted from the Chinatown brawl to a high-speed chase through the streets of San Francisco. Indy stood atop a cable car with two enemy-filed trucks speeding alongside him. Since every villain in the world wants Indy dead and buried, they begin leaping off their trucks to reach the cable car. Some made it safely while others fell to their (temple of) doom. This sequence would have looked cool in any game, only here it wasn't pre-defined. It was another display of dynamic enemy behavior.

The enemies that didn't make the jump fell because they simply miscalculated the speed of the cable car, or the speed of their own trucks, or maybe even their own strength. As crazy as it sounds, developers stated that a character's muscle strength would have an effect on whether they land a jump and maintain their balance. One such villain, who missed the jump by an inch, actually held on to the railing on the side of the cable car. Since he couldn't pull himself up, he kicked in the window to find his footing then climbed to the top.

Cooler still, the drivers for each truck acted dynamically as well. They had to weave through traffic dodging other vehicles and pedestrians. Sometimes they'd crash head-on with other cars, other times they'd dodge obstacles just fine. Also, the buildings scrolled into view procedurally, so you'll never notice a moment of pop-up. Not only that, the lighting during this stage looked especially good. Developers then commented that ILM (Industrial Light and Magic) worked on all of the title's lighting using the same rendering farm as Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (that would be the movie, not the game). Impressive, to say the least. Add this to the fact only 20% of the game is actually finished, including special effects, and there's plenty of reasons to get excited.

In addition to Euphoria, Indiana Jones will also feature a technology dubbed Digital Molecular Matter. It lets materials in the environment react like their real-world counterparts. Wood buckles and splinters realistically; ice and glass cracks and shatters; metal bends and dents under extreme force. The effect is far cooler than it sounds. Sure, you've seen wooden crates bust open and glass shatter before, but up until now, most environmental destruction has been the result of pre-defined animations and texture work. Even when it wasn't, it never took real-world physical properties into consideration.

Now, you'll rarely see a door or window break apart the same way twice. In the same way that Euphoria allows for extreme levels of unpredictability in enemy behavior, Digital Molecular Matter recreates the same effect with wood, ice, rubber, graphite, cement, glass, metal and any other material developers want. Actually watching the effect in motion is spectacular. Depending on how Indy hurls someone through a door, the angle, speed and strength of the throw will create near-limitless door-smashing goodness. But it won't just be doors -- the game also lets you manipulate an array of different materials with your fists, weapons, and anything else you can find.

Then came one final demo where a computer-controlled Indy stood on a narrow bridge. Instead of controlling the scrapping hero, the player would sway the bridge to try and knock Indy off his feet. The Euphoria-powered Jones then tried keeping his balance as best he could. He would bend his knees, widen his stance and use his arms to stop himself from falling. By the end of the demo, LucasArts had everyone in the room convinced: it would deliver one of the first, true next-generation experiences. And it wouldn't be just a massive jump in visual prowess, but the logical next step in immersive technologies. This stuff will help make games play better. And that should be more important than cramming 90,000 characters on screen at once.

Having said all of that, everyone (including IGN folk) will have to wait and see what comes of Indiana Jones. But for the moment, things look pretty damn good.