Background and Introduction: Where No Man Has Gone Before

When I first learned of this project some months back I didn't take much interest. Frankly, it sounded like another DOOM or DUKE NUKEM, a first person shooter with a military theme. However, while researching the Spearhead title I began to take more interest.

First, the originator of the game and co-founder of Zombie Interactive is Mark Long, himself an ex-Army officer who is Ranger and Airborne qualified. Second, Marks approach is unique. He intentionally took a risk in initiating a simulation of this type that is less arcade than realistic. Third, the graphics, animation techniques, and AI are unique to Spec Ops. Using a proprietary engine and inventing some new techniques, Zombie has aimed at unprecedented realism in a massive environment.

What do I mean by unprecedented realism? It sounds like nice journalistic jingoism... How about crickets and bird chirping, crunching leaves as you step forward, birdcalls from teammates. How about 500 distinct sounds including 100 exclusive sound fiiles froma special multi million dollar simulation system? But thats not all.

Research included attending "live fire" drills at nearby Fort Lewis. A former special forces instructor was consulted on the project and has been the subject of several motion capture sessions.

And thats another topic in itself. Every character in the game is made up of polygons which are textured using photographic data. Actually, everything in the WORLD is phtot-textured for realism, even enemy faces. Motion capture for the game was done using two real soldiers, a US Army Ranger and a member of the US Army Special Forces. More than 250 movements were captured at BioVision Studios, inlcuding military type actions such as low crawling, kneeing and firing a weapon, throwing a grenade etc. More than 100 moves will be available at each level of the game.

What about AI? Both Mark Long and his partner Joanne Alexander have extensive AI backgrounds. "Potential fields" and "strange attractor" AI is at the base of Spec Ops. Alexander breaks down the AI in a comparison to two big magnets, which either repel or attract objects to each other. "Strange attractor" as Alexander calls it, implements chaos algorithms that underlie on-screen character motions. This will increase replay value, not to mention adding incredible and almost human variety to the reactions and interactions of characters.

In Spec Ops a mission starts off with you flying in by helicopter and you have four sub-missions. Mark Long:

" In the Aurora mission, you have to find a biplane, try to rescue the two pilots that are in there, remove the data module, release it via an air balloon and then an AC-130 comes in and picks it up. Then you move on to two other sub-missions, and the guys that are on the Aurora are Russian special forces guys. You have to fight them off, get into the Aurora, then fight your way back out and make your extraction point later on."

Csim: Thanks for taking the time Sandra! Can you describe for us your role in production of Spearhead?

Sandra: Sure, but let me start by giving a brief description of Spec Ops - U.S. Army Rangers. The game is a third person shooter/sim that captures the realism of mission campaigns of the U.S. Army Ranger ground infantry units. There are 5 unique environments from all over the globe, each offering the player at least 3 separate mission objectives.

While the missions tend to offer the player a sense of linearity, the environments are all pretty large and there is lots of exploration that can be done if you want to take the risk.

Our goal here is Action and Realism. We want the player to feel completely immersed in a realistic combat sim.

Now let's start back at the end of '95 when we just had a two page description of the game. As the Producer, my first job was to extend the two page description into a working design document. This first document turned out to be 200 pages long and included all aspects of technical, art, and game design, as well as the budget and schedule. From there my job has changed over the course of development. I hired the entire team (now up to 15 people), acquired all the equipment that we have, manage the day to day details, maintain the budget and schedule, and work closely with the technical lead and art director to make sure we are hitting our goals.

Csim: How did you get into the simulation industry?

Sandra: Basically the co-founder of the company, Mark Long, wanted me to run the show on Spec Ops even though I had no prior experience in the industry because of the fact that I'm pretty anal about organization and because of my athletic temperament. Prior to Zombie, I was working in art administration at the Center on Contemporary Art here in Seattle. With a degree in Art History, there's not a whole lot of opportunity out there though. I saw Zombie as a chance to step into the interactive realm and see what I could do. I don't think I ever expected to find myself where I am right now, but I am definitely learning an awful lot as I go along. I think the most difficult part about Spec Ops is the balance of realism and fun. It's a game after all.

Csim: I know that this occupation is particularly demanding. When you aren't buried in administration or design issues what do you do for fun?

Sandra: I work out alot because it relieves stress and I just enjoy doing it for myself. I also enjoy things like rock climbing and mountain climbing because they are very focused and exhilarating, although I haven't had much time for these lately due to never ending deadlines. Oh, and there is also the art thing that I still get to participate in every once in a while!

Csim: When did the Special Ops project come into being?

Sandra: At the end of 1995, when Zombie completed their first two titles and were looking at starting something new. The team actually didn't start coming together until about May of '96 though.

Csim: Do you have personal history that relates to the project?

Sandra: Not personally, but the co-founders of the company, Mark Long and Joanna Alexander come from military research backgrounds so the Spec Ops titles are something they always wanted to pursue. Mark is actually an ex-Army Ranger so this project was his baby initially. I've definitely learned more than I ever wanted to know about the military though and have developed a fascination for the types of people actually involved in the real thing. I think it's a good balance to have the military experienced at hand, who are concerned more about the realism aspect of the game, and the rest of the team who are concerned about making the game a fun experience for the player.

Csim: What other special resources are being accessed for this project?

Sandra: I initiated alot of contacts through the military units here in Ft. Lewis. When I first made contact, the people I talked to tended to be very curt until I explained to them exactly what we were trying to do. They especially like the fact that we are concentrating on realism. The Special Operations units don't like to be made out to be commando types like they are often portrayed in film.

The units have really helped us out over the course of our development, from inviting us to watch their "live fire" exercises, to capturing the gunfire sounds in the field with them, to lending us a Ranger for the weekend to do our motion capture, to taking very specific photos for us of their vehicles, to sending a Ranger unit to a photo studio downtown so we could photograph their faces for our game. We have also discussed our level designs with several officers who have helped guide us in the right direction if we were ever too far off. We definitely owe a lot to the military for being so helpful over the course of our production.

Csim: Tell us about your game engine. Was it developed by MAK?

Sandra: Actually we are not working with MAK. We developed our own cross platform game engine from scratch in house. We had a long R&D period to develop the engine and that is why the development period has been longer than most games. Currently we are looking at about 2 years total by the time we ship during first quarter '98 to develop the engine and the game. We are planning on using the engine to develop future Special Operations based titles such as the Navy Seals or the British SAS forces so developing our own engine has definitely helped us to create a niche for ourselves.

Csim: What are the general design goals for Spec Ops?

Sandra: Realism, action, and hints of strategy. The player can either choose to go in and shoot everything around him or he can use a more strategic method to complete the mission objectives within the time limit given. The enemy AI will be attached to an overall defcon level, so if you go into the mission shooting, the enemy will be immediately alerted and ready for you. If you choose a more sneaky disposition, then you will be able to avoid some enemy as well as sneak up on them.

Special Operations missions tend to be top secret and the guys in these units are usually regarded as heroes. We are giving the player the opportunity to take on this role. Minus the backbreaking training that these guys go through and the more boring aspects of the job, such as lying in the mud for hours waiting for just the right time to move into position, we are giving the player the opportunity to fill the shoes of a real Army Ranger. We need to make it fun after all and action is what the game player demands.

Csim: From what I have seen Spec Ops is really opening a door into a new genre in military simulations. What is it like being in that position?

Sandra: It's really a great feeling. I get email from people almost every day who see our web page and have been dying for a game like this ever since EA's Seal Team came out in '93. People are already buying hardware accelerated boards for their computers just to be able to play our game when it comes out. While there has been a lot of risk involved in making this game, such as the development of our own engine, dealing with all outdoor environments, staying within the bounds of realism while also trying to make the game fun... it's already proving to pay off.

There isn't a real commander per say. Instead the player is allowed to play each of the Ranger characters in order to complete all of the mission objectives within a given environment.

Csim: It appears that we will see light source shading, shadows etc. Will smoke and fog effects also be present?

Sandra: Yes, definitely. We are using our own proprietary tools to create the smoke and explosion effects instead of the usual Pyromania effects that you see just about everywhere. There will also be snow in one level and rain in another.

, Csim: How will you balance realism in the sim so that players can get in quickly and begin to learn tactics, the control interface etc?

Sandra: We are planning on having a training level so that the player can get adjusted to the controls and see how the different weapons and equipment work. The environment will be similar to what is used for training in the field, such as a tire house or pop-up target system. As far as the heads up display goes, we are trying to keep this as simple as possible so as not to take away from the overall experience. Instead of using things like icons, we've decided to use only simple text to describe things to the player so as not to take away from the realism aspect of the game too much.

Csim: Tell us about the control interface. How will we control infantry units and individuals? How much flexibility will we have in control?

Sandra: In real life, Rangers don't actually get to control their own missions. Instead, they are given their orders and they complete them without any questions asked. Therefore, we have not given the player the opportunity to actually control the other Rangers on the team. There isn't a real commander per say. Instead the player is allowed to play each of the Ranger characters in order to complete all of the mission objectives within a given environment.

For example, there are usually three teams of two Rangers involved in each environment. Each group has a separate mission objective. You start out in the first team, which includes yourself and your Ranger buddy. You can switch back and forth from one to the other during the course of the first mission. If you die as one of these guys, you immediately switch into your buddy. If you complete your mission objective or both Rangers die, you switch into the next two man team and complete the next mission objective.

Each Ranger is also equipped differently depending on their level of expertise. For example, if you are on the demolitions team, you may have more explosives at your disposal than the security team. Also, some Rangers may have different main weapons as well. Some have M16's, while others have M249 SAW's. In this way, we not only keep the player at the height of action, but also allow the player to use different weapons and equipment throughout the game.

Csim: Will we also have control of any vehicles? If so, what?

Sandra: No vehicle control in the first game, but we are already thinking about it for the next Spec Ops title.

Csim: What kind of weapons will be modelled?

Sandra: Rangers will have:

• M16
• M203 w/ grenade launcher
• M249 SAW
• AT4
• .50BMP Sniper Rifle
• SPAS 15 Combat Shotgun
• Thermite grenades
• Frag grenades
• .73mm Mortar
• Satchel charges
• Claymore mines

Enemies will have:

• AK47
• RPK
• .73mm Mortar
• M60 machine gun
• H&K G11
• Calico M960A
• RPG7
• SSG Sniper rifle
• Russian light machine guns

Throughout the game we have taken precise measures to get all details as accurate as possible. Just about all the textures in the game were created from original photo source material, including the weapons.

Csim: Physics modeling is a real growth area in ground sims these days.... What kind of physical properties will affect objects in Spec Ops?

Sandra: Each environment is very different in it's terrain features. Our environments consist of: forest, snow covered, jungle, desert, and semi-urban. The surface feel for each of these will be very different.

For example, the physics for the snow will obviously be different than for the jungle in that the player will slide down steep slopes in the snow. Sound will also play a large part in the overall feel of the environments. The sounds for the footsteps are directly linked to the type of terrain the player is currently treading on.

Other physical properties include collision detection with static and dynamic objects, and ballistics calculations at the time of gunfire. Since most weapons can fire projectiles at a fast enough speed to assure instantaneous collisions, we are tracing a ray along the path of gunfire in order to determine which objects it intersects. Weapon recoil, and visual effects on destroyed objects are also a part of the physics routines.

You may have to turn up brightness to see the Ranger..

Csim: How much detail will we see in weapons models? How does this relate to damage modelling?

Sandra: Throughout the game we have taken precise measures to get all details as accurate as possible. Just about all the textures in the game were created from original photo source material, including the weapons.

As far as damage modeling, we will be creating bullet holes where the gunfire intersects the objects. As far as explosives go, such as grenades or satchel charges, we will swap in damaged texture maps and smoke when objects are struck.

Csim: How will damage resolution be handled? Will it matter what direction you hit the enemy from and where your round impacts? Can we target particular locations to try to disable enemy units?

Sandra: These questions seem to affect the AI model the most so I'll answer from that perspective. Some mission objectives will include targeting certain enemy areas, but there will always be a best and worst way to do this. If the player chooses to try to do the mission out of the order it was given, then there could be some serious repercussions in that the defcon level will immediately be raised and therefore the player will most likely be killed sooner.

There are certain areas throughout the game that are not mission objectives though and would definitely help the player if they were destroyed. There are also highly sensitive objects in some environments that you will not want to hit with gunfire, such as SCUD missiles.

Csim: I understand infantry modelling will be highly realistic. What are the goals in this area?

Sandra: In order to get the character models as accurate as possible throughout the game, I bought some of the uniforms and other clothing and we photographed them on different members of the team. All of the photos were then scanned in and texture mapped onto the different character models. We did our research on the look of all the Rangers in each environment as well as the enemies. And to add to the realistic quality of the characters, we had a Ranger and a Special Forces guy do the motion capture for all the characters. After all, nobody can do the moves better than a well trained soldier. The goal once again is realism. We want to hear from the Rangers themselves that our game is cool. Csim: What happens when you are wounded? What happens when you are killed?

Sandra: When you are wounded, you will fall to one knee but still be able to continue playing. When you are killed, you will automatically switch to your buddy or the next Ranger team. Since there are 6 Rangers in each environment, you essentially get 6 lives. If you are the last Ranger and you are killed, you lose the mission and see the repercussions, i.e. the SCUD's take off to kill the South Koreans.

The enemy will be in certain positions either ready for the player or not depending on the defcon level. If the player is heard early on, then the enemy will be more aware and sometimes be hiding from the player on rooftops or behind buildings. Enemy awareness will also depend on visual recognition of the player.

Csim: Tell us about the AI in Spec Ops. How will the enemy react and respond? Will there be a "panic" model, morale factors, "hide" and "avoidance" AI?

Sandra: The enemy will react and respond depending on the defcon level as described earlier. This is something we've been working on recently. The enemy will be in certain positions either ready for the player or not depending on the defcon level. If the player is heard early on, then the enemy will be more aware and sometimes be hiding from the player on rooftops or behind buildings. Enemy awareness will also depend on visual recognition of the player as well as the sound of an explosion within a certain distance.

The enemy can also contact their buddies in another area of the game so that they are ready for you as well. Once you start blowing things up and shooting everything in site, all hell breaks loose. For instance, if the player decides to blow up a vehicle as soon as he enters the game, then the enemy will be aware of infiltration right away. On the other hand, if the player decides to be a little more stealthy, he will be able to get through the environment with minimum casualties. Enemies are also intelligent enough to run away from grenades and will sometimes run away from the player.

Csim: Will any air action be modelled? If so, how will it integrate to the sim and affect tactics?

Sandra: In some cases enemy helicopters fly above and land periodically in order to drop off more enemies. In others, aircraft can be taxiing on the ground or getting ready to take off and you will need to stop them. If you do not stop them, then they can attack you from above. A lot of this will be done with sound and bullets hitting the ground around you.

Air support for the player is included in some missions in order to completely destroy certain areas with high explosives from above. This is basically a reward scenario for getting to the end of the mission.

Csim: Tell us about the mission and campaign structure. How many missions will the player have to choose from?

Sandra: Each environment has it's own set of mission objectives depending on the situation. We have a raid and destroy mission, a reprisal attack, a hostage rescue, a counter terrorist attack, and a seek and destroy mission.

There are 5 separate environments that the player will be able to choose from. Depending on the level of difficulty chosen, the player will have access to certain environments and not to others. This way, there is a reward for getting through the first few environments but at the same time gives the player some options as to what environment to play.

Csim: I understand infantry modelling will be highly realistic. What are the goals in this area?

Sandra: In order to get the character models as accurate as possible throughout the game, I bought some of the uniforms and other clothing and we photographed them on different members of the team. All of the photos were then scanned in and texture mapped onto the different character models. We did our research on the look of all the Rangers in each environment as well as the enemies. And to add to the realistic quality of the characters, we had a Ranger and a Special Forces guy do the motion capture for all the characters. After all, nobody can do the moves better than a well trained soldier. The goal once again is realism. We want to hear from the Rangers themselves that our game is cool.

Csim: What happens when you are wounded? What happens when you are killed?

Sandra: When you are wounded, you will fall to one knee but still be able to continue playing. When you are killed, you will automatically switch to your buddy or the next Ranger team. Since there are 6 Rangers in each environment, you essentially get 6 lives. If you are the last Ranger and you are killed, you lose the mission and see the repercussions, i.e. the SCUD's take off to kill the South Koreans.

The enemy will be in certain positions either ready for the player or not depending on the defcon level. If the player is heard early on, then the enemy will be more aware and sometimes be hiding from the player on rooftops or behind buildings. Enemy awareness will also depend on visual recognition of the player.

Csim: Tell us about the AI in Spec Ops. How will the enemy react and respond? Will there be a "panic" model, morale factors, "hide" and "avoidance" AI?

Sandra: The enemy will react and respond depending on the defcon level as described earlier. This is something we've been working on recently. The enemy will be in certain positions either ready for the player or not depending on the defcon level. If the player is heard early on, then the enemy will be more aware and sometimes be hiding from the player on rooftops or behind buildings. Enemy awareness will also depend on visual recognition of the player as well as the sound of an explosion within a certain distance.

The enemy can also contact their buddies in another area of the game so that they are ready for you as well. Once you start blowing things up and shooting everything in site, all hell breaks loose. For instance, if the player decides to blow up a vehicle as soon as he enters the game, then the enemy will be aware of infiltration right away. On the other hand, if the player decides to be a little more stealthy, he will be able to get through the environment with minimum casualties. Enemies are also intelligent enough to run away from grenades and will sometimes run away from the player.

Csim: Will any air action be modelled? If so, how will it integrate to the sim and affect tactics?

Sandra: In some cases enemy helicopters fly above and land periodically in order to drop off more enemies. In others, aircraft can be taxiing on the ground or getting ready to take off and you will need to stop them. If you do not stop them, then they can attack you from above. A lot of this will be done with sound and bullets hitting the ground around you.

Air support for the player is included in some missions in order to completely destroy certain areas with high explosives from above. This is basically a reward scenario for getting to the end of the mission.

Csim: Tell us about the mission and campaign structure. How many missions will the player have to choose from?

Sandra: Each environment has it's own set of mission objectives depending on the situation. We have a raid and destroy mission, a reprisal attack, a hostage rescue, a counter terrorist attack, and a seek and destroy mission.

There are 5 separate environments that the player will be able to choose from. Depending on the level of difficulty chosen, the player will have access to certain environments and not to others. This way, there is a reward for getting through the first few environments but at the same time gives the player some options as to what environment to play.

Csim: Will there be training exercises? How are these modelled?

Sandra: Yes. This will be used to get the player acquainted with the weapons and equipment he has at his disposal. This will be a small area in which we will have dummy targets similar to the ones used in real training exercises. The player will need to decide quickly whether the target is lethal or not. There will also be objects to practice blowing up.

Csim: How many campaigns will exist? Are they dynamically modelled?

Sandra: Five separate environments with 3 objectives within each. We are using vertex lighting to get the overall feel for each type of environment. Most are night missions but we will have dynamic lighting to create shadows and some colored lighting affects throughout so the player never feels like he's running around in the dark. The player also has night vision goggles at his disposal, which increases the overall viewing distance.

Csim: Where will the campaigns be set? What kind of geography will we see?

Sandra: The campaigns are set in Russia, North Korea, Columbia, Mexico, and Afghanistan.The different geography types include: forest, snow covered, jungle, desert, and semi-urban.

Csim: What kind of briefing/debriefing will we see?

Sandra: The mission briefing will include a short movie of still images with teletype text describingthe current situation and how the Rangers will be inserted and extracted. If the player craves a more detailed mission scenario, there will be full operations orders for each level available within the menu. In this way, we have accommodated for both the player that simply wants to start playing immediately, as well as the sim player who is more interested in finding out as much as possible about the missions before starting.

The debriefing will include an extraction sequence as well as a score based on % of mission completion, enemies destroyed, Ranger casualties, etc.

Csim: What will be the "feel" of the sim, and what will be the primary factors contributing to "suspension of disbelief?"

Sandra: We want the player to "feel" as if he is a real Army Ranger who can be the hero and save the day. The realistic sounds, vertex lighting, motion captured moves, photo source textures, and Ranger buddy and enemy AI will all add to the realism of the game.

We are still trying to decide on either a 2 player cooperative mode or a multi-player combat arena. Either way, we could use a subset of the current mission campaigns or we could create an environment that will foster a better networked environment. Either one would support LANs and serial cable, though only the combat arena would support the Internet.

Csim: Will we see a mission editor in the release or as a later add on?

Sandra: This is a possibility for future Spec Ops titles, but most likely not for this one.

Csim: Sound modelling is a big number at Zombie. What can we expect in terms of sound detailing?

Sandra: Sound is very important in game design because it can create a suspension of disbelief all on it's own. Instead of the usual cheesy music in most games, we've decided to take a different route and focus our sound efforts on the ambient levels of detail as well as the special effects.

Our in house sound designer is awesome. I can simply convey to him the type of environment that we are going for and he can create sounds that fit perfectly.

As far as multi-player support, we are going to get the single player game out the door first and then provide an add on a few months later that includes multi-player support. People are dying for this in our game so we definitely want to give it to the player but at the same time we don't want to have to hold off further on shipping the title. We plan to have multiplayer for LAN, Serial Cable, Modem, and the Internet.

Csim: Will LAN and Internet play be available in campaign mode or only in single missions?

Sandra: We are still trying to decide on either a 2 player cooperative mode or a multi-player combat arena. Either way, we could use a subset of the current mission campaigns or we could create an environment that will foster a better networked environment. Either one would support LANs and serial cable, though only the combat arena would support the Internet.

Csim: What about hardware support? Will there be surround sound, support for force feedback, VR headsets?

Sandra: Hardware support will include 3D accelerator boards, the Sidewinder Game Pad, and possibly force feedback although this doesn't work as well with a character based game. We are still looking into surround sound. As far as the VR headsets go, these are pretty easy to support although not at the top of our list since they really didn't hit very big in the last few years and most of the manufacturer's have gone out of business.

Csim: I understand that the screenshots up now are from 3dfx hardware. What about D3d support and other chipsets?

Sandra: We are working concurrently on the D3d support and are thinking about directly supporting the new Power VR, Rendition 2, and NVIDEA chip sets. We will be looking into this support in the next few months.

Csim: What resolutions will be supported? Is this a WIN95 product?

Sandra: Resolutions will be 640x480x 64K for hardware acceleration and 320x240x16bit for software only. Yes, it is a lovely Win95 product.

Csim: What do you think is the coolest feature of Spec Ops?

Sandra: That's a hard one. I like the ability to switch between characters and the fact that the AI is smart enough to hide from the player if they know he is there. Other than that, the realistic outdoor environments are like none you have ever seen before in a real-time game and the character motion is very impressive.

Csim: What else will be bundled with the sim? Maps? Will the manual be the spiral bound type?

Sandra: We will give the player a map of each of the environments. The manual won't be very lengthy because the majority of information will be available in the game. We are thinking about putting in a subset of the Ranger Handbook to give the hard core sim player an idea of what it is like to be a real Army Ranger.

Csim: Great idea... What will be the recommended system configuration?

Sandra: Probably about a P133 w/ Win95, 16MB Ram, 20MB hard drive space, 4x CD-Rom, 16 bit audio.

Csim: Finally, when can we hope to see it!

Sandra: First Quarter of '98.

Csim: Thanks, and best of luck on what looks llike a fantastic entry into the military simulations market!

Sandra: Thanks Len. We are all pretty happy where the game is at right now and only look forward to being able to play it once the rest of the features are added. It will be sure to attract the attention of both the third person shooter market as well as the sim market.