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SPECIAL ISSUE 11: TABLE OF CONTENTS |
JANUARY 2001 |
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Editorial Pyro Studios Interview Reader's Q&A |
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Editorial
Greetings Commander,
The NEWS FLASH returns from a 3 month winter heitus. While this Special Edition
may be an abbreviated version of what you have grown accustomed to, I assure you it is packed with great news and information! For the
NEWS FLASH editors may have taken some time off, but our good friends at Pyro Studios have been working overtime.
Not only are they busily putting the finishing touches
on Commandos 2, they also found time to develop and send us an installer that will now allow Commandos to be installed and played on Windows 2000. Is that all...far from it.
The C2 demo is reportedly being beta tested. The Commandos Fortress is currently gearing up to bring us live DEMO coverage on the
day of its release. We here at CDZ have created a series of Commandos 2 posters based on actual WW2 propaganda posters. A new poster
will be displayed each day until the release of Commandos 2. And if all this isn't enough, I've saved the best news for last.
Commandos: MI6 webmaster Tom Trude and myself joined forces to bring you an exclusive interview with Jon Beltran, Gonzo Suárez and the rest of the Commandos 2 Development team at Pyro Studios.
So, without any further ado let's get right to the interview!
Till next time, Jim
Jim Morris
Webmaster@ Commandos DropZone
commandos_dropzone@yahoo.com
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Pyro Studios Interview
Commandos: MI6 Webmaster Tom Trude and CDZ teamed up to bring you an exclusive interview of Commandos 2 lead programmer Jon Beltran, Commandos 2 project lead and Lord Creator Gonzo Suárez and the rest of the development team at Pyro Studios. Amidst rumors and speculation regarding the actual release date of the C2 playable demo and retail edition, we were pleased when they agreed to take time out of their busy schedule to answer our queries. A range of topics were covered not being limited in scope to simply Commandos 2 but Commandos BEL and BCOD as well. We hope that many of your questions will be answered here as well.
MI6: Greetings...The recent (USA) PC Gamer preview stated that multiplay will be limited to LAN connections. Does this mean that direct IP to IP internet play will not be possible with Commandos 2? And Will Commandos 2 be on any of the multiplayer servers like Mplayer/GameSpy?
PYRO: It Will be possible to play with LAN connections, and on the Internet. It is still to early to say if Commandos 2 will be on any of the game servers, and of course, which servers. This step comes after the game is finished.
CDZ: Several interviews mentioned that the larger missions will have "parts" or "tasks." Will these parts be playable as seperate multiplay missions? Will there be any "multiplayer only" maps?
PYRO: The collaborative mode is the multiplayer mode that is most advanced. In this mode, the single player missions will be used, with some variations. If the deathmatch mode evolves, as we expect, it will have maps or variations with the goal to enhance it.
MI6: Will Commandos 2 multiplayer be compatible with voice chat programs like Roger Wilco and Micosoft GameVoice?
PYRO: We haven’t decided anything about this issue yet, but if we integrate voice chat in the game, it will be compatible with the standard programs.
CDZ: It appeares that the PC control keys will be very different from the previous games. Can you give us a few examples of the key changes, like how to rotate the maps, control the dog, and exchange items?
PYRO: The control keys selection is one thing that we can change right up until the final version, but some keys are standard for comfort. About this I can tell you:
MI6: Will the Commandos have to earn their new abilities in the traning missions?
PYRO: No, the commandos start with their skills. The truth is that, in some cases, they need items to correctly use their skills. They can improve their skills by usage, but this will happen during game mission time and not in training.
CDZ: Which extra characters will be available for players to choose from in a 16 player deathmatch game?
PYRO: It is still to early to know about deathmatch, but I can tell you that there will be a lot of characters appearing in the game, besides the commandos.
MI6: Did you have any special help with World War II research in the planing stages and which movies were screened? Can you give us a list of the 12 mission titles?
PYRO: We have an investigation and documentation team on our own that is still working on some details. We have seen all of the great war movies of the Second World War like “The bridge over the river Kwai”, “Saving private Ryan”, “The guns of Navarone”, ”Patton”, “The great escape”, “The thin red line”, “Paris is burning”, and others. I can not give you the mission titles yet because they aren’t set.
CDZ: The PC Gamer preview also mentiond a post mission reward system. Can you elaberate on how it works? Will the rank system be returning and does it effect subsequent missions as it did in Behind Enemy Lines?
PYRO: Basically we continue with the CBEL system, and I would prefer not to say anything about the “rewards” at this time.
MI6: What are the minimum and recommended PC hardware requirements? What hardware would give multiplayers an edge over the competition?
PYRO: It will be possible to play on any medium PC, and the best advantages in the multiplayer mode will still be a good connection.
CDZ: Can you give us a detailed list of the vehicles that will be included in Commandos 2?
PYRO: This is not a complete list, but some of them will be:
NOTE: For complete information of the vehicles currently found in Commandos visit the CDZ's EXCLUSIVES -- VEHICLES section.)
MI6: Is the release date for Commandos 2 still March, and when can fans expect the demo to be released?
PYRO: The demo will be published very soon, and it is possible that the finished game will surprise lots of people with the demo very hot in their PCs. (CDZ - I haven't a clue what this means!)
CDZ: Do you have any comment on Spellbound/Infogames and their upcoming game "Desperados"?
PYRO: We haven’t seen the game, but the screenshots are nice.
MI6: Commandos Behind Enemy Lines has different versions that are not compatible in multiplay. Commandos Beyond The Call of Duty has no such version conflicts. Can multiplay fans expect the same for Commandos 2?
PYRO: Of course, there will be no problems with that.
CDZ: What vehicle is the turetted German half track based-on? (Note: It appears to be a combination of the SdKFZ 231 and the SdKFZ 250, Sub variant 9).
PYRO: Actually, it is a combination of the SdKFZ 250/9 body and the SdKFZ 232 (8 RAD) turret without his original antenna.
CDZ: Commandos Behind Enemy Lines and Commandos Beyond The Call of Duty do not work under Windows 2000. Are you working to fix this?
PYRO: In fact it is an installer problem. We are sending out a patch for it. (See 'Readers Questions and Answers' in this issue.)
MI6: Will there be an X-Box version of Commandos 2?
PYRO: Yes.
Thanks again to Jon, Gonzo and the rest the team for taking the time to write to us.
Well, that's a wrap for now folks. All indications are that we are still looking
at a MARCH 2001 retail release date and perhaps a demo to be released in the next few weeks.
Commandos what?...that's right, ROCKS!
READER'S QUESTION & ANSWERE SECTION
A:
Best regards,
If you use this installer drop me a line and
tell me how the install went and if you are indeed able to finally play Commandos using Windows 2000.
For those of you who may not be familiar with Win2K, it is the upgrade for Windows NT 4.0 which was designed as a business platform.
Enjoy Reading Special thanks to Tom Trude, Commandos: MI6 Webmaster:
Any idea how to get Commandos working under Windows 2000?
Until last week, the only possible solution would have been to follow the instructions in the
AMMUNITION - Q&A section of the CDZ. This involved the risky business of editing the Windows registry. That
is now history. Early last week, Lead Commandos programmer Jon Beltran of Pyro Studios sent us a
Windows 2000 Commandos BEL installer. You can download this 503Kb WinZip file HERE.
The setup menu is in english, but this installer works with all versions of Commandos Behind Enemy Lines and presumably Beyond the Call of Duty.
It's also available on the Commandos: MI6 versions page
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"...I am enclosing a version of the Commandos 1 installer which works under Windows 2000. You can post it on the website and pass it
along to the other webmasters. The game itself does work with Windows 2000. The
installer is in english but works with all versions of Commandos 1."
Jon Beltran
Lead Programmer - Commandos 2
Pyro Studios
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For complete info on Win NT/2000 visit:
Correspondence by email to: indianos@ath.forthnet.gr
Don't miss the exciting story "Vodka Nights" based on the Commandos game itself. More stories will follow!
You can find the story on the web in this URL:
http://www.fanfiction.net/master.cfm?action=story-read&storyid=8713All information contained in this newsletter is accurate and valid as of the date of issue.
For further details contact Jim Morris, the Commandos Dropzone Webmaster (and my boss):
commandos_dropzone@yahoo.com
Artwork and pictures are copyright © of Eidos Interactive Limited, Pyro Studios and Paramount Pictures Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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