Dreadnought Interview

Written by Charles Husemann on 9/14/2015 for PC  

Ever since I was introduced to Dreadnought at E3 a few years ago I have been waiting for the game to come out.  The game has a mix of strategy, action, and spaceships that has captured my attention.  With the game about to go into open beta I reached out with some questions about the game and I was lucky to have Peter Holzapfel, a director at YAGER answer my questions about the game.

For those who aren't familiar with the game, could you give us a high-level overview of what Dreadnought is about?
Dreadnought is an upcoming 5v5 team-based action game where players are placed in the captain’s chair of their own massive battleship and thrust into combat in deep space or above the surface of an exotic planet. It’s inspired by sci-fi classics like Star Wars and Battlestar Galactica. The game has heavy ship variations and customization for players. There are currently 15 ships comprised from five completely different classes: the Dreadnought, the Destroyer, the Corvette, the Artillery Cruiser, and the Tactical Cruiser. The game gives players command of a colossal spacecraft loaded to the brink with artillery, nukes, lasers, and one goal: blow the hell out of the opponent.

How does Dreadnought differ from other space combat games?
Big ships. There’s really no game out there with a focus on great big spaceships. The game has a more tactical combat pace than some of the dogfight space games out there; you aren't piloting a one-man fighter jet, but commanding a hulking thousand-crew-strong juggernaut of steel death. One of our points of pride with Dreadnought is how instantly familiar we were able to make the controls for newcomers; we want the game to be easy to get into and tons of fun to play, but with a lot of depth to back it up.

Dreadnought is slated to be a free to play. What kinds of things will players be able to buy in the game?
Yes, it’s F2P, so there will be a digital store. We’re looking at cosmetic items and side-grades, but we haven’t announced specific in-game purchases yet. We’ll be going into much more detail on this in the near future.

What are you doing to make sure the game doesn't become a pay-to-win situation?
Again, while we haven’t discussed specific in-game purchases yet, we definitely won’t be a pay to win game.

We wanted to create a game that we can grow together with the community over a long period of time and that has no entry barrier for players to enjoy. As developers, we are aware of the pay-to-win stigma, and the team is very sensitive when talking about how to implement F2P the right way. By now, I guess a lot of games have done it right and players are beginning to see that it can be a fair model for everyone.

Will the game have any single-player content or is it multiplayer only?
PvP is our focus right now, but we want the Dreadnought universe to be very rich and diverse. We hired Dan Abnett, the writer of some of the best Warhammer 40K books and the Guardians of the Galaxy comics that inspired the movie. He worked with our two other writers, Cory Langham and Tolgahan Kaftan, to create the background universe. And yes—there will be a single-player component to the game that will grow with the PvP component. But right now, we’re focused on refining our core 5v5 gameplay.

What factors will the game consider when matching players for games? Is it strictly skill based or there other factors?
Players are matched with allies and enemies based on their skill in the game, yes. And we will have a grouping system where friends are able to form Squads and warp into battle together.

More on that later.

How many maps will the game ship with at launch? Do you have a personal favorite?
My personal favorite? All of our maps are incredibly beautiful and really make you feel like you’re flying a giant spaceship around them, but Rings of Saturn is probably my favorite. There are a lot of awesome subtle adjustments that we’ve made to animations that really make your Dreadnought act like it is in the vacuum of space or maneuvering in high atmosphere. We’re planning to have five maps ready for the game next year.

Will you be adding ships to the mix down the road?
We’ll have 15 ships across the five classes at launch, along with different weapon, ability, and cosmetic customization options that result in thousands of different possibilities. We’re aiming to give players a lot of different gameplay options with those different ship loadouts. Beyond that, we haven’t announced anything; we’re focused on getting the game ready for closed beta. But we’ll be listening to the community’s feedback and we’ve got tons of ideas for different content—be it ships, weapons, abilities, maps, and more—to add to the game in time.

What tools will the game provide to allow players to collaborate? Will you have built-in voice chat?
Our Call-Out system makes communication with your allies near seamless. Simply hold down the F key and a context-sensitive wheel will pop up, allowing players to broadcast commands like flagging enemies, asking to heal, or asking for a regroup, over all friendly comm channels. We are still exploring built-in voice chat options but nothing is confirmed at this time.

You've announced two modes for the game so far (Deathmatch and Team Elimination)—are those the two modes the game will ship with, or will you be adding more?
Yes, those modes will ship with the game. We are currently working on a number of concepts for new game modes but we still have to see when they will be ready for release. Obviously we would like them to be ready for the open-beta phase, but we want to make them feel really good before we go public with them.

You've added fighters to the mix since the game was introduced at E3 last year, what role do they play and why did you decide to add them?
Yes, we’re proud of the fighters in Team Elimination. Players are placed in these single-man jets after their capital ship has fallen in our Team Elimination game mode. Their purpose is twofold. First, unlike your Dreadnought, these fighters will perform barrel rolls, loop-de-loops, and fly faster than any other ship. And it's a fun alternative to an observer cam while everyone else keeps playing; no one will have to sit and wait for a round to end.

Secondly, they can still help out in battle. The jets can be equipped with missiles, defensive repair abilities, or a laser defense module to give your surviving allies a little extra support in combat. It won't be as good as having your ally still piloting a multi-crew vessel, but it's better than nothing and may just be that slight edge you need when you're caught off guard by a pesky Corvette. A number of fighter pilots working together can turn the tide of battle.

From playing the game at E3 and from the videos, the pacing of the gameplay is a bit more deliberate than most shooter fans are used to. How are you trying to lure in gamers who might be used to faster-paced games?
The allure of massive battleships blowing each other up is a strong one, and we’re trying to give players a game experience unlike anything else currently on the market. Dreadnought is a more deliberate shooter than some other games, and its beauty lies in its strategy and teamwork. Every shot counts. Your team's position in battle counts. In Dreadnought you're part of an armada, with every action affecting the team.

For gamers of the twitchier variety, I would encourage them to give our Light Destroyer and Corvette a spin. These faster ship classes run circles around the rest of the fleet and in the right hands are untouchable. For those sprinting knife-wielders out there, the Destroyer's plasma Battering Ram ability is for you. Only in Dreadnought you cleave through their ship with yours, raining down smoldering metal from the sky.

Outside of the financials, what things have to happen for you to consider Dreadnought a success?
If we nail getting players to believe they are Commander Adama or Han Solo or Captain Picard, in my mind Dreadnought will be a success. We really want the players to feel like a captain of a thousand-men-strong crew, making the important decisions. When players throw all power to their weapon systems out of desperation and they hear in the back of their head Nero's blood chilling, "Fire everything!" we'll have done our job.

Will there be a beta ahead of launch?
Absolutely. And signups are live now—players can register here. We’re looking to launch the closed beta in early 2016.

Is there anything we missed that you think is important?
We’re incredibly grateful for our community and excited to continue to interact with all of you throughout development on the game. If you’d like to share your thoughts, follow us on Twitter [https://twitter.com/playdreadnought] and Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/playdreadnought]. You can also sign up for our forums — https://www.greybox.com/dreadnought/en/forum/ — we do our best to drop in there and interact with everyone when we can.

We'd like to thank Peter for taking the time to answer our questions, as well as Shaun for setting up the interview.