Eternal Crusade is scheduled to be released this fall, and with it a lot of things will be added over the coming months and are being looked at. I had a sit down with Brent Ellison, and here are some of the highlights of our conversation.
The important thing to remember is that Eternal Crusade is Community Driven. The game is "For and Because of the Community". This means that the game designers listen directly to what is being said, and if the community really wants it... it is being considered.
Even during our conversation when I asked about Land Speeders coming to the game, I was asked.. "yes they will be coming, but where do you place them in order of importance, before or after heavy tanks?" Of course I am more excited to be in a Land Raider I answered. So even the order of how new things will be added to the game are directly respondent to the communities answers.
This is what talking to Brent impressed me the most. Is what will enhance the players experience for a MMO shooter game in the 40k Universe. It was all about the experience when I asked about Imperial Knights and Titans. Would this make for an exciting experience for the individual infantry player running around the ground fighting these huge war machines. (my answer was yes, and Brent offered possibilities of how that might look)
So what is coming up for Eternal Crusade?
Orks of course. Already on the Founders Servers, Orks are coming, and more of them. Also Howling Banshees and Swooping Hawks for Eldar, along with more testing of the Progression System and more item customization. These are all coming in the next several weeks.
Also from memory, since my note taking apparently failed at this..... more Tyranid types for PvE
The next big item is that Progression is the big key to what is being worked on and will be the bigest change once the game goes live. This means your character will grow with you, and of course any customizations you make or items you unlock during your gameplay.
Once Eternal Crusade is Released.
Once the game comes out this fall, there are lots of exciting directions that the designers are looking to get forward to. One of the first are the Terminators and their equivalents. Yes, that means Wraithguard and Mega Nobs as well, but I love the idea of running into battle in Terminator armor. Very cool. This is already being worked on, and looks like it will be out soon after release.
Here are a few more things on that list.
Bikes
2 Handed Weapons
Heavy Tanks (Land Raiders.... Oh boy)
More Tyranids
More Hero Types
Flamers....... whoa.
Tyranids Coming as a Playable Faction?
Tyranids also are on the list as a playable faction at somepoint. This may not mean playing as a hormagaunt, but possibly as Tyranid Warrior with npc smaller creatures spawning and running into the fight.
Also Factions are coming. It was mentioned that my precious Dark Eldar would not be that difficult to implement, or one of the easier ones. Also expect the team to be looking into Imperial Knights, Tau, Imperial Guard, and even Daemons..... (which were mentioned would be the hardest to implement).
The key point being that the designers want what the community wants to see. This game is going to be a ton of fun, and we will definitely be watching for more of it as it develops and gets released this fall.
