Hi all! We are publishing an interview to the developers of Warhammer 40,000: Armageddon – Da Orks. The developers have talked at length of the game, of its innovations and have explained the reasons behind their design choices.
Warhammer 40,000: Armageddon – Da Orks is a stand-alone new chapter of the epic Warhammer 40,000: Armageddon saga, and it’s going to be released on August 18th.
We hope you’ll enjoy the read!
In Warhammer 40,000: Armageddon – Da Orks you play the second war of Armageddon but from the unique point of view of the Orks. What can players expect from this new stand-alone title?
(Frank Leone) We aimed to put a new twist and perspective on the tried and true solid strategy mechanics from Warhammer 40k Armageddon. The Orks need to face 4 different factions instead of one, which provides more variety in the course of the campaign, and requires the player to adapt to different enemies he faces. Compared to Armageddon, we have significantly extended the number of units available to the Orks, to provide both more flavour and more useful tactical options to the player. And of course, we expect them to have a lot of fun!
Players expect Orks to play very differently compared to the Imperial Guard or the Space Marines. How is that handled in game? How does the gameplay differ from Warhammer 40,000: Armageddon?
(Frank Leone) With an expanded Ork arsenal at our players' disposal, new tactics and strategies will have to be formulated by the players to achieve victory. The Orks use different tactics in order to win. They must rely on bigger numbers instead of more quality equipment, which means bigger losses and more difficult to come up with the best core composition and maintain experience on the units.
Additionally, in many battles where you have extra time and units to spare, it may be worth it to capture and explore areas of the map that do not directly involve the primary mission objective. The most adventurous Ork commanders may find these efforts rewarded with the ability to recover special 'Looted' Imperial vehicles that are otherwise unavailable for normal purchase.
With over 400 different units, Da Orks will be the Warhammer 40,000 videogame with the largest roster of available units. Many of these units are completely new and weren’t in Armageddon. Could you tell us about them? What are your favorites?
(Frank Leone) In addition to the full Ork roster from Warhammer 40,000: Armageddon, we've added many new and re-configured units. Some notable examples include:
- Light units such as hordes of Squigs.
- More heavy infantry alternatives with multiple Mega Armoured Nobz variants.
- Versatile medium assault vehicle Gutrippa.
- Supreme heavy walkers Gorkanaut and Morkanaut in several configurations.
- A treasure trove of looted Imperial vehicles, including a breaching drill repurposed to grind up enemy infantry and vehicles by the hundreds and a super massive Shadowsword tank!
20 additional Ork weapon systems ranging from simple Squig bites and Squig bombs to lethal breaching drills to advanced Kombi weapons have also been added.
From our testing, one of the most surprising new Ork units turned out to be the lowly underdog Squigs. While new armoured vehicles and the ultra massive Mega Gargant are impressive on their own, the sheer numbers of Squigs the player can potentially deploy is truly a sight to behold force. In fact one crafty test player went so far as to create an entire army exclusively of the various Squig types. With his horde of something like 2,500 Squigs, he simply overwhelmed all Imperial resistance through sheer weight of numbers.
We've since toned down their lethality slightly so you won't be quite so successful with a pure Squig army, but these diminutive yet numerous units still have a very important place in the Ork army as the ultimate fodder unit. Just don't expect them to carry you to victory on their own anymore, especially when faced against the Emperor's Finest Space Marines!
Da Orks sports a new skirmish mode for multiplayer. Could you tell us about this feature?
(Alexander Shargin) We really like the new skirmish mode for Multiplayer. It is very easy to use, and at the same time gives the players much more freedom than before.
In order to create a skirmish battle, the player selects several parameters:
- Map type. Several map types familiar from the previous campaigns are available: inside and outside Hive cities, desert, jungle and big river running across the map.
- Map size. By choosing small, medium or large, you determine how fast-paced the battle will be. Battles on small maps can be decided in just a few turns.
- Factions. The player has a complete freedom to pick one of the five available factions for each side, or any combination of them.
- Points, points per turn and unit slots. Determine the size of colliding armies. The player decides how massive and bloody the battle will be.
- MIssion type - capture flags or destroy all enemy units - can result in a very different strategy on the same map.
- Available unit classes. The player is free to decide what exact unit classes will participate in the upcoming battle (for each side separately). For example, he can setup a Titan-only battle, or on the contrary, disable Titans, because the opposing faction does not have them.
It is easy to see that the number of all the possible combinations of these parameters is simply huge, and every player should be able to create the battle which suits his tastes. This was another frequently requested feature in Armageddon, and we hope that the players will love it.
When you see skirmish challenge in the list, you can see all exact parameters configured for it but clicking "info" link in MP interface. So there is no way you accidentally accept a challenge where you have just 1 point and your opponent has 50000. :) Just pick the battle if it looks interesting for you.
Having said all this, the game will also include several "traditional" Multiplayer maps, which do not allow customization.
Is there any other part of the game or feature you are particularly proud of and you would like to mention?
(Frank Leone) With Da Orks, we were able to create a situation that should present a sense of familiarity for returning players, but still provide a fresh gameplay experience. At this point, where there have been so many battles and scenarios set on Hive World Armageddon, there is now a strong sense of continuity. Instead of battles that could well be taking place at any seemingly random location, certain landmarks, especially the Hive Cities, really helps convey a sense of location.
Yet while there is that recognition, the fact that all campaign and scenarios battles are built completely new from the ground up and also played from the Ork perspective brings a new challenges and obstacles for our players to meet and overcome.
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