Summer used to be a barren period for new game releases but this year a number of major titles are being prepped for the season. One of them is Titan Quest, the first game from developer Iron Lore that's due out in June from publisher THQ. FiringSquad got a chance to chat Iron Lore co-founder (and one of the original founders of Ensemble Studios) Brian Sullivan to find out more about Titan Quest, including the first word on the release date and contents of the game's playable demo.

FiringSquad: First, now that development of the game is wrapping up are you pleased with how Titan Quest is shaping up?

Brian Sullivan: Yes, definitely. The game looks totally awesome – much better than I ever expected it to look when we started. It is quite hard to have a very detailed, organic, and interactive world in a 3D engine but we seemed to have pulled it off. Also, the game is a lot of fun. People in the office are playing it so much, it is detracting from their work! 

FiringSquad: How did the idea for the game itself come about?

Brian Sullivan: When I was designing Age of Empires, I thought an ancient world topic would work really well for a role-playing game. Who wouldn’t want to go fighting mythical baddies at the Parthenon, in the Maze at Knossos, or in the Hanging Gardens of Babylon?

FiringSquad: There have been a lot of games based on Greek and Roman myths released in the past. How hard was it to come up with a storyline for the game that seemed fresh?

Brian Sullivan: Not too hard, as we had Randall Wallace of Braveheart fame write the story. It was quite fortuitous that we were able to get such a talented writer of historical epics to work on Titan Quest. We wanted an epic story spanning many of the great civilizations of the ancient era, and that’s what we got.

FiringSquad: How will Titan Quest differ from the typical action-RPG?

Brian Sullivan: There are so few action-RPGs being made, it is hard to say what typical is! The biggest difference is the topic – I think we are about the first role playing game with an ancient/mythological topic. We also have very high production values and over-the-top visceral gameplay. Our great special effects and extreme rag-doll physics makes whacking monsters a lot of fun. We are also shipping a fantastic, easy to use editor that will allow fans to make great looking levels without a lot of effort.

FiringSquad: What are some of your favorite creatures to fight in the game?

Brian Sullivan: It’s hard to decide – we have so many cool monsters and bosses in the game. Right now, my favorite is probably Talos. He is a boss monster you get to fight when you play the game on Epic or Legendary difficulty levels. He is a mechanical monster from ancient Greek mythology, so he is different than most of the baddies in the game.

FiringSquad: What other gameplay elements in Titan Quest are you proud of?

Brian Sullivan: The main gameplay element I am most proud of is the visceral combat. When we started making the game, we decided that it had to be fun to kill monsters, as this is core to gameplay. It actually takes a lot of work to get the pacing, animation, sound effects, special effects, skills, physics and equipment to come together for a really satisfying experience when fighting monsters. We put in the time, and I think we achieved great results. Of course, I am also very proud of the other aspects of gameplay such as our flexible class system, modifiable skills, the huge amount of unique equipment, relics, etc.

FiringSquad: What can you tell us about the graphical look and features of the game?

Brian Sullivan: The game looks really fantastic. The world is very detailed, with great lighting and shadows, interactive vegetation, moving water and fire, ambient creatures and fantastic art. The overall effect is quite stunning – it is much more impressive than the screenshot would indicate (and we have great looking screenshots). The look is what gets people to really want to play the game, and it also gets them immersed in the virtual world.

FiringSquad: Will there be any mod tools released for Titan Quest?

Brian Sullivan: Yes, we will be releasing a great editor with the game. Players will be able to create their own levels, and add story and quests to create full campaigns. Some mod makers have already talked about recreating the journeys of Odysseus and Jason with the editor. I think with our tool, you are able to create a better looking level easier than with any other game editor.

FiringSquad: What can you tell us about plans for a demo of the game and what it will contain?

Brian Sullivan: The demo for Titan Quest will be released on May 10th, and will allow someone to play the first few levels of the game. We will make three skill masteries (Warfare, Hunting and Earth) available for play, out of a total of eight masteries. I really hope people give it a try, as I think they will be pleasantly surprised.

FiringSquad: Is everything still looking good for a June release date?

Brian Sullivan: The game will definitely be out in June. We are basically working 24/7 to make that happen. Everything is in the game and working, and we're pushing really hard to get the last refinements in on the balancing.

FiringSquad: After Titan Quest is released, what can you tell us at this time about Iron Lore's future plans?

Brian Sullivan: We have a number of things in the works, but we can’t say anything at this time.

FiringSquad: Finally is there anything else you wish to say about Titan Quest as it nears its release?

Brian Sullivan: When we started working on Titan Quest, there was a great need for quality action-RPGs. We loved playing Diablo 2 and other top games in the genre, but felt that there were not nearly enough games released. As we near completion on Titan Quest, there is an even greater need for a quality action-RPG, and we feel we have made a game that will make fans of this genre happy.

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