As promised, I took some time with IAH#DY#s own Doug Gillon. Doug works as a copywriter here, and is often involved in the localization process as our own in-house consultant. He#DY#s been testing out a few builds of Dragonica and managed to post the IAH "official" record combo with his Archer, "Dougie". I got him to take a few minutes to talk about his combo, Dragonica, and Legoes.
1. What are some of the funniest or most interesting issues and problems encountered during the localization process?
It#DY#s always interesting to watch a game evolve through the localization process, particularly a game like Dragonica, which has such a distinctive and humorous style. The challenge as you adapt the language is always to keep the essence of the game, while occasionally making creative changes where appropriate.
Dragonica#DY#s graphical atmosphere already has a lot of humor already in place. As localization continues, the goal will be to maintain that. I#DY#m not involved with localization on a daily basis, but I was in the groups deciding class, mob and item names. Each session went pretty smoothly, because the game elements are so fun and unique that it doesn’t take long to slap English words on Barunson#DY#s cute, wild, and hilarious creations.
2. How was the process different for Dragonica, compared to the other games you worked on?
With any game you localize, it#DY#s all about tone. Dragonica is whimsical and fast paced, so the text must reflect that. The game is well designed, so it#DY#s not difficult to capture that after playing it for a while.
3. The Archer has generally gotten less "love" compared to the other character classes in Dragonica. You seem to enjoy playing as one, though. What#DY#s the draw for you?
(With the resident heart-throb NPC Rony, above)
Honestly? At first glance he reminded me of my little #DY#Robin Hood#DY# Legoes I had when I was a kid. Those guys were awesome. Even though my Lego Knights had this massive castle, I would always have the archers sneak in at night, scale the walls undetected and pwn everyone. They all had the same green outfits and pointy hats as Dragonica#DY#s archer.
I think the #DY#Wolverine#DY# factor has a lot of people going for the Thief, and of course the Warrior and Magician both look great and fit that standard idea of an RPG character.
4. Dougie the Archer is the current record-holder for the highest combo count. Do you have a few tips and tricks for those hoping to replicate your results?
Funny thing, that was done on a pre-alpha build where it was actually more difficult to get high combos than it is now. Despite that, I haven#DY#t been able to get back over 1K in the current build. I#DY#m too into collecting hats now. *laughs*
The archer is devastating for most normal mobs when using his pop-attack in combination with a very fast angle-shot.It#DY#s pretty easy to execute and extremely effective. Even with that, you won#DY#t get up to 1K or higher unless you stack your combo with multiple mobs. Depending on your level in relation to the mob you#DY#re killing, you#DY#ll only get 11-25 hits per mob, so you#DY#ll need to move fast to keep the combo stacking.
Dungeons aren#DY#t a good place, because they typically have ‘heavy#DY# monsters that can#DY#t be popped up, and also have little or no respawn. You need a normal map with the perfect level differential and re-spawn rate to keep it going. Just as you#DY#re finishing up the final monster in a small area, the first monster you killed should be respawning, allowing you to continually cycle the combo.
If you find this perfect spot, you#DY#ve got to ignore any drops. Stopping to pick them up will likely kill your combo cycle. You also have to try not to take any hits. You#DY#ll likely be popping 3 or more mobs in the air at once, and if one of them gets a hit in, the other two probably will also. It won#DY#t kill you, but it may take up just enough time to end your combo.
5. Do you think you can beat your own record of 1268?
HA! We#DY#ll have to see how the game evolves as we move into Alpha, CBT, OBT and final release. Whether or not I can break it, I#DY#m sure the community will come in and shatter that to pieces once the game is opened up. I bet 6 months from now you#DY#ll be interviewing some whiz kid with a video of his ridiculous 4K combo.
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