Interview: CCP Discusses PS3's Biggest Shooter DUST 514

PS: You're launching an application for the Vita that's going to complement the game – can you talk about how that's going to work, and how it's going to interact with the PS3 game?

JL: Yeah, it'll enable you to do a lot of the preparation work for the game. So, one of the good things about DUST 514 is that there’s no real class system, so you can play however you want. If you want a character that's efficient with a sniper rifle but is also proficient at first-aid, you can do that. There's quite a lot of complexity in that, so the Vita application will enable you to do all of those preparations on the go.

PS: DUST 514 is going to be free-to-play – what impact has that had on the design philosophy behind the game?

JL: The thing about free-to-play is that you've got to make that commitment early in the process. You can make a subscription game that's free-to-play – but it's usually because it's failed as a subscription game. As a result, it's never quite right. We've built DUST 514 from the ground up to be a free-to-play game.

I think there's seven years of skills in there to experiment with; you can play it right the way through for free, become one of the most powerful characters in the game, and never spend a penny on it. Or, alternatively, you can say, “You know what, I can't play this game 24/7, so what I'm going to do is buy that weapon, because it means I don't have to grind for it.” However, there is always an equivalent gun which you don't have to pay for at the same balance – so, you're basically buying convenience.

PS: Not pay-to-win, then?

JL: Exactly. With regards to the balance of the game, you might have loads of money and buy all of the guns – but you might not have the skills to use them. So, you've still got to go through the process of learning to play the game – you can't just suddenly get to the end game and win every single time. But there are people who will be willing to trade money for time, and vice versa – so, let's give everyone the best possible experience.

Just to stress, though, you don't have to pay for anything like maps – you get the whole game out of the digital box. And we're going to continue to expand it like we do with EVE. It's our tenth anniversary [for EVE] next year, and we're going to have a really good party back in Iceland. In another ten years I want to be doing the same thing for DUST 514. That's just the way we look at things. I mean, when I look at the features we have in the backlog outlining where we'd like to take this, we've got twenty years of development ahead of us.

When I look at the list of features we have in the backlog, we've got twenty years of development ahead of us

PS: So, the game's been in beta a while – what have you learnt from both a gameplay and technological stance?

JL: Genuinely getting hands on the product is important. You've just got to do that before you know whether it’s any good or not. In actual fact, what it's taught us is that we've actually got a really good game, but it's also revealed that we've got a lot of polish we need to put into it. That's actually something we're doing a lot of now, so a lot of the builds we're releasing do not necessarily include a lot of new features, but are refining the feel of the gameplay. We're also looking at ways of helping new players get to grips with the complex nature of the game, without necessarily dumbing it down. Then we're always looking at the usual things like weapon balancing and item pricing.

But finally, we've faced a real learning curve in terms of actually getting a beta out onto the PlayStation Network. How do you release it in the first place? How do you make sure that buying an item on the PlayStation Store links up with the game? Just getting that infrastructure up has been a big part of the challenge, and we've done a lot of learning in that area. But yeah, I think that's the main point of the beta – to really learn those lessons.

PS: Sony Computer Entertainment America president Jack Tretton said that the game's releasing next month in an interview recently. Do you have any comment on that?

JL: [Laughs]. I don't think we've set a release date. I didn't actually see that article, so I don't know.

PS: He was talking about free-to-play games, and basically said that DUST 514's coming next month.

JL: We haven't set a release date.

PS: Are you still targeting this year, though?

JL: We haven't set a release date.

PS: Ok. [Laughs]. Do you have any final comments you'd like to make to the PlayStation community about the game?

JL: I hope that when they're able to get their hands on it, they find a really, really good shooter. It would be great if they recognised that they're participating in a world that's bigger than just the PS3 game. I mean, a really easy way to try it out right now is to become a subscriber for EVE and you'll get a free beta key.

PS: PlayStation Plus members get access as well.

JL: Yeah, there's quite a few ways to get a beta key. I think they'll find a great shooter, but they'll really appreciate the depth of what it is if they embrace the entirety of the EVE universe. At the end of the day, it's something that's never been done before, so it's an opportunity to take part in history. I mean, I'm looking forward to it – I'm actually a new convert to PlayStation. I had a PSone, didn't get a PlayStation 2, so now I'm catching up on PS3.

PS: You didn't get a PlayStation 2!? This is the biggest story right here!

JL: I know. [Laughs]. That's because I was playing EVE.

PS: You've got the entire back catalogue to catch up on. You need to go back and play Shadow of the Colossus, ICO, the first two God of War games...

There are some really interesting characters in the EVE universe for console users to interact with

JL: I know, I know. It's quite funny talking with the Sony guys, and they're all like, “Well, you've got to play this, this, this and this.” And I'm telling them, “Well, you've got to do this, this, this and this in EVE.”

Back on topic though, this is something where if you take the time to get involved, it really is one of those cases where it's greater than the sum of its parts. There are some really interesting characters in the EVE universe for console users to interact with. I really hope it leads to something special – I mean, I can't wait to go to a fan-fest and there are a load of DUST 514 players wearing their corporation names on their shirts, and they're meeting up with their EVE counterparts for the first time.

Actually, [at a fan-fest] one year we had a tattoo artist, and people were getting logos of the game and their corporation on their arms. I can just see the first EVE and DUST 514 joint alliance, where people are getting tattoos, buying and sharing things – because that's what makes the experience special.

PS: There genuinely is a lot of interest in EVE from PS3 players, but a lot of people seem to be intimidated by the complexity of the game.

JL: Well, the easiest way to learn how to play EVE is to meet someone in the game – and DUST 514 will give people the opportunity to do that. Players will be able to join corporations and find out about the game that way – and believe me, if you're in the same corporation as an EVE player, they'll show you how to play the game, because you're worth your weight in gold. So that's the best way to get into EVE. Do it with somebody helping you out and showing you the ropes.

PS: Awesome. Well, thank you very much for your time – we're really looking forward to the game.

JL: Not at all, thank you.

Are you looking forward to DUST 514? Have you participated in the title's beta? Let us know in the comments section below.