What does a new developer do when their collective experience consists of working in the non-videogame commercial sector for such companies as Deloitte & Touche, Accenture, and Booz? They go about making one of the most addictive strategy titles to have come out in the past few years, evidently. After wrapping up their first release, Tin Soldiers: Alexander the Great and enjoying the praise – President Kevin Albright’s response when asked what he was most proud of was the “February 2005 PC Gamer’s 89%. I want to be buried with the review under one arm and our box under the other!”- Koios (“innovation”) Works were then left struggling with Half-Life 2 and World of Warcraft addictions while attempting to remain focused on their second release in the Tin Soldiers line, Tin Soldiers: Julius Caesar. Just as in Alexander, Caesar will give gamers the opportunity to play as one of history’s most prominent military figures and guide them in their attempt at world domination.
Named after the Greek Titan - keeper of Wisdom, Invention, and Asking Intellect - the upstart company has relied on their past experiences to both fund and guide their newest gaming venture. The President of Koios Works, Kevin Albright, took a few minutes to bring us up to speed on their future plans, the somewhat lukewarm reception of the “Alexander” movie and where one might find Tin Soldiers titles in the frozen food aisle.
Was there any trepidation then, or regrets now, in regards to releasing Tin Soldiers: Alexander the Great during such a strong time for strategy titles, particularly with Rome: Total War re-emerging in the spotlight with the year-end awards?
We were actually hoping Rome: Total War might help our sales by getting more people interested in ancient warfare. If even a small percentage of Total War players pick up our game, we would consider our game to be successful. We were more interested in having the title out in time for the Oliver Stone movie. Unfortunately, the movie wasn’t very well received.
Speaking of which, I don't think Oliver Stone is a regular reader, so go ahead and be honest - did you like Alexander?
Not really. Alexander was a warrior who lived for conquest. He pioneered military ideas such as a standing army and mobile forces. The movie was too much of a soap opera. I just could not get over the casting of Angelina Jolie as his mother. In real history, his mother was dumped by his father for a younger woman (setting in motion the events leading to his assassination). I can’t imagine anyone dumping Angelina!
When setting about to make Alexander, were there any titles in particular that inspired the team?
Panzer General – did I mention Panzer General?
With Alexander the Great finished and Caesar on the way, has there been any thought given to a title based on mythology (i.e. Age of Mythology and Fantasy General)? With your company’s namesake being what it is, it has to be tempting.
Since Warhammer is so dominate in fantasy miniatures we decided to stay clear of their universe. For the time being, we have been focused on moving the series through real historical figures.
In regards to the miniatures environment, I was a big fan of the table-top setting, but I can see how some may initially be leery. How has the game been received in the market?
People who have played the game tend to love it. I think everybody likes the unique table-top look and feel. However, many people do not like our terrain. We purposely made it ‘grainy’ so that it looked like modeling material. Our textures were based on items we purchased at a model train store. For Caesar, we have decided to make our terrain more typical ground textures and we think it looks really good and contrasts well with the units.
Could you pass along my thanks to whoever’s idea it was to have a hand take away the defeated pieces? Thanks.
That was our little homage to Terry Gilliam of Monty Python
Although looked into for Alexander, play-by-email didn’t make it in the final product. How does it look for possibly being in Caesar?
A lot of our fans want play by email. In our opinion the game design is not a good fit for play by email due to the three phase turns. After all, on some reaction turns you might only have one or two units to give orders too. Also, with our currently supported Internet play, a game can be completed in 90 minutes or so. However, we continue to monitor the demand for this feature and it could make its way into the series.
Early press material for Alexander stressed the game's accessibility and focus on being enjoyable to those who may not have played or enjoyed table-top titles. Was this balance hard to strike, and what would you say was a crucial factor in it?
Early on we decided to base our design on typical ‘fast play’ rules for table top gaming. We think these rules ported over to PC gaming really well. And, they are very easy for new players to pick up on.
In regards to Caesar, what new additions will be brought to the series?
First, as mentioned above, we have really upgraded the terrain graphics. You can rotate, pan and zoom the camera all around the map. For gameplay we now have unit formations (i.e., Legion X is three units) and the legion units are six stands. We have also implemented siege weapons and walls that actually impact defense. There are also 14 battles in the campaign. We cover the Gallic War leading to Alesia and then the Civil War against Pompey. Finally, we have overhauled the AI to make it even more effective – I think players will find that it does a great job at reacting to your strategy and creating a lot of its own.
Some of us are pretty big on the Peloponnesian War and the preceding Persian invasions... just saying is all.
I hear you. Hannibal would be an interesting subject for Tin Soldiers. I would also like to do Genghis Khan. However, unfortunately, the buying public seems to want more well know subjects (World War II). It amazes me how many people say on our boards that they are not buying Alexander because they could care less about Alexander but can’t wait for the Caesar game.
So is the Ancient World a time period that Koios is sticking with, or could we possibly see a title based on the Napoleonic Wars or the American Civil War sometime in the future?
Depending on how successful Caesar is, we plan on moving into leaders such as Napoleon, Robert E. Lee and Gunderian. We are certainly not “ancients only.”
And, finally, if your title was an ice cream, what kind would it be? And, if you want to be daring, predict Caesar's flavor.
Alexanderis rocky road, because it was our first major project. We had a number of bumps in the road along the way, but ultimately, everyone really enjoyed it.
Caesar is more like Neapolitan (vanilla/strawberry/chocolate). That’s because the game has three distinct phases: Gaul (vanilla), Alesia – one of history’s greatest battles (strawberry) and his victory over Pompey in the Civil War (chocolate.) So, really, you could almost call it three games in one – with a little bit for everyone to enjoy and one phase that each player will savor.
- Veni Vidi Lusi! – Kevin Albright
