Terminator 3 Redemption

Recently I was able to do an Interview With Jim Galis, Executive Producer for T3 and Josh Hackney, Producer for T3 at Paradigm Entertainment. I wanted to thank them for taking the time to talk about their new project, Terminator 3 Redemption.
GVK: What is the setting and background story for the game?
The plot of the game is intertwined with the Terminator 3 movie, but with some exciting twists and additions. You’re goal, as the Terminator, is still to keep John Connor and Katherine Brewster alive, but you have to overcome a few additional obstacles than the T-X. Not only will you make your way through the present day, but our story starts in the future and you’ll have to find a way to time-travel back.
GVK: What weapons will be available to players?
There is a good mix of weapons including shotguns and plasma grenade launchers, but you’ll also get to pull up some rebar and go after Terminator heads if you want. Besides these weapons which are available on foot, you’ll get to take over some of SkyNet’s larger forces who have a good range of weapons themselves.
GVK: – What are some of the mission types that players will undertake?
In the game you’ll have to reach Kate and John before T-X does, slow down an FK Command so that you can acquire it, and navigate through SkyNet’s innards to make to the Time Displacement Chamber. Just your average day for the Terminator on the go.
What graphic engine is the game using?
T3R is built on Paradigm’s proprietary engine called VisKit.
GVK: How hard was it to connect the events of the game into the established genre of the film series?
Amazingly enough, our design team quickly had an idea of how it was going to come together. We knew that we wanted to explore the future as shown in the Terminator movies and had to intertwine these levels with the levels we pulled directly from the movie. Our licensor, Cinergi, was extremely helpful in working with us on our plot changes and SkyNet Machines.
GVK: Designing a game based on a popular character and film series must have some large obstacles. What have been the biggest obstacles and what are some of your proudest moments in the game?
The biggest hurdles we had to overcome really boil down to doing a multiplatform simultaneous release. In the past, Paradigm has done PS2 and Xbox simultaneous releases, but adding a third console can really start multiplying your issues. Seeing all 3 versions running side by side for the first time was really something.
The vehicle interaction is also something that really pulls the game together. I love the feeling of being able to take over your enemies and use them against each other. Having an endo torso climb up on your vehicle comes straight out of the movies. Finally, I think that the character damage looks amazing and really helps the player connect to the game.
GVK: The game seems to mix incredible shooting action with intense driving action similar to the Interstate 76 and 82 games. How have you managed to blend the action in the game?
The Terminator movies are big on chase scenes, driving and explosions. So, we really focused on making the player move forward and tried to match our controller schemes for each gameplay type so that it feels like the transitions are natural. We made transitions in the game that forces the player to be on foot, driving a truck or flying in a helicopter all in a single level. These gameplay types and transitions really reinforce that frantic pacing in the movies.
GVK: Does the game offer multiplay and if so what will we see?
We incorporated a number of cooperative levels in the game where two players can fly over the battlefields of the future and rip through SkyNet’s forces.
GVK: Who is doing the voice work and the music in the game?
Most of the in-game voice work was recorded by Arnold himself, adding another dimension for the player. We utilized multiple composers for the sound tracks, including Bob Daspit of Artisan Music, and Cris Velasco, another experienced video game composer. We feel both musicians brought the feeling of the Terminator to their work in a big way!
GVK: What features did you wish to include but were unable to?
Originally, the plan was to include a number of levels where the player would be able to fly using a helicopter or harrier. Due to time constraints we had to cut it out of the final game. Looking back on it now though, a few flying levels may have been fun, but the game doesn’t need them to feel complete.