in the Hood: Outlaws and Legends, You play as an outlaw determined to undermine the oppressive state by stealing its wealth and giving it back to the people. The state keeps treasure chests in huge buildings that are secured in locked vaults.
The state is an organized and powerful government agency. The three types of treasury represent its three arms: the church represents the state’s control over religion, the garrison its military, and the towering keep represents its oppression of the people.
To show this, we have taken brutalist elements, taken inspiration from modern regimes and incorporated them into the design of medieval buildings. Each building has its own personality and gameplay, from the towering towers and claustrophobic catacombs of the church to the functional yet opulent halls of the garrison.
The treasure buildings dominate the skyline and are landmarks to help you navigate. This is important because your first goal is to find the sheriff and steal his vault key. Each of the maps are much bigger than the treasure buildings alone, and the sheriff will be patrolling out somewhere – but you won’t know where. But beware! Another group of outlaws have the same goal.
Once the key is stolen, the building becomes your target. The treasury is somewhere, in a different place every time you play. In addition, some maps contain more than one treasure building. Citadel – the state capital – contains all three! Finding a treasure trove can sometimes be like looking for a needle in a haystack. Fortunately, when your team receives the sheriff’s key, you will also learn where the vault it belongs to is.
We wanted to give players reason to explore the buildings for the vault, but we didn’t want them to be a maze. Your destination is often shown as an icon on the screen, but it doesn’t tell you how to get there.
With the variations that take place in each game, there is no correct path through the building. And while a church may be depicted on more than one map, there are different ways to get in and out of the building, as well as different floors accessible and different locations that treasure chambers could be located. We needed players who were able to enter a building from any direction, get to where the treasury is, and then go back out to one of the world’s extraction points. We wanted players to “trust” that the most intuitive way would get them where they need to go, so new players could find their way while avoiding guards and ambushing other players.
We systematically walked around each side of the building and in each room and asked, “If it’s me Here, how do I get There?We pointed the camera at each destination and found places where a new door would become visible to make sure there is always an obvious path that will get you closer to your destination, wherever it may be. We sealed some too, as too much choice can be as bad as too little.
Through play tests, we’ve found that large rooms are better suited for gameplay than narrow corridors. An open space allows players to see more of the surroundings and it is easier to spot the distinctive vault door from a distance. They are better suited for stealth, ambushing enemies behind tables or statues, and hand-to-hand combat that requires space to position and dodge.
We decided that the interior of a building should contain only a few large rooms and that each room should look unique. For example, the keep was built around three huge atriums: an entrance hall, a dining room and a storage room. Balconies and stairs surround them so that you can see landmarks in the room, like the golden face of the king statue that dominates the entrance hall, as well as guards and less secret enemies.
Verticality is a strong issue in our game, but it can be confusing. You know the Treasury is on a floor above you – but which door or passage should you take to get to it?
Again, we wanted players to trust that obvious paths would get them where they want. We made a rule: if you have to go up, every flight of stairs will take you up to your destination. If you need to take the chest to an exit on the first floor, any staircase down is correct. This should never take you further from your destination.
Stairs shouldn’t be hard to find either – it should only take you a few seconds to find a way out when you have the chest. This sounds obvious in hindsight, but it does require careful planning. It is very easy to place stairs at the end of long corridors or around corners. Of course, experienced players can learn better routes, e.g. B. ropes to slide down or a ladder to climb.
All of these characteristics make up every game Hood: Outlaws and Legends Another experience and designing the treasure buildings to make this work possible was challenging but satisfying. We hope you’ll agree when it’s on Xbox Series X | on May 10th S and Xbox One is released. Check out the newly released “Gameplay Overview” trailer (above) for an in-depth look Hoodmedieval multiplayer raids.
Hood: Outlaws & Legends (pre-order)
Focus Home Interactive
$ 29.99
Pre-order Hood: Outlaws & Legends to get: • 3 days Early Access – play from May 7th • The Forest Lords Pack with exclusive skins! Knock down your enemies with 4 outfits and 4 weapon skins to secure your place among the legends. We’re all outlaws … but some of us become legends. In the face of a ruthless, uncontrolled state, rebels and villains fight for their place among the legends. To gain influence with an oppressed people, rival gangs compete in daring raids to hit the rich where it hurts. Folk hero or gold-hungry outlaw, only the best escape with hard-earned fortunes. Two teams of 4 players each fight for the perfect heist in medieval environments monitored by deadly AI guards. With each character’s unique abilities and mystical abilities, secretly moving to steal unseen treasure or to dominate through loud and brutal battles. Blood is shed. Wealth is stolen. Legends are reborn. • Outplay opponents in intense PvPvE multiplayer raids. • Experience a violent medieval world where mysticism competes with artificial power and corruption. • Claim your loot and invest in perks, weapons and bold new looks. • Post launch support with new maps, characters, and game modes and events