Aventurine on Darkfall's new UI, possible payment models, and more

So Darkfall: Unholy Wars is a few weeks away, and we've managed to corral Aventurine for a quick interview on the state of Agon.

The development firm has been pretty tight-lipped about its fantasy sandbox reboot in recent months, but as the November 20th launch date draws nearer we're starting to see some new info. Join us after the cut as AV General Manager Tasos Flambouras talks about an updated GUI, possible microtransactions, and more.%Gallery-139865%

Massively: So Darkfall player accounts and characters are going away to make room for the new game?

Aventurine: We have announced that the current game will make way for Darkfall: Unholy Wars. This means we're going to shut it down for now. Unfortunately we cannot transfer characters to the new game, even though we wanted this option to exist. The problem has to do with the character system which is completely different in the new game. We're not unhappy about this though, as we feel we all need a fresh start and we believe that most of our players agree.

The old characters will be saved for the future, also commemorated. They shaped the previous game and they're part of the Darkfall culture forever.

Will Unholy Wars stick with the original subscription model, or has any thought been given to microtransactions, etc.?

We're sticking with the original subscription model for now. We feel that it's tricky to take such a competitive PvP game to free-to-play microtransactions, seeing that it's essential you offer a level playing field for everyone, something we're determined to preserve with Darkfall: Unholy Wars.

"We're not going to force it just because everyone seems to be hopping on the microtransaction bandwagon."

This doesn't mean we're not looking at microtransactions. We're very interested if we can get it right. Our main objective right now is to get the game out. After that, we're going to put resources into designing a microtransaction model that works for us and that our players are happy with. We expect to learn a lot from our Korean partners at Mgame, and I'm positive that we'll need to innovate heavily if it's going to be perfect for Darkfall: Unholy Wars.

We're not going to force it just because everyone seems to be hopping on the microtransaction bandwagon. We understand that more players would try out the game, but they could also end up having to spend more money.

What one feature about Unholy Wars excites you the most? Is it something entirely new or something refined from the original Darkfall?

We are very excited about the user interface of Darkfall: Unholy Wars. The philosophy behind the GUI's design is two-fold.

On the one hand, it is now very easy to pick up and play Darkfall: Unholy Wars with no previous experience. Newer players will be very happy to see how easy it is to do everything in DFUW. There is a great tutorial when you start the game where you get to learn the basics of Darkfall and the learning curve is very smooth.

On the other hand, Darkfall: Unholy Wars is a hardcore game. Darkfall fans will be happy to know that the new GUI has a lot of room for customization within the game, it's faster, and we believe that players will be able to fine tune it to better suit their own experience.

The new GUI is what brings everything together in Darkfall: Unholy Wars, it has been developed utilizing cutting-edge technology, and we are certain that our players will love it.

Can you give us a brief update on the Unholy Wars skill system and how/whether it has changed from the original game?

The skill system for is new, but it builds on the previous design. The process of maximizing each skill's potential is similar to the previous game, but now you also get to pick a role. This will enhance the diversity between characters, and make small and large-scale PvP a lot more strategic.

Another exciting factor of the Darkfall: Unholy Wars system is that we can keep building on it adding further to the diversity in the game.

Same for the crafting -- is it more extensive/meaningful this time around?

Crafting has also seen major changes, with the most prominent one being the new pattern system regarding the weapon design. This new system allows the players to decide the visual design of a particular weapon's rank before crafting it, while the rank of the weapon and the materials used to craft it will influence the weapon's hue.

As with the new skill system, we can keep building on the crafting system, extending it further.

What about the world of Agon itself? Bigger than before? Is it still largely open and free of instancing?

"We have optimized the world by removing large unused water surfaces and to a lesser degree some land mass that was mostly unused by the players. Agon remains the largest world of its kind."

The world of Agon has been completely redesigned for player interaction. One of our objectives has been to bring interest points closer to each other, and redesign them in order to make the world much more interesting. All the cities have been redesigned and rebuilt and this includes NPC- and player-owned cities.

The focus for the redesign has been optimization for sieges, both from an offensive and a defensive standpoint, and also ease of use and navigation. We've done major work on Agon's look and feel. New graphics, new visual technologies, and the ambient sound system all contribute to enhanced immersion for our players.

We have optimized the world by removing large unused water surfaces and to a lesser degree some land mass that was mostly unused by the players. Agon remains the largest world of its kind. Agon also remains free of instancing, it's zoneless and open like the current world.

Sounds interesting, we're looking forward to November 20th!