[مقابلة][G-STAR]Interview with Common Sense Smashing FPS “THE FINALS” THAT CAN DESTROY ALL BUILDINGS – GAME WATCH

In the “G-STAR 2022” place, I had the chance to see the alpha version of the Free to Play FPS “THE FINALS” developed by Embark Studios, but this is such a great idea that “all buildings in the field can be destroyed.” It was a title with an interesting concept, so I’d like to introduce it right away.

“THE FINALS” is a team FPS developed by NEXON “Embark Studios”. Former members of DICE, known for developing the “Battlefield” series, gather at the center. At G-STAR 2022, “THE FINALS” wasn’t included in the NEXON exhibition headlines, but I got to hear the story behind the NEXON booth. This is Sven Grundberg, Director of Communications at Embark Studios.

A chaotic battle shooter who finds a way out by destroying the terrain

“Finals” is a team battle FPS, but it has a daring feature “all buildings can be destroyed”. As for how much you can destroy, for example, if you fire a rocket launcher, the wall will collapse. There is a hole in the collapsed wall through which you can enter the building. If you destroy more, you can destroy not only partially, but also completely.

The explosion causes part of the building to collapse, and the view of the inside becomes visible when it collapses. It is like watching a physics simulator, but all buildings can be destroyed in real time.

This is an artistic idea, but it’s a game like that

My first thought when I saw it was, “How much is the account?” , but according to Grundberg, since the calculations are done on the server side, there is almost no effect on the client side (ie the player’s terminal). I don’t know the specifics of how it works, but according to Grundberg, it’s made possible by Embark Studios’ excellent backend technology. In fact, in the initial version of “THE FINALS” in the scene, although it was a single-player game, it moved smoothly without any problems even if the building was destroyed. It seems technically evident from the fact that the compatible platforms are PS5 and Xbox Series X | S plus PC.

The Finals currently envisages four teams of three players each. The game time is 8 minutes, and the one who collects more “money” on the field during the time wins. I wonder if the game would really work if 12 people destroyed it at once, but it seems to work for the reason above.

Not safe even in narrow lanes

In a team FPS so far, buildings and walls are fixed terrain, and although there was some destruction running through the walls and line of sight, I thought it was natural to match most of the tactics to the map’s terrain.

However, in “Finals” where the building can be destroyed in this regard, the terrain has almost no meaning to the terrain. Instead of adapting to the terrain, it’s like creating a tactic by changing the terrain, no theory or anything. If there is a target on top of the building, you can destroy it from below and drop it to recover it, and you can make it in reverse. Grundberg himself used the term “chaos,” and that’s exactly what a battlefield would be like.

There are also barrel bombs, fire extinguishers and cannons on the field. During the gameplay, you can pick up, throw or activate these items to destroy more and more buildings. There are many elements that induce chaos.

Drum caddies etc. are placed as if to say “please use it”

What Mr. Grundberg was talking about is that this action was not made as a shooter. It’s a new game experience that goes beyond the shooter framework and, if anything, is said to be a portrait of creating a “hero” for each player. It looks like it will be a title where you can enjoy how you can play an active role in this mess with lots of customization items full of variety.

Currently, the development phase of “THE FINALS” is in the middle of an alpha release, and the details are yet to be determined. The rules and regulations are provisional only and may be amended. Grundberg said the service will initially be focused on the United States and Europe, but plans to expand the service to Japan later. I would like to pay attention to how a new shooter that destroys the common sense of the FPS develops.