Blitz: The League II Q&A with the Lead Designer

[mgoblue]

Quote: Originally Posted by Saber

I'm completely on the OTHER side myself and I loved the storyline aspect of the game and I actually want them to scratch a little deeper into the story line.

I enjoyed the storyline too, just had very limited replay value...it'd be nice if they did something to make it a bit longer or worth replaying...

[mr_president]

Quote: Originally Posted by d_max

Blitz 2 looks amazing and just like the last one, its probably as fun, if not more fun to play than the previous Blitz League. I will definitely be checking it out. Just one question that I've been wanting to ask: Will this Blitz have an open-ended, massively detailed, franchise mode with endless replay value? I'm not going to compare Blitz to Madden, such is the same as comparing apples and oranges. But ever since I finished the story mode in the first Blitz the League game, I've had the craving for a less story-driven, more non-linear Madden-esque franchise mode. It would probably become my favorite game ever.

im interested to know this as well.....

[Saber]

Quote: Originally Posted by mgoblue

I enjoyed the storyline too, just had very limited replay value...it'd be nice if they did something to make it a bit longer or worth replaying...

branching storylines perhaps?

[2krules]

Dave, are you going to start answering questions soon?

[League Historian]

Quote: Originally Posted by Saber

Will you be returning the same "story teller" from last game? One of my favorite video game lines of all time is still "I'm not going to sugarcoat it... Battaglia is an *******." Also, when there are too many dirty hits will it still go into the free for all tackle fest? I had the hardest time ever winning those.

Yup, we have the same story teller returning. You've probably heard him already if you watched any of the new team captain videos. He's a Midway employee, currently on our QA team in Chicago. We liked his work so much on Blitz: The League, we asked him to come back for the sequel.

The free for all tackle fest from the last Blitz has been replaced by our new Late Hit system. We felt the brawl from last time was too far removed from the post play cheap shots of the old arcade versions of Blitz, so we wanted to return to that mentality, with, of course, a next generation update to the graphics and gameplay. In Blitz 2, after tackling a ball carrier, you'll frequently be prompted to land a Late Hit. You'll get the chance to pounce on the ball carrier, or any other opponent in your range, and wail away. Land enough cheap shots and you may earn another clash icon. Be warned though, cheap shots can be countered, especially when playing a human opponent.

[League Historian]

Quote: Originally Posted by 2krules

Howdy, can we turn off the cursing and those ultra realistic injury graphics (I have a weak stomach)? Thanks

Sorry, but they don't have an off switch. We talked about it, but decided that the trash talk, big hits and the resulting injuries were too big a part of the gameplay to have an off switch. It would kind of be like having an off switch for the zombies in a survival horror game. That being said, the amount of cursing has been toned down a bit from Blitz 1. It's still in there, just not as frequently. We felt there was so much of it in Blitz 1, it kind of lost its impact after a while.

[League Historian]

Quote: Originally Posted by d_max

Don't get me wrong, I completely agree with you. I LOVE the storyline mode. It's a very unique concept. I just meant a deep franchise mode as a completely different mode in the same game. I don't want to see the storyline mode go away. I just would love if the franchise mode was added.

The story mode from Blitz: The League is returning for the sequel, with a lot of improvements to features such as training, juicing, equipment, challenges and the story itself.

Alas, there is no endless franchise mode in Blitz 2. It's certainly a feature we'd like to look into in some future version, but it would be a very different beast than the story mode. It would likely also require us to scrap the 3 Division system that makes Blitz unique (at least as far as football games are concerned). After all, if you could continue playing additional seasons after winning the Division 1 championship, you'd never see the 2/3rds of the teams that aren't in Division 1.

That being said, I think the story mode has more replay value this time around, in part because of the choices you make when creating your Franchise player. Determining his offensive and defensive positions also determines the makeup of your playbook, allowing for a different experience on the field each time. Your ultimate goal with the story mode is to build the best team you can and then test it online.

[aenggeorge]

havent played so hey i'm probballly nto going to post spoilers!

[D16NJD16]

Quote: Originally Posted by League Historian

The story mode from Blitz: The League is returning for the sequel, with a lot of improvements to features such as training, juicing, equipment, challenges and the story itself. Alas, there is no endless franchise mode in Blitz 2. It's certainly a feature we'd like to look into in some future version, but it would be a very different beast than the story mode. It would likely also require us to scrap the 3 Division system that makes Blitz unique (at least as far as football games are concerned). After all, if you could continue playing additional seasons after winning the Division 1 championship, you'd never see the 2/3rds of the teams that aren't in Division 1. That being said, I think the story mode has more replay value this time around, in part because of the choices you make when creating your Franchise player. Determining his offensive and defensive positions also determines the makeup of your playbook, allowing for a different experience on the field each time. Your ultimate goal with the story mode is to build the best team you can and then test it online.

Juicing?

[League Historian]

Quote: Originally Posted by D16NJD16

Juicing?

Juicing, the use of various "supplements", both legal and illegal, to gain the edge during a game.