We think that the period of the battles in the Mediterranean sea is one of the most interesting eras from a historical point of view. Battles were fought with such intensity - but still face to face

World Forge: We think that the period of the battles in the Mediterranean sea is one of the most interesting eras from a historical point of view. Battles were fought with such intensity - but still face to face. For a RTS game it is very important to create an intense and believable scenario with a realistic historical background. The Spartans were known for their brilliant war strategies, new tactical ideas and of course for their strong fighters. In their high times, they ruled over the whole Pellepones, so it was obvious to us to take their leading role for the first “Ancient war” game. But of course we can imagine many other cultures that are absolutely eligible for upcoming sequels – but actually we are focussing on the Spartans.

World Forge: There are over 30 missions in “Sparta – Ancient Wars”, and we will adhere on the historical facts in terms of what really happened in the past. The concrete events will be unveiled later, because we keep the other two factions hidden. But when we unveil them - you will know the key battles!

World Forge: Our main effort was to create a believable game inspired by historical facts. Of course, due to game play reasons and a cool storyline, it will not be absolutely identical to what really happened. But in comparison to other RTS games, the events of “Sparta – Ancient Wars” are based on known facts. The plot will be introduced with the in game engine to take the player totally into that era and all campaigns will be connected to each other and not take place totally separately.

World Forge: It really depends on the mission you play. The variety in “Sparta – Ancient Wars” will offer different tactics. While you are on the battlefield you must use your strategic talents to command your units. While preparing an ambush, you must really get the economy up to date to build a better army than your enemies. If you are inferior to your opponent, you should try to get your diplomatic status in line to avoid hostile conflicts. So it is really up to the player\'s choice and the mission you play if you are a successful leader.

World Forge: No, “Sparta – Ancient Wars” is a RTS game with no fictional or mystical events. This is a key factor in our opinion. We will not create an “Age of Mythology” clone. It was a fantastic and motivating game, but rather unrealistic in terms of the setting and feeling while playing it. In our game, the player will really get the feeling as if actually playing real history! It is like comparing a Hollywood history film like “Spartacus” with a fictional history film like “Conan” – both have a strong appeal, but each one must regarded completely separate and can not compete to the other. So of course we have units like healers in our game, but they are more like doctors than priests and don’t use magical spells.

World Forge: Our three civilisations, living at the same time, will not be THAT different from each other. We are developing a game with a realistic appeal, so it is simply not convincing if one tribe will have a unique weapon no other can use. So the definition of “difference” is the main factor. We will use special units for each civilisation, which are superior to their opponent. An example would be an archer who is able to shoot with higher frequency or better range, while a swordfighter is causing more damage than his opponent on the other side. But we will unveil the details later on; then you will get a better idea of what units we are talking about. Also we will add a feature to the game, that brings much more variety and tactics into RTS games and will make the differentiation nearly needless, because a much more interesting feature is then added to the game.

World Forge: Yes and no. The campaigns will feature a stringent storyline from a total point of view. But we add twists in several missions, where the player will have some choices to make, which will affect the further procedure of the mission and campaign.

World Forge: Of course there is kind of a tech tree in the game, where you gain access to bigger and better units & buildings after some time and achievement. It will not be handled like reaching a new evolutionary time or reaching a new age – we will give the player something else, but we prefer to keep that still hidden right now.

World Forge: As you could read in our latest press release, we will use our own physic engine to ensure believable events and fights, but from a technical point of view the “Ancient Wars” Engine will feature all Direct X 9 elements, shader 2.0 technology, self shadowing and day & night scenarios.

World Forge: Of course we will add a multiplayer mode, where you are able to play each one of the three different factions. Actually it is not 100 % sure how many players will be supported, since this will depend on the capability of the engine and the frame rate.

World Forge: We are no friends of saying “It is X % done” or “It\'s done when it\'s done”. With RTS games this is much different compared to other genres. But we can say that the technical background is close to be finished and the missions are in development. But balancing has not yet started – so there is still some way to go. The main reason why we cannot tell a certain percentage is because proper balancing is one of the key factors for a successful and enjoying RTS game.

World Forge: Thank you very much for your continuing interest in “Sparta – Ancient Wars”.