Inside the Developers Studio: Seth Luisi

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SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Confrontation
1. What game do you have at E3 this year?
I’m working with two games at E3 this year: SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Confrontation for PLAYSTATION 3, and SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Tactical Strike for PSP. For the purpose of answering these questions, I’ll focus mostly on our PS3 version of SOCOM.

2. What did you do on this game that you couldn’t do on another platform?
SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Confrontation makes full use of the HDD in the PlayStation 3. One of the often overlooked advantages of the PS3 compared to competing platforms is that it contains a 2.5” serial ATA hard drive which allows us to use the Hard Disc Drive for extremely fast data access. Since we can count on the hard drive to be in every PS3 console, SOCOM Confrontation uses a very aggressive data streaming system which in turn allows for much greater detail in the game environments. For this reason alone, the level of detail which you will see in the environments and characters in SOCOM Confrontation is not possible on any other game console.

Take a quick look at the screenshots below for an early look at what we are able to achieve using the hard drive in the PS3. This is still pre-alpha and the quality will continue to improve as we get further into development.

3. What do you think is the coolest aspect of this game?
The environments are the real star in SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Confrontation. We are focusing a lot of effort on creating intricate and highly detailed urban environments. The amount of detail in the environment will help you to easily distinguish where you are in the level and the intricacy means that you are going to discover new areas and snipe points long after you thought you had the environment memorized.

The characters are also looking really good.

At the top of the post is an in-game screenshot of our Heavy Commando model. The skin shaders, cloth shaders, normal maps, and highly detailed textures allow us to have extremely realistic characters in the game. Again, this is a work in progress.

4. If you could sit one person in front of your game for an hour, who would it be?
N’Gai Croal. He’s been a long time player of the SOCOM franchise and I would really like to discuss what he thinks about this game. It doesn’t hurt that he is also one of the best journalists writing about video games and also writes for Newsweek.

5. What game do you most want an hour to sit in front of yourself (besides your own)?
Metal Gear Solid 4. I’m very curious how the game plays compared to the videos that have been shown so far.

6. How many E3’s does E3 2007 mark for you?
All 12 of them. I’ve been to every E3 including the first one in 1995.

7. Describe the pre-2007 E3 experience in five words or less.
Very stressful, little sleep…

8. Most over used phrase or expression during E3 season.
“Game of the show.” The press are so busy each trying to be the first to declare the game of the show that they ignore most of the games shown at E3 including some really good ones. Also, half the time they declare a game which is shown as video only as “Game of the Show.” A note to the press, a game by definition is interactive and so a video is not a game and cannot be game of the show.

9. You are asked to make suggestions for an E3 survival kit- what three items HAVE to be included?
Aspirin, water and a GPS unit to navigate LA.

10. Describe what you anticipate from 2007’s newly formatted E3 in five words or less.
One word, fiefdoms.

11. What’s your favorite part about developing games for a living?
My favorite part about developing games is that moment of relief and excitement when I finally see things working in the game as we meant them to be. Most people don’t realize this, but it can take more than a year of hard work and planning (some times several years) before the game is up and running as you envisioned. That whole time you are hoping that things are going to work as planned and that you are going to have a great game but you never know until that moment. It is extremely exciting when it does work and you realize you have something special.

SOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs ConfrontationSOCOM: U.S. Navy SEALs Confrontation

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191 Comments

2 Author Replies

  • Mr Seth Lusi,

    Thank you for keeping the SOCOM series moving and continuing to innovate game play and community options. You have always listened to your fan base and delivered. We asked for a clan list, we got it. We asked for weapon customizations, we got it. We asked for vehicles, we got it. We asked for downloadable content, we got it. We asked for everything and you kept delivering. Even more amazing is all this was accomplished on last-gen’s hardware, the Playstation 2. Now with the Playstation 3 and two new SOCOMs (three, if you count the PSP version, which I will be getting too) I feel like a kid again waiting impatiently for the slightest bit of information. I probably search Sony and PS3 news ten times a week looking for the next SOCOM update. Now I have unleash the fury of questions that have been burning in my head for months! (sorry)

    – What are you most excited about with the game play for SOCOM: Confrontation?
    – What are you most excited about with the online community in Confrontation?
    – How many maps will be in the initial release? (how many new, how many old ones – any hints to which ones?) – I have heard that Crossroads is coming back, what about Blizzard?
    – What type of maps can we expect to see? (terrain)
    – Will there be destructible environments?
    – Any player customization options? and/or unlockables? ala Rainbow Six
    – Clan support still supported and will the PSN friends list be utilized?
    – Any Co-Leader options for Clans? Or clan logo settings?
    – Any plans on trophies for Home? (achieving rank, wins vs loses, streaks, etc)
    – What kind of changes, if any, are being done with the ranking system?
    – Will ranking and leader boards be linked?
    – SOCOM: Confrontation online community is expected to be compatible with SOCOM 4, right?
    – Will the game be taking a more realistic approach like the first game in the series or will it remain the same toned down approach as the later installments? Or will there be options to adjust the hit detection?
    – Any enhancements to the 3rd or 1st person view?
    – Will SIXAXIS motion controls be used? for wall peeking, sniping, diving?
    – Rumble?
    – Weapon customization sticking around?
    – Any new weapon additions or changes to the line up? What about accessories?
    – Will there be any form of crosstalk features for Tactical Strike and Confrontation? Like unlockables for customization options (weapons, character, clan logo)
    – Have you had any ideas that can only be done in another game? Any chances those ideas may be brought to life?

    Its a flood of questions that will probably stay unanswered, for now that is. But if you find the time [laughs] and feel like spilling the beans, not a bad place to do it!

    Thank you again for the years of great gaming and for the many friends I made online with Elite Killers Group [EKG].

    [EKG]Nynja

  • I think ROBZ said it best. I also am (was) a big time socom fan. Not that i am proud of this but i literaly lost my job cause i couldnt stop playing socom2. When socom 3 was due out i passed up a free trip threw my new job to amsterdamn, just so i could get the new socom. Went to every place in the area and finnaly found one after about 15 tries. Well what a waste the game was fun at first cause i wanted somthin new but i realized fast it wasnt socom anymore. I am writeing this now inbetween rounds of socom 2 . I sold 3 and for some reason bought CA a few weeks after it came out, now that is also sold. I would really rather put up with the bad hit detection and super glitchers(code 9) than play either of the 2 new wanabe socoms. I really really hope that this new confrontation will be as good as the first 2, however i am not holding my breath. I will be the first to admit i thought the idea of big maps and 32 people was a GREAT idea, boy was i WRONG!! When you get that many people in 1 room you cant talk, (and i dont mean cause of the mic problems) its hard to cordinate much less catch up with friends. 3/CA is kinda like (for anone who remembers) the XFL they took all of the things bad about the NFL and made them worse. So please bring back a updated socom 2.

  • you’re a tool, they all have their strengths and are are by no means wannabe socom games.

    sandstorm rocked and won’t be forgotten (i4L)

    cut back on the games and learn how to communicate, your little spiel was painful to read.

  • I guess we can’t say this game is going back to Socom 1 and 2 gameplay anymore because I don’t recall either of those two titles featuring enemies on the radar and an OTS Camera Angle!

  • yeah this is off the subject but when r u guys gonna give us a killzone2 dev interview i mean seriously these games that ur showing are amazing especially HS AND UNCHADTED but everyone is still thinking about KILLZONE2. I have been told u guys are gonna show it privately but that is a bad idea b/c everyone is looking forward to seeing it even non sony fans so please show it to us in the press conference and show alot of it. If it looks amazing like u guys say it will, then u shouldn’t worry about anything.

  • I think the big maps are good. It lets you show more skill. I love to do run and gun on small maps to, but big maps let you play with stategy. If you like to snipe the big maps are good to. I thank socom 3 and socom ca were just evolution to the franchise. If you like socom 2 better play socom 2. But I like change, you cant live in the past forever. I just hate the codes. Please stop the code…. And a good feature will be if you add some type of cover play style like “RAINBOWSIX”, not that I thank that game is better but you could add it to socom.

  • Big maps don’t = more skill they = no team work and more camping, so what u can find a place and snipe guys big deal that doen’t mean skill, i know there was a lot more skill with socom 1 and 2 and no i’m not saying there is less skillfull people just less skillful play,
    in part 3 there is less teams that work together like they did in one and 2 it was so much easier to get 8 guys to work together then 16 or 32 players or whatever the case maybe,
    i mean they can do what they want but i like how it was different b4 not just a battlefeild clone and average one at that.

  • It looks great. I just hope that there is no quick sniping. Quick sniping really ruins the game. There is no way that you can carry a sniper gun that heavy and run and jump with it in real life and shoot people in the air its bs. The accurancy wouldnt be there and the gun would kick back so hard that it would either nock you down or back or the gun itslef would just fly off your hand and shoulder. I also would like to see no automatic model 18s. No automatic hand guns of any kind. Its crazy seeing people get killed from insane distances with a model or getting beat by a model when you have an assult riffle. I also hope they do a better job of maintaing the online servers as well. It just seems that the current ones arent maintain properly. People have costant disconnections. Well, I have been playing all the socom series from 1 to CA and yes will be getting this one, I just hope that they can really get a nice quality game out this time!

  • Only thing Sony did right so far is a PS3 price drop. Slantsix should of kept this Confrontation 8 vs 8. Cause 32 players means bigger maps and camping. Theres no team work in 16 vs 16. Even if you sit in a room with a big clan for years and have names for each part of the maps. Its still hard to talk to that many people. Also half the time the mic’s don’t work. Or the room is so damn laggy. Also I noticed if ya have a clan war in a password room its really laggy.

  • You can probably still modify the game to have as many even number of players in it if you want so you can still get 8 vs. 8 if you want or at least they should do that if they havent already

  • I have played all of the Socom games. 1 was great, that game really put the hook in. 2 improved a little on the game play and map sizes. 3 sucked, plain and simple, sucked. And 4 well that game was the one that had me stop playing Socom. Large maps were nice but there was that stutter between transition points, limited range on weapons. Like really come on I can’t make a shot over 200yds with an M87. Please, this is a .50 cal, if the guy is a shadow in the distance I should be able to hit him. After Socom 2 all the rest of the games just went down hill. I was a huge Socom fan in the beginning but now Socom 5 needs to get it together if I am to return to the game.

  • Hey Seth I hope your reading. Cause I know your Zipper team is worthless. You been failing since promising us maps for hdd on s2. Now failing on s3/ca. Your a joke. Slap in the face for us. Thats bad PR. Now failing on a year and 4 month late map pack 2. Explain this B.S. You wont you dont have the guts to stand up to me. Lucky I wasnt at E3. I would of spit in your face and kicked you in the nuts. This socom is going down hill. Your double team of Slantsix and Zipper 2 games back to back isnt gonna be much. PS3 sales are a joke even with $100 price drop. Glad 360 Elite is dropping in price again to sell even more better game that are out 6 months earlier then ps3. Also its funny how Sony gave EA the cold should on DEV kits.. SO all the sports fans will flock over to 360. Glad I moved onto the darkside.

  • http://www.gametrailers.com/player/21656.html
    This is more video of socom confrontation.Seth i’m with robz on this one.what ever did happen to the map packs?Do you think everyone bought the hdd for FF.I DON’T THINK SO!!!It was the promise of the map packs that was going to have crossroads in it.Do you think i’m going to dish out another $60.00 dollars just because that map is in it ?sorry i’m not.You guy’s have got anough money from me.i’ll be selling my playstation with the hdd and go xbox 360.One more thing why did you take the blood out of the game?I guess M doesn’t stand mature it stands for money you thiefs

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  • Please do not go with the Ghost recon Crosshairs you’ll kill the socom Roots of the game like that. and im speaking on behalf of many hardcore socom gamers i mean we’re dealing with socom 3 and Ca which is Bad enough. so please keep the crosshairs normal socom 1/2 ish thats all i ask

  • TO: ROBZ and DONNYBRASCO, you can go to hell. Go get your 360 you sellouts. Im going to stay true to PS3. You could do anything you want, just stay off the PS3 blog. Go to the X-bax blog. Later on you will come back to PS3, but I dont want you saying your hardcore fans. After what you typed you can never say that. I hope your X-box give you the red light, really I know it will. when it turns red thank about the PS3 and how it would of never did that.

  • Hey Seth, I know you’re busy trying to please everyone but if you can please answer a few questions so I can get the facts straight, I’d appreciate it.

    -How was the title “Confrontation” choosen?
    -How much will the game cost? (Online/ Disc)
    -When is the release date?
    -I heard a rumor that Confrontation will ultilize the Playstation Network (PSN) for the online play. Fight Night Round 3 did the same thing but a bad thing I noticed about the PSN is that we’re only allowed to have a limited number of friends (I think about 20). This can will be a big problem because I have more than 20 friends on SOCOM 3 (excluding clan members). How would this issue be handled?
    -Has the game gone from it’s original 3rd person view to the Resident Evil 4/ Over the shoulder view that we’ve seen in the trailers?
    -What size maps will be available?
    -How many will there be in a game? 32/20/16?
    -Can we have the option to forward SOCOM email to a personal one?

  • I been to hell and back. Also I been with this franchise through thick and thin. But when two titles crash and burn. Theres something wrong. Also Zipper never listened to us on the Zipper blog either. Also when I bought CA first week there was a guy flying around already. I knew that game wouldn’t last long if theres cheaters first week. I was right a slew of mod disk cheaters were every where after first month. Thats pretty sad when Zipper don’t patch the crap up. So enjoy your ps3. Also Slantsix only put crossroads on here to try and sell some games. But looking at the sloppy spraying gun fights and stretch out map of crossroads. No thanks I almost was gonna break down and get this after the ps3 price drop. But not now. By the way also when we get ignored on promised map packs but don’t get the second map pack after a 1 year and 4 months. Thats another slap in the face. So im a more die hard fan then you CRAZYJOEDALLAS. You probably didnt even know Seth said 3 map packs with a possible of more if theres internest. Well there was alot of interest in map packs way back on s2. Sony botched that up. Then finally got the same maps again on s3. Now still waiting for our daylight Abandoned,DG,Blizzard,Blood lake. I know map pack 3 is scrapped. Since they cant get map pack 2 out in a timely manner.

  • Also this game is gonna need a map pack within 2 months after Confrontation release. Maps are gonna have to be even well layed out. Not like some lopsided maps from s3/ca B.S. Also I wouldn’t even have a ranking system at all. Just a personal stat tracker of kills and deaths. Have a medal/Rank within clans. Where the leader gives out a rank to there players. Also have coleader options and recruiters. Also have alot guns, even gun s too.

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  • I think Siraris said it best.

    Graphical fidelity is what we looking out now. We can count a dozens of titles on the 360 looking better than this. I’m not being rude here but point out our feelings.
    Animations looks too last gen. I have seen animations in killzone 2 which looks real.
    Also work on the lighting in the the game as the characters seems not to have any relationship with the environment.

    We love the game and so to the console. At this time the console isn’t selling hot killer titles will drive it. Socom Confrontation is one.

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  • I seen IGN has Confrontation delayed now until 2008.
    Published by: Sony Computer Entertainment
    Developed by: Slant Six Games
    Genre: Third-Person Shooter
    Number of Players: Up to 32 (no single-player)
    Release Date:
    US: TBA 2008
    Japan: Unreleased

    Features: Online, Voice Support
    http://ps3.ign.com/objects/906/906076.html

  • What Robz said is true, i have purchased every single Socom on its release day.
    I for one thought Sony would support map packs alot better than they have, they dropped map pack 1 and we have not seen another map pack since, it almost like spitting in the face of all us Socom loyalist who have supported the series since first release. The problem with map pack 1 was that it was not even new maps, they were maps that were put on a opm mag demo disk and available only to those fools (i was one) who actually bought and wasted money on the HDD for PS2. I tell you now i will wait this time around for more feedback before i waste money on another unsupported Socom. anyone who played all the others should know me i am the original (OsamaBinHiding).

  • to clarify the only comments i agree on that ROBZ Said have to do with Socom Not In regards to PS3 i will never buy an x-box 3sh#@y i am loyal to sony and will always be, but everything he said about Socom is true, i hope that this time around they get it right but as far as hoping PS3 crashes and burns you dudes need to get off the blog and go kiss Bill gates nads!

  • I’ve played socom 2 and 3 and LOVE them both. Can’t wait till 3 1\2 , least I guess thats what it will be. Cause I hear rumors of a 4th on the way as well. The graphics that i’ve seen so far are so much greater than the previous versions. You guys and or gals have done an outstanding job with the new socom coming out. Can’t wait to play it. Still waiting on Crossroads to come to Socom 3. Can’t wait till I get a newer PS3 cause this socom confrontation will be the first game I buy for it, not including motorstorm which comes with. Which I’m sure I will enjoy that game as well.

  • I know its like beating a dead horse but I wish socom 1 and 2 would get a patch besides s3/ca. If s1 got a dnas add to it but a upgraded version to stop code9. Which s2 really needs patched badly. Them old games would fly of the shelfs again. s3/ca needed a patch and map pack 2 and 3 last year already. But looks like Sony/Zipper is pushing ahead on ps3. I understand new market. PS3 desperately needs some more shooters. But im sure Sony would rather eliminate them games off the servers sooner rather then worry about delayed map packs for s3/ca.

  • Hey Seth whats the other 4 maps besides Crossroads? E3 didn’t say much other then all new maps? Any dates set for first map pack after Confrontation release? Also any old maps be on that map pack?

  • I see Slantsix took our complaints into effect as in delaying the game to put third person option in and other things.

    http://www.gamezonex.org/playstation-3/more-intel-revealed-about-socom-confrontation-3.php

  • With the new TBA 2008. Does this mean theres gonna be third person again? Any changes in the 4 other maps of being new changing to old maps? I personally rather see the game released as 10 maps. Cause 5 maps will get dull after few weeks. 10 maps have more fun replay value. Then have like 2 map packs later with 5 maps each. So in total it be 20 maps.

  • September 23, 2006
    SOCOM 3 Map Pack #2 Descriptions and Screenshots

    We hope that this post will get your weekend off on the right foot.

    Below please find descriptions of the maps from SOCOM 3 Map Packs #2, including screenshots. The exact date of availability has yet to be announced, but we can tell you that it will be soon and that the cost will again be $5.99.

    Thanks very much to all of you for your patience- we hear you on the blog comments and have a human reading them daily (usually more than one actually). As we’re sure you can imagine, it’s a busy time.

    Enjoy!

    _______________

    The SOCOM 3 Map Pack #2 contains four classic SOCOM maps: “Desert Glory”, “Abandoned”, “Blizzard” and “Blood Lake”.

    Desert_glory

    Desert Glory (a screen from which is above) is set in a ruined town cluttered with demolished buildings and rubble in the high Turkmenistan Desert Mountains. It is playable with up to 16 players in Breach, Control, Demolition, Extraction and Suppression game types in a day or night setting.

    Abandonded

    Abandoned is set deep in the Thai jungle, with many ancient ruins and an intricate tunnel system which spans the terrain. It is playable with up to 16 players in Control, Demolition, Extraction and Suppression game types in a day or night setting.

    Blizzard

    Blizzard is set in the Alaskan Klondike around an old gold dredge. Small buildings, cabins and trees scatter the landscape. It is playable with up to 16 players in Control, Demolition, Extraction and Suppression game types in a day or night setting.

    Blood_lake

    Blood Lake is set around a mercenary camp located next to a lake in the lush, mountainous jungles of Congo. It is playable with up to 16 players in Control, Demolition, Escort, Extraction and Suppression game types in a day or night setting.

  • please make confrontation like socom and socom 2.

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