We brought Jon Mavor in as a specialist to handle the rendering as it was such a key part of the game. “Back then we didn’t have 3D hardware, so had to rasterize the 3D using the CPU. I was like, whoa, people are gonna love that!” he grins.Īn inevitable consequence of the ambitious design was that the game’s engine would have to be written from scratch. “I thought we should give the player the ability to use the radar screen to give orders and be able to gather intelligence from the way the blips moved on the screen.” And more superficially, if no less impressive, was the weapon fire rendered onto the radar screen.

It gave a strategic advantage to the defender, which I wanted to reflect in TA.” And Taylor was convinced more could be made of the obligatory radar screen that had already become a RTS staple. As for the wreckage, if you watch documentaries on war, it’s a huge aspect with roads and fields littered with tanks and other vehicles, blocking the path of other units.

“I was frustrated by the limits and wanted immense over-the-top battles that could enthral the player. “I wanted to create a game where controlling the high ground really mattered,” he explains, “and that if you hid in the shadow of a mountain you could protect yourself from certain kinds of projectiles.” Meantime other design ideas such as a hugely increased unit allowance and the wreckage from destroyed vehicles remaining on the battlefield were borne more from his own experiences in playing RTS games. By the time Taylor began prototyping the engine in the Autumn of 1995, he had already spent considerable effort studying weapon systems and battle tactics, specifically the key strategic element of elevation when employing heavy ordnance.

Total annihilation online