During my recent day with Ubisoft (which you can read about here), I got chance to have a roundtable interview with Red Steel 2’s Creative Director, Jason Vandenberghe, about MotionPlus, cell-shading, and hitting things with a sword.

Present at this round table were myself (Limpit – WiiDS.co.uk), James (NintendoLife), Karn (Cubed3) and Jason Vandenberghe (Creative Director – Red Steel 2). Questions were fired left, right and center and all we had were our trusty pen and notebook, so here is a rundown and all the juicy information from our chance to probe Mr. Red Steel 2.

Where did the inspiration behind Red Steel 2 come from?

“When we started to think about Red Steel 2, we decided we needed to create a new setting and relaunch the game with a new style. Red Steel gave us the sword and gun based gameplay, and the Japanese and Western influence. From there, we “smashed” the ideas together and came up with a world that was a real mix-up of both cultures and when the idea of the Unnamed Hero appeared, it fit perfectly. The cell-shaded graphics also seemed to match the new setting we had created so it all just seemed to fit together nicely.”

Why did you decide that the game was to be MotionPlus only, and were there any concerns?

“When we started to make some prototypes to test some ideas for the new game, we soon realised that some of the things we wanted to do weren’t possible with the normal Wii remote. After playing with the MotionPlus add-on we soon realised that we couldn’t make the game we wanted to without it. Yeah, we had concerns of the uptake of the accessory and had to look carefully into the decision to make the game MotionPlus exclusive, but the game without the add-on just felt so unresponsive and laggy when hitting things that we felt we had no choice. But in the end I think we have made the right decision – I mean it works so well with it!”

Jason Vandenberghe

How much help did Nintendo give with the MotionPlus add-on?

“Nintendo were very helpful and gave us early access to the development libraries for the accessory, but in our team we had already got some of the top Wii developers in the world from the work with previous titles. As development progressed, the libraries improved, but they were still new to everyone (even Nintendo) so it was a real learning experience for all. We also got to work with the Metroid Prime team and they helped with getting the FSP control mechanics “right”. Overall Nintendo were very helpful and everyone was happy to work together.”

Had any development started on Red Steel 2 before MotionPlus was announced?

“Development for Red Steel 2 started when Red Steel was finished and the dust had settled. The team spent a lot of time listening to the community, researching into other FSP titles on the Wii and worked on polishing our game ideas. When MotionPlus appeared, we re-examined everything we had already found out and applied the new device to our already thought-out ideas.”

Did you ever think about ditching the seemingly overpowered gun and make Red Steel 2 sword-only?

“Red Steel set the standard for what the franchise is about – sword and gun. Getting rid of the game wouldn’t make it Red Steel anymore. However, I’m not totally against the idea of a “Red Steel Tactics” sword-only spin off. That would be cool!”

Guessing from your accent, you’re American – How did you find working with a french based company?

“At first I thought it was going to be a little daunting, but soon found out how friendly and welcoming the guys and gals at Ubisoft are. The company on the whole is very bi-lingual, and it has given me the chance to learn a bit of french of my own! I don’t see it as a problem, and the fact they are letting me make the game I’ve been wanting to make for a very long time, I’m sure I’d have worked something out if it was a problem!”

It has already been announced that Red Steel 2 features no multiplayer – What is your take on this?

“The lack of multiplayer meant we had a lot more time to focus on the single player game. There had already been a great number of challenges to overcome, and the team is not huge, so fewer challenges made it a lot more achievable. That said, I’d love to add multiplayer to future games in the series.”

Is there any relation between Red Steel and Red Steel 2?

“Apart from the sword and the gun, and the Japanese/Western culture setting, no! The storylines of the two games, together with the setting, are very different. We’ve got a new hero in a new world where cool things happen and the action comes to you. Realism also isn’t a barrier, as we like to think we have got to the edge – making the game as real a possible without making it overly fantasy based.”

And the future? Red Steel 3 – In Space?

“Wow, I like the sound of that idea! But seriously, we need to get Red Steel 2 made and out of the door first, but who knows where we will go next!”

Finally, if you could say one thing to our readers about Red Steel 2, what would it be?

“This game will let you smash things to pieced with your sword – simple as that!”

Be sure to check back tomorrow when we’ll have another Red Steel 2 exclusive – an interview with Roman Campos Oriola, Game Designer.