Nvidia recently talked with id Software's Todd Hollenshead about Return to Castle Wolfenstein, which id developed with Gray Matter Interactive and Nerve Software. Here's a sample:

Return to Castle Wolfenstein is powered by the venerable Quake III engine. Is this the same basic engine or does it feature any enhancements or modifications?

About the only two pieces of the original Quake III Arena Engine that remain in Return to Castle Wolfenstein are the core rendering system and the network code (although throughout the development of Team Arena and subsequent point releases the network code has been optimized an incredible amount as well). Gray Matter has developed an advanced AI system where enemies will react to their surroundings, take cover, work together, and make different decisions based on the tactics with which you play. They have been able to add realism by incorporating a skeletal animation system which allows for many more animations per character, as well as the use of motion capture data to create animations that are incredibly smooth and lifelike (it’s actually a little spooky sometimes). The sound and music systems have been modified to handle more dynamically changing situations, and they incorporated an incredibly cool new camera system, that we developed here at id, that they use for all of the in-game cinematic sequences. They have also made incredible use of the terrain system that was developed for Quake III: Team Arena. Using the terrain system, they have been able to create some massive outdoor environments that are not only amazing to look at, but create a gameplay dynamic that is very unique for the traditional shooter.

MGF: Download Wolfenstein MP Test 2 (64.7 MB)

Nvidia: Return to Castle Wolfenstein

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Buy Return to Castle Wolfenstein

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