WildStar

Fragment Zero Playthrough

Courtesy of WildStar Arkship

Overview

While working on WildStar, I was originally charged with polishing spawning and spacing of numerous zones and instanced content as part of the Encounter Team. I was responsible for Auroria, Crimson Isle Pocket Cap, Northern Wilds Pocket Cap, the Shiphands, Algoroc Tract 3 and the Drusera instances. My responsibilities while working on these zones consisted of ensuring all encounters adhered to standards, creating new creatures, creating ambient AI behaviors, and collaborating with the Content Team to bring fresh ideas to already existing content.

Once WildStar shipped, I joined the Content department to work on post game content. My first piece of post game content was Fragment Zero: A Shiphand melding the aesthetics of 70s sci-fi with the empowering gameplay of Dynasty Warriors. My responsibilities while working on Fragment Zero included spawning the entire central area from scratch plus spawning and creating all quest content in the Incubation Complex. Major challenges I encountered during spawning Fragment Zero was avoiding both visual fatigue, from having too many mobs on screen at once, and combat fatigue from the large number of mobs. One way I conquered these pitfalls was by breaking up large groups of mobs into smaller, more spread out pockets. This adjustment in pacing still provided players with a constant stream of mobs without completely boring them. Another thing I enjoyed doing was setting up ambushes to surprise the player, evoking feelings of fear, panic, and the sense of being overwhelmed while taking care not to frustrate them. These elements along with a creative, positive team, made Fragment Zero a favorite amongst WildStar fans.