Project Offset

Overview

Project Offset is an epic fantasy first-person shooter being developed by Offset Software.  The game features parallel storytelling, epic battle scenes, objective based multiplayer and groundbreaking visuals.  Combat will have a fusion of close-quarters combat and long range shooting to create a high action experience.  The game will also feature rideable creatures such as Siege Trolls, Dragons and Battle Boars.  Offset Software was purchased by Intel in February  2008.  Although it is not currently know the exact reasoning behind the purchase, it is likely that Intel plans on using Project Offset and the Offset Engine to leverage their upcoming Discrete GPU line's gaming potential.  Also, Intel has been providing developers with technology to use in their games for some time as a part of their "Partners" program, and it is extremely likely that the Offset Software purchase was to secure a top-tier graphics platform for license to their partners.

Parallel Storytelling

Project Offset will not be seen through the eyes of a single hero, but rather several heroes, similar to movies such as Sin City, Pulp Fiction and Crash.  These hero's stories will intersect, and actions you perform as one character will have consequences on that path of another character.  One example of this Parallel Storytelling that has been given is the tales of Haidar the Warrior and Jöktan the Goblin.  In the example, Jöktan invades a human village and destroys it, then moving on to attack the city of Abinden.  Then, players will see the tale of Haidar, who finds the village in ruins and then fight in the massive battle defending the city of Abinden.  These stories, although linked, may not be seen chronologically, as one of the later tales in the game is actually set hundreds of years before the events played at the beginning of the game. This method of storytelling also allows for expansions to be released episodically, telling the tale of new characters 

 

Multiplayer

Project Offset will feature a class based multiplayer component that picks up where the storyline ends, allowing players to fight the war online. The multiplayer will feature Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, Capture the Flag and Objective Based modes with anywhere from 2-24 players.  Objective Based mode will maintain the same epic scope of the single player campaign with opposing factions facing off, fighting to gain control over cities.  The player classes in the multiplayer will include Warriors, Engineers, Paladins, Assassins, and Wizards.  These classes are balanced in a "Wheel of Power" where the various classes will have advantages over another class, creating a game of Rock-Paper-Scissors in distribution of classes amongst your team.  Warriors trump Paladins, Paladins trump Engineers, Engineers trump Assassins,  Assassins trump Wizards and Wizards trump Warriors.

Technology

Built on the Offset Engine, Project Offset is one of the best looking games around.  With features like Real-Time Ambient Occlusion, Real-Time Shadows, Cinematic Quality Motion Blur, Depth of Field, Specular Bloom, and Soft Particles, the Offset Engine has more special effects than most other engines currently on the market.  The Self-Shadow Technique used in the Unreal Engine 3, CryENGINE 2.0, and other engines was developed by Offset Software.  The Offset Engine also allows for hundreds of enemies to be displayed on-screen, allowing for truly massive battles.