Doug Binks - 27 Apr 2013
Our plan for the new Avoyd is to expand upon the original free-for-all gameplay with single player, co-op and team vs team. We intend for all modes to use the same ruleset to create a consistent universe.
Competitive games are normally symmetric. This means players on either side have access to capabilities of the same power, though often with different styles. For example, in Quake Arena, every player is equal and has access to the same weapons.
Single player games are usually assymetric. The player is far more powerful than the enemies. For instance in Halo, Master Chief is massively tougher than the majority of Covenant enemies.
AI design reinforces this. In competitive games the bots which replace human opponents are designed to try to win whilst single player enemy AIs are designed to loose gracefully.
We've decided to combine both these gameplay styles. Teams will be made up of players and less powerful but more numerous AI drones. Each team has a base which it needs to protect. In single player and coop games, these drones provide waves of enemies attacking the base. In competitive team games, one side wins when it destroys the other side's base, either through individual player action or by overwhelming the opponent's base with drones.