TERA Westernization: Interview with Brian Knox

Jan 28th, 2011

Tera Zam interview with Brian Knoxx, Senior Producer for En Masse Entertainment

ZAM: Before we get too specific with our questions, could you define exactly what "Westernization" means to En Masse and TERA?

Brian Knox: Westernization refers to our process of adapting a game to fit the Western market. In some cases, text localization and new marketing assets are all that are needed. Other times, specific game mechanics and features require tweaking for the market. Gamers play differently around the world, and as the North American publisher, we need to ensure the game will be fun for our market.

ZAM: We are already aware that TERA will be story driven, and that it will have a core storyline in which players will play an integral role. Will the Western version of the game alter the plot so it is more relatable to the Western culture? Could you give us any examples?

Knox: We developed TERA’s overall plot shoulder-to-shoulder with our counterparts at Bluehole Studio, so the big picture is consistent no matter where you play. The presentation of that plot, though—the storytelling techniques, characters players can identify with, methods of world-building, style of pacing—that’s what we’re building for Western gamers. You won’t get a different plot. You’ll get characters with authentic personalities and motivations that propel the action forward.

ZAM: Will the Western version of the game be updated in conjunction with the Eastern version, or will it evolve independently?

Knox: Yes, the game will be updated in conjunction with the Eastern version; however, some features may evolve according to Western preference. Feedback from our community and from our team here at En Masse has always contributed to new features and advancements in TERA. The key is to offer choices to all users as we continue to evolve the game.

ZAM: Will the races of TERA be altered in the Western version of the game in either appearance or function?

Knox: We’ve been working with the development team to create a global game, and we’ve had considerable input on TERA’s races during the development process. Humans, amani, and baraka seem to appeal more to Western players, while poporis, elins, and elves have more of an Eastern appeal, but we expect all the player races will find fans throughout the world—just as TERA’s graphics, storyline, and combat have done.

ZAM: Are there any major class changes that we could expect to see in the Western version of the game versus the Eastern? More specifically, will any fundamental changes in play style or role be made?

Knox: There will definitely be some differences in our version, but most of those will come from territory-specific player feedback. We expect the Western version to be balanced for our audience. We’re grateful that the Korean release of TERA gave us the opportunity for a large-scale balance test.

ZAM: Along the same lines as the previous question, will any of the class skills be reworked from their Eastern iterations to adhere to a more Western gameplay style?
Knox: At its core, TERA is an action MMO which, by its nature, has a strong appeal to Western players. With class skills, we’re focusing our adjustments more on bugs, naming, and balance issues to ensure they offer players the best possible experience.

ZAM: Considering Eastern countries typically have better client-to-server communication, will the Western version have safeguards built in to level the playing field between high and low latency players?

Knox: TERA was designed at a technical level for all markets. We expect it to perform at a high standard for anyone on a broadband connection. I’m currently playing on the Korean servers and not experiencing any issues, so I expect players in the West to have a fantastic experience as well. We have a very talented and experienced operations team who've been building out multiple data centers to host the game. They’re doing a fantastic job setting up the TERA servers, with a focus on ensuring that latency will not be an issue for anyone in North America.

ZAM: Will the Western version of the game have essentially the same offered quests as the Eastern version, simply translated? Or will quests be rewritten entirely to fit the Western version?

Knox: Our writing team has been involved in plot and quest design for all versions of TERA for more than a year now, so it’s more about collaboration than replacing the Eastern version. There will be a significant amount of rewriting, however—Western sensibilities, humor, and expectations are a crucial part of delivering a great experience to our players. We want them to feel emotionally invested in the story of TERA and care about the world around them and their role in it. A lot of our rewriting efforts center on giving players emotional rewards through storytelling.

ZAM: Will the core attributes of each character (health, mana, crit percentage, etc.) remain the same for both versions of the game, or can we expect some variances in the math or even the attributes themselves?

Knox: We have made some subtle changes in those areas that will nonetheless have a dramatic impact on player perceptions. A lot of our changes were good for all players, and so ended up being in both versions of the game.



ZAM: As far as monster encounters are concerned, will the Western version have any of these reworked to vary from the Eastern version? Could we expect monsters to have different abilities or AI?

Knox: We’re still evaluating this, but the AI is good now, and tampering with a good thing just for the sake of making it different isn’t wise. I don’t want to delve into specific changes right now, but we’ll have more details as we start to finalize the balance of the Western version.

ZAM: Will the world of TERA change geographically in the Western version, as in new zones, new dungeons or changed landscape? Could we expect to see some Western-only dungeons or battlegrounds in future released content?

Knox: Because of our extensive collaboration with the development team, you’re going to see a game that’s global in nature. You’ll see Western ideas in all aspects of the game. A good example of this is that our writing team has collaborated with BHS and helped develop TERA’s story and plot, which has had a direct influence on the game world.

ZAM: One of the unique and still mysterious aspects of TERA is the political system. Will the method for obtaining office, an office's abilities, tenure or any other aspect of the political system be altered during the Westernization process?

Knox: Right now, my expectations are that it will be similar if not the same.

ZAM: Can we expect to see items in the Western version of the game vary from their Eastern counterparts?

Knox: All of the items in the game are going to be available to all territories. As part of our development efforts, we’ve worked to ensure that items fit globally within the context of the game.

ZAM: Thank you so much for your time, but before we go is there anything else you would like to tell us about TERA and the Westernization process?

Knox: Our Westernization approach is not to create a whole new game, but to focus on altering those pieces of the game that don’t appeal to Western players. TERA has a strong core of action combat, exciting solo and group play, an intriguing story, a dynamic community, and a vast world. Players around the globe will be able to participate and enjoy all of these aspects of the game.

There's been a lot of discussion recently concerning the Westernization of the Elin character. To help clarify things I located the above Interview from January.

I will also share Brian Knox's specific discussion of the Elin race changes.