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Producer Lorne Asuncion steps up to the medal platform for a look at Athens 2004
“Come on, who wouldn't want to get their hands on one of those coveted medals?”
In just over two months, the world will watch as the 2004 Summer Olympic Games will showcase some of the best athletes in the world in a variety of competitions.
Ah, to stand atop the medal platform, hearing your national anthem play, acknowledging the accolades of the crowd and the respect/envy/loathing of your rivals. Now that would be something to experience.
Actually, you can … sort of.
In mid July, developer Eurocom and Sony Computer Entertainment will be releasing Athens 2004, an Olympic sports title that spans six categories, has three modes of play, and offers gamers to take on the role of an athlete representing one of 64 countries. More than 800 different athletes are available in this game.
Click here for a preview of Athens 2004 on the PS2
Lorne Asuncion, 989 Sports videogame producer, took a break from his training schedule to talk with GameZone about what it takes to be an Olympic video-athlete.
Question: The Olympic games provide, perhaps, some of the definitive moments in the life of an athlete. How have you been able to capture the emotional elements, the intensity of the competition?
Lorne: Athens 2004 is filled with intense and emotional situations from a gamer's standpoint. Because Athens 2004, The Official Video Game of the Olympics offers so many events and mastering each event takes time, players will witness the types of ups and downs that an athlete would go through. Additionally, we've motion captured hundreds of animations including detailed facial expressions that show all of the athlete's emotions during a competition. Whether it's hitting the perfect landing off the vault, or failing to qualify in the shot put, Athens 2004 will bring out the competitive nature in everybody. Come on, who wouldn't want to get their hands on one of those coveted medals?
Q: Is this game a purely reflexive experience, or will players have to put thought into what they are doing?
Lorne: Athens 2004 offers 25 events -- eight of them involve traditional pushes of a button and the other 17 have new and innovative game controls for those gamers concentrating on timing and technique. The end result is a perfect mix, because one event could be all about stamina and the next event could be about timing. But wait, that's not all... along with the previously mentioned game controls, Athens 2004 offers dance mat functionality. In Party Mode, all of the events that are dance mat related, including the 100m, 200m and High Jump, will all be available. Competing with your friends in this mode is where some true fun and excitement lie. Game on!
Q: What options are in place to allow players to personalize the experience and for that experience to grow?
Lorne: Athens 2004 has athletes from 64 countries, which adds up to over an astounding 800 unique athletes that the user can choose from. Let me say that again -- an astounding 800 unique athletes that the user can choose from.
Players can get a personalized experience by selecting a particular athlete from a particular country and adding their initials before beginning gameplay. If the player breaks a World or an Olympic record, they can view their time or score on the Records Page where all of the World and Olympic records appear. Note that these are the actual World and Olympic records, so if the player breaks one of them, that player is actually re-writing a bit of history within the game.
Q: Tell us a little bit about the competitions featured in this title. How robust an experience is it?
Lorne: Along with the 64 countries and over 800 athletes to choose from, Athens 2004 showcases 25 actual and authentic Olympic events including Pole Vault, Discus Throw, Weightlifting and Archery. Couple that with five exciting modes including Competition Mode where the user's athlete can compete in eight different Olympic style competitions like the Decathlon and Heptathlon, this game has infinite replay value and depth.
Q: Will this title feature online competition?
Lorne: Unfortunately, this game does not feature online competition, However we are definitely looking to add it to future games.
Q: To you, what marks a great sports title and how do you feel this title personifies that?
Lorne: I truly believe that authenticity marks a great sports title and this game absolutely has that. Because Athens 2004 is going the only exclusive Olympic licensed game out there, we were able to get the rights to all of the stadiums and logos from the International Olympic Committee (IOC). With this, we were able to capture the spirit and feel of the Olympics Games and what the Games stand for.
You say you can't make it across the big pond to see Greece in all its glory, we say see it in Athens 2004. Stadiums modeled on architectural plans, authentically crafted 3D event arenas approved by the IOC were generated for Athens 2004. Those stadiums include:
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Olympic Stadium - Home to Athletics (Track & Field) events.
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Olympic Aquatic Center - Main Pool - Home to Aquatics (Swimming) events.
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Olympic Indoor Hall - Home to Gymnastics events.
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Panathinaiko Stadium - Home to Archery events. This stadium was used during the original Games in 1896.
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Nikaia Olympic Weightlifting Hall - Home to Weightlifting events.
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Markopoulo Olympic Shooting Centre - Home to Shooting events.
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Markopoulo Olympic Equestrian Centre - Home to Equestrian events.
If you look at the stadiums, you will notice that every important detail is added from the Olympic logos to the crowd capacity because we were given actual blueprints of the stadiums and were told to depict them even though they haven't been completely built yet. This was an unusual experience for us, but we were very satisfied with our final take on the stadiums.
Q: When you were creating this title, what elements did you feel absolutely had to be in this game?
Lorne: When we were creating the game, we wanted the user to experience what it feels like to be part of the actual Olympic games from the moment the game is powered up. To maximize this experience, we've added all authentic stadiums, actual events, competitions and medal ceremonies. Along with that, there are also numerous countries and an endless selection of athletes. We have left no stone unturned in this production process.
Q: What sort of soundtrack does this game have? Are we looking at original compositions or have you gone with some familiar songs and theme music?
Lorne: The music that you hear in the game is all original compositions done by one talented person in our music department. For this game, we wanted to wrap the player in the spirit and atmosphere of the Olympic Games and we felt that this was best achieved by producing original compositions. When you play the game, the music draws you in even more to get that full on Olympic experience.
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