Transformers Universe party interview

Last night we got a chance to meet up with Jagex at their super amazing Transformers Drinks Party. Before we get to talking about the game, I just want to point out to all of you readers out there that there is nothing more awesome then going to a party where the first question you’re asked is “Autobots or Decepticons”, followed by “Would you like a free cocktail?” both being asked by quite attractive women… Yes, it is awesome to work for T3.

So ON TO THE GAME. Transformers Universe is still in very early stages of development. And when I say early, I mean we got to see a basic character customization screen and some character renders and that’s it. Thankfully, the Jagex employees were there… Somewhere… With no identifying features whatsoever. So after 20 minutes of asking random people “Do you work for Jagex?” we finally found Sean Charles, the Senior Marketing Manager for Transformers.

The Jagex team seemed very excited about this IP. While they are partnered with Hasbro, they reassured us that they are the only ones making gameplay decisions. Since Jagex isn’t really known for anything outside of Runescape, a.k.a. that one browser based MMO that we all played in middle school, it seems only fitting that their next game also be browser based. We were told that they’re trying to make the game as accessible as possible, that the goal is to have everyone try it out at least once.

Also, to the joy of fanboys everywhere, this game will not be affiliated in any way with those terrible movies. The game will be taking place in the prime universe, and it was strongly hinted at that we will be seeing gameplay on both Earth and Cybertron. We’re also going to be seeing a lot of interaction with the major characters from the Transformers universe. And as Sean jokingly told us, “Don’t worry, you won’t be having Optimus Prime sending you out to chop wood.”

And of course, it wouldn’t be a transformers game if you couldn’t transform into shit! We were told that in addition to customizing your character, you’ll be able to customize what you can transform into. It hasn’t yet been decided if there will be forms other than just cars. While they couldn’t confirm that there would be vehicle combat, we were told that they aren’t saying there wouldn’t.

And that’s all we’ve got. Jagex didn’t have any gameplay to show us, but the game is slated for an early 2012 release. We’re on the list, and apparently in the beta, so we’ll give you details as they come along. Stay tuned!