According to InExile, the camera will indeed be zoomable. When zooming in, the camera will feature a tight isometric angle. Zooming out will eventually have a classic top-down shot. The camera won’t automatically change unless the player wants it to.
The camera will also auto-follow the party. However, the players can pan the camera manually off the party using either the arrow or WASD keys, or by putting the mouse cursor at the edge of the screen. The pan speed is adjustable as well. As far as camera rotation, it defaults to manual 90 degree shifts - West, North, East and South. The camera rotation can be unlocked, however.
As far as the HUD, as seen in the video, it is comprised of five elements: character Portraits, mini-map, action bar, hot key selector, and description text window. Again, the HUD can be customized. “It doesn’t matter if you want the minimalist version, the long skinny version, the short and wide version, or anything in between. We have it for you,” promises the developer. In addition, the character portraits, mini-map, and hot key selector have Auto-Hide tabs as well.
The thing that got the most reaction from fans was the dialog system, which featured an Ultima IV-style keyword system.
According to InExile, ”The foundation of the keyword system is the player building up a keyword library through interaction with NPCs and the world. The keyword list starts out empty, and as you speak with NPCs they will reveal new keywords to you. If the revealed keyword is only of interest to that NPC, it will go into a local list. You can click on words in the keyword list to navigate through the conversation. If the revealed keyword has importance beyond that particular conversation, it is put into the regional keyword list. These keywords are of interest to most of the NPCs you encounter that region. A third option, which is never required, is to type something in – a nod to Wasteland 1’s system.”
One of the added functions of keywords is related to PC skills. Players with a high perception ability can examine objects in the world, and doing so may unlock a keyword. The same may happen if a party explores an entire level.
Unique keywords can also be unlocked during conversations aside from the obvious references. Factors include the party composition, previous gameplay choices, previously used keywords, previous player responses to NPC questions, character skills, character attributes, item inventory, equipped weapons and armor, prior party actions, and CNPCs in the party. “In other words, there isn’t a one-to-one correlation between keywords and the NPC’s response,” promises InExile.
Wasteland 2 is due to be released on PC in October 2013.
