Rush, Boom, Turtle: Sins of a Sins Developer

Blair Fraser confesses that Sins of a Solar Empire could have been a very different game.
3/10/2009 7:51 PM | 1 Comments | Page 8 of 8

Fraser: Probably the TEC's Kol Battleship. Whereas all their other ships were adapted from civilian or commercial use, it was their first ship designed for war and a symbol of them finally overcoming the odds and making a push back against the superior Vasari. I like that sort of imagery, but even more, I like that I can stick it in right in the middle of a massive force and have it kick ass in all directions, especially once I fire up Adaptive Shield and Finest Hour. And recently it's become especially satisfying to watch it fire Flak Burst. The increased usefulness of carriers has led to a dramatic increase in the use of fighters and bombers. Watching the Kol annihilate clouds of them in one or two bursts is hilarious, particularly when I know I'm dashing the spirits of some online player who thinks the carrier mob is the be-all end-all of strategies.

Chick: I see a little of the backstory plays into your choice.

Fraser: The Kol backstory was one of the seeds to the entire backstory. The character used to voice the Kol's commands is one the key protagonists for the TEC's story and he's the commander of a Kol. He's also the guy in the opening cinematic and in the old, embarrassing trailer we did with the early Sins prototype in order to get some publisher to notice us.

Chick: Has the Kol changed at all over the course of patching? Was it always good against strike craft?

Fraser: Aside from the art change, the Kol hasn't changed all that much. More of what has changed was the relative utility of the various abilities, particularly Flak Burst due to the carrier changes in an early patch.

Chick: Is being able to attack to all sides something unique to the Kol?

Fraser: Well, a bug was preventing the Kol from making full use of his 360-degree bank coverage. On paper, the Kol was supposed to have the best damage coverage but this was never reality until the Entrenchment bank re-coding. Multiple bank targeting is not unique to the Kol but he's the best at it.

Chick: So there we have it. This week's Unit of the Week is the Kol Battleship from Sins of a Solar Empire. Thanks, Blair!

Note: You can see the original Kol model here, around the 1:00 mark, and how it forms the original Sins of a Solar Empire logo at the 1:50 mark, with the silhouette of the nose like a shark breaking out of the water. The current logo, which you can see at the top of the Sins of a Solar Empire site, is slightly revised, but it's still very much a Kol Battleship.