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	Experience is twice as virtually real as all other games!

Well, not exactly. But as the Whole Experience team told us: "Basically Dagoth Moor is another dimension…think about that for awhile. A world inside a world inside a world." I did think about it for a while, and then I got a headache. Luckily, I'm a lot dumber than most people who can satisfactorily use computers and play nifty games, so perhaps you'll have an easier time with the concept than I have.

There are so many gameplay goodies to write about I honestly can't think of where to begin. Creatures… environments… items… character evolution… interaction… it's all too much for me. So much in fact, it's probably best for all concerned if I go ahead and allow our very own challenge chick to take over and write this section for me.

I don't know what the hell his problem is thinking of stuff to write, I mean a game is a game is a game, you know? Experience looks like it is really going to kick ass, and if the usual writer can't describe that well enough I may as well take a shot at it. The most immersive element in Experience is bound to be the environments. The Whole Experience team is doing a great job of making gigantic outdoor areas with a distinct "unhuman" appeal. Footprints can be tracked; walking through bushes or over different types of terrain will result in appropriate sounds. This will play a big role in the game, because the computer's AI is advanced enough for enemies to actually hunt you. Conversely, you can chase down enemies by following footprints or listening for distinct audio cues - this isn't your run of the mill bust into a room and shoot everything type game. In the outdoors there's a whole different style of play, and it may take some adapting to.

Speaking of which, your character doesn't need to practice skills to become proficient at them, you do! Riding an animal will require practice and learning on your part, if you ever expect to be a master at riding these animals. Enemy creatures such as the Bio Beasts can be dangerous if you don't plan out an attack first. And… what's that? Oh, Eric would like to resume writing now. Apparently he has a brief interlude about monkeys.

Hey! Knew you missed me… speaking of monkeys, I asked Jeff Connelly of the Whole Experience whether or not a monkey would ever jump onto your back so you could say "Hey! There's a monkey on my back!" He just loved the idea! Or he thought I was an idiot and mocked me… here's what he said:

'You're SO right...after I read your question its all that I have been able to think about. -- my partners are starting to get kind of pissed at me lately...during design sessions I'll be like "hey what do think about having a Monkey riding around on you back" or "I still think the Monkey idea would be cool".'

Back to the creatures… enemies will range from weird cyborg creatures to the Bio-Beasts who are presumably in cohorts with the evil monkeys. Though they'd have you know otherwise… but don't believe our hero will be in the least unequipped to face the challenges that will be presented in Dagoth Moor. Ti Guat will find two very important items early on that will be instrumental in helping him kill baddies. He will discover two ancient insects with great power. One is the MicroTerra ™, which will burrow into your head and provide a neural interface that shows your health and other important biological stats. It can evolve throughout the game, allowing for new powers such as mental and psycho-kinetic abilities. The other insect is the MacroTerra, which attaches to your arm and gives you natural control over it. It lets you fire bursts of energy or even has wings that can let you glide around during a big fall. As it evolves, you can make even longer jumps and fire more powerful bursts of energy… awesome.

There will be 24 unique weapons in all. They work in cooperation with various items and other assorted devices to make pretty neat combinations. Since devices are a necessity for good hunting excursions, it will help to learn how you can set traps for enemies (or friends… in multiplayer) and even track movements through surveillance cameras. The Whole Experience Team was nice enough to run us through a sample enemy encounter, which I'll paraphrase here, but you can read the full (long, yet very informative and interesting) response in the full interview at the end of this article.

Let's say you're in a dense forest. Giant boulders and trees populate the area, providing cover should any opposition be encountered. Your own movements can create enough sound to draw attention, but listening carefully to sound can work against the enemies also… as you can track their own movements through audio cues. You can setup spy cameras and teleportation devices next to each other to make for an ingenious way of tracking enemies and being able to teleport in to kill them quickly and without remorse. As you're setting these up, it's important you keep moving and gather more energy to power the "downloading" process that lets you set in place the said devices. As you're moving along, it's a nice touch to lay trip wires between trees in areas enemies will be looking for food. Soon, when a herd of 4 quagogs come running around you're able to kill a couple of them while the others run off. As gruesome as it sounds, you can collect chunks of their flesh to be used as food later. I wouldn't wait too long, it's never fun to get sick after eating spoiled quagog. Keep watching those spy cameras and something may show up. Whoa! Who woulda thought? It's a huge Mukoden, a very large and heavily armed (and armored) creature. When the time to strike has come, take out your handy blowgun (with explosive tipped darts, of course) and teleport in to hit him hard before teleporting out. Unless something goes wrong, as Jeff Connelly told us, "If all goes right I should be puffing on some quagmire herb by sundown…"

Yes folks, this means there will be real depth in a shooter. It's almost scary, eh? I know I'm about to wet my pants with anxious joy… but I suggest the rest of you don't go that route - you probably aren't wearing big kid's diapers like m-er… nevermind.