SEGA's Justin Lambros Talks Iron Man

Currently, SEGA has an Iron Man game in the works for next-gen and last-gen consoles for the upcoming movie.

Vice President, Interactive, Marvel Studios and Executive Producer on the Iron Man video game Justin Lambros was able to answer some questions on the game, taking time out of his busy schedule:

1. What pressures are you under from fans of the franchise to really deliver a game that stands out above other movie tie-ins?
[JL] Iron Man definitely has a die-hard following, and the movie is going to be really impressive, too, which is great, so that’s a lot to live up to. But the development team has set high standards for what they want to do, so there’s a lot of internal pressure as well as the obvious external ones.

2. How are you mixing up gameplay so that it’s not all just flying and shooting, level after level?
[JL] Iron Man can do a lot more than just fly and shoot, so we’ve got a bunch of different kinds of combat for him. Also, there are a huge variety of enemies with some pretty cool strategy elements required to take them on. Plus, there’s the suit customization part of the game, which is pretty significant.

3. With big movie stars such as Robert Downey Jr. and Gwyneth Paltrow appearing in the Iron Man film, can you confirm whether these stars will be lending their voices to the Iron Man game?
[JL] We’d love to have everybody from the film in the game, so we’re trying to work it out. We’ll definitely have updates in the future.

4. What does the developer think is the essential Iron Man experience, the one that they try to capture the most in the game?
[JL] The development team really wants to capture all of the different things that Iron Man can do in battle. They’ve dubbed him a “one-man army”, and they are delivering on all his core abilities: flight, ranged combat and melee combat. Plus they’re adding a cool layer of tech customization across it all.

5. Does the game feature classic Iron Man villains such as Fin Fang Foom, Crimson Dynamo or Mandarin?
[JL] We definitely wanted to bring some iconic Iron Man villains into the game, but we needed to make sure they fit into the movie world of the character. So, while a 100-foot tall dragon may not, one of the coolest villains from his early days, Whiplash, fits in very well with the tone of the game.

6. Previously you said that there would be side quests. Which kind of them will there be? Will they vary depending on the stages or will there be more or less the same?
[JL] Side quests really implies a different kind of game experience than what Iron Man is delivering on, which is a military battlefield experience. But optional objectives and side missions are definitely a core part of the gameplay, something to mix it up and give replay value.

7. Fans of Iron Man are obviously expecting to see some of Iron Man’s signature weapons, like the repulsor beam, in the game. Can you give us some other examples of what Tony Stark will use to defeat his enemies in the game?
[JL] We’ll use his array of weapons showcased in the film, plus we’ll add some unique things from the comics. There’s definitely a lot to choose from and we’ll be unveiling some of that high-powered Stark technology closer to the game’s release date.

8. Will the game follow the exact same plot as the movie or will we get some extra missions with, maybe, classic characters from the Marvel Universe?
[JL] We will take the central storyline from the film and expand on it with subplots and extra characters taken from the comics. We definitely want gamers to relive the coolest parts of the movie and have the additional material feel like a natural extension of that.

9. Iron Man is a difficult character to work with. Tony Stark is a businessman with so many problems that affect his relationship with his armour. Are you going to be faithful to this special connection? How are you going to make players feel that interaction with the armour?
[JL] The character is faithfully portrayed to his comic roots in this regard in the movie, so we’ll follow that lead and add some more elements along those lines. We’re developing a customization system so that gamers will be able to make the suit match the way they want to play the game, and we will also include strategic elements on the battlefield, which will hopefully make them feel connected to the suit.

10. What has been the best part of your working at Marvel. Do you think these non-game companies are understanding and embracing games more then ever?
[JL] Marvel has always understood that its characters needed to be faithfully recreated in multiple mediums. While Marvel Studios is definitely a film-centric company, they are very open and interested to all the products that come along with their films. Many of the people in my office are gamers, even some of the filmmakers, which really helps to be able to collaborate with them. It’s been an amazing experience to have the video games play such a big role in a franchise. It’s very exciting and gratifying to have film producers, directors and actors engaged in the game content.

All seems well. Good to hear from you, Justin!

[Via El33TOnline]