[Russell Holly]

Welcome to the AMA Arena!

A lot of us know the name CCPGames from the ridiculously good Eve: Valkyrie and Eve: Gunjack in the VR world, but today we're joined by several members the Sparc team to talk about this latest game.

Our guests for today are ccp_wrath and CCP_Elvine!

Got some questions about Sparc, or anything else CCPGames might be up to? This is the place to ask! Answers will start flying at 2PM Eastern, so feel free to drop a question here early and swing back later to see your answers unfold live!

[pkcable]

Ok so I know the game is available on PSVR, which is cool, BUT I don't have that platform. Any plans to bring this game to other platforms, such as the Oculus Rift, or HTC Vive? I know I'm probably out of luck with my Daydream and Gear VR, but maybe? Anyways what if anything are your plans to expand the game to other platforms?

[James Bricknell]

I've been streaming the game since it's release and really enjoy it. Well Done!

The Eperimental stages are awesome, any thoughts about letting us edit them? different shapes/gravity and the like?

[krisguy]

What made your decision to start with PSVR only? Is there better dev support, or software to make things easier?

[Jared DiPane]

I haven't actually got any hands-on time with the game, but I have been following the coverage of it here. I was wondering what made you go with all the bright neon lighting and accents? Did you consider any other skins?

[CCP_Elvine]

Ok so I know the game is available on PSVR, which is cool, BUT I don't have that platform. Any plans to bring this game to other platforms, such as the Oculus Rift, or HTC Vive? I know I'm probably out of luck with my Daydream and Gear VR, but maybe? Anyways what if anything are your plans to expand the game to other platforms?

We will be discussing Sparc on other platforms later this year.

[James Bricknell]

one of my favorite parts is the customization of the players, i currently look like a weird steampunk dude. Will there be other customization offered?

I would love to see new shield/ball types introduced at some point perhaps using your strikes to buy upgrades?

[CCP_Elvine]

one of my favorite parts is the customization of the players, i currently look like a weird steampunk dude. Will there be other customization offered?

I would love to see new shield/ball types introduced at some point perhaps using your strikes to buy upgrades?

We looking into potentially expanding what is offered within customization in the future.

As for upgrades, we're trying to stay away from gamifying Sparc's core gameplay.
Your body / avatar is your equipment like any sport. How do you get better? Practice and playing more.

[Russell Holly]

The one universal thing everyone says about this game is what an incredible workout it is, which is awesome but also makes me wonder how long people wind up actually playing the game. We hear all the time from non-VR people that sitting on the couch is "easier" and means you can play games for longer, but it's nowhere near as immersive or fun!

Do you know how long the average person plays Sparc in a day?

[ccp_wrath]

I haven't actually got any hands-on time with the game, but I have been following the coverage of it here. I was wondering what made you go with all the bright neon lighting and accents? Did you consider any other skins?

Hi Jared. Being able to track fast-moving projectiles in space was a big requirement, and that in turn drove a lot of the visual style choices for the court. We wanted it to feel like a VR version of a real space like a YMCA raquetball court and tried to capture that in elements like the court surface textures. Overall, we wanted a modern/near-future theme.

[James Bricknell]

I've actually seen on twitter that people are using it as their daily aerobic workout which i think is an excellent idea

[ccp_wrath]

I've been streaming the game since it's release and really enjoy it. Well Done!

The Eperimental stages are awesome, any thoughts about letting us edit them? different shapes/gravity and the like?

We're definitely interested in more experimental modes. Letting players able to change those options on the fly is a good bit more work but it's on the list of requested features.

[krisguy]

I've seen some video about this game on YouTube, and it looks fun. Can you guys describe the process for us developers who don't go into gaming? What does it (generally) take to make a VR game?

Specifically:

• Platform(s) to support - why?
• Engine to use - Unreal, Unity, in-house, or other?
• VSports - was this a forethought in the design of this game?

[jjd728]

Will we ever get private rooms? Enjoy playing with strangers but would love to practice playing with my own friends! We've been enjoying this game and this has been something we wanted after a few games.
Would also love to see some DLC with new modes, games (some sort of bowling hybrid?)

[Jen Karner]

So one of the things I really love about Sparc is how competitive it gets when you're in the middle of a brawl, and how it really feels like a sport. Did either of you guys play sports as kids? Did that make you want to go the extra step to bring sports to VR?

[jjd728]

I've never sweat so much playing a game in my life! lol.

[James Bricknell]

Have you guys thought about making this a live vSport?

In my head i see a full size sparc court with POV screens above and real people standing in the court dressed like their avatar.

[CCP_Elvine]

Will we ever get private rooms? Enjoy playing with strangers but would love to practice playing with my own friends! We've been enjoying this game and this has been something we wanted after a few games.
Would also love to see some DLC with new modes, games (some sort of bowling hybrid?)

There is a private court option within the game currently! Players can use the "Play Together" feature within party function on the PlayStation Dashboard to create their own private court.

[Russell Holly]

Now that the game has launched and the patches are flying (1.04 just dropped yesterday), what has been the biggest surprise? What thing players are doing when playing in the wold caught you off guard?

[James Bricknell]

There is a private court option within the game currently! Players can use the "Play Together" feature within party function on the PlayStation Dashboard to create their own private court.

I never knew that! I am using that for sure!

[krisguy]

How about a doubles mode in the feature add list?

[CCP_Elvine]

So one of the things I really love about Sparc is how competitive it gets when you're in the middle of a brawl, and how it really feels like a sport. Did either of you guys play sports as kids? Did that make you want to go the extra step to bring sports to VR?

I personally played quite a lot of sports when I was growing up: Soccer, Baseball, Basketball and Aggressive Inline Skating. The team started with research and development for VR, one of the concepts that came of it was Project Arena. Which, of course as you know turned into Sparc. During Project Arena, we showed it off at FanFest and everyone loved it! They asked us to make it into a full game and since then we ran with it. In addition to the reactions we got from the community and our love of sports.. Sparc was born.

I've never sweat so much playing a game in my life! lol.

Sounds like we need to make some Sparc branded sweat bands.

[krisguy]

Sounds like we need to make some Sparc branded sweat bands.

Headbands and probably some grips for the Move controllers, too.

[jjd728]

literally had no idea! then my feedback would be to make it easier to get to ;-)

Any word on DLC/future content etc?

[jjd728]

Got any favorite tips for playing?