Platoon - a mod for Duke Nukem 3D
An interview with the guys behind the hugely popular Platoon mod, made by the now-defunct TNT team, the core members of which are now working on 1941 for Unreal Tournament. Platoon was a popular war-themed mod that, set in the Vietnam war, was inspirational to other mod teams and fun to play, to boot! It's realistic theme makes it one of the more popular and gritty mods for Duke 3D.
-by Lucky

Could you explain the theme and ideas behind the Platoon mod?

Platoon TC is a total conversion for Duke Nukem 3D with a Vietnam War theme and it was released in August 1997. One of our main ideas behind Platoon was to create a good atmosphere for the game. This was achieved by making quite-believable jungle maps and good sound effects to back it up. We also didn't want the TC to have any recognizable elements from the original game. Pigcops acting as Vietcong soldiers just doesn't cut it even though our drawing skills weren't very good at the time.

What inspired the choice of setting for Platoon?

We got most of our inspiration from warfilms such as Platoon, Full Metal Jacket and Apocalypse Now. Also the TV series Tour of Duty was running on the Finnish TV at the time (Spring 1997) so it gave us the final boost to start making the TC. It was a very original idea back then (only the old Navy Seal game and Marine Doom existed), and that's why we chose this setting.

Platoon used an intense war atmosphere which was favoured by fans.

What other mods, for any game, do you play often, and why?

As mod-makers it's very important for us to be up-to-date with all of the new releases and we try to play as many mods/TCs as we can. There are several interesting mods for HalfLife and we also follow the Unreal-scene quite closely. Counter-Strike for HalfLife and Infiltration for Unreal are the last ones I've played.

Why did you choose the Build engine, and Duke Nukem 3D, to work with, as opposed to another game and engine?

Build was the best and only choice back then. It's very easy to use the editor and it supports large areas as it comes to the level design.

You were part of the development team for GTi's WW2GI game - how did it feel to work on a commercial product as opposed to a mod?

It felt almost the same as working on a mod. The biggest differences are deadlines and small financial benefits. There is also some additional project management stuff to handle which affects the whole developing process.

The next project for the team will be 1941 for Unreal Tournament.

What is the hardest part of making a mod?

It's quite hard to get a good team together and keep the motivation up all the time, especially in large projects. There are highs and lows in modmaking, sometimes everything goes really well but then there are also all kinds of delays, problems and such. After all, this is more like a hobby and the team members don't get any money for the work.

How did the Duke3D community receive the mod?

Very well, I think. We received a lot of feedback from Platoon and still get some after two years from the release. Most of the feedback has been very positive and it has motivated us to continue making mods.

How much are you looking forward to Duke Nukem Forever?

Very much. I think it was a good decision from 3D Realms to change from Q3 to Unreal engine. As Unreal developers we have seen the great potential of the engine and that's why were looking really forward seeing the game.

Will you be making a mod for DNF? If so what will the theme be?

Platoon Forever, maybe ? We'll see :)

Did you encounter any problems when making Platoon, EG excessive, annoying bugs?

One big problem comes to mind. We developed Platoon for Duke v1.3d, the version in which you couldn't add new actors to the script file. This meant that we had to replace some old Duke actors with our new ones. For example, we had to change the DN3D trashcan actor into a F-4 Phantom fighter which drops bombs. Of course some ofour experiments didn't work or had some strange effects, so we had to really hunt for the right actor to be replaced. Besides that, no-one of us really had any programming experience. But since then we have become almost full-time programmers.

What is the most satisfying part of creating a mod?

The release of the mod, definitely. To get something actually done and put to the web is very rewarding.

Has working on Platoon helped in any way towards developing the upcoming '1941' for Unreal?

Well, yes. For example, we learned the programming basics with Duke3D and are now programming more complex stuff with UnrealScript. The same goes for level design, graphics and so on. Our working methods have evolved a great deal since Platoon but everything is based on the first project. And we also made some mistakes that have taught us to do things differently. Here's a tip for the new modmakers: don't announce an exact release date to the public before the project is finished :)

The war theme seems to be a trend in your productions. Is this a pattern we'll continue to see, or do you plan on expanding your avenues?

Yeah, we have thought of some new and more "peaceful" themes for a mod but those are just simply ideas. We haven't made any plans yet.

You can pick up a copy of the mod at the platoon website.

How and why did you first begin modifying games? Was Duke3d your first outing?

Platoon was our first real project. We had only made some levels and small weapon mods for Duke 3D and Doom before that. I don't remember the reason why we started modifying games. First we just started making simple maps, then added some new sounds and graphics to them, then started coding some new things and so on. Our first experimental partial conversion for Duke 3D was a small mexican village with mexicans, donkeys and exploding chickens flying around... Unfortunately it was never released and sadly we don't have a copy of it anymore.

When you were making Platoon, did you ever think that it might someday gain such an almost cult status as it mow has?

No, absolutely not. Platoon was made in about two months and we didn't think it would be reviewed in Avault for example. Since we hadn't release anything before we didn't know what to expect.

Looking at the 'big picture', where do you see yourself in ten years, regarding the gaming industry. Do you think you'll be making games full time?

Yes, I think that's quite likely!