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Building Headquarters: The Social Hub in 'Call of Duty WWII'

Riley Pietsch  (Senior Systems Designer, Sledgehammer Games)

Location: Room 2005, West Hall

Date: Wednesday, March 20

Time: 11:30 am - 12:00 pm

Pass Type: All Access, GDC Conference + Summits, GDC Conference - Get your pass now!

Topic: Design, Production & Team Management

Format: Session

Vault Recording: Video

Audience Level: All

'Call of Duty: WWII' introduced a brand new feature called Headquarters, a 48-player social hub where players interact with character-driven storefronts, play minigames, show off their accomplishments, and engage with the community in new ways. This talk is a design and development retrospective: what the experience goals of the feature were, what design philosophies were held during development, what challenges were faced, and ultimately, what worked and what didn't. The presentation covers a variety of successes, pain points, and lessons learned while creating a 3rd person, largely non-combative and non-competitive feature within the Call of Duty universe.

Takeaway

This talk offers honest insight into the development and exploration of a new multiplayer space and set of systems within an established franchise. The content covers lessons, philosophies, and a retrospective analysis that can benefit anyone looking to better understand the creation of social and experimental features, as well as how design decisions (large and small) along the way impact the final player experience.

Intended Audience

This talk is intended for all designers and developers looking to understand the intent, decisions, and unknowns that come with creating new multiplayer systems and social features. No prior knowledge or experience necessary.