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Exclusive Interview with Lost Light Lead Producer, Haowen Huang

Erwin Bantilan

NetEase’s Lost Light is an action-survival game that was released last year as open beta in the US, now playable in the Philippines and other part of the SEA region. The game is a mix of several genres, including Battle Royale, Shooter-Looter, and action-RPG simulator. One of the most interesting aspects of the game is its enemy to friend mechanics in the middle of a battle. The game is impressively polished and has a responsive gameplay that allows you to easily get hooked. GamingPH had a chance to interview the lead producer of the game.

In this exclusive interview, we will be talking to the game’s Lead Producer, Haowen Huang about the game’s development, its features and what the future holds for Lost Light.

GamingPH: Can you tell us about your role at NetEase Games and how you got started with the company?

Haowen: I am the lead producer of Lost Light, an FPS game enthusiast, and a game developer with more than ten-years development experience in FPS games.

GamingPH: What do you enjoy most about working at NetEase Games? 

Haowen: NetEase Games has provided the developers with considerable latitude. From creative ideas to game designs, we get all the support we need from NetEase. As a game marketed to global players, we have put together an international team as well. Many colleagues from Southeast Asia, Europe, and other places have joined us to help develop and publish the game.

GamingPH: How did the team come up with the idea for Lost Light, and what were some of the influences when designing the game?

Haowen: As an FPS game enthusiast, I am quite interested in all the FPS games on the market, whether it’s a PC game or a mobile game. For the mobile FPS games currently available on the market, they are all trying to tell us to fight or compete. But if you look at real war, don’t the enemies also help each other? Won’t you find someone on the battlefield who is not a friend or a foe? Therefore, we’d like to build the most realistic warfighting mobile game. Anything that happens in the real world can happen in the world of Lost Light.

GamingPH: What were some of the challenges that you faced while developing Lost Light?

Haowen: The biggest challenge we are facing is performance optimization. To provide a realistic battlefield atmosphere and a truly immersive gaming experience, we want the graphics presented to the players to be the best possible. As the hardware for mobile phones varies in standard, it is a great challenge to allow for a stunning art performance for high-end models while ensuring that the image quality for lower-end phones is not too low. You might notice our efforts in making the game less and less hardware demanding and that it can now run on phones with 2G/3G RAM. Please be patient with us as we continue to optimize performance.

GamingPH: Lost Light has excellent graphics and provides a realistic warfare experience. How are you going to ensure that Lost Light remains a fun and exciting game for years to come?

Haowen: There is so much more we can offer based on the idea of “Realistic Warfare” and we will keep providing players with refreshing game experiences and creative ideas. We will also monitor the recent trends in the FPS game market and pay close attention to players’ feedback to ensure they will enjoy our new patches.

One particular thing I’d like to share with you here is the ranked mode in Lost Light. We just added Raymond’s Squad in ranked mode some time ago. They randomly appear on the battlefield to give players a taste of the thrill of guerrilla tactics. We’ve also added a new questline from the NPC Avril and a bounty store exclusively in ranked mode. These new features have received positive feedback from players. The social system is another highlight of the game. We have introduced or will be introducing much more new gameplay to the game, such as the in-game rescue, the multi-player shelter, and completing team-up missions to increase friendship levels, etc.

Lost Light is still a fairly young game, and we will be bringing more and more elements for players to enjoy.  Try it and you’ll discover an excellent new world. By the way, here is a little secret: the development of new maps and new firearms is underway.

GamingPH: For someone who is unfamiliar with this kind of game (survival with mixed battle royale), would this be a good place to start for them in this kind of genre and why?

Haowen: Definitely. But before elaborating, I’d like to address one thing – Lost Light isn’t really a battle royale game. We’d prefer to use three keywords to describe our game – Survival, Warfighting, and Progression. Survive to win has always been the philosophy of the game. Players must think outside the box. Shooting your way out isn’t the only option, being strategic is the key. From the game scenery to firearm designs, whether in the details of the artwork or the interaction experience, we strive for realism. You can just download the game and have a try. In addition, the game also features a progression system where players can trade in or craft their loot from the battlefield to upgrade their shelters. Players can also trade their supplies in the shelter. One man’s trash is another man’s treasure. Whether you want the adrenalin rush of intense gunfights or you enjoy the sense of achievement from progression, Lost Light is the game for you.

GamingPH: Are we expecting any crossover events with popular anime or movie titles?

Haowen: Definitely. We will be seeking such opportunities once the game goes live worldwide.

GamingPH: Are we getting more servers for everyone, especially closest here in the Philippines?

Haowen: The game provides four servers now – Asia, Europe, North America, and South America, during which the closest server to Philippine players is the Asia server.

GamingPH: What do you want players to take away from Lost Light?

Haowen: I believe that everyone could get their own experience in Lost Light, whether from exciting fights, mind-blowing strategies, or diverse social interactions. Lost Light as a game genre is still fairly new. We hope players will understand and really enjoy it over time. And of course, we want you to feel your emotions in the realistic warfare and find your true self.

— END OF INTERVIEW —

It’s clear that Lost Light is in good hands, and we can’t wait to see what the future holds for this promising new game. For those who are interested on downloading NetEase’s Lost Light or check the information of the game, you can check it below:
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