Hey guys, Tomikaze here, I had the opportunity to send some interview questions over to HexZombies who got with the rest of the team and gave me the inside scoop on just what is going on behind the scenes and in the minds of these mapping mad scientists - I hope you enjoy.



Q1: How did it come about that all 4 of you guys: Awesomepieman, Jbird, Radimax and yourself came together to make a map? That's a lot of people to work on one project and a lot of personalities to deal with 

A: Well, when me and Pieman were working on The Swan I kept pitching him an idea I had for an underwater zombies map and in the show "Lost" which the Swan is based on there is an underwater facility called "The Looking Glass Station", Pieman said that if we could get the looking-glass station to look and act like it was underwater then that would open up the possibility of creating the underwater map. So after some time, pie simulated the underwater environment and it not only looked amazing but it also worked! So once the Swan released we started talking to two other map designers Jbird and Radimax and pitched the idea of working together to create Leviathan. In the end we all got a little wet.....

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Q2: Did you all share the same vision for the map Leviathan, because it seem to me that with 4 people there are a lot of different opinions involved and different ideas to have to take into consideration? Also, is there one person who is the project lead who makes the final decisions?

A: At first I think we all had widely different ideas about how the map was going to look, we had no concept art or references to look at when the build started - so basically you will see each of our different styles built into one map with the set goal that it has to look practice for an underwater setting. Pieman has a more ambient visual style, Radimax is High Tech Industrial style,  Jbird is detail orientated in his style and I am more heavily themed in my style  and when we put that all together it actually started to come together and work - obviously there were disputes and minor arguments along the way but that is to be expected when you're all trying to work on the same thing.
As for the project lead, I would say we all have shared that responsibility but we do lead in are own individual departments - Pieman and Jbird lead in scripting while I and Radimax lead in mapping.

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Q3: Are there any official Call of Duty map or even any community made zombie maps which you guys have drawn inspiration from in making Leviathan? If so, which ones?

A: I can say that Moon was the biggest source of inspiration for Leviathan, Moon is so vast in its story and unique gameplay - not to say that other zombie maps havent been amazing, but Moon was just the next step forward for the game mode and so eye-opening about how far zombies could be taken. So to re-create that feeling that most people got when Moon was first announced and released we decided to follow suit and create something just as extravagant.



Q4: Leviathan looks pretty freakin' huge. Is it as big as it looks? Is this going to be the largest zombie map to date? Is there any other map who's size you could compare it to?

A: Oh it is massive! (that's what she said), at first I think we planned on it being the size of moon but then we just took it a lot further, because it is such a unique idea to bring to zombies and was so much fun for us to build that we just had to keep adding things until we remembered (hey this engine does have limits) lol. But yea for the size of the map which I will also say is not one flat surface, it has multiple levels to it not just mapping wise but the theme aswell, it is on par with Moon, Origins, Mob of the Dead - but somewhat larger.

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Q5: Are there going to be features in this map that have never been seen before in custom zombies? If there are, is there anything that you can say about these features right now...any secret bits of info that you can indulge our readers with?

A: Yes of course, we as a team want to give you that same feeling you get when a new DLC releases - so expect an array of new features that suit the map. I can't say much except for what most of you know about the map already, you must realize that I work along an evil monster known as PieMan so I'm pretty much in fear that he will throw torpedoes at me at any moment or punch me straight to China. But what I am allowed to say is that the underwater environment in Leviathan is beyond anything we could have imagined!

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Q6: Some maps in the past have had objectives which were so complex and in such tight areas that it made solo play impossible except for the absolute best zombie players out there. Will this map be more solo friendly, like maybe a solo option for the average player and a harder multiplayer mode?

A: As of right now Leviathan is still being built so we won't be able to give you a definitive answer, but don't let that put you off! Leviathan is being created in a similar fashion to a Black Ops Zombie map and will be solo friendly in the way you play and complete goals. Move along now, nothing to see here.



Q7: Are there any other game modes planned for Leviathan other than a classic mode? Any gungame or possibly some of the other game modes that Jbird is creating for his Christmas map?

A: No, we decided very early on that the map was going to be classic Black Ops Zombies in all of its glory. Of course it would be cool to have different game modes, and Ideas for game modes were thrown around, but when it came down to it Leviathan is designed specifically as a grand underwater horror adventure.

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Q8: Let me just shoot this one to you straight. Is this the officially-unofficial follow-up to Moon that you have been saying that it is? Can we expect an in-depth story for this map which picks up where Moon left off or is this merely a return to Black Ops in the form of gameplay and weaponry?

A: In our minds I would say it is the official-unofficial follow-up to Moon since BO2 was not how most of us imagined the story would be picked up - but Leviathan is more in line with how Call of the Dead and Mob of the Dead are told - same zombie universe, different group of people with an all new in-depth horror story in the style of classic Black Ops.



Q9: What are each of you guys favorite official Treyarch zombie maps and why?

A: HexZombies - Ascenion "Vintage Sci-Fi Horror"
     Jbird 632 - Call of the Dead "I love snow maps"
     AwesomePieMan - Moon "Zombies in SPACE!!!"
     RadimaX - Der Riese "No comment - Currently Drinking Monster"

(sidenote: thank you RadimaX for NO REAL INFORMATION! ~ Tomikaze)
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Q10: Last question. If this map is as big of a success as we are all thinking it will be, is there any chance you guys would all get back together for another map; or is this a one-and-done type thing?

A: Well let's sure as hell hope it is a success! We have tested it for 7 months now and we are still not bored. And yes I think the four of us would all like to get back together one day after Leviathan releases and just start throwing out ideas for maps, I think this time around it will be way easier to get the ball rolling since we have worked together so long and have gotten the hang of working as a team. So hopefully the community will see something new from us in the future.

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~Thanks to Tomikaze from the Leviathan build team for doing this interview so that the community could get a sneak peek into the map. See you sometime in early 2015.~

Wow! If I wasn't excited for this map before(which I was), I am way more excited now.

Cant wait for this map looks so amazing.

How do they make it so sexy... Still excited for this black ops add on! Didn't notice they made mod tools for bo1 :troll:

any videos?

I tried to get one while I was doing the interview, but I was caught and then something happened with a screwdriver and one of my eyeballs. I tried though; you can never say I'm not a man of the people.

~Thanks to Tomikaze from the Leviathan build team for doing this interview so that the community could get a sneak peek into the map. See you sometime in early 2015.~

Did you mean hex? Noticed that it says tomikaze but i think you meant to say hex?  ???

Did you mean hex? Noticed that it says tomikaze but i think you meant to say hex?  ???

That was hex who wrote that.

That was hex who wrote that.

Oh, ok.

Did you mean hex? Noticed that it says tomikaze but i think you meant to say hex?  ???

no i was just thanking tom from us for doing the interview on us for the map.

I'm super-dooper excited for this release, i really feel the bo1 vibe, it brings back memories and makes this map that much better, I'm not really a fan of the bo1 weaponry, but i guess with a map this amazing it won't matter what weapon i have, I'll be captured by the immense detail and the rest of the new features.

( Don't tell Rambo but this is my favorite TBR map of all time!  )

THIS. This is how you get people hype af for a map release...

Question: Did you ask about default character quotes, I mean since it's an inspiration from moon, so why not use moon character qoutes as well?

Sad that the percent bar has been at 62% for a while, but glad to hear that the map is going to be nothing short of epic.