Brink has dedicated servers on PC

Splash Damage CEO Paul Wedgwood told the Eurogamer Expo audience in Leeds today that Brink would stick with dedicated servers on PC.

It's been a bone of contention recently after Infinity Ward decided to go with peer-to-peer on PC for Modern Warfare 2.

However, Wedgwood later confirmed to Eurogamer that the game's use of PlayStation Network and Xbox Live would mean the usual peer-to-peer situation on consoles.

The news came during the first of four Brink sessions at the Eurogamer Expo this week, which saw Wedgwood - who is also game director on the PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 first-person shooter - outline the game's unique features and demonstrate two levels.

Set in an isolated island society in 2045, Brink is a squad and objective based shooter that blurs the line between single-player and multiplayer with its fancy drop-in/drop-out gizmos.

Top priority at the EG Expo was to convey the game's SMART system ("Smooth Movement Across Random Terrain - thank you Bethesda marketing!"), which allows you to climb over objects at speed by holding a single button.

Wedgwood also reiterated the Splash Damage message from past sessions, however, noting that it's "not an auto-pilot". You can always specify what you want to do with manual controls rather than relying on it.

For example, you might choose to crouch and slide under a security scanner in the airport level, rather than running through and setting off an alarm or using SMART to leap over the top of it.

Having played around with character customisation, Wedgwood dived into the Container City level, where he demonstrated how objectives are provided on a radial menu system that incentivises players to try new things - new classes, new tactics, new weapons and new tools.

Container City itself - a slum built through and around shipping containers, and somewhat the worse for enormously detailed wear - also seems to hold an impressive secret judging by the green, glowing conclusion to the demo.

Following the presentation, Wedgwood took questions from the audience, many of whom had queries about specific features - such as whether it would have dynamic objectives that have story ramifications (yes), or whether it would be followed by the Bethesda-standard monsoon of DLC (no comment).

But Wedgwood also spoke about his background as a mod developer working on Quake 3 Fortress, and his years establishing Splash Damage by jobbing on head-up displays, digital recreations of BT executives and other menial tasks, before work on Enemy Territory - Wolfenstein and then Quake Wars - followed, and the Bromley-based studio ended up working with Bethesda Softworks on Brink.

As well as the presentation, which is a splendid introduction to the game, the session was worth checking out for Wedgwood's insights and advice on how to get into game development. Just as well, then, that he's doing it all again tomorrow in Leeds and on Friday and Saturday in London.

See the Eurogamer Expo site for details on time and locations if you have a ticket and fancy heading in.

Alternatively, check out our recent Brink preview for much more on the game, which is due out in spring 2010.