Thursday - February 14, 2002
OK, without further ado here's a collection of today's Dungeon Siege coverage:
|
| GamesDomain falls in line with many many other sites which have posted their Warcraft 3 impressions lately. Theirs are right here. |
Team BG in conjunction with Fileplanet has released version 1.0.2D of the Baldur's Gate 2 modification The Darkest Day.
In case you don't have the mod yet you will have to download the full version which weighs in at a hefty 287.9MB. However, if you already have an earlier version of the mod installed the patch file should suffice (22.1MB). |
| PlanetEverQuest features an interview conducted with two GM's (=game masters ?) on the topic of their personal and on-the-job experiences in Verant's MMORPG. A pretty interesting insight into what GM's do all day long. |
| Neverwinter Vault has added an in-depth analysis of the Bard character to its class section. Based on the info that's been made available so far, the author thinks up possible ways of character development etc. |
RPGvault has scored 16 new screenshots from Pillars of Garendall, a 2D RPG currently in the works at Canadian Beenox Studio.
Here's a snip from RPGvault's feature intro:
Created by Beenox Studio, a small developer located in the predominantly French-Canadian city of Quebec, Pillars of Garendall is a two-dimensional RPG that focuses on its storyline instead of flashy animation. Depicted on its official site as an epic action-oriented RPG, it is set in the kingdom of Garendall where the capital of Gidolan Keep has come under attack by a frightening horde of enormous monsters that tower above even the tallest buildings, and the people of the city have retreated back inside the castle walls. The ever-resolute Queen Adriana has dispatched her fastest messenger to warn the nearby communities and to rally more troops to the cause before it's too late. As this courier, the player must traverse several dangerous areas and complete many quests in order to find a way to save the realm.
|
| Reakktor has opened up the official German website for Neocron. It can be accessed via www.neocron.de from now on. |
| RPGvault features part #18 in a series of Q&A's with the fine folks from Bethesda Softworks. This part is all about 'The Great Houses' (=factions) in Vvardenfell (=Morrowind's game world). Eight guys from Bethesda answer all sorts of questions revolving around that topic. |
| Mythic's Matt Firor has posted his latest producer note to The Camelot Herald. It does, of course, mostly deal with patching, Mythic's favorite spare time activity lately as it seems :) |
In part #4 of its Sony Online Entertainment reports, Computer and Video Games takes a closer look at the company's work-in-progress Star Wars MMORPG.
In case you're prompted for log-in when following the link from above just register to CVG. It's free and doesn't take long. |
| GameSpot continues its daily Warcraft 3 beta report series today by zooming in on The Undead Heroes in Blizzard's up and coming RPG/RTS mix. If you want to learn more about Deathknights and the like - it's just a click away. |
Neocron Online has word of Reakktor's upcoming futuristic MMORPG showing up on TV across the U.K. tomorrow night.
Iain Lee, presenter of 'Thumb Bandits' at Channel 4 will be covering the game in his show at 12:35AM this Friday evening. So make sure you're the remote control dominator tomorrow ;) |
3DO is now accepting pre-orders for its upcoming RPG flavored turn based strategy game Heroes of Might & Magic IV. Visit the 3DO store for more info.
They have also updated the system specs for HoMM IV, reading as follows now:
System Requirements:
Minimum
Pentium II 300 or equivalent
128 megs of system RAM
16 Meg DirectX 8.0 compliant video card
750 megs of drive space
Suggested
Pentium III 450 or faster
256 megs of system RAM
16 Meg DirectX 8.0 compliant video card
750 megs of drive space
| | Source: GSD |
| BonusWeb has posted some screenshots from Spells of Gold, Russian Jonquil's/Buka's trade sim flavored RPG. |
The Icewind Dale 2 site has been updated with info on subraces that you will find in the game. Here's something about the Wood Elf:
WOOD ELF:
Wood elves, like their close cousins, wild elves, are more nature-oriented than high elves. Wood elves are often xenophobic and reclusive; preferring isolated tribal life to grand cities. However, wood elves occasionally do venture out into the world and are legendary for their fighting prowess and bravery. Wood elves typically have olive skin and coppery red or greenish brown hair. Wood elves are stronger and more agile than normal elves, but lack in Intelligence and hardiness.
Advantages:
+2 to Dexterity, 90% Resistance to sleep and charm spells, +1 Attack Bonus with large swords and bows (not crossbows), +5% Pick Pockets, +5% Move Silently, and +10% Hide in Shadows.
Disadvantages:
-2 to Intelligence, -5% Open Locks. |
The Grimoire site has been updated last week with the following info, which marks July 4th as the day of release for this long, long...long delayed Wizardry-Style RPG:More than 150+ bugs, suggestions, issues and tweaks generated by beta testers have been fixed in the game. We've generated a list of our own that we're still working on before we produce the next version for testers.
There are two new artists laboring away on critical finishing work for the game and hopefully the next incarnation will be the biggest visual refinement ever.
We have set an intended release date for July 4th, 2002. This is very generous and we may have the game finished earlier but this time we want an accurate release date and we also want to give ourselves plenty of time to polish the presentation.
At this time, Grimoire has 48 expressions of interest by publishers for distribution in North America, Europe and other countries. We have not signed a contract with anyone and it is likely we will continue with our plans to first distribute it in shareware ourselves before concurrent release in retail stores. |
| Some more screenshots from Dungeon Siege can be found at Evil avatar. |
Today, we bring you an interview with Jens "Nemesis" Bremmekamp, Community Manager for Neocron, Reakktor Media's upcoming futuristic MMORPG, about various aspects of their game. This is a reprint of an interview originally found at the site of our new team member Logan (a warm welcome to him) Reckon! news - more of these excellent interviews will be published here at RPGDot in the coming days. Here's a tasty bit from that interview:
Q: From reading the FAQ I noticed that when you die (or PK someone) only items from the 'quickbelt' will be able to be looted. In EQ, only worn (as opposed to inventory) items could be looted in PvP. As a result, people would hastly unequip items from their person and stuff them into their inventory when they thought they were going to die. Anything to prevent people from unequipping things from their 'quick belt' if the situtation looks grim?
Not right now, we will have to wait and see if this becomes an issue in Neocron. Quickbelt items are only lootable if you have had your LAW Enforcer chip deimplanted, by the way. (Logan note: Fair enough) And in my opinion an experienced PvPer will have a hard time deciding in the fraction of a second, 'Should mak a last try to defeat my opponent or should I try to move all my stuff into my inventory?', since in such a situation a fraction of a second will matter much for the outcome of the duel. |
GameSpy has a very interesting and maybe controversial article on Neverwinter Nights, entitled "Living Up to the Hype". It discusses why NWN could ultimately fail to do so. Here's a bit:
As easy as NWN's editor may be to use, you're still going to be placing pre-built character and world pieces. If you want to create new ones, and I don't doubt that NWN will allow you to, you're going to need to acquire some tools that fall well beyond a drag-and-drop editor. Creating even the simplest 3D mesh requires at least a basic understanding of a modeling program (such as 3DSMax), and texturing it so that it looks halfway decent will require some Photoshop skills as well.
To put it bluntly, to build a truly new campaign in NWN is going to require as much, or more, effort as what goes in to any decent single-player mod for a game like Half-Life or Deus Ex. |
Here's an update from the official Neocron site by CDV, announcing a feature that lets you buy "stocks" from the twelve factions in the game:
Developers Reakktor.com truly are pushing the boundaries of development! Last week’s new feature news was just as revolutionary as this week’s … or we might say even better: The reason to be so excited: the all new Balance of Power (BoP) feature!
As you might already know there are twelve factions each divided into four institutions which can be taken over by competing clans. Institutions that are taken over are classified into new factions by turning the generator off or on. The clan marks a new institution with their faction symbol or clan name. But now hold on to your seats!
As in our world, money means power in the city of Neocron. Each faction is a joint stock company at the same time! And just like a regular joint stock company each issues stocks that each Neocron citizen can buy and deal with. The stock value reflects the power and influence of each faction. It is defined by the amount of institutions that have been taken over, successfully completed missions, clans, kills, the growth rate of the members and by the overall wealth.
A factions’ position of superiority is secured when its stock is in high demand as the economic law of “offer and demand” lets stock values either rise or drop. A clever Neocron stock broker will sell his stocks when the time is right and thus accumulate wealth even when being a member of a weaker faction or a single player. The information necessary for the Neocron brokers can be obtained at numerous terminals.
More information on Neocron to follow in the next newsletter! |
Eurogamer has written a review of Gorasul. Their rating (after the latest patch - story - which fixed some translation issues) is 7/10, and their conclusion is positive, too:
Gorasul may not be the prettiest role-playing game we've ever seen and it's not likely to win any prizes for its dialogue either, although a recent patch improves the quality of the English translation somewhat. It's also not quite as epic as the four CDs and 2.5Gb full install option may suggest - although I didn't complete every little side quest, I did make my way through the game's main storyline and saw most of the sights in under a week. It's no Baldur's Gate, but Gorasul is an enjoyable if comparatively short-lived adventure which is well worth delving into. |
| A new Dungeon Siege movie (3.1MB) can be downloaded (registration needed) from FilePlanet. Prepare for a long wait, though... |
ToTheGame has posted a preview of Another War, the upcoming mixture between action and roleplaying by Mirage Interactive. Here's a part:
The game looks and plays something like a mix of Diablo and Baldurs Gate. Start with an action oriented combat game, add some puzzles and people to interact with, and you’ve got a fair idea of how this game plays out. The controls are easily learned and mastered, and works really well within this type of game. At the start of the game you get a choice of either a Strongman, a Thief or a Thinker. All characters have 8 different stats describing them (physical & mental characteristics) and 1 skill. You can modify this starting character slightly. When you gain a Level you may increase a stat or skill or gain a new skill. There seems to be lots of skills and even though there are only 3 basic characters to start your game with the possibilities after a few hours of gameplay are enormous. |
Josh Sawyer had the following to say the last days on the Icewind Dale II forum:About the reasons to not implement all 3E rules:
1) Feats. Take a lot of time, hard to implement well.
2) Skills. Not so much programming time, a lot of designer time.
3) True 3E multiclassing. A hell of a lot of programming, design, and QA time.
Those are the three main reasons. If we could implement those, we'd only be missing bits and pieces -- oh, and attacks of opportunity, which I doubt many people would miss.
About the powerful Abi-Dalzim's Horrid Wilting spell:
Abi-D's Horrid Wilting is a ridiculously powerful spell. In fact, I'd argue that it is among the most powerful standard spells in D&D literature. Allowing it to be a friendly spell makes it even more powerful.
I still love the screenshot from HoW taken during the Hosttower Hit Squad battle.
PC Mage casts Abi-Dahlzim's Horrid Wilting.
Hosttower Wizard takes 82 magic damage.
Hosttower Wizard takes 78 magic damage.
Hosttower Fighter takes 84 magic damage.
PC Thief evades the effects of Abi-Dahlzim's Horrid Wilting.
Did I mention that we are using 3E saves and DCs? When a spell is cast at a character, their saving throw must meet or exceed the DC of the spell being cast. The spell DC is 10 + spell level + ability score bonus.
Ability score bonus is the 1 for every two points above 10, -1 for every two points below 11. It is based on your class. A mage with an 18 intelligence increases the DC of his or her spells by +4. A bard with a 16 charisma increases the DC of his or her spells by +3.
A mage with a 20 intelligence casting Abi-D's Horrid Wilting would force a save with a 10 + 5 + 8 = 23 DC. High level characters have a good chance of making the save, but the difficulty does increase.
On some of the new spells that are in:
Ice Knife is in, though it is weaker than the MoF version (way weaker). So are Gedlee's Electric Loop, Death Armor, Blink, Melf's Minute Meteors, Fireshield, Dismissal, Ball Lightning, Vipergout, Flensing, Executioner's Eyes, Mass Dominate, and a bunch of other new or BG2 wizard spells.
Armor of Faith and Faerie Fire are two new priest spells. Cloudburst was moved to 2nd level. We also have Spell Shield, Tortoise Shell, Snakebite, and a few other new druid and cleric spells.
About a new kit as a replacement to the mercenary kit:
This is the idea we came up with for a replacement to the mercenary kit, as previously discussed:
Captain/Myrmidon/Brigadier/Lieutenant/DRAGOON/whatever
Advantages:
* 1st Level: Forced March: The captain can negate the effects of fatigue on a character 1/Day.
* 3rd Level: Bolster Ally: The captain possesses the ability to inspire an ally with 8 bonus hit points and +1 to attack, damage, and saving throws. The effects last for five rounds, plus a number of rounds equal to the character's charisma bonus. This ability gains additional uses per day every three levels.
* 7th Level: Allegiance: The captain can negate the effects of charm, dire charm, domination 1/Day.
* 9th Level: Defensive Coordination: The captain possesses the ability to sacrifice his or her own safety for the protection of his or her allies. He or she loses 4 points from his or her armor class. Allies within 10' of him or her (except him or her, of course) gain a 2 point generic bonus to their armor class. This is a modal ability that lasts from round to round.
Disadvantages:
* The captain may not specialize at first level (OR maybe he only starts with 2 slots).
* The captain only gains additional proficiency slots every four levels.
With respect to damage reduction/magic weapon immunity:
BTW, the whole damage reduction/magic weapon immunity stuff is 3E-style. Monsters often have damage reduction that uses the following format:
5/+1
10/+2
15/+3
20/+4
25/+5
The first number is the amount of physical damage negated, the second number is the enchantment value required to eliminate the damage reduction entirely. 5/+1 means that the character will ignore the first 5 points of physical damage (crushing/slashing/piercing) from any given attack, unless the weapon being used has a +1 or better enchantment value. Iron golems have 15/+3, which is pretty severe. However, you still have a chance of hurting them even if you don't possess +3 weapons.
Elemental damage resistances also follow 3E style. BG and IWD used percentage resistances. IWD2 uses damage point values on an instance basis. If you have 5 fire resistance, you ignore the first 5 points of fire damage from any single attack. If a fireball causes 32 points of damage, you take 28. If a burning hands causes 4 points of damage, you take no damage. A fire resistance of 30 allows you to ignore most small fire attacks, but the big ones can still break over your limit by a large margin.
P.S.: Stoneskin and Protection From Missiles both use damage reduction now instead of granting complete immunity. Stoneskin is 10/+2 vs. all physical attacks. Protection From Missiles is 10/+2 vs. all missile damage.
About the changes to the avenger (druid kit)and kits in general:
We made the changes to the avenger to keep its feel as a militant druid, not a druid/mage. The avenger gets two uses of each druid spell power each day, as opposed to the single uses that the aes dana and shapeshifter get for their unique powers.
I hope that everyone understands our design goals with kits, even if they don't necessarily agree with them.
* Kits should be seen as an alternative to playing the base class, not superior to the base class.
* Kits should be roughly equal to each other in terms of raw power, with player opinion being the deciding factor in their usefulness (e.g. a player never uses a druid's shapeshifting powers, so the aes dana and avenger are logical choices when compared the base druid and shapeshifter).
* The powers that a kit receives should, when possible, replace the acquisition of the powers that the character loses for taking the kit (e.g. the avenger gains powers at 3rd, 5th, and 7th level, instead of shapeshifting abilities at 5th, 7th, and 9th levels).
I think the aes dana, avenger, and shapeshifter all come close to accomplishing these goals. |
GameBanshee has posted a <Dungeon Siege preview and some screenshots from the press beta. Here's a part of the preview:
Now, if you've followed Dungeon Siege whatsoever, this shouldn't be the first time you've heard of the notorious packmule. Capable of carrying three times as much as any of your party members, you'll find yourself needing at least one of these not far into the game. Each packmule you purchase will use up one of the eight slots available to you for party members, but it also means you won't have to leave magical equipment lying on the dungeon floor because you had no room for it. And if you think that's all the packmule is good for, wait until one of the baddies you come across corners it and feels the wrath of its hind legs. |
| On their frontpage, RPGVault brings you two new screenshots from Lost Continents... |
In the members section of IGN.PC, you'll find an interview with Ray Muzyka, Trent Oster and Greg Zeschuk about Neverwinter Nights. A short bit about what is left to be done:
At BioWare we do significant story and content reworking in the final months of development based on feedback from people testing the game (this includes everyone that plays it, not just the testers). Our opinion is you can't really finish a story until you can fully experience it, this is usually right at the end of the development process.
We also go through extreme degrees of polishing art and optimizing code. We typically work on our games for a long time, so we put a lot into prepping them to their maximum quality before we release them. We also try to fix every bug we can possibly find (this is quite a challenge considering the various hardware ranges and products that exist on the PC).
In essence, we're making it fun! |
IGN.PC has posted some hands on impressions of Freedom Force, the upcoming superhero RPG by Australia's Irrational Games. Here's how they end their three page article:
From this newest build of Freedom Force I learned absolutely nothing I didn't already know in some capacity, which is a good thing... I've said it before and I'll say it again -- the game already looks pretty cool. The only real, genuinely justifiable problem I had in my playtime was the fact that this current revision wasn't more complete. I'd like to have been able to play and experience more from the more well-rounded, balanced, and polished product the final promises to be, but I suppose I'll have to contend with a beta (you'd be surprised of how much genuine talent it takes to be able to believably gripe about getting to play early versions of games before everyone else). Thankfully it doesn't look like I'll have to wait much -- FF is still scheduled for a winter 2002 release (that would be right now, silly). Unless you live in the Southern Hemisphere, if such a place even exists, expect to be saving citizens and tossing cars yourself before too long now. |
While it is alive and kicking, Gamasutra posted one of its interesting post mortem features - on Dark Age of Camelot. In these features, the developers look back on what went right and what went wrong during development. Here's a bit:
The first major update we made to Camelot's graphics engine to differentiate it from Spellbinder was to put in the rolling terrain system that makes the world so lifelike. We spent a long time making the outdoor areas of the game beautiful and well stocked with monster encounters. The ease with which we did this gave us a false sense of security when it came to developing our dungeon/city technology. These areas in the game required a large number of models and characters in a much smaller space than the outdoor terrain, so creating dungeons and cities proved to be a much more difficult job than we thought. Because we put off doing the technical designs for the interior spaces for so long, in the end we simply didn't get enough of them done. The game launched with only three capital cities (one per Realm) and about 15 dungeons.
To view the full article, you must be a registered user at their site... |
|
