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The first overview of the Lionheart forums at BIS is here. As it's the first it's also a lengthy one.Feargus UrquhartAbout Reflexive
The President of Reflexive, Lars Brubaker worked at Interplay in the early 90's as an Assistant Producer to Bill Dugan ( who is now an Executive Producer at Sierra in charge of the Half Life brand ). I was a playtester at the time making some money while on summer break and Lars ended up hanging out with us degenerate playtesters at lunch every day. Since then, we've kept in touch and things were lucky enough to come together to let us work together again.
As it turns out, Reflexive is only about a 10 minute drive away from us which lets Black Isle's producer on the title, Chris Parker, visit them pretty much every Friday. Plus, we are helping out a little bit with the art and design with things like the game system design, which I wrote, and some area artwork being done by Aaron Brown (Aaron's done a bunch of areas for IWD 1, HoW, ToL, and IWD2).
A lot of people at Reflexive have been in the games industry for quite sometime at various publishers and developers. So they have a broad degree of experience and abilities.
About the size of Reflexive
When Interplay started working with Bioware they had less then ten employees which went down to two when the team that was doing Shattered Steel separated from Bioware and started their own company (they rejoined Bioware a number of months before Shattered Steel shipped). Before that Bioware had only done a small 3D arcade shooter game and a couple of Medical Software products (adventures through your lower GI tract I believe )
I also tested one of Blizzard's first titles, which was the port of Interplay's game Lord of the Rings from the PC to the Amiga when there were only a few people at Blizzard.
What I'm getting at here is that almost every developer has started out small and I think it has been one of Interplay and now Black Isle's strength in finding developers we think are ones that will produce high quality games.
Language Differences
I am pretty sure that there will not be different languages in Lionheart. While interesting from the standpoint of realism, it is one of those things that could make it very difficult for people to get through the game just because they don't have three points in French. Although the idea of a common language such as Latin with other languages being used only occasionally is something that doesn't have that kind of problem as much.
I'm thinking that like other languages will probably only be used as flavor, like they have been used in a lot of our other games, and not as a part of the character development system.
Skill Points
We've included a slightly different progression for skill points which is:
0 - 50 : 1
51 - 100 : 2
101 - 150: 5
151 - 200: 10
201 - 300: 20
This hasn't been tested at all yet, so we aren't sure if it feels right during actual play.
Eric Dallaire (Cabal)Who am I
My name is Eric Dallaire, and I'm the lead writer on Lionheart with the official title of Designer at Reflexive entertainment. I've been working in the computer games industry since college, my first job was writing a strategy guide for the Journeyman Project back in '95. After that, I was a writer/designer at Presto Studios, working on the Journeyman Project line as well as other games. I then went to Activision and worked as a writer for the Star Trek brand and then transitioned into producing (Away Team and Tony Hawk GBA), which is how I met Lars Brubaker and the fellows at Reflexive - I was their producer on Away Team.. When I heard about Reflexive's partnership with Black Isle, I knew I had to jump back into design, as I'm a huge fan of all Black Isle games and a life-long rpg fan in general and the opportunity to create something original like Lionheart is a a big dream come true.
Visiting America?
One of the really fun parts of my job has been world-building. Before I started really getting into the dialogue, I tried to envision how this Disjunction affected the world. Suffice to say, magic spread across the world, causing history changing events in many different countries.
Without giving away too much, you will encounter a few conquistadors who have made the journey to the Americas, and they'll tell you all about the horrors they encountered. Right now, there are no plans to visit the Americas for this game however, as most of the action takes place in Western Europe..
Ranks in factions
Ranks we have been talking about. There are in fact some special ranks in the factions, like uber-perks, that will grant you special bonuses.
Right now, there are no plans to add small offices, cubicles, or unisex bathrooms in Lionheart. But there will be racks and the occassional iron maiden.
World Map
Currently, we are planning to have a world map, similar in function to previous Black Isle games. There will be many different wilderness areas outside of Barcelona and environments around western Europe. Once you've explored areas or someone has given you directions on your world map, you can travel to that area quickly. We've been talking about the possibility of random encounters when using the world map - it's not implemented yet, but there is a chance that it could be.
Hidden areas and quests
This has always been an interesting dilemna, the balance of creating special assets for cool hidden areas that in all likelihood won't be encountered by most of the gamers without spoilers. I remember thinking two things when I ran through the modron maze - a) wow, it's very cool that I found this dungeon by chance (it stands out to me as one of the most memorable moments of Planescape) and b) the devs took a risk that I might miss this whole area if I didn't do all the right steps. It's important to reward the persistent and thorough players with this kind of content.
For Lionheart, we plan to make hidden areas in the game, secret doors and passages in the dungeons, hard to get quests, and some hidden maps - also there are some areas with conflicts that play out differently depending on certain aspects of your character.
NPCs
Many of the NPCs you'll encounter will offer you quests, and some of these NPCs will offer to help with this quest and join you. There are even some historical figures that could join you as well. The npcs will help you for that particular quest, which might be short or far reaching, but they will not be permanent party members and so will eventually go back to their business. They will all have personalities, agendas, some may not join you at all based on your faction, or at least they might treat you differently.
We'll talk about the control mechanisms more in the coming weeks.
Good and Evil
Good and evil will not always be clearly defined. One of the things I like in the story, especially with the current times being what they are, is that the Christians and Muslims banded together to fight the tides of darkness. Richard and Saladin formed a binding pact, swearing that each would safeguard the holy relics in their respective lands and honor the knight orders. After this pact, the two sides waged a series of new crusades, which forms important backstory for the game's story (keep an eye on the historical timeline as we update this)
This pact between Richard and Saladin has some interesting consequences for the Inquisition, as they have to respect and not persecute the moor knights from Saladin's order, despite their habit of using Middle Eastern magic - but it doesn't mean they have to like them...
Many of the organizations are not inherently good or evil, it's up to player to make that interpretation. Within each of the groups, there will be good folk and not so good folk.
Horses
Koldan and Rachel both raised several good reasons why horses are difficult to implement correctly. They require a lot of extra animations and they need to be accounted for in all aspects of the game design. Currently, horses are not in the design or schedule. With our schedule and the already crowded 'wish-list', I don't think you'll see horses in Lionheart.
Screen Resolution
The screenshots are actually 800x600. There are a few tricks the engine does to make the graphics look that crisp, but the screens will not be at a higher resolution than 800
Linearity
I am a big big fan of non-linear games.
Lionheart will allow you to join different factions. These factions open up new quests, and close other possible quests. Also, you will be able to explore many of the areas and dungeons in a non-specific order, depending on how you progress through the game.
NPC Interaction
We're still working the mechanics out for npc interaction.
You may be approached by a non-player character asking for help with a quest. If you accept, that npc might stick around for the completion of the quest, but will not be a permanent member of your party. There are some other magical allies that could join you for a time, perhaps by summoning, and through other means.
magic
What one person perceives to be a miracle of faith, could be a magical spell to another person. To an Inquisitor, magic generated in the absence of church faith could have likely been created from a diabloic source. But far be it from me to suggest that there might be some hypocrisy in the Inquisition....
On a side note, Lionheart will allow you to play any kind of character you want, driven by your actions. Joining a faction does not mean you are joining a class. I.e. you can choose to be purist Inquisitor if you like and refrain from magic, but the game will not stop you from secretly pursuing magic if you wish.
Magic Q&A
1.Can we name some of our spells or items? That would be great. Would it be hard to implement?
- Not currently. I don't know if it would be hard (i've been in trouble for speculating on programming before) I just don't know if it's in the code or not. I'll have to get back to you on that.
2.I read that the inquisition will capture and interrogate magic-users. Will this happen to the PC? If so, can we fight back or is it automatic? Hopefully we can fight back.
- It's possible that you might run into Inquisitors. Their reactions depend on many factors..
3.I'm assuming we'll have mana points. Does it regenerate overtime or only when we rest? Is it enough so that I can be a "pure mage" and still have fun playing the game? Or will pure mages be forced to use weapon skills and/or allies?
- Mana will regenerate over time. You will be able to focus heavily on magecraft.
4.Are there any sniper rifles?
- No. But there will be some nifty magic items that can hurt enemies from a distrance.
5.Will there be mage robes?
- Something like magic robes, most likely.
6.What statistics will be vital to spellcasters?
- For starters, intelligence will be important..
7.Why are you using diablo text? *puke* *runs from mob*
- I don't know if that's the final font...
8.Will there be perks specifically for spellcasting?
- :-)
9.Can you tell I love mages?
- Then beware of Inquisitors bearing gifts.
10.Are there any spellcasting related traits?
- :-)
11.If i'm a PUREBLOOD human can I be just as good a spellcaster as a Sylvant? Will I become proficient in magic at a slower pace?
Any of the races can be proficient mages. Our intent is to allow different paths so that there will be some variance between the races, but different character choices can make them all desireable.
Item Generarion
The world of Lionheart is actually not magic poor, despite the best efforts of the Inquisition. Magic has existed for many centuries. There were several events in the backstory where evil forces forged a variety of magic weapons for their wars. As the Inquisition gained in strength, some of these items were gathered and sealed in their chambers, or destroyed. But many other magic items survived.
Treasure types will be mixed - we'll be adding specific magic items in the game for quests and certain scripted encounters, and we'll be using the random generator to reward people differently for other encounters.
Dialogue
Dialogue - The dialogue options will be considerable and for most conversations we're going to be looking at many variables. For starters, your race may have an impact on the way people treat you. In general, the Inquisition is very leery of any of the 'tainted' races. Feralkins and demokins will find it very hard to enter the cathedral district (although it still will be possible for these races to join the Inquisition, just a bit more difficult). Next, your faction will have an impact on how people respond to you. Join the Inquisition, and you will find that many doors open for you, but others will close.
Joining factions
You are free to join any of the major factions. Three of the major factions are the Knights Templar, the Order of Saladin, and the Inquisition, although there are others as well.
Spying
I'm scripting dialogues to allow players to pursue several paths, good, evil, neutral, and sometimes some shades inbetween. As to your question of spying - I don't want to give away too much, but there are several instances in the script now where you have the option of betraying certain groups, branded as heretics, to the Inquisition or not, depending on who you believe is right.
Templars
After the Third Crusade, Richard broadened the powers and purpose of the Knights, tasking them with a daunting duty - to protect the civilized world from the forces of evil. So for many years after the Disjunction they were constantly crusading to battle the creatures unleashed on the world. Knights were also tasked with hiding and guarding the holy relics, so their forces spread even further across Europe.
Some were stationed as far as the Middle East to assist the Order of Saladin with the post-Disjunction troubles plaguing the eastern lands. With the additional troubles in northern France (events paralleling the strife that racked France during the Reformation), the forces of the Knights are stretched very thin. Most of the leadership and wealth of the Knights lies in Barcelona, as the city has grown to become one of the cultural centers of Europe. The Grand Inquisitor and the other leaders of the Inquisition operate within Barcelona, as do a large contigent of Knights Templar.
In Lionheart, you'll discover that the Knights Templar resemble their historical counterparts in some ways, and differ in others to fit our backstory, while the Order of Saladin is a purely fictional group inspired from myriad sources.
Combat
I can say one thing with some degree of certainty - there will not be a turn based mode.
In Lionheart, you will travel and fight in the game world in real time, since you will only have to directly control one character. We're going to spend a lot of time to make sure that the controls and interface are accessible and easy to use as well. I know that many of you are fans of turn based games, I like many of those games myself. But Lionheart is a different game than that. We will be implementing features that improve the gameplay and general control scheme as we progress with development and playtest the game further.
At this time there is no pause time implemented in the game engine. The engine does support this feature, we used it for Away Team and it operated very much like Baldur's Gate. But in Away Team, you could be controlling a large team of operatives. We just have to decide whether it's right for Lionheart.
Pause time made a lot of sense for previous RPG games where you were responsible for keeping up to 6 party members, several of them possibly frail mages, from getting killed. In Lionheart, your character will be tougher overall, and you will only have to control that character.
That being said, we will be extensively testing this game and we will be listening to player feedback and drawing on Black Isle's considerable experience. If we learn that features are needed to improve the control of the game, we will of course consider those recommendations.
Character style
Well, I would say that your character will become more and more combat oriented, with many possibilities of augmenting offensive and defensive capablilities.
Will there be a lot of combat in Lionheart: most definitely.
Will there be situations where you can use diplomacy, trickery, or other non-combat methods to avoid an encounter: in a nutshell yes, but some of these solutions are less obvious than others, and will have other consequences. But it is possible and something I think is needed occassionally to give the player a sense that at any given time, a given problem could be solved different ways. Sorry to be non-specific, but I don't think you want spoilers.
Which begs the question, can you use dialogue or other means to avoid *all* combat, like several people have pointed out is an option in Fallout: the answer is no. Combat is an integral and, we think, fun part of this game. We'll be investing large amounts of time to balance it and make it enjoyable.
Will there be tactics involved: yes, you'll have many options in combat, and we will be getting more into the details with the combat system soon.
Combat vs. No combat
Right now, I can't quantify the ratio of combat necessary encounters to encounters that can be avoided through non-combat means (but they won't be few and far between).
Regardless of genre, one quality of a good game is that you are constantly presented with a series of interesting choices. Throughout Lionheart, you will be presented with many such choices, and given the ability to decide how to drive the story. These choices will allow you to assume different roles and develop your character in different ways. We are trying to design the game to allow for a wide variety of playing styles.
You bring up a good point about playing a diplomatic Inquisitor. By choosing careful dialogue options, you can talk your character through some situations, where it makes sense. As mentioned, there will be combat situations you can avoid and different ways to defeat certain enemies. There will also be some areas with creatures that are incapable or unwilling to engage in dialogue - tread into their domain and it's possible you might have to do battle.
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Lionheart Forum Update
