Grimoire: What's Happening? An Exclusive Report
Corwin, 2004-07-26

No, don't scoff and turn away in disgust. I'm very serious. There really is a game behind the name and it's going to be a good one. In fact, I'll step out on a limb and say it could be a great one. I've been playing the current Beta version for the past few days and I'm enjoying myself thoroughly. This game is already in a better state than most of the commercial releases I've played recently. It still needs polish and some minor fixes. Play balance hasn't been completely tested, but I haven't had a single crash, or met a game stopping bug yet. And this is still only a Beta build. Why am I so confident? Spending a few hours with its developer, Cleve Blakemore, tends to do that to a person.

Cleve left LA for Australia in 1991, where together with Michael Shamgar, they began work on Grimoire a few years later. Now, after many stops, starts and re-starts, the game is nearly finished. That's why, on an overcast, but otherwise pleasant morning, I found myself following Cleve down a hole in the ground to chat with him in the confines of the underground bomb shelter he's building on the Australian Gold Coast. If nothing else, it's providing research for his next big game, but more on that later.

I began the interview by asking the obvious questions everyone asks and very soon, we were in the midst of a discussion on games and RPG's that went for nearly three hours. Not unexpectedly, he enjoys games with engaging characters, lots of atmosphere, a good solid story, and which allows players time to think. Thus he prefers turn-based combat to real time, though he surprised me by detailing all the action games he'd played. What he wants from them, he said, was a good story to hold the action together. His real love though, is good old-fashioned RPG's.

When I asked him about the future of his (and my) favourite genre he said we need to take a leaf from the Golden Age of RPG's. "They were very popular then and would still be as popular today if we didn't keep dumbing them down trying to appeal to people who can't rise above the intellectual level needed to play console games." His hope for the future is to see more games like Fallout or Planescape-Torment, two of his personal favourites. "Games shouldn't take themselves too seriously," he said. "They need to be more light-hearted with tongue in cheek humour." This love of humour in games was a theme he mentioned several times. You'll find it in Grimoire as well.

Cleve was very apologetic about the long delays with the game and quite understands people's scepticism about its eventual release. His excuse is that he's always wanted to do the best job possible and then, as in ‘Field of Dreams' hope they come. He admits he could have released a Good shareware game earlier, but he wants to release, not only a Great game, but the best shareware RPG ever. He just might.

We discussed the difficulties of catering to a small niche market and whether or not that market is really as small as most large game publishers think it is. According to Cleve, Interplay is a good illustration of what can happen when you chase the console market and ignore what made you great in the first place. He pointed out that games like Wizardry, Might and Magic, Lands of Lore and Eye of the Beholder sold very well. That market is still there, but is not being adequately catered for. He hopes to change that with Grimoire, their spiritual successor. Basically, if you enjoyed those games, then you'll like Grimoire. I can certainly see their influence on the game, especially Wizardry.

What's next with the game? Currently it's in pre-Beta testing and in August Cleve hopes to get the full Beta underway. If all goes according to plan the game should be available before Christmas. I have more to say about the game, but I'm saving that for a preview a little later.

Finally, I asked Cleve about his post Grimoire plans. His dream is to be a full time Independent game developer. As well as Grimoire 2 (which he hopes to make modable,) he has plans for a Fallout clone to tap into the post apocalyptic market as well. Fans of that series and its forerunner Wasteland have something to look forward to now as well. At least it will have a touch of authenticity after all the hours Cleve has spent building and equipping his shelter. Now that's really doing your research.

I'd like to thank Cleve for his time and the invitation to visit his shelter. It was quite an experience. Much like playing Grimoire.