Mon 15 March 2010
Sun 14 March 2010
Sat 13 March 2010
Fri 12 March 2010
Thu 11 March 2010
Wed 10 March 2010
News
Community
Databases
Content
|
Do you play a lot of RPG-games? Then you might have a bright future in the world of internet poker as well. Learn poker rules and use your ability of getting into character when you bluff your opponents.
PARPG Tech Demo Company news - posted by Jason
on Mon 15 March 2010, 07:44:03 The good news is that the PARPG crew have released a tech demo. The bad news is that it looks like they might going the way of Fan Made Fallout.
This preamble has been written to give you an upfront overview of the current status of the project. In the last months the project slowed down considerably and we basically decided that we’ll rather release what we have right now instead of trying to implement more features and add more content, risking to collapse before we reach the finish line of the first release.
This said: we didn’t manage to fix a number of bugs and didn’t reach the original aim to implement a couple of quests that you can actually play through. You can walk around, talk to other characters, change to different (placeholder) maps, listen to background audio tracks and play around with the settings. That’s it. It’s possible that this is the first and last official PARPG release due the issues we are facing lately. Hopefully this release will help to attract some fresh blood that will get the project back on track. If not, it was at least fun for us to spend a year of our life on such a project and release what we have achieved to the public. And move on after that.
And now we watch a video.
Spotted at: DACThere are 0 comments on this article.
Click here to comment.
Everyone is aware that to be successful in RPG games, you need a strategy and execute it to perfection. The same thing applies for online poker games, especially in texas hold'em. There are also some reckless players in RPG games that just ruin the fun for everyone. I would believe they can do well in an online casino by trying out their luck.
KOTOR2: TSL Restored Content Mod is Final Mod news - posted by Jason
on Mon 15 March 2010, 02:18:10 More info on Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords With Team Gizka dead in the water, the TSL Restored Content Mod team swooped in to fill the void. They've just released the Final version 1.5 for all to download. Find out what's been restored and read the FAQ to get all the juicy details. Impressions on whether or not it's worth re-installing KOTOR2 for would be appreciated.
Thanks to masterridleyThere are 5 comments on this article.
Click here to comment.
Mass Effect 3 will be re-RPG-yfied Game news - posted by VentilatorOfDoom
on Sun 14 March 2010, 10:53:07 More info on Mass Effect 2 - More info on BioWare Due to complaints about the dumbing down of RPG elements in ME2 - complaints that naturally surfaced only like a month after the initial wave of perfect reviews - Bioware sets new goals for ME3.
The streamlined gameplay and GUI of Mass Effect 2 made it a huge critical success, but Norman pointed out some major criticisms from vocal members of the official BioWare forums. Threads titled "Mass Effect 2 is not an RPG" and "Gears of War with interactive dialogue" were highlighted as examples of fans disappointed by the strong shooting focus of the second game.
As with the transition from the first Mass Effect to the second, BioWare is taking these criticisms to heart for the third game, with Norman hoping the third will offer "richer RPG features" and "more combat options." What we can probably expect less of, however, is the mining minigame, which Norman described as the part that "nobody liked."
So mining is out, huh? Because nobody liked it, huh? Here's a hint: it's because it will hurt you physically. If I was you, BioWare, I would just force the inventor of that minigame to mine every single planet in the game, one after another, so that he'd plenty of opportunities to become fully aware of HOW AWESOME this minigame really is.
And enriching the character system, so that it at least remotely resembles a character system you'd expect from an ARPG, is certainly a welcome idea. The absence of hour-long tedious and boring grinds in ME2 was an improvement though.
In other ME-news renowned RPG site MTV previews the upcoming ME2 DLC Kasumis Memories, a new adventure that most likely revolves around Kasumi and her memories.
The new DLC adds a brand new squad mate, Kasumi, who happens to be a master thief. She's looking to steal something priceless from a local muckity muck and she needs Commander Shepard's help to do it.
Unlike the vast majority of the missions in "Mass Effect 2," the PDLC will be much less combat-focused, at least to start. Shepard needs to infiltrate a high society party in order to get close to the object of Kasumi's desire, locked away in an underground vault underneath a mansion.
I wonder how a *master thief* plays in a game without thieving skills. Probably like everyone else, except she has the invisibility-spell from the infiltrator class or something.
Spotted at: GBThere are 32 comments on this article.
Click here to comment.
The Future of Final Fantasy Interview - posted by VentilatorOfDoom
on Sat 13 March 2010, 23:20:15 ... is interactive cutscenes and DLC, explains Final Fantasy director Motomu Toriyama.
It always pays to focus on the significant details.
The interactive cinematic scenes in Naughty Dog’s critically acclaimed action game seem to have inspired Toriyama to try the same thing in the Final Fantasy games, he said at his Game Developers Conference panel on Friday. “In Final Fantasy XIII, the interactivity was focused on the battle scenes,” he said. ” I think there will be more interactivity (in future Final Fantasy cut scenes) — if you have 1000 flying dragons, hopping from one dragon to the other would be great fun.”
The thought alone - of hopping from one dragon to another one for a couple of hours - excites me a great deal.
“If you can achieve that compared with Uncharted 2, I think that Final Fantasy is going to replicate the masterpieces of film, and that is certainly one of our goals,” he said.
Toriyama also floated the possibility of adding in downloadable add-on content to future Final Fantasy games. “We avoided it for XIII, but we have to think that every user will be online, and so the story (could) be downloaded, and the battle scenes step by step… we have that in our perspective going forward,” he said.
Replicating the masterpieces of film - I can see the headlines already.
He also displayed his knowledge of WRPGs by making a comparison:
Toriyama went on to make some comparisons between Western role-playing games and Japanese role-playing games. Of course, he played fast and loose with the definition of the genre, using Hitman and Tomb Raider as his examples of “Western RPGs.”
The difference, he said, is that Western RPGs like those ones starring Lara Croft have camera systems that zoom in tightly on the main character because the player wants to identify closely with that single character, whereas Japanese RPG cameras are more zoomed out, because the player wants to see the entire scene from a bird’s-eye view.
And he is spot on - the difference between JRPGs and WRPGs like the renowned Lara Croft series or Hitman is - in fact - the camera.
thanks Ausir!
There are 39 comments on this article.
Click here to comment.
Alpha Protocol News Preview - posted by VentilatorOfDoom
on Sat 13 March 2010, 17:53:30 More info on Alpha Protocol - More info on Obsidian Entertainment Gamesradar seemingly had some hands-on time with Alpha Protocol at the GDC.
After seeing the two versions of the safehouse scene, our guide (one of the game’s producers) launched into a mission that was filled with loads of sneaky-shooty action. On its surface, combat appeared to be a typical 3rd person cover-based affair, but with the addition of special abilities developed through the game’s RPG system. Sound a bit like Mass Effect? It is, but from what we saw there’s a greater emphasis on stealth. Think Mass Effect crossed with Splinter Cell. We saw abilities like Silent Running and Shadow Operative (temporary invisibility) used to quietly take down enemies. The same mission, however, featured a segment in which a convoy needed to be destroyed with a rocket launcher. It looked to be a good mix of sneaking and balls-to-the-wall action, and of course the mission ended with a plot twist and an ambiguous moral decision.
We only got a brief look under the hood at the character sheet and skill trees, but there were more than enough active abilities, passive abilities, tech and weapon upgrade options for die-hard RPG fans to customize to their hearts’ content.
If they say so.
Additionally there are 2 interviews. One in video format and another last-gen one which is all in funny little squiggles called letters.
A document leaked from Sega contained criticism that Alpha Protocol felt like it didn’t have enough RPG elements. Does the team have any plans for tweaking the RPG elements between now and spring? Or do you find the concern inaccurate?
It should be noted that the document being referred to contained criticisms on a demo that was quite old at the time - and that was some time ago. We refined our systems and the RPG feel a lot over the spring and summer of 2009, so when that came out both the Sega production group and Obsidian didn't feel the criticisms remained valid. The build they were from was just too different from what the game had grown into.
Alpha Protocol provides a massive number of RPG choices: you determine how you want your character to grow, what weapons and items you are going to use, what special abilities make sense for any situation, and the story has an immense number of branches and outcomes. Almost everything you do in the game is going to affect something else, and once players start to see the ramifications of their choices, they're going to be amazed.
Spotted at: GBThere are 14 comments on this article.
Click here to comment.
Underworld - Return of the Blob Game news - posted by Jason
on Fri 12 March 2010, 18:04:08 Scratch that old school blob-with-arms-and-legs itch with Underworld from Classic Games Remade.
Underworld is a full-fledged 80s style 3D perspective adventure game… with pretty pictures!
Underworld is comparable in look and feel to the first two Might and Magic, Dungeon Master, Eye of the Beholder, Wizardry or The Bard’s Tale. Lead a party of 6 adventurers into the underworld to take on a rising demon that threatens to cover the world in yet another darkness. Before you meet the final foe, there will be 5 other major enemies, and legions of monsters with a wide range of special abilities standing in your way.
But there will also be allies. Elves, dwarves and a misanthropic gnome will help you make the difference. Items of power you will find or be awarded along the way, your priest, paladin and sorcerer’s 40 spells, your rogue’s ability to assassinate, your archer’s infallible accuracy with missile weapons, and your knight’s resistance and strength will ultimately enable you to match the demon’s power.
All of this, combined with a large underworld, three towns, fast game mechanics, traps, treasure vaults, crypts, lairs and other surprises along the way will keep you on edge for dozens of hours before the final showdown. There is also a twist in the end…
"Thank you, but your foozle is in another dungeon."
Classic Games Remade offers a demo or the full game for $25 (good luck with that).
Thanks to getter77 for the tipThere are 22 comments on this article.
Click here to comment.
Project Mercury, Copernicus, & R.A. Salvatore Preview - posted by Jason
on Fri 12 March 2010, 09:21:59 More info on Project Mercury - More info on Big Huge Games Noted fanfic author R.A. Salvatore revealed a bit more about the Big Huge RPG (top secret code name Project Mercury) and the 38 Studios MMO Copernicus at GDC today.
In a talk titled, "From Franchise To Fantasy: How to Build a Universe Worthy of Devotion," Salvatore spoke mainly about Copernicus, a massively multiplayer online role-playing game whose universe he created from the ground up with Schilling and others at 38 Studios. He revealed that the Project Mercury RPG is actually part of the Copernicus universe but will be set in a different time period than the MMO.
Salvatore said he and his team spent six months developing a 10,000-year history for the world of Copernicus and Project Mercury so the artists, writers, designers and programmers would have a solid basis for development before work even began on the project.
"That was what I insisted on. We need a huge history. We need deep threads so we're all going to be painting on the same canvas. You need consistency. It has to make sense. The way the races interact with each other has to make sense. You have to know how it all fits together. The way you do that is you do a history of the world," Salvatore said.
Spotted at: IGNThere are 50 comments on this article.
Click here to comment.
MCA on The Onion Interview - posted by Jason
on Fri 12 March 2010, 06:23:56 More info on Planescape: Torment - More info on Chris Avellone Chris Avellone spent some time with The Onion's A.V. Club discussing what Fall-from-Grace keeps in her drawers.
AVC: Something I always wanted to know from Planescape: Torment. One of the companions, Fall-from-Grace, carries a diary in her inventory. Is there any way to open it?
CA: No.
AVC: What do you call a thing like that? It breaks the rule of inventory, and it’s this little mystery that’s always in front of you.
CA: I think the expression is “flaunting the gaps.” Basically, you include something that’s appropriate for the character, and it’s also appropriate that you can’t use it. You shouldn’t be able to access her diary at all.
It seemed important to me that there are certain things characters would wear and wouldn’t wear, or they would keep around them for their own personal reasons that don’t make a shred of combat sense. These are things that are comforting to them. And it makes sense why it’s in their inventory. And you see the negative game mechanic effect of it—yes, it takes one inventory slot, that sucks—but at the same time that’s appropriate for her. It feels more real [as a way to] tie the story into the game mechanics.
Spotted at: GameBansheeThere are 31 comments on this article.
Click here to comment.
Is The Witcher Enhanced enough? Game news - posted by VentilatorOfDoom
on Thu 11 March 2010, 11:02:59 More info on Witcher, The ... is a question you should carefully ponder.
In case you conclude it could still use some enhancements, try this.
Medical Problems, a new Witcher Adventure.
Shani needs help fighting an epidemic of a new, unknown sickness. But what could a monster slayer possibly do about a medical problem?
The game has several different possible endings, depending on which choices you make while playing. Three choices each have consequences, making eight different paths through the game, and which ending you get depends on the combination of choices.
Geralt has monsters to kill, human lives to save, a mystery to solve, and witcher contracts to fulfill. There are also some ladies to woo, though all but one of them are optional. :-)
In case you're still feeling indifferent towards this, I'd like to point out that you get to card 6 more chicks, which is as enhanced as it can get.
Spotted at: Big Nose GeorgeThere are 19 comments on this article.
Click here to comment.
Alpha Protocol Preview Preview - posted by VentilatorOfDoom
on Thu 11 March 2010, 10:49:38 More info on Alpha Protocol - More info on Obsidian Entertainment G4 put up a preview of Obsidians soon to be released Spy RPG.
Our most recent experience with Alpha Protocol showed off the divergent paths one can engage upon in the game. SEGA's associate producer, Matt Hickman, put it another way, “Where other games talk a lot about multiple endings, we're all about multiple middles.” As an example, the game was set up on two different stations, each playing out the same scene side-by-side. In one, our super spy Mike arrives back at his safehouse to find his lady friend resting. The scene is full of prompts, allowing the player to react in a variety of different ways. In this demo, he's appreciative, tender and the scene culminates in the two sharing a kiss. Clearly, he's earned this somehow. In the other, upon walking inside, Mike's beaten and eventually electrocuted into submission by the same woman, in reaction to some heinous acts he must have committed along the way. There's no opportunity to interact with the scene; it's merely a byproduct of a past sin.
Alpha Protocol is full of these types of interactive sequences and reaction segments based on prior deeds. Whether you interrogate or sympathize with a character is up to you, including exercising your license to kill by outright executing them. Choice is more than a dialog tree option though. Players can choose to specialize in a variety of ways, including stealth, weapon trees that open up key skills for your guns, martial arts and more. However, for those that simply want to grab a gun and run through the game as an action title, there's that option. For an RPG nerd like myself, I'll be mucking around in skill trees and inventory until the wee hours of the night. If you prefer a non-violent path, there's even an option to play the game with entirely non-lethal hand-to-hand combat moves...but no one said it would be easy!
Spotted at: GBThere are 47 comments on this article.
Click here to comment.
BioWare RPG Philosophy Interview - posted by VentilatorOfDoom
on Thu 11 March 2010, 10:41:57 1UP are blogging about Bios RPG design philosophy.
The reason I mention all this is because much of the debate concerning whether or not Mass Effect 2 is an RPG is based around the combat and the lack of an inventory (there's even another BioWare panel later this week titled "Where's my Inventory!") But the common thread in all of BioWare's games is always the dialogue trees, which is obviously what they consider to be the heart of an RPG. During the panel, the localization team talked about how the writers are tweaking and recording new dialogue up until the last weeks before Cert, and how a great deal of time and money is devoted toward making sure the dialogue is just right.
So the dialogue trees are the heart of an RPG?
Spotted at: RPGWatchThere are 29 comments on this article.
Click here to comment.
Drakensang: The River of Time Video Footage Game news - posted by VentilatorOfDoom
on Wed 10 March 2010, 21:23:43 More info on Drakensang The time flows by, like a river, and in case you're interested in the prequel to Drakensang I'll take the freedom to point you to a bunch of videos. Yes, they're all in german. There's a whole youtube channel dedicated to Drakensang.
I actually didn't find the time to play it yet, but it's only a matter of time.
Spotted at: GamebansheeThere are 3 comments on this article.
Click here to comment.
Dragon Age: Awakening News Bundle Game news - posted by VentilatorOfDoom
on Wed 10 March 2010, 21:12:21 More info on Dragon Age - More info on BioWare I bring to you - comprehensively - the latest news about the Awakening of Dragon Age. It is my duty.
We'll start with this video footage.
Those guys were talking foreign and it was loud too, hence I closed the tab as soon as I copied the link. Let me know if something important happened.
I'll continue with an interview on a site called greywardens.com - Grey Wardens, rings a bell? - most likely a bunch of DA fanboys.
BioWare’s two-year DLC plan has excited a fair number of folks. What a number of Wardens are curious about, is whether BioWare will be releasing content for Origins, Awakening and any further expansions separately? As in treating each as a separate ‘game’, essentially, in the eyes of the DLC?
It will be easier to understand once we begin to talk about upcoming DLC.
But in the meantime I’ll reassure of you the following – you will be able to play the DLC regardless of whether you have Awakening or not. And where it makes sense, you will be able to play the DLC with your Warden from Origins or Awakening.
DLC, the way of the future. Are you excited already? I think so. Read the rest over there.
It doesn't end here. There are more things to look at, if you really don't have anything better to do.
Glad to be of service.
Spotted at: They are the gate to the Codex, and they know itThere are 8 comments on this article.
Click here to comment.
Grim Dawn Screenshots Development info - posted by VentilatorOfDoom
on Wed 10 March 2010, 10:41:58 Some time ago I brought word to you that former Titan Quest devs are working on a new Action RPG.
Now they have the first few screenshots to show.
Spotted at: GBThere are 13 comments on this article.
Click here to comment.
Mass Effect 2 DLC News Game news - posted by VentilatorOfDoom
on Wed 10 March 2010, 10:33:15 More info on Mass Effect 2 - More info on BioWare Since ME2 is the best BioWare game since Dragon Age you're probably delighted to hear that there's another free DLC available. This time it's a heavy weapon that lets you cast Chain Lightning.
The Arc Projector ionizes targets with a non-visible laser to ready them for a high-voltage electrical attack. As the lightning-like bolt hits its first target, a sophisticated auto-targeting system paints succeeding targets with the ionization laser, allowing the electricity to take the path of least resistance and arc between them. An entire enemy strike team can be shocked to death with a few pulls of the trigger. Careful aiming will also allow the user to arc shots to nearby explosives as well.
Spotted at: RPGWatchThere are 23 comments on this article.
Click here to comment.
Dragon Age Awakening Interview Interview - posted by VentilatorOfDoom
on Wed 10 March 2010, 10:28:23 More info on Dragon Age - More info on BioWare The guys at Gamebanshee forwarded a couple of questions to DA lead designer Ferret Baudoin regarding the Awakening of Dragon Age.
GB: What should we expect when starting a new character in Orlais? Is there an "origin" section that's only playable by new characters? If so, how does it compare in terms of size and scope to the original origins in the base game?
Ferret: The new Orlesian Grey Warden isn’t an origin like we had, well, in Origins. It’s a background option that adds color to your experience playing through Awakening. Since the invading Orlesian Empire were only thrown out of Ferelden a few decades ago, the memories of occupation and Orlesian cruelty are very fresh. Unsurprisingly, some people will react quite differently to the new Orlesian that is not only the Warden Commander of Ferelden, but also the arl of Amaranthine – a landed noble of a good chunk of the kingdom.
...
GB: By the time a character reaches level 20 in the base game, there really aren't any desirable talents left to choose from. How do you intend to keep things fresh and ensure that we have plenty of appealing advancement options when the level cap is raised even further? How many more spells and other talents are you implementing in the expansion? Will these fall under the existing talent trees (Archery, Entropy, Two-Handed, etc.) or will we be seeing additional talent categories for each class? Care to give us an example or two?
Ferret: When we extended the level cap in Awakening (from 25 to 35) we also added a ton of new spells and abilities. There’s over 50 new ones to choose from, so there’s more new high level talents than you can get with one character. There’s two basic type of talents we’ve added – the talents that support our new specializations and those which are available to the core classes. The ones that give more goodies to the core classes fall into existing talent trees. Each type of weapon combat has another talent chain added to it. So two handed weapons, weapon and shield, dual wield, and archery all have four new abilities apiece. Mages get two new spell chains, as well. You have to be high level to pick up the new talents, but they’re often more potent than anything you’ve seen before.
An example of a warrior ability is “Peon’s Plight”. This ability allows a warrior to outright kill any one normal or critter level enemy, or deal a lot of damage to anyone else. This allows warriors to really change the tide of many battles. For example, if you start a fight and you see a non-elite Hurlock emissary in the back ranks – just bull rush him and lop off his head in one fell swoop. Conan would be proud.
Another awesome ability that both warriors and rogues can pick up is “Accuracy”. It’s a modal ability for archers that once activated increases the effectiveness of all of your ranged combat stats. The difference is immediate and noticeable. If you get the entire Archery ability chain it feels like Legolas has got your back.
Spotted at: GBThere are 3 comments on this article.
Click here to comment.
Bloodlines - Just Shy of Greatness Review - posted by Jason
on Wed 10 March 2010, 09:04:56 More info on Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines - More info on Troika Games The latest edition of The Escapist turns its gaze to games that are "nearly great," including Troika's Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines.
Sadly, Bloodlines was the last game that Troika would ever make, as the company folded just a few months after its release. With more money, time and manpower, Bloodlines could have been a genuine masterpiece rather than the cult classic it eventually became. But even though it stumbled out of the starting gate, Bloodlines accomplished something great: More than five years on, there is still a dedicated community creating unofficial patches and restoring cut content, a feat that few games - even incredibly popular and well known ones - can boast. Great games may inspire awe, but Troika's swan song stirred a feeling in players that is just as powerful: devotion.
Spotted at: The EscapistThere are 70 comments on this article.
Click here to comment.
Purgatorio Demo released Game news - posted by VentilatorOfDoom
on Tue 09 March 2010, 19:40:16 Rogue Dao Studios - you probably won't believe it - decides to offer a demo of their anticipated NWN2 mod Purgatorio, which is part of a planned Planescape Trilogy.
The news came from there and you can download the demo here.
thanks ghostdog! There are 26 comments on this article.
Click here to comment.
Big Huge RPG Updates Game news - posted by Jason
on Tue 09 March 2010, 17:43:12 More info on Project Mercury - More info on Big Huge Games The Ken Rolston led RPG project from Big Huge Games gets a new lease on life thanks to 38 Studios, EA, and questionable taste.
Code-named "Project Mercury," the single-player RPG is being developed by Rise of Nations studio Big Huge Games. (After then-owner THQ threatened to close the studio in 2009, 38 Studios stepped in and bought the Maryland-based developer.) It will be an all-new intellectual property co-created fantasy by comic-book artist Todd McFarlane (Spawn) and author R.A. Salvatore (The DemonWars Saga). Both men helped Schilling found 38 Studios--then called Green Monster Games--in 2006, and respectively serve as art director and "executive creator of worlds" at the Maynard, Massachusetts studio. The game will not be based on any of Salvatore's or MacFarlane's previous work.
Though 38 Studios is a relatively new operation, Project Mercury has some seasoned development talent behind it. Its project lead is Ken Rolston, who was lead designer on Bethesda Softworks' acclaimed high-fantasy RPGs The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. Several other Bethesda alumni are working on the project, as well as a senior designer from Lucasarts' the Force Unleashed. Veterans of Civilization and Civilization II are also on board.
According to EA Partners general manager David DeMartini, Rolston and his team will also be able to tap the minds of EA's own RPG powerhouse. "The guys at BioWare were actually involved in the early discussions with the folks at Big Huge," he told GameSpot. "They've had an opportunity to have some preliminary discussions and preliminary talks….So, I certainly think that you could expect strong collaboration that would include the BioWare team."
Spotted at: RPG WatchThere are 36 comments on this article.
Click here to comment.
Dragon Age Info Service Game news - posted by VentilatorOfDoom
on Tue 09 March 2010, 12:04:47 More info on Dragon Age - More info on BioWare Dragon Age gets patched.
There's also another preview of DA: Awakening. There are 21 comments on this article.
Click here to comment.
When you need a break from the intense play of RPG games check out keno at an award winning online casino.
|
|
