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Another Neverwinter Interview with Jack Emmert ( Interview )
posted by VentilatorOfDoom on Fri 03 September 2010, 12:55:44

Cryptic's COO Jack Emmert once again answers some questions concerning their upcoming Neverwinter OMG, this time at Voodoo Extreme.

In your press release you also mentioned that you are working closely with R. A. Salvatore in creating the game. Is he going to be heavily involved in the project?
Jack Emmert: He is writing a trilogy that's set in Neverwinter and from a storyline perspective much of our game ties in to what his novel is doing. So from that standpoint we've had many creative meetings back and forth. We're taking his novel and his characters and seeing how we can thread that into our game. It's a cooperative thing where he's got his novels and he's been happy to share ideas back and forth. Obviously with Wizards of the Coast too, we've been in story meetings, hashing things out. He's a brilliant author and I don't want to say that Cryptic is in any way setting the storylines for his trilogy. It's more like he has some great ideas and stories for Neverwinter.

As for the toolset, you don't have to be a brian surgeon to use it:

VE: How similar / different is Forge going to be from the Aurora toolset of NWN?
Jack Emmert: I would say it's completely different because this is our tool and we're kind of starting from a different philosophical point. We're trying to create a robust set of tools but at the same time you won't need a high degree of technical proficiency. It's still a pretty elaborate toolset but you don't have to tinker with the server and all that because we already have that taken care of.

Also, they'll bring some true innovation to the table, immersion instead of dice rolling:

VE: We also asked our readers to send in their questions so here they are. How much Dungeons and Dragons is there in the actual gameplay? Is the goal to have it play with dice rolling in the background (like DnD Online) or is the goal to find a different way to handle things that makes it more action RPG oriented (Like Sacred or Diablo)?
Jack Emmert: We're using the rules as a starting point. There won't be any dice rolling because we want to immerse people in the setting and the more obvious you make the ruleset, the less immersive the game becomes. But we are basing everything we do on DnD 4th Edition. The mechanics have been changed but they'll be familiar. By and large, we're trying to keep as faithful as we could to 4th edition rules.

The way of the future, DnD without any dice rolling whatsoever.

Spotted at: GB

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Dungeon Siege III Interview ( Interview )
posted by VentilatorOfDoom on Fri 03 September 2010, 12:00:35
More info on Dungeon Siege III - More info on Obsidian Entertainment

Another GamesCom based Dungeon Siege 3 preview surfaced, this time G4TV questioned Obsidian's Nathaniel Chapman and Gas Powered Games' Chris Taylor.

G4: I noticed as I watched the demonstration that the way loot is presented to the player is very rooted in the game world, rather than a box popping up listing what's in a chest, or loot falling out of enemies as they die. How did that come about?

Nathaniel: We have a goofy term for it on the team, we call it "Pow!" It's basically the idea that when loot comes out of a monster it shouldn't just appear on the ground; it should explode out of them with, like, sparkles and a million particle effects. Just the idea that whenever you do something in the game, it should be awesome. With the loot, we didn't want it to feel like, "Okay, I'm opening up a window and clicking buttons to get my loot."

You see in the demo that when you attack a skeleton, bones fly off them. We just wanted to have that feeling that everything is visceral and in the world, that was really important to us.

The significance of loot exploding out of the enemies with sparkles and particle effects - I always underestimated it.

Spotted at: RPGWatch

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Why You Should Sit Up and Take Notice ( Preview )
posted by VentilatorOfDoom on Fri 03 September 2010, 11:03:10
More info on Witcher 2, The - More info on CD Projekt

High fantasy has rarely looked better, IGN concludes in their The Witcher 2 preview.

Choices and Consequences that Matter
Three opening scenarios multiply out to a full 16 different endings. That kind of scope is staggering, when you stop and consider the potential routes necessary to bridge you from one point to another through the game world. In fact, during our presentation, we were privy to the entire game schematic – a tangled mass of plot points, missions and interconnected events and scenes that looked more akin to a circuit board wireframe than anything.

In practice, The Witcher 2 really does build on the first game's impressive choice/consequence backbone. Characters live and die by your decisions and entire missions become available or are never seen depending on your stance.

In one example, the non-linear nature of the game allowed the developer to demonstrate two entirely different paths and radically different outcomes for the same area. Geralt, imprisoned and tortured in an underground dungeon, must escape. However, depending on whether or not you decide to play the game using stealth (and whether you were merciful to a particular character earlier on), you'll take two very different paths through the sprawling dungeon –and encounter entirely separate plot-developing side-characters and quests. With intricately written scenarios like this, we're guessing a few replays are going to be very much warranted. Roll on, 2011.

C&C - this time they do really matter! Promise.

Spotted at: RPGWatch

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Interplay Returns to Publishing ( Company news )
posted by VentilatorOfDoom on Fri 03 September 2010, 10:54:28
More info on Interplay

Interplay, winner of the "Best Zombie Impression" 2008, keeps on shambling.

This is the first time Interplay has returned to games publishing since it practically shut down in 2004, though it managed to stave off a corporate death thanks to the sale of the Fallout license to Bethesda in 2007. The company is still working on a Fallout MMO  with Masthead Studios, though that title needs to be released before the end of 2011 or Bethesda will reclaim the rights by default.

They're still alive.

thanks Jaedar!

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RPGCodex Meetup @ PAX? ( Community )
posted by VentilatorOfDoom on Fri 03 September 2010, 10:43:49

LusciousPear, honorable Codex donor and Seattle resident, wants to meet up with other Codexians at PAX.

Hey there,

I'm an Enforcer at PAX (tabletop), Codex donor, and Seattle resident. I'm thinking about having a small meetup around 7pm on Saturday, starting at Tabletop HQ. I figure we can get together at Tabletop for a few hours, play some games, then go get beers or food.

Would you guys like to put something on the front page? Or perhaps pin an announcement on the forums? I can send more detailed info if you'd like.

As you can see, the plan is to meet, play some tabletop games and then get some beers to get drunk. After the right level of driunklness has been achieved it'll be time to harass interview some devs. For the glory of the Codex!

PM LusciousPear or reply to this thread if you're interested.

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BioInterview: Games Are Not Art ( Interview )
posted by VentilatorOfDoom on Wed 01 September 2010, 15:59:50
More info on BioWare

.. saying that is so "last century" confirm the BioDocs.

“That comment is so last century,” chimed in Muzyka, “That’s just the reality now. We’re in a different  century where that kind of – to say that games are not an art form, that interactive entertainment isn’t relevant when there are millions and millions and millions of fans, and more every year, playing them. You know, this generation are definitely into the content. It’s so diverse.”

...

“They have an emotional impact,” said Zeschuk adamantly, “It depends what you use as the definition, right? For us largely, it’s things like, things that can have an emotional impact, lasting, on the person. I think that part of the problem with the debate has largely been not understanding the art form or the form of video games themselves... So, is Pac Man art? Sort of, I mean, in a way, in its simplicity it was, but you know, what we’re doing today is completely different. Is a hack n’ slash fighting game art? Ehhhhh, that’s marginal. You know, it’s the same way as movies... lots of movies aren’t art and some are. It’s like anything else. “

It's official, games are art.

Spotted at: GB

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GamesRadar Wants to See Things in Mass Effect 3 ( Editorial )
posted by VentilatorOfDoom on Wed 01 September 2010, 15:51:28
More info on Mass Effect 2 - More info on BioWare

Gamesradar had a brainstorming during which they figured out what Mass Effect 3 really needs to rock even more than ME2. Things like killing an evil Shepard clone or that Tali should be kinda ugly.

The Quarian mechanist was one of the most popular members of Shepard’s crew, but even though you got to romance her in Mass Effect 2, you never got to see her face. That’s why we’re betting that you you’ll get to see what she really looks like in Mass Effect 3.

We just hope that when you finally lift the veil from her face, she doesn’t turn out to be too pretty. Here’s the thing. Tali is smart, she’s funny, and she’s kind of geek when it comes to ship technology. So she’s pretty much the perfect in-game soul mate for anyone who’s been following an RPG trilogy for about five years. If you’re like us, your love for Tali is more pure than an un-played NES in mint condition; it just transcends simple physical attraction. So making her gorgeous in a traditional sense would just ruin everything, because you’ve already grown to like her without having a clue as to what she really looks like.

At the very least, Tali needs some kind of horrible skin condition and perhaps a disturbing lip scar, something weird enough to make her shy about unmasking, but not so hideous that you’ll wind up racing through your radial menus for the option to back out of the conversation.

It doesn't matter how she looks, as long as the level of emotional engagement is sufficient.

Spotted at: GB

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Drakensang: TRoT Published By Eidos [Unconfirmed] ( Game news )
posted by VentilatorOfDoom on Wed 01 September 2010, 13:50:19
More info on Drakensang

The product box displayed at this belgian game site seems to indicate that Drakensang: The River of Time has been localized to english and will be published by Eidos. Which is good news if you're waiting for this title.

Spotted at: RPGWatch

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King's Bounty: Crossworlds Review ( Review )
posted by VentilatorOfDoom on Wed 01 September 2010, 13:06:59
More info on King's Bounty: The Legend - More info on 1C Company

RPS took a glance at Katauri's third entry to their RPG/Strategy hybrid King's Bounty series.

I wish Crossworlds did more, especially given the melodramatic title. It’s showing us the same core stuff, the same core places and the same core fights, and I really need it to move on after three years. But this is as far as it could sensibly push what it is capable of, and it goes much further than Armoured Princess, the staid and unambitious middle-child of this vital series, ever did.

As such, it’s the title I’m going to nod to whenever anyone asks me which KB game to pick up. It mightn’t have the anecdotal power of the first, but that surprise delight was also hamstrung by a dreary, grindy second half. Crossworlds is a game you can tackle in peppy chunks, enjoying a series of fresh experiences rather than one over-long one. This is the status quo-perverting wonder that made King’s Bounty sing, now extended to its strategy rather than just its setting. It might cling to safety in the broadest sense, but it’s impossibly clever and cartoonish where it matters.

Seems to be just more of the same.

Spotted at: RPGWatch

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MCA Blog Entries ( Editorial )
posted by VentilatorOfDoom on Wed 01 September 2010, 12:02:18
More info on Obsidian Entertainment - More info on Chris Avellone

Magnificent Chris Avellone keeps on sharing his wisdom and gives insight into the inner workings of a game developer company.

Project Directors are selected based on their ability to hold or create the vision for a project, motivate and inspire the team, and their ability to focus the game to the vision and the game pillars. Any individual on a team who has demonstrated these qualities at a senior level as they've risen through the ranks in their discipline (usually to lead status) is considered a candidate for Project Director. Rich Taylor, for example, consistently demonstrated strengths as a lead programmer, and also demonstrated good judgment and decisions on how to go about making the game he was leading (Mask of the Betrayer, Storm of Zehir, and now Dungeon Siege).

Lead Designers are selected for much the same reason - they're usually senior designers who've shown the same strengths in upholding the game vision, ability to motivate and lead a team, and can manage effectively. Like other lead roles, Lead Designers are not necessarily chosen for their design ability, and they may not be the best designer in their discipline, they simply need to understand the design pipelines, understand the toolset and its breakdowns, and how to manage a team - this is because leads spend more time managing the designers in their discipline than doing actual core design work. If they excel in design, as Josh does, then that's a bonus.

Spotted at: RPGWatch

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