apocraphyn

Yeah, really excited by this. Thanks again for asking us and the sheer effort you've gone to to collect our thoughts!

It is truly ironic for one to argue against the usage of walls of text, through the usage of walls of text. ...but man, all this Kickstarter potential is exciting, isn't it? Thanks for the interest and putting the questions out there, Avellone. Apologies for the spam.

I've been thinking of something to suggest other than "do what you guys wanna do!" for a while now, and this was the primary thing I came up with. Time/time travel as a major mechanic in a WRPG is something untouched - it's fairly prominent in JRPGs, and tends to be quite well done in those that attempt it, (obvious nod to Chrono Trigger, but also the more recent Radiant Historia and Xenoblade, which are both fantastic games). It would allow you to potentially implement some interesting gameplay mechanics, (protag's faux-omniscience and ability to "change the future" in Xenoblade comes to mind), use multiple different settings, (fantasy/magic? prehistoric? industrial/steampunk? futuristic? contemporary? western? post-apocalyptic? just to name the stereotypes), incorporate multiple different skill-trees/proficiencies and party members with different specialisations according to the time-zone they're from. It'd be like taking the Arcanum formula and going wild with it. Main character a blank slate, able to forge it into whatever you please, whether it's a gun toting magic wielder, a smooth-talking cyborg, an engineer skilled at sword-play, etc. etc. Scope would be potentially massive, spanning different time-zones, multiple different areas, actions in the past affecting those in the future - it could be quite interesting. Real-time with pause(...and rewind function?) - or turn-based? - isometric RPG! I could go on and on, but that's the gist of the idea. Hope this suggestion isn't too late to add to the pile!

People are all getting far too wound up by Wulf, here. He recently got banned off of the RPS site/forums for his holier-than-thou attitude and passive-aggressive nature, so he's evidently just looking for somewhere else to voice his highly opinionated stances. Don't let him get into your veins. (dem lycanthropes, man) Anyway, little else to actually say - though this; ...this is interesting.

I've been a massive fan of everything Black Isle ever made, or were involved in, (including Lionheart). My formative years were spent adventuring in the vast endlessness of the Wasteland, exploring dungeons in the Forgotten Realms. I just need to get this out of the way first; thank you. Thank you so much. Anyway, moving on (and to echo everyone else's sentiment)...make what you want. It's your choice. Without a publisher breathing down your neck, you can attempt to create whatever you wish and won't be forced to add unnecessary elements, such as the temple at the beginning of Fallout 2 - just the idea of you guys not being held to certain expectations/deadlines by THE MAN is appealing. ...but I can understand that this probably isn't very helpful, just as much as when everyone you go to lunch with at work goes "Oh, I don't mind where we go/what we eat!" To add another echo, ehm; yes, I'd love a new isometric RPG. That'd be brill. Don't much care if it's real-time (with pause) or turn-based, but attempting to implement a system that incorporates both methods will likely end up flawed *COUGH* FALLOUT TACTICS/ARCANUM *COUGH*. In terms of a predefined setting/story, Knallfix's suggestion of Elric of Melnibon