Mannock

Listening to Josh in the video, I got the impression that you could sling spells in shifted form. What you could not do in shifted form was using weapons. You had to rely on the claws/hoofs/whatever of the animal you shifted to.

... of game-backer surveys and what-NOT. *shrug*. Forced. I know. 'Twas the best I could do. Pretty decent in my opinion. HamBanner of Ages

Oh, and I'm also crossing my fingers for an ice javelin spell.

Really great update. Druids sounds really cool, might try that first instead of paladin. The portraits looking good too.

Remember, remember, the 31st of... March.

"I'd be interested to hear, what do all of you think? Not so much specific characterizations, but more, what are the abstract qualities that make you enjoy and remember a companion? (e.g. They made you laugh, they seemed like a real person, their quest was engrossing, etc.)" There are of course different qualities that makes me remember different characters. Examples: Mira (Kotor II): Savvy, smart and brushing the PC off romantically. Jan Jansen (BG2): His hilarious rants. Gann (NWN2: MotB): Gentle and with an attractive personality. I got somewhat of a crush on him. Anomen (BG2): How his personal quest really changed him (and how that was reflected in the change of his stats (+wisdom)). Jaheira (BG2): Her romance. She's strong willed and protective, yet gentle when you get to know her better. One of the few romances ever done well in a CRPG. Fall-from-Grace: How she was practically the exact opposite from what I thought she would be like (given her looks and the place you find her in).

But, and this is important for the sound team, what does the fox say? Indeed. But does it matter as long as it's faster than Chiktikka Fastpaws?

My thoughts of you creating a sexist NPC? Don't.

Eerily, Hubris was the name of the super awesome longsword I created. ^^

I'll vote for a fox.

I sent my item some weeks ago. Will there be any sort of feedback? Atleast I'd like to see a confirmation message that they've got all the info and there is no problem with it.

Very true. The gifts in DAO lost all meaning the way they were implemented. On the other hand, the locket you buy for Jaheira in BG2 works very well within the story. So it can be done well if you don't water it down and make it into a too obvious mechanic towards the relationships.

To be fair, you could say that about any aspect of the game. No paladin class? Well, just imagine you are playing a paladin. No main story line? Just write one yourself. No spells for your wizard? Just imagine you are slinging spells. I'm not saying romances are a game breaking deal, but dismissing it like you did is just silly.

I don't want the project to be distracted by new stretch goals, whatever they might be. Let Obsidian focus on what was initially promised (at the end of the campaign). When/if a sequel is on the table, modding tools might come into play, who knows.

Sounds very good!

I think that is a good point. Obsidian has an uneven trackrecord regarding romances, but some of them are pretty decent. It amuses me however that a lot of people reference BioWare romances and how poor they are. That's fine and all, but what has it got to do with Obsidian? Personally, I believe love is a very strong motive to use in a story and given how often it frequents books, music, poetry, movies, paintings, etc, it would be very lacking for the gaming industry to purposely avoid it. The gaming industry is generally immature in this regard. I'm sure things will change as time passes. Right now though, given the lack of interest by Obsidian doing romances, I think we might be better off without it. But I hope it will turn up in future games.

Dr Jan Itór, per chance?

I second that. Oh and also, I find those comparing this game to Skyrim cute. As if PoE and Skyrim were the same type of game.

Don't forget Mira in KotoR II though. She blew you off, no matter what romantic lines you tried. But I get what you are saying; the NPC is forced upon the player, as if it didn't have an own free will. And it doesn't. That's kind of the point. Someone has written a character to be and act a certain way; being interested in the PC (or not).

That's the understatement of the year (so far). Beta is for testing purposes and that is kinda boring if you take the job seriously. Still, I'll be there, dipping my toes.

Is there a deadline for the texts for the items?

Hello there everyone! Another item backer here. A few questions for Josh regarding the backstory of my planned item. Even though I'm creating a backstory for an item, some part of it regards the character who wielded it and therefor have questions relating to that. 1. Naming an orlan. I looked at your post a few pages back regarding names and they seemed to be categorized culturally (or regionally) and not racially. Does that mean an orlan could very well have the same name as a human (or did I totally missunderstand?)? And is it possible to PM the (two) names that occur in the back story of my item to see if they fit the setting at all (I think my names might be way offside)? 2. Military. a)What can you say about the military structures in (or around) Dyrwood? Are there any armies (or perhaps slightly smaller units; regiment or brigades)? b)If yes, are they structured like our armies are/were? c)Are there any military forts (or equivalent) in Dyrwood? d)Are the military units (regardless of size, I assume there are atleast minor units such as companies) tied to individuals (a warlord, a baron, a king, etc) or to a certain region or country? 3. Does lions exist in this setting? That's all for now. Thanks!

In my humble opinion I think you should avoid further stretch goals. The game is big enough as it is. Stay focused so the current project will be as lean and tough as it can get.

"...along with some new Justin Bell music." And by Justin Bell music I assume you mean Justin Bieber music. All else would be a farce.

The vast majority of backers has been completely silent about the whole affair. Indeed. Because it really isn't that big of a deal.