New Space Siege Interview

[Humodour]

I'll be honest: I'm a fan of Dungeon Siege. I like number 1, number 2, and the xpacks. I really thought GPG was on the right track with the way they handled the sequel as more of an RPG and less of a Diablo clone.

 

But I'm not impressed when I hear this guy, Mike Marr, speak:

 

http://au.gamespot.com/pc/rpg/spacesiege/n...e;picks;title;3

 

There's another preview here, if anybody is actually still interested in this game:

 

http://au.gamespot.com/pc/rpg/spacesiege/n...e;picks;title;5

[Kaftan Barlast]

If you liked Dungeon Siege, I have trouble imagining how horribly abyssmal a game would have to be in order to disapoint you.

Edited July 8, 2008 by Kaftan Barlast

[Tigranes]

I don't know about 2, as apparently it was better, but 1 was truly a horrible experience.

 

And I say that inbetween grinding Diablo 2 to catch up with my friends.

[Humodour]

Well, I could only play Dungeon Siege 1 for short bursts at a time, but it had some truly beautiful scenery and atmosphere at times.

 

Which was odd, because I felt that was one of the few things Dungeon Siege 2 did worse.

[Tale]

If you liked Dungeon Siege, I have trouble imagining how horribly abyssmal a game would have to be in order to disapoint you.

Marry me.

[newc0253]

If you liked Dungeon Siege, I have trouble imagining how horribly abyssmal a game would have to be in order to disapoint you.

ha!

 

but Dungeon Siege did have some good points:

• pretty graphics
  
• a donkey to carry phat l00t.
  

okay, so two good points. everything else about it was complete and utter pants, a giant turd sandwich with turd filling and special turd sauce.

 

i have no reason to think Space Siege will be any less excrable than Dungeon Siege.

 

even the name reeks of stupidity: laying siege to a dungeon is one thing, but how do you lay siege to space?

Edited July 8, 2008 by newc0253

[Tale]

even the name reeks of stupidity: laying siege to a dungeon is one thing, but how do you lay siege to space?

Strap rockets on an Ordinatus.

[mkreku]

Got to love this part:

 

The big difference in Space Siege is that buying and selling is streamlined; there is no inventory management, and we allow you to shop frequently. So while the game is structured similarly to Dungeon Siege with regards to exploration and character development, we've eliminated the need to spend time sorting your inventory and going all around town looking for vendors and quest givers.

So now having an inventory is too complex.. and having to find quest givers is a chore.. Oh, the humanity.

[Humodour]

He then goes on to say that dialogue gets in the way of action and that any game that isn't fully 'streamlined' is obviously not fun and will fail in today's game market.

 

Gee, that worked real well for Deus Ex 2.

 

MM: For Space Siege, we devoted more time and effort on delivering an engaging story than we have in the past. That said, I really wanted to deliver an experience that didn't bog the player down in dialogue; spending hours listening to throw-away characters drone on about their petty problems has never intrigued me. So in Space Siege, we focus on telling a singular story with several minor themes, and more importantly, we never stop the player during dialogue. You're free to roam about and continue normal gameplay while the story progresses.

 

So I'd say the game is more story-driven and less distracting than the Dungeon Siege series. As for dialogue choices...those are performed through the player's actions during the game, not through navigating a dialogue tree.

 

MM: I think perhaps the biggest takeaway is just how much the RPG space has changed since the release of Dungeon Siege. Gamers today expect a much more streamlined game that delivers a good story, excellent pacing, a forgiving death system, and buttery controls. Any less just isn't acceptable or fun.

 

Oh golly, I'm tingling with anticipation!

Edited July 8, 2008 by Krezack

[Musopticon?]

Woah, I've never seen somebody unintentionally lambaste their own game so much.

 

And I don't understand what went wrong, DS 2 was, though going by the demo, a very decent combat rpg. Romping through the jungles with a bunch of bickering npcs was nice and they actually added the one thing DS 1 missed - gameplay. What's with this sudden turn for the worse?

[newc0253]

will there be space donkeys?

[Slowtrain]

I hate how dialogue gets in the way of story. Cave painting ftw.

 

 

I have grown to hate the word streamline in all its forms.

[Tale]

MM: For Space Siege, we devoted more time and effort on delivering an engaging story than we have in the past. That said, I really wanted to deliver an experience that didn't bog the player down in dialogue; spending hours listening to throw-away characters drone on about their petty problems has never intrigued me. So in Space Siege, we focus on telling a singular story with several minor themes, and more importantly, we never stop the player during dialogue. You're free to roam about and continue normal gameplay while the story progresses.

 

So I'd say the game is more story-driven and less distracting than the Dungeon Siege series. As for dialogue choices...those are performed through the player's actions during the game, not through navigating a dialogue tree.

I can't take anything negative away from this. It's pretty much Valve's philosophy. Don't put the player in a situation where he'll want to put the controller/mouse down.

 

It could be done in many ways. Valve will sometimes trap you in a room, but give you lots to do if you don't want to pay close attention. Obviously, this guy doesn't want that route. It also allows for a companion character who would just rattle on while you do your dungeon diving, as opposed to getting locked into a dialogue back-and-forth scheme. Then at some point you're given a choice, but not a social choice, a choice of action. It's not a bad design philosophy. I'd go so far as to say it can be a good one.

[Slowtrain]

So now having an inventory is too complex.. and having to find quest givers is a chore.. Oh, the humanity.

 

 

I'm waiting for a crpg where the player character never actually has to move from their starting sport for the duration. Instead the entire game just comes right to him and there's no dialogue at all but just some sort of "action substitute".

 

Streamlined.

[Tale]

So now having an inventory is too complex.. and having to find quest givers is a chore.. Oh, the humanity.

 

 

I'm waiting for a crpg where the player character never actually has to move from their starting sport for the duration. Instead the entire game just comes right to him and there's no dialogue at all but just some sort of "action substitute".

 

Streamlined.

http://www.progressquest.com/

 

Is good game.

[Morgoth]

It eludes me that such unnecessary games get even funded.

 

Oh wait.

 

It has "Siege" in it's title. Dungeon Siege sold well I presume?

[Slowtrain]

The more I think about it, the more I realize that what brought me to games years ago was the complexity and the details and the arcana and the rulesets. That was all the stuff that made games attractive to me. Now as games go more and more mainstream and actively seek to lose all those things that brought me to games in the first place, really its no wonder why I am less and less interested in gaming.

 

If I were first coming to gaming today, I would probably find it a pretty boring way to spend time.

[Morgoth]

Flash based games, MMOs and casual Wii nonsense rise, while true groundbreaking, progressive story-based games extinct. I wonder why?

 

Yeah, I'm off into the Dragon Age thread then...

[newc0253]

I'm waiting for a crpg where the player character never actually has to move from their starting sport for the duration. Instead the entire game just comes right to him and there's no dialogue at all but just some sort of "action substitute".

i'm working on the perfect existential video game, which encourages you to desist from all action on the basis that the material world is an illusion.

 

it's so zen, you don't even have to load onto your computer.

 

i'd make it available for free download, but that would involve action and thereby negate its non-purpose.

[Slowtrain]

I'm waiting for a crpg where the player character never actually has to move from their starting sport for the duration. Instead the entire game just comes right to him and there's no dialogue at all but just some sort of "action substitute".

i'm working on the perfect existential video game, which encourages you to desist from all action on the basis that the material world is an illusion.

 

it's so zen, you don't even have to load onto your computer.

 

i'd make it available for free download, but that would involve action and thereby negate its non-purpose.

 

 

That's too complex. The shareholders would never approve.

[Kissamies]

The more I think about it, the more I realize that what brought me to games years ago was the complexity and the details and the arcana and the rulesets. That was all the stuff that made games attractive to me. Now as games go more and more mainstream and actively seek to lose all those things that brought me to games in the first place, really its no wonder why I am less and less interested in gaming.

We can only hope that a some sort of counter culture will eventually rise.

[Deraldin]

So now having an inventory is too complex.. and having to find quest givers is a chore.. Oh, the humanity.

 

 

I'm waiting for a crpg where the player character never actually has to move from their starting sport for the duration. Instead the entire game just comes right to him and there's no dialogue at all but just some sort of "action substitute".

 

Streamlined.

http://www.progressquest.com/

 

Is good game.

 

Damn straight it is. I'm level 82.

[Humodour]

I don't think you need to worry about the RPG market being dominated by soft RPGs. The growth of computer gaming as an entertainment medium essentially dictates success in the industry is easier, and with that it's easier for a niche market game to be financially viable.

 

Of course, the flood of soft RPGs might give you a distorted view, but really how often did hard RPGs come out in the past anyway? I don't think that rate is any less now; it simply hasn't increased, either.

[Slowtrain]

The growth of computer gaming as an entertainment medium essentially dictates success in the industry is easier, and with that it's easier for a niche market game to be financially viable.

 

 

On what are you basing this? For all appearances, many of the niche market games in computer gaming that existed a few years ago are pretty much gone. European developers which up until now have really been the last developers of niche type games seem to be moving toward the same develpment paradigm as US developers. Flight sims, racing sims, sims of any sort, TB games of any sort, hard crpgs, have all apparently been deemed too complicated for gamers to enjoy and are therefore dropping or have been dropped altogether.

 

I'm not terribly optimistic that the current trend of reduction (aka streamlining) in games is going to end or even slow down anytime soon.

Edited July 9, 2008 by CrashGirl

[tripleRRR]

I dunno, the game still looks interesting enough for me. I liked playing DS I & II just for a basic hack and slash that they were. If I want "deep" storyline and whatnot I would go play MotB or something. The setting is also a nice hook for me, I don't know about the rest of you but the whole fantasy setting for god damn near EVERYTHING that says RPG in it is getting tiresome.