The more I hear, the more promising PE appears

[IndiraLightfoot]

Update 24 and several of OEI:s answers to those Reddit questions were really to my liking:

-Scarcity of healing and healing potions. No rez scrolls

-Rest spamming is avoided by a clever fatigue system (stamina and health)

-Souls, twisted souls and an emphasis on "necromancy" (I love it!)

-Splashes of Lovecraft-ish-horror

-No boring combat, where yet another door is kicked down and you face Skeleton no 242

-Level-scaled content will be used minimally

-Two new humanoid races for the players to chose (no more orcs, kobolds and goblins)

-Wandering off in random directions in the wilderness will be dangerous and risky

-Suspicion towards grinding and humdrum kill-xp

 

And the list goes on and on...

 

Just, wow! This game sure sounds promising.

 

Have any of yous more of these goodies you want to mention that you are really excited about?

 

EDIT: LOL, I wrote "here", instead of "hear" in the title. Hopefully, a moderator can change it, coz I don't know how...

Edited October 16, 2012 by IndiraLightfoot

[NerdBoner]

i know, i'm super 'cited...can't wait to get my hands on this beast!

 

an actual challenging and indepth rpg being made in 2012? surely the Mayan's must be onto something because if this isn't a sign of the end times i don't know what is...

 

 

 

also,i think that any money beyond 3.5 mil should either go towards polishing the game or to shipping people those damned costly physical goods.

Edited October 16, 2012 by NerdBoner

[cyberarmy]

Im super excited too but im also super sad.

 

We need to wait for at least 18 months or more At least we have incoming BG EE and some more kickstarters making the wait easier.

[Kionter]

 

-Scarcity of healing and healing potions. No rez scrolls

-Rest spamming is avoided by a clever fatigue system (stamina and health)

-Wandering off in random directions in the wilderness will be dangerous and risky

 

 

these 3 are my favorites.

 

Specially the fatigue (stamina and health) system

That surprised me, not that I'm tired of the "normal" way but it looks very interesting. I wonder how poison, disease and other afflictions will affect stamina and health.

[dlux]

Replying to The more I here, the more promising PE appears

Not for me. Planescape and Baldur's Gate are the best RPGs ever made (imo), and I do not like the fact that they are trying to fix many basic mechanics that these games used, even though they are not broken.

 

Update 24 and several of OEI:s answers to those Reddit questions were really to my liking:

-Scarcity of healing and healing potions. No rez scrolls

-Rest spamming is avoided by a clever fatigue system (stamina and health)

Because your main health pool (here stamina) regenerates rapidly by itself. Dragon Age 2 FTW!!! ^^

 

But at least I can say: Good riddance sleep spamming.

 

-No boring combat, where yet another door is kicked down and you face Skeleton no 242

-Suspicion towards grinding and humdrum kill-xp

You won't be getting kill XP, so you will avoid combat as much as possible, which is only a good mechanic for a game like Deus Ex or a game with rather linear levels imo. This is the kind of thing that makes your eyes roll in disgust whenever you have to kill trash mobs - because the reward is practically non-existant. Annoying combat.... Check!

 

-Level-scaled content will be used minimally

Are you sure? The whole main campaign might be level scaled (like in New Vegas). I have no idea how much they mean when they say "a little level scaling"... because New Vegas used a lot of level scaling, the whole main campaign used extensive level scaling, which was a huge part of the game.

 

I was at least hoping that they would use encounter scaling (like in BGT), but maybe it is too hard to implement or something. ^^

Edited October 16, 2012 by dlux

[Telefax]

Personally, I get more excited by these ideas, some elements in the old IE combat formula always irked me, and as a DM for many years a lot of the same problems meant that it was largely the fault of the dnd system. The health/stamina idea is brilliant, and even though it's only vaguely explained i think it shows real promise. XP for objectives is also really neat (though that one has been on the table here for quite some days, if you read the article where josh stated they wouldnt reward your bodycount), since i personally have always liked to go the nonlethal route wherever possible.

[IndiraLightfoot]

Let's first set aside the obvious misunderstandings that seem to be pop up now and then on the forums after the AMA on Reddit and Update # 24:

-You will not regenerate like an ancient vampiric troll in PE. It will not in any way resemble DA:s system.

-And the campaign will not be very level-scaled at all. On the contrary, they said that it would keep that to a minimum.

 

As for the no-kill xp discussion I think it is something bigger than just getting xp. I've played most CRPG.s there are and also loads of pen-n-paper RPGs since the 1970s, and I am a huge D&D fan as well (the IE-games as well as the NWN-ones are things I adore), and that is why I can say with some confidence that I see where the devs are coming from: They know that freeing themselves from some game-mechanical restraints inherent from the glory days of RP-games paves the way for better and more varied RP in a computer game. Objective XP has always been there, but kill-XP has been turned into some simple Gauntlet arcade game. Those hack-n-slash games are great fun too, but this will not be that kind of ARPG (they shouldn't be call ARPG though, Diablo 3, for instance, has zero role playing it). I'm certain that the devs will reward xp for kills to, but in a new and balanced way that rewards variety and role playing, instead of farming and other rampant MMO behaviour.

Edited October 16, 2012 by IndiraLightfoot

[Hugo Rune]

You won't be getting kill XP, so you will avoid combat as much as possible, which is only a good mechanic for a game like Deus Ex or a game with rather linear levels imo. This is the kind of thing that makes your eyes roll in disgust whenever you have to kill trash mobs - because the reward is practically non-existant. Annoying combat.... Check!

 

I don't see why this should be true. It'll certainly get easier to decide to take the sneaky/talky route instead of just stabbing them for XP, if that's what you want to do but there's still the fact that

 

A) you don't get to loot an enemy if you don't kill them and

B) sometimes an axe to the face (make that an exciting, tactical battle) is it's own reward.

 

I certainly have never gone out of my way to avoid battle in games where I didn't get XP for every enemy killed.

Edited October 16, 2012 by Hugo Rune

[spoonguy]

There are a lot of assumptions in Dlux's post which which is fine when its your money you're spending, if I had a bad feeling I'd quit. I would guess action RPGs would be more Dlux's style if you want xp for grinding trash mobs. I'd rather progression based xp so you get the same or similar xp for solving a problem without combat (while still having the option to just kick their ass and get the xp that way). It could very well be more time consuming to avoid mobs than take them on... so why assume everyone will take the option to avoid? You could also need a certain stat / skill / item to bypass some mobs. That's the magic of pen and paper RPGs that is often missed in computer based versions including including the old IE games ... sure talk your way past the mob, but then you're best going back and killing it for the additional xp and loot, makes no real sense. In my opinion a few things were a bit broken in the old IE games despite their charm.

Edited October 16, 2012 by spoonguy

[Kilroy_Was_Here]

The kickstarter was going for what, 30 days? 31? And we've received 24 updates about the game, with probably one more confirming that the 3.5 million goal was reached and ending the kickstarter campaign for a total of 25.

 

The game will come out (maybe) in April 2014. I don't know if we will receive 25 more updates on this scale in between now and then. This will lead to those with specific concerns (kill xp leading the way for some reason) becoming nervous.

 

I believe that the community supporting this game is as united now as it ever will be. By next week factions supporting/opposed to various gameplay mechanics, aesthetic design choices, secondary features, etc will emerge in force and begin to do battle in earnest.

 

Remember what brought you here in the first place fellow Eternites! (a term I just made up) Keep the faith!

[Krios]

I like the potential for Project Eternity to be a great game. Right now it is still very early in development, with much of the game still in the brain storming phase. But so far a lot of what Obsidian has revealed of its intentions and its design direction, I like it, I feel the finished project has the potential to make me a happy gamer.

 

A simpler presentation. Project Eternity is going to be an old school 2D top down RPG. They do not make them like that anymore, except maybe indie developers. Once you have a big name publisher with a lot to invest, it is inevitable the game will be in 3D, graphics will be designed to run on the latest hardware, to give older machines a real workout. For me and for many others who may not have the latest and the best gaming machines, the old school 2D presentation, fixed top down view, these features actually mean it can on older machines. What good is a game if your PC cannot even run it?

 

RPG instead of FPS. Fallout 3 and Obsidian's own Fallout New Vegas, and many of the modern CRPGs they play like an FPS game. You play them in first person view, and you are engaged in an endless hack and slash or a display of martial arts. You do not get the feeling there are dice rolls influencing the outcome of an encounter, rather it is very much a question of are you mashing that mouse button fast enough before the ugly is upon you. I did not have this experience when I was playing the old IE games. Stats and dice rolls really make a difference, which were hallmarks of an RPG in those days. For Project Eternity, the devs will be designing a new ruleset to bring back the old glory days.

 

A-List Lineup. Obsidian has put together an A-List of some of the gaming industry most well known and celebrated developers to pitch the game to us. They have listened and I believe they will take into account what the gamers want, instead of what will make them the most money. That is what I call Passion, and I believe the team has that in spades. By wanting to do things right by the player, which is to me a big plus point. That coupled with their rich experience in making the type of game they are talking about here builds customer confidence in their yet to be released product.

[IndiraLightfoot]

Thanks for that post. It really sums up a lot of the core points at this premature stage of PE:s development. Have faith, and above all, this is a day for big celebration! I'm eating a chocolate bar, right now, btw! CHEERS! *Melting chocolate crumbs on keyboard at work*

[NerdBoner]

The kickstarter was going for what, 30 days? 31? And we've received 24 updates about the game, with probably one more confirming that the 3.5 million goal was reached and ending the kickstarter campaign for a total of 25.

 

The game will come out (maybe) in April 2014. I don't know if we will receive 25 more updates on this scale in between now and then. This will lead to those with specific concerns (kill xp leading the way for some reason) becoming nervous.

 

I believe that the community supporting this game is as united now as it ever will be. By next week factions supporting/opposed to various gameplay mechanics, aesthetic design choices, secondary features, etc will emerge in force and begin to do battle in earnest.

 

Remember what brought you here in the first place fellow Eternites! (a term I just made up) Keep the faith!

I like your spunk kid! but may I suggest you call us the "ETERNALS"...sounds more epic and manly to me!

[Malkaven]

Im super excited too but im also super sad.

 

We need to wait for at least 18 months or more At least we have incoming BG EE and some more kickstarters making the wait easier.

 

I'm with you. The wait is going to kill me.

[Krios]

I am supposed to be asleep during the final hours. I am thinking if I want to sleep early and wake up earlier to watch the party streamed live.

[Amyrantha]

The wait is going to be hard, especially for impatient folks like me. However, I also get the warm-fuzzies when thinking about how awesome this game is going to be as compared to most rpg's released over the last few years.

[syn2083]

I think that it is way to early to make many assumptions or assertions either way.

 

One point I would make, is that in my opinion, FO:NV is a bad example to use for this current project. My reasoning is pretty simple. Bethesda created the engine, and more than likely, determined quite a lot of How the game had to work. If the game was a huge and massive departure from FO:3 mechanically, it would be easy to 'lose' current players who are dissalusioned with the new vein. I think that while Obsidian was clearly inherent in cleaning up a lot of the mechanics and engine issues that plagued FO:3, they probably had much less say in some of the core mechanics used in the execution of said game.

 

Realistically, we have no idea what half of the talking points thus far will shake down to be, but I do trust that the breadth of knowledge, and level of passion with PE and Obsidian in general will keep the eye on the ball.

 

We need to keep in mind that in this rare instance for them, they are NOT trapped by the conventions of a contract, with stipulations about who, where or what they have to do, how many of this kind of item, or that kind of plot device, how expansive the scaled leveling is, how much they have to adhere to these kinds of logos, or work in this placement, etc.

 

I am very hopeful for PE, and I am putting my faith in some industry veterans that helped shape the kind of gamer, and person, I am.

 

I am very excited, and proud to support this project, and anyone that has doubts, or reservations, thats cool. We all have opinions, and mine is no less valid than someone like Dlux, et al.

 

[Raithe]

What we basically have is a fairly magic team, being hindered only by their own desires, debates, brain storming and some whining from the fans....

 

I think we can safely say there's a lot to look forward to in seeing how it all develops, and there's nothing that screams "Epic Fail" at the moment.

We can't really say "Trust in the Force" , but I think we can pretty much just trust in their desire to do a serious roleplaying game without obscure pressure from external management types.

 

It's time to celebrate for today, and then watch how it starts to shake loose over the next year...

[Tobi]

woah, relax guys, no need for name-calling. like spoonguy said:

 

"There are a lot of assumptions in Dlux's post which which is fine when its your money you're spending, if I had a bad feeling I'd quit."

 

I just hope dlux casts away his doubt and rejoins us - the game is in a rather early stage of its development after all

[wanderon]

I would disagree with the notion that we probably won't see more than 25 updates between the end of KS and the games release - one of the things the devs claimed to be excited about all during this process is they won't have a publisher standing over their shoulder telling them what they can or cannot talk about thus allowing them to share much more with the fans than they normally would in a publisher funded game.

 

I expect they will be very forthcoming all during the process with progress reports and will be looking for player feedback as they brainstorm then fine tune exactly what they want to do.

 

I am extremely excited about this project myself and I too have BG:EE in mind to keep me occupied until PE release.

[Dangermouth]

Would be interesting in their 'making of' video if they could compare and contrast the experiences of making a game on their own (kind of, as here) and doing it 'under the fist' of a crappy publisher (who shall remain nameless - pick your own).

 

Also would be interesting to learn how much they thought they would get via KS and how much they hoped they would and how much they'd get via another source with a bunch of caveats attached.

[syn2083]

I think that would be really cool to watch, but I feel like that wouldn't happen much. Mainly because in the end they will likely still have projects, and deals that require working with publishers in general. You don't taint your pool so to speak haha.

[C2B]

I think dlux's just needs to see these mechanics in action. I'm sure he will be back down the line.

[Tale]

woah, relax guys, no need for name-calling.

Agreed. If someone wants to stop backing, that's no cause to be insulting.

[Piccolo]

I think dlux's just needs to see these mechanics in action. I'm sure he will be back down the line.

Yep. Like the rest of the minority who are moaning, I think part of the problem is they don't fully understand how things such as the health/stamina system or the objective based XP system will really work.

 

Those of us who do understand how they'll work generally agree that they're great ideas.