Update #82: Creatures

[anameforobsidian]

I would expect a game that's pitched as heavily on nostalgia as this one was to show mainly nostalgic creatures.  There's precedent too, the New Vegas ad I constantly saw on TV didn't even show Cazadores and they were one of the most memorable enemies in the game for me.

 

Also, of the bestiary Obsidian has released, I think they have at least three neat and relatively new enemies:

Ardra Beetles (yes, NWN II had giant beetles, but most games do not),

Vithrak (we'll see how they're implemented, but I like them a lot so far),

Wichts,

Skulldr.

 

Four out of twenty-four shown or mentioned thus far is not that bad, plus or minus herve caen gula and staelgar brings it to about 20% of total creatures shown.

Edited July 11, 2014 by anameforobsidian

[Osvir]

These updates always tend to make me a bit speechless for a bit. Getting more hype

In conjunction with the updates Josh usually gets a couple of questions, and I feel those are a little bit part of the update experience as well, from time to time. I can see them as individual bonus updates as well~

Will PoE have a ready stance?

 

Sexism in PoE?

 

It is always intruiging to see tidbits of progression at a time. Forming my sort of own general idea of how many % the game has gone through towards completion.

Looking forward to August 18 I am also curious if this is a closed Backer Beta deal or if it will be a public Steam Early Access.

Both has their merits, and I am also curious if there is some way to combine the two (Release public Steam Early Access+Closed Backer Beta Feedback Forum?). The latter could function as a "focus area" where Obsidian can convey the best way for us to give feedback, set up templates and perhaps even rules for posting feedback. Basically giving Obsidian quality QA on Backer Beta forums~

[ashtonw]

Remember when they revealed the trolls and everyone was upset that the trolls don't look enough like everybody else's trolls...

 

I think the blights are cool. I don't have to be in love with every creature to enjoy the game.

 

 

 

Sexism in PoE?

 

Josh answered my question on tumblr but didn't mention the Vailian Republics which was what I was really interested in, darn it.

Edited July 11, 2014 by ashtonw

[Lephys]

With all due respect, JFSOCC, you didn't really answer my question. It seems like your main issue is with the fact that the "Creatures" update (which should directly represent the entirety of the creature design in the game) didn't really show off the utmost of the team's creativity (either the "wow!" creatures are still kept a secret, unfinished, or non-existent). That, as I said, I fully understand, and I'll totally give you that much. I like sandwiches, but if a restaurant was trying to show off their menu to get a 5-star review, and they showed me a bologna and cheese sandwich, I'd be unimpressed.

 

However, if you're trying to say that anything that resembles anything that's already been done is inherently lame and crappy, then I don't really understand that. As I said, that set of criteria is flawed, as it leads to "basically everything sucks unless it's all so strange I don't even know what's going on anymore."

 

Tell me a creature design, and I bet I can point out something it's very similar to from another work of fiction. I don't think that factor, in-and-of-itself, determines the quality of a creature design.

 

Should there not be wolves and bears, too? No canine creatures? No horses? No rodent-like creatures? No insects? We've seen all that a billion times, AND they're not even fantasy creatures. They're real and "mundane."

 

I guess I just don't see how we can toss out "Tribal humanoids" as some kind of forbidden, inherently lame formula, just because it's not completely novel.

 

Again, not saying we shouldn't see some pretty crazy awesome creature designs that are truly intriguing, or that it wouldn't have been really nice to have seen different stuff in the Creatures update. But, people seem to be equating not-100%-novel with "bad," which is a bit arbitrary.

[StrangeCat]

It should be damn scarry to face a blight in a dungeon.

  Your in a darkened hallway only lit by your tourch and you see one those things.   Bodies pushing against an unseen force trying to get out, screaming and clawing at the air.  Ever so often a face in agony appears and tries to break free, limbs twist in odd angles among the wind that screams out at you.  You look in *Horror* as it comes closer, right at you from the darkness.  You didn't even realize that you had brought your sword out.  All you can hear is the screams and see the bodies and tortured forms.   The rest of your companions are frozen in fear!   

 

yea Horror! 

[Osvir]

<truncated>

 

Looking forward to August 18 I am also curious if this is a closed Backer Beta deal or if it will be a public Steam Early Access.

Both has their merits, and I am also curious if there is some way to combine the two (Release public Steam Early Access+Closed Backer Beta Feedback Forum?). The latter could function as a "focus area" where Obsidian can convey the best way for us to give feedback, set up templates and perhaps even rules for posting feedback. Basically giving Obsidian quality QA on Backer Beta forums~

Probably on Obsidians radar, but still a good read: http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/220463/Divinity_Original_Sin_is_the_game_Larian_Studios_waited_15_years_to_make.php

[LordCrash]

Nice update and good decision to not limit the length of the documentary to physical disc size restrictions. Those who want their documentary on disc can just burn it to DVD/Blu-Ray themselves imo.

[Eyeshield1625]

I understand the reasoning for not doing the blu-ray/dvd. I would rather get the digital version with all the production than to get 9-10ths of it  on dvd. I wonder what their going to swap it with. The collectors art book would be awesome even if it was just a soft cover, though it might be cheaper to make more hard cover than to make soft cover. It's probably not gonna be that though so I hope they come up with something good.

[Petrikov]

At first, I felt the Vithracks were just mindflayer expies. It certainly didn't help that when they were first introduced it was because someone at Obsidian really liked mindflayers. But, thinking about it, even if they do have basically the same lore as mindflayers only modified to fit PoE's setting, they are an improvement to some extent. Mindflayers, at least to me, never seem very threatening, because the mystery around them just doesn't work. Plus, they have that "We like H.P. Lovecraft so all our eldritch things have tentacles," nonsense going on. Vithrack, on the other hand, seem much more alien to me, if only because imaging trying to non-telepathically communicate with one is far more unsettling. Also, spiders don't live in the ocean, so the threat seems more grounded.

Edited July 12, 2014 by Petrikov

[Bryy]

I'd just like to point that, at this point in time, it's rather difficult to design something that doesn't bear resemblance to something else that already exists.

Not to mention, you have to design an actual working body system. You can't just say "this looks cool".

 

It has to work.

[anameforobsidian]

 

<truncated>

 

Looking forward to August 18 I am also curious if this is a closed Backer Beta deal or if it will be a public Steam Early Access.

Both has their merits, and I am also curious if there is some way to combine the two (Release public Steam Early Access+Closed Backer Beta Feedback Forum?). The latter could function as a "focus area" where Obsidian can convey the best way for us to give feedback, set up templates and perhaps even rules for posting feedback. Basically giving Obsidian quality QA on Backer Beta forums~

Probably on Obsidians radar, but still a good read: http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/220463/Divinity_Original_Sin_is_the_game_Larian_Studios_waited_15_years_to_make.php

 

 

At the same time, Original Sin has sold itself on its systems.  The reviews I've read give only cursory notice to the writing, and then gush over the systems.  I'm not so certain if that's the best way to go with a game that's selling itself on story.  Also, Obsidian faces a tough choice, where allowing reviewers early access to the game might increase their already harmful reputation for bugs, but might reduce the number of bugs in the long run.

[Osvir]

I haven't read a single review of Divinity per say, just interviews... well... I saw a Reviewsical (wordplay~ Review+Musical = Reviewsical) of a guy singing about Divinity: Original Sin and what you can do in the game. The guy who did the review obviously thought it was so good that it made him sing out loud

 

Any reviewer who reviews an Early Access game as a final product is living under a rock. Early Access has been out long enough now for people to know what it is and will correct any "this game is buggy" behavior (during Early Access). Divinity had loads of bugs during its Early Access, but I haven't seen any interviews talking about "bugs" as a problem. In the interviews with Swen he has only said how good the bugtesting process has been thanks to Early Access. It has sounds more or less like Early Access is a great, swift, and effective bugtesting solution.

Larian thanks Early Access and states it is something very good because they get instant feedback from their fans. So if Pillars of Eternity is buggy during Early Access, it's probably going to be less buggy after it.

Divinity: OS had a global chat during Early Access that they have removed now due to profanity that escalated, but that too was a great tool during their Early Access to weed out bugs and communicate directly to their fans and players.

[LordCrash]

 

 

<truncated>

 

Looking forward to August 18 I am also curious if this is a closed Backer Beta deal or if it will be a public Steam Early Access.

Both has their merits, and I am also curious if there is some way to combine the two (Release public Steam Early Access+Closed Backer Beta Feedback Forum?). The latter could function as a "focus area" where Obsidian can convey the best way for us to give feedback, set up templates and perhaps even rules for posting feedback. Basically giving Obsidian quality QA on Backer Beta forums~

Probably on Obsidians radar, but still a good read: http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/220463/Divinity_Original_Sin_is_the_game_Larian_Studios_waited_15_years_to_make.php

 

 

At the same time, Original Sin has sold itself on its systems.  The reviews I've read give only cursory notice to the writing, and then gush over the systems.  I'm not so certain if that's the best way to go with a game that's selling itself on story.  Also, Obsidian faces a tough choice, where allowing reviewers early access to the game might increase their already harmful reputation for bugs, but might reduce the number of bugs in the long run.

 

 

I thought Pillars is going to sell on both story and gameplay/combat...

[Vampero]

They look great ! Nice job !

[mudd1]

Isn't the all fire,water, earth, air thing done with? I'd like to see more originality than that at least <.<

No, what's done with is using the five Chinese elements for the sole purpose of not using the occidental four elements. 

 

I mean, seriously, the concept of the four classical elements arose at least about 4000 years ago. When did it get old, last year? "Oh man, 'earth, water, fire and air' ... that's soooo 2000 BC!"

Edited July 14, 2014 by mudd1

[Amentep]

 

Isn't the all fire,water, earth, air thing done with? I'd like to see more originality than that at least <.>

No, what's done with is using the five Chinese elements for the sole purpose of not using the occidental four elements.

 

What game has used the Chinese elements? I can't say I've ever seen Wu Xing in game form (Water, Wood, Fire, Earth and Metal) and often wondered how it could be used as opposed to the classic elements (fire, earth, water, air) or what typically shows up in games - fire, earth, water, air, light/life, dark/anti-life. Which I guess if you added time/universe to it would be closest to the seven chakras...

[rjshae]

 

Isn't the all fire,water, earth, air thing done with? I'd like to see more originality than that at least <.<

No, what's done with is using the five Chinese elements for the sole purpose of not using the occidental four elements. 

 

I mean, seriously, the concept of the four classical elements arose at least about 4000 years ago. When did it get old, last year? "Oh man, 'earth, water, fire and air' ... that's soooo 2000 BC!"

 

There's a lot of jaded players in these forums. But there's always new blood coming up for whom concepts such as Hermeticism are not old and worn.

[mudd1]

What game has used the Chinese elements? I can't say I've ever seen Wu Xing in game form (Water, Wood, Fire, Earth and Metal) and often wondered how it could be used as opposed to the classic elements (fire, earth, water, air) or what typically shows up in games - fire, earth, water, air, light/life, dark/anti-life. Which I guess if you added time/universe to it would be closest to the seven chakras...

I think there was a collection of such games in the Project 行 thread of this year's Amnesia Fortnight. However, I currently can't access that thread in the Double Fine forums for some reason.

[HoonDing]

 

 

Isn't the all fire,water, earth, air thing done with? I'd like to see more originality than that at least <.<

No, what's done with is using the five Chinese elements for the sole purpose of not using the occidental four elements.

 

What game has used the Chinese elements? I can't say I've ever seen Wu Xing in game form (Water, Wood, Fire, Earth and Metal) and often wondered how it could be used as opposed to the classic elements (fire, earth, water, air) or what typically shows up in games - fire, earth, water, air, light/life, dark/anti-life. Which I guess if you added time/universe to it would be closest to the seven chakras...

 

Prince of Qin

[lemonrev]

I think I shall wait till the next topic has been updated in the fourms to make a comment, But I like how the elemental enemys have no format to them but what they are at the core.

[Niccolado]

Love em!! Truly. But...the Vithrack, a wonderful monster really, .. I am not sure, does they not seem a little too puny/weak for such powerful monsters? Maybe it looks so to me since they look so slim on the pics..

Bah. Ignore me. Im sure they will be most wonderful in the game!

Edited July 15, 2014 by Niccolado

[Amentep]

 

 

 

Isn't the all fire,water, earth, air thing done with? I'd like to see more originality than that at least <.>

No, what's done with is using the five Chinese elements for the sole purpose of not using the occidental four elements.

 

What game has used the Chinese elements? I can't say I've ever seen Wu Xing in game form (Water, Wood, Fire, Earth and Metal) and often wondered how it could be used as opposed to the classic elements (fire, earth, water, air) or what typically shows up in games - fire, earth, water, air, light/life, dark/anti-life. Which I guess if you added time/universe to it would be closest to the seven chakras...

 

Prince of Qin

 

Well to be fair, Prince of Qin was made by a Chinese developer about the final years of the Qin Dynasty as I recall, so it'd make sense for it to use the Chinese elements...

[ashtonw]

 

Love em!! Truly. But...the Vithrack, a wonderful monster really, .. I am not sure, does they not seem a little too puny/weak for such powerful monsters? Maybe it looks so to me since they look so slim on the pics..

 

 

 

Personally with their big, shiny eyes, I find them kind of cute. I'm just not intimidated by spider-headed people. 

[Boozie]

Looking forward to seeing the beta.

[Michael_Galt]

On a totally different, but related note, are we not long overdue for another update?  Or was that stuff released to the magazines considered an update?