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Druidstone: The Secret of the Menhir Forest - turn-based isometric RPG from Grimrock devs

Jaesun

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I would genuinely be interested in seeing a new and different game from these guys. It probably won't be something I would be interested in (I didn't like LoG). Curious to see what this might be.
 

Jaedar

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Project: Eternity Shadorwun: Hong Kong Divinity: Original Sin 2 Pathfinder: Kingmaker
I understand why they're not making grimrock3, but I'm still saddened by it.

Hope their next game is also good.
 

Jack Dandy

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Divinity: Original Sin 2
I was hoping for a Goldbox-style game.. I remember they made a simple prototype some time back. It's a shame!

But it's Almost Human, so it's bound to be fun in any case. Wonder what'll make this RL stand out among the crowd.
 

Dorateen

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ColCol

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There was a recent post on their forums. I'm to lazy to drag it/copy it here. The gist was that the developer is working on a new engine to make a game, he hasn't even really started working on a "concrete" game as of yet.
 
Last edited:

Jimmious

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Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag.
Some of the encounters are friendly but many can lead into conflicts which are resolved using a tactical, turn-based battle system on a two-dimensional grid

Looks pretty too.

:d1p:
 

vortex

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Ok, updated the thread. It seems like not all Almost human devs are working on it, so Grimrock 3 or something like that could be happening still.
 

CryptRat

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Meh, procedural generation, permadaeth and no party, it's really just a roguelike.
Despite what they seemed to imply I really hoped for another old-school traditional RPG from them, considering one reason I have so much respect for them is that they like the old-school pacing regarding journey and quests and don't like the the modern one.

Still keeping an eye on the game, maybe it'll be good, but I hope their next project will be a traditional RPG again.
 

Jack Dandy

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Well, I asked Petri and he says the focus here is on much more tactical combat than usual RLs, and that the story also has a great focus.

So, it won't be just a plain ol' dungeon hack.
 

LESS T_T

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Codex 2014
Under the name of a brand new studio: http://druidstone-game.com/

Introducing Druidstone

All is dark. Your mind is floating in the endless reaches of the great void. Barely visible, mist and dim fading stars in the far distance are the only things you can discern. Then, suddenly something in the darkness stirs… “Your time has not yet come” a deep resonating voice booms. A bright light flashes so intensely that it pierces your mind!


You hear the rustling of autumn leaves. You open your eyes and see an ancient pillar of stone covered in pulsating runes. You are standing in the center of a stone circle in the middle of a clearing somewhere in the Menhir Forest. A woman with skin of purest white steps forward and smiles at you. Her eyes glow blue, like distant galaxies. “What took you so long?”



Welcome to the Druidstone dev blog! This blog is about the development of a fantasy roleplaying game called “Druidstone: The Secret of the Menhir Forest” which we have been working on since fall 2016.

In the world of Druidstone, the druids of the Menhir Forest possess a great power: the power of reincarnation. When a druid passes on, through some mysterious process his spirit is able to return from the great void back into the world of living and to his former self.

But with every reincarnation the world itself seems to change: where there was only a thicket of bushes in the forest before, there may be a trail or a shrine of stones now. The ancient ruins in the forest change place and the tunnels and their inhabitants beneath the ground are all different. Even stranger, the denizens of the forest do not seem to notice this at all.

Druidstone is set in a vast procedurally generated forest filled with exciting locations to explore and of course encounters, the meat of every RPG. You will meet interesting non-player characters such as the insane Red Priests who worship a being called Oghmu and the mysterious Traveller. You fight deadly bosses and explore ruins and dungeons in an open-world single-player game. Some of the encounters are friendly but many can lead into conflicts which are resolved using a tactical, turn-based battle system on a two-dimensional grid. The game features roguelike elements, so that when you die the game begins anew with different levels and encounters. Some of the encounters even react to you being reincarnated, so even by dying you can gain deeper understanding to the mysteries of the Menhir Forest.

Even though there are random elements in the game, at the heart of Druidstone is an overarching storyline and key encounters which give structure to the game and avoid it being just a gauntlet with random monsters to kill. In fact, we can’t wait to tell you the epic story we have in our mind! In addition, there are the stories you create as you explore the almost infinite space of procedurally generated content.



In the beginning there is an idea
Who were the druids? Did they build the Stonehenge, and why? These were the questions we asked ourselves when we started the design process for this game. After researching the subject we realized that even today relatively little is known about the druids. Apparently they were (are?) a group of mysterious men and women who had a special relationship with the nature and performed rituals at the sites of standing stones. Who knows, maybe they even possessed some magical powers?

This idea really stuck in our minds and began to evolve. We started seeing glimpses of the imaginary world of Druidstone, a world of ancient forests, massive standing stones, mist-clad shrines, and of a darkness that was coming. And of course of the druids, caretakers of the ancient stone spirits of the forest. The world began feeling more than imaginary to us… And thus the world of Druidstone and also the idea for this game was born.

In Druidstone you are one of the druids and you have just been reincarnated in front of the stone pillar with its pulsating runes. Who are you? How did you die? Your mind is foggy. The rustling of the leaves and the wind carries ominous whispers. The darkness is coming…

The game will be released on Windows but the release date has not been set yet. But that is getting ahead of ourselves. The road is long and there is so much to do and so many ideas to explore. Better get hammering that keyboard!

P.S. You can also follow the development of the game on Facebook and Twitter.




FAQ
What platforms will the game be released on?

We are currently focusing on bringing the game out on Windows. Other platforms are possible later.

When will the game be released?

We are still early in the development and we don’t want to lock ourselves to a release date yet.

What are the classes/races/skills?

We are trying out various ideas and currently it looks like the system will be classless and you can develop your main character into the direction of your choice. New abilities can be learned using a point buy system. For example, you can specialize in spells, or melee weapons in one run, or you could be the jack of all trades.

What can you tell about the tactical battle system?

Battles are fought on a two-dimensional grid and creatures can vary in size from one square to huge multi-square bosses. The battle system is tactical and turn-based so you have plenty of time to think through your options. During each battle round a creature can move up to its Movement Speed and perform an attack or use a battle tactic or special ability. You learn new abilities and tactics as you progress in the game. Managing spells and other resources wisely is the key to winning battles.

How many playable characters will there be?

The story of Druidstone is centered around you, a druid who has just been reincarnated. You will meet other characters along the way who may help you in battles… or maybe even deceive you.

Will there be puzzles?

It is possible that there will be some puzzles, but it is not the main focus of Druidstone. Instead we are concentrating on the tactical battle system, exploration and storyline.

Will there be multiplayer?

At this time, we have no plans for multiplayer.

What inspired you to make this game?

Most modern computer RPGs today have dropped the grid and have a semi-realtime battle system, which we think reduces the tactical aspect of combat. Instead we harken back to golden days of RPGs with grids and turn-based combat. We look for inspiration in several games such as Pool of Radiance and the other Gold Box games, roguelikes (especially ADOM), XCOM, FTL, Ultima series and Final Fantasy games (especially those released on the PS1).

What happened to Almost Human?

Druidstone is developed by Ctrl Alt Ninja, who share many people from Almost Human. Almost Human is still alive but no new games are currently being developed. It is possible that Almost Human returns with another game some day, but meanwhile the Ctrl Alt Ninja team is fully focused on Druidstone. Technically we are a different studio (the ownership and structure of the companies are different). Think of us like members of a band who enjoy this so much that we have a dual membership in another band.

What can I do to help?

Glad you asked! Please spread the word about Druidstone. You could start by telling your friends on Facebook, Twitter and gaming forums. We are a small team and we don’t have any marketing people, so any help is much appreciated! Thank you!
 

Projas

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Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag.
3-MotD.jpg


There's a thread already by the way
http://www.rpgcodex.net/forums/index.php?threads/druidstone-the-secret-of-the-menhir-forest.113566/
 

*-*/\--/\~

Cipher
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The screenshots looked nice, but i stopped reading at "procedurally generated". Why the hell are all the devs obsessed with throwing random shit at me instead of actually designing encounters? :(
 

V_K

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In this case, I suspect, they just wanted to try something different after two games with very tightly designed levels.
Also IIRC many of these ideas (procedural generation, turn-based combat) were thrown around at the LoG2's preproduction, but didn't make it, so it makes sense for them to try and build a different game with it.
But I'm also puzzled as to the company's name change. Though most of the staff aren't from AH (at least not from the core team), so that's probably the reason. But then it leaves the question why is the staff different and what are the other members of AH doing.
 

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