Shadow Realms, Bioware's new episodic online co-op action-RPG - Canceled

[eremita]

More specific info about the mechanics etc.

 

[Infinitron]

http://kotaku.com/sources-biowares-shadow-realms-in-flux-possibly-reboo-1677669790/all

Sources: BioWare's Shadow Realms In Flux, Possibly Rebooted

Shadow Realms, last year's surprise announcement from BioWare Austin, is going through big changes and may have been totally rebooted, sources tell Kotaku.

That Austin branch of BioWare, best known for developing the MMORPG Star Wars: The Old Republic, originally unveiled Shadow Realms as an online 4 vs. 1 action-role-playing game that would be released episodically beginning in 2015. Although the studio didn't officially say anything about pricing, many believed that the game would be free-to-play.

But things have changed. Two industry sources say they heard Shadow Realms was cancelled, but a third, reliable source familiar with goings-on at BioWare Austin says the game was overhauled in late October and will now have a full campaign. Though some details may be in flux, early plans for Shadow Realms now peg it as a 2017 release for PS4, Xbox One, and PC, according to that source.

A photo of an internal EA database provided by a separate source confirmed that the online servers for Shadow Realms, which is code-named Avalon, were disconnected this week. A second photo reveals that EA added a new code-name, Trafaglar, on the same day that Avalon was removed. (This code-name could refer to just about anything, of course.)

Though Shadow Realms was shown to the public at various gaming events last year, we haven't heard much about it in recent months. In August, BioWare Austin announced that they'd be sending out alpha invitations in the following month. Then, in late October, the studio announced that they were delaying the game's closed alpha. They have not said much publicly about the game since then, although community manager Eric Musco wrote on Reddit in December that Shadow Realms is "absolutely not cancelled" and that they would have more to share soon.

So what happened? According to one source, BioWare decided to reboot the game, coinciding with their decision to embrace the integration of EA's digital store and online service, Origin. Developers at EA take budget hits if they don't use internal technology and services, according to multiple people who have worked for the company. When the developers behind some of EA's recent online games, like Dawngate and Command & Conquer, didn't integrate Origin, those games' budgets were limited, which may have been a factor in their ultimate cancellations.1

At first, BioWare Austin planned Shadow Realms without Origin integration, but they shifted gears after seeing Dawngate flop, according to the source who says the game has been rebooted. Now that the studio is integrating EA's online service, they've got more money and can therefore do more with the game, that source said.

A different person connected to EA confirmed to me that the developers behind previous unsuccessful multiplayer games like Dawngate and Command & Conquer would indeed have received extra money from the publisher if they had been integrated with Origin. The stumbling of both of those games was a factor in BioWare's decision to reboot Shadow Realms, a source said.

If that reboot is happening, it may appear to be a strange shift for those of us who have followed the gaming industry in recent years—usually, video games are rebooted to free-to-play, not the other way around. But for BioWare fans—and anyone skeptical of the F2P trend that has dominated video games over the past half-decade—the possible change is welcome.

EA did not respond to requests for comment.

 

[Zombra]

God fucking fuck EA. I don't even care about this game and EA is still ruining it.

 

[himmy]

Developers at EA take budget hits if they don't use internal technology and services, according to multiple people who have worked for the company. When the developers behind some of EA's recent online games, like Dawngate and Command & Conquer, didn't integrate Origin, those games' budgets were limited, which may have been a factor in their ultimate cancellations.

Wow. Even for EA, this shit is impressive.

 

[Wirdschowerdn]

http://www.gameinformer.com/b/news/...20_s-4v1-pc-title-shadow-realms-canceled.aspx

 

[Infinitron]

Sources: BioWare’s 4v1 PC Title Shadow Realms Canceled



Multiple sources tell us that Electronic Arts' experimental project, Shadow Realms, has come to a close. The title, part of the 4v1 trend, was in development at BioWare Austin.

The game was announced at Gamescom following an extensive, live-action teaser campaign. Hands-on play was offered at the show in Cologne, Germany in August 2014, and we had the chance to give some impressions.

PC editor Dan Tack wrote in his hands-on preview that the title was slated to include episodic content heavy on the story. Given BioWare’s forte, the narrative focus fit with the Austin team’s work on Star Wars: The Old Republic.

Gameplay was set up as a progression through a labyrinthine dungeon, as heroes worked to overcome traps laid by the “shadow lord.” The villain had the ability to place monsters along the way, working to wear the heroes down before a final confrontation.

This isn't the first time EA has experimented and then pulled back. In November, EA canceled its in-development (and in-beta) MOBA Dawngate.

BioWare is still positioned well, with Star Wars: The Old Republic, a new Mass Effect title in the works, a whole new intellectual property, and Dragon Age: Inquisition reaping a sizable number of awards.

When reached, EA declined to comment on the matter. We'll update should additional information emerge.

 

[Perkel]

So tortanic, now cancelled shadow realms, EA not releasing numbers for DA:I, departures from bioware key people...

Looks like EA is pointing them finger. " Here is Mass Effect and make it good sell or else and no other projects, oh and welcome to EA family !"

 

[crawlkill]

oooh well. pry just saved me another $60 on a game that would've made me long for the end of the Earth.

 

[Infinitron]

http://www.polygon.com/2015/2/9/800...hadow-realms-its-4-versus-1-role-playing-game

BioWare cancels Shadow Realms, its 4-versus-1 co-op RPG
By Michael McWhertor on Feb 09, 2015 at 3:59p

Shadow Realms, the online cooperative role-playing game from BioWare Austin is no more. The studio says it's no longer developing the game, which was just unveiled to the public this past August.

"We've made the decision to not move forward with development of Shadow Realms," BioWare Austin general manager Jeff Hickman wrote on the game's website. "We fully recognize that this news is disappointing to some of our fans, so I want to explain more behind this decision.

"While the team did amazing work on the game concept and we got lots of great feedback from our fans at events and through other game testing, right now there are other projects for the team to work on within the BioWare studios for the coming year and beyond. We've got an incredibly talented team here at the Austin studio, and they are excited and already deep on new projects within the BioWare family, ones that will make some great BioWare games even better."

BioWare Austin will focus its development efforts on other projects, including Dragon Age: Inquisition, the next Mass Effect and other unannounced games. The studio will also continue work on Star Wars: The Old Republic.

"As every Star Wars fan knows, this is a massive year in the Star Wars universe," Hickman said. "We have some great plans for expanding this epic game this year, and look forward to sharing the news about those plans with our players in the coming weeks."

Shadow Realms was announced at last year's Gamescom as an online RPG featuring four-player co-op against a single playable enemy who controls "every aspect of the game." The game was slated to come to Windows PC.

With Shadow Realms, BioWare planned to introduce "a constantly evolving BioWare world where modern meets fantasy." The developer hoped to release the game's narrative episodically, which would play out over time "like a great TV series, providing players the ability to experience story-driven adventures as a community."

"This game brings us back to our roots in the realm of classic Pen and Paper RPG, but also delivers something that's completely new and innovative for our fans," Hickman said when the game was announced. "Shadow Realms is a new BioWare RPG that has the hallmarks of all BioWare games with a rich story, a unique world setting and deep combat progression, but built as an interactive experience that evolves the genre and broadens the appeal to online gamers all over the world."

For a look at what kind of project BioWare wanted Shadow Realms to be, watch the live action trailer that accompanied the game's reveal last year.

 

[vonAchdorf]

"We fully recognize that this news is disappointing to some of our fans,

Some as in few is probably a honest assessment.

 

[MRY]

I'll never cease to be surprised at a pattern of behavior that goes: "We're good at making X, but Y sells better than X, let's trying making Y." Why would anyone think that Bioware has any likelihood of success in the 4v1 genre? Or in the MMO genre? Michael Jordan wasn't that good at baseball but he was pursuing a ludicrous personal goal, not profit-maximizing behavior. Why don't the evil suits say something like, "Bioware is really good at making intra-party-dialogue-heavy save-the-world RPGs in which you assemble several parts of a McGuffin. How can we better monetize that kind of game while reducing production costs?" Wouldn't that make more sense that trying to use Bioware's human capital on projects like this? (I saw a similar arc at TimeGate while I was there: they did neat things with RTS, and then decided to chase MMOs and cinematic FPS and team-based PvP FPS, etc., because those games were more profitable.)

 

[Infinitron]

I'll never cease to be surprised at a pattern of behavior that goes: "We're good at making X, but Y sells better than X, let's trying making Y." Why would anyone think that Bioware has any likelihood of success in the 4v1 genre? Or in the MMO genre? Michael Jordan wasn't that good at baseball but he was pursuing a ludicrous personal goal, not profit-maximizing behavior. Why don't the evil suits say something like, "Bioware is really good at making intra-party-dialogue-heavy save-the-world RPGs in which you assemble several parts of a McGuffin. How can we better monetize that kind of game while reducing production costs?" Wouldn't that make more sense that trying to use Bioware's human capital on projects like this? (I saw a similar arc at TimeGate while I was there: they did neat things with RTS, and then decided to chase MMOs and cinematic FPS and team-based PvP FPS, etc., because those games were more profitable.)

Well, this project was being developed at Bioware Austin, developers of The Old Republic MMO...oh wait.

 

[MRY]

The TOR MMO logic was slightly less insane, insofar as SW brand + KOTOR brand recognition + tons of money + writers + some poached MMO people should be able to yield a successful MMO. I eagerly await the upcoming Baldur's Gate MOBA, though, which will have a strong narrative focus.

 

[imweasel]

Too bad, I was really looking foward to romancing some sexy LGBT demons with huge horns.

Spoiler

Sarcasm aside, wasn't Casey Hudson the project director? The cancelation might explain why he left Bioware about a month after the game was first shown.

 

[Drakron]

Oh I forgot this even existed.

 

[pakoito]

How can we better monetize that kind of game while reducing production costs?"

And that's how yearly releases, DLC, Season Packs, unlockables and subscription FPS multiplayer started.

Try to find a FPS with everything unlocked right off the bat today.

 

[MRY]

Oh, yeah, to be clear, I find the monetizing mindset horrible; but it has a logic to it. The "let's buy a power drill and use its butt to hammer in nails" mindset is what I don't understand.

 

[RPGMaster]

Spoiler

http://www.polygon.com/2015/2/9/800...hadow-realms-its-4-versus-1-role-playing-game

BioWare cancels Shadow Realms, its 4-versus-1 co-op RPG
By Michael McWhertor on Feb 09, 2015 at 3:59p

Shadow Realms, the online cooperative role-playing game from BioWare Austin is no more. The studio says it's no longer developing the game, which was just unveiled to the public this past August.

"We've made the decision to not move forward with development of Shadow Realms," BioWare Austin general manager Jeff Hickman wrote on the game's website. "We fully recognize that this news is disappointing to some of our fans, so I want to explain more behind this decision.

"While the team did amazing work on the game concept and we got lots of great feedback from our fans at events and through other game testing, right now there are other projects for the team to work on within the BioWare studios for the coming year and beyond. We've got an incredibly talented team here at the Austin studio, and they are excited and already deep on new projects within the BioWare family, ones that will make some great BioWare games even better."

BioWare Austin will focus its development efforts on other projects, including Dragon Age: Inquisition, the next Mass Effect and other unannounced games. The studio will also continue work on Star Wars: The Old Republic.

"As every Star Wars fan knows, this is a massive year in the Star Wars universe," Hickman said. "We have some great plans for expanding this epic game this year, and look forward to sharing the news about those plans with our players in the coming weeks."

Shadow Realms was announced at last year's Gamescom as an online RPG featuring four-player co-op against a single playable enemy who controls "every aspect of the game." The game was slated to come to Windows PC.

With Shadow Realms, BioWare planned to introduce "a constantly evolving BioWare world where modern meets fantasy." The developer hoped to release the game's narrative episodically, which would play out over time "like a great TV series, providing players the ability to experience story-driven adventures as a community."

"This game brings us back to our roots in the realm of classic Pen and Paper RPG, but also delivers something that's completely new and innovative for our fans," Hickman said when the game was announced. "Shadow Realms is a new BioWare RPG that has the hallmarks of all BioWare games with a rich story, a unique world setting and deep combat progression, but built as an interactive experience that evolves the genre and broadens the appeal to online gamers all over the world."

For a look at what kind of project BioWare wanted Shadow Realms to be, watch the live action trailer that accompanied the game's reveal last year.

Translation: No new IPs from BioWare. The edict has come down from EA to milk DA and ME until they die of starvation.

 

[pippin]

Oh I forgot this even existed.

Same here. When I read "Bio game cancelled" I thought it was some DAI dlc or even ME4.

Translation: No new IPs from BioWare. The edict has come down from EA to milk DA and ME until they die of starvation.

The last truly original IP they made before those was Jade Empire and that was 10 years ago, so it's not like they've been doing that for a very long time

 

[Infinitron]

They do still have another game in development besides Mass Effect and Dragon Age though (another Star Wars game possibly)

 

[Angthoron]

I like the modest "We know some of our fans will be upset by this" bit. Yup, all five fans of this amazing would-be game are disappointed.

 

[Bliblablubb]

Dragon Age: Inquisition reaping a sizable number of awards.

Is that PR-speak for "After Doritogate reviewers remembered DA:2 and became more careful with the automatic GOTY-awards for a Bioware game"?

 

[Cyberarmy]

Good riddance. and nothing of value was lost!

 

[Zeriel]

They do still have another game in development besides Mass Effect and Dragon Age though (another Star Wars game possibly)

I thought the other IP was said to be an original setting.

 

[Weirdstuffinspace]

More nails in the bioware coffin. And every dollar EA loses is a victory.