[GDN] Is there any interest at Soldak on doing a real-time or turn-based strategy game?

I’ve played and enjoyed many real-time and turn-based strategy games, but I don’t think Soldak will create either one any time soon. Of course next week I might have a cool idea for a strategy game and change my mind. [smiles] Actually, a turn-based game is getting more and more tempting because frankly, I miss them. However, if we do a turn-based game, it will most likely be an RPG.

[GDN] When you’re looking at the next game to make what catches your eye? Is it the genre, the storyline, the gameplay or something else?

Yes. [smiles] An idea and thus the starting point can come from any of these for me. Depths of Peril didn’t really exist until I thought of having warring covenants as a big part of the game. Kivi’s Underworld was more of creating a casual RPG and what would that look like. Normally you would think that of casual and RPG as opposites. [grins] And as I mentioned before, we might do a sci-fi game some day where the storyline came first. No matter where the idea starts though, in the end, gameplay is the most important thing.

[GDN] You mention in the blog that you’re considering a hardcore dungeon crawl. Would this be more along the lines of Neverwinter Nights with a party of character to manage? What kind of combat system would you put into that sort of title?

I’m not a huge fan of having multiple characters to manage in a real-time fight. I would rather have full control of a party in a turn based game or control my one character in real time.

My thinking right now on a hardcore dungeon crawler is that it would be something in between Kivi and DoP. The combat would probably be closer to DoP with a fairly fast pace, many skills to choose from for each class, and a full scale item system. It is likely that we will mix in some of the action elements from Kivi though, like lots of traps to avoid and maybe even the powerup system.​