Development Info Them Indie Developer Blues

[EvilIndie]

He's 4 years away from this.

Finally read this, what a mess.

No one thought to build the buildings in scripts in 7 years of development or to add entire buildings to the list? Or to have a script that removed items from the list or added them based on group type? Or to build scripts on top of the scripting system to fix its weird problems?

I guess the ultimate problem was time and lack of interest but it's still got to be the saddest postmortem for a failed game project ever, and I have read some horrible ones. The more they tell me what an imbecile I am and how I know nothing of game development the worse they usually are.

 

[Roguey]

I put up a poll about which people preferred, 3rd or 1st person, but ended up sticking with FP despite most people preferring 3rd.

http://www.irontowerstudio.com/forum/index.php/topic,1436.0.html
1st person - 28 (38.4%)
3rd person over the shoulder - 14 (19.2%)
Don't care - 1 (1.4%)
Implement Both! - 15 (20.5%)
Alternate, 1st person for exploration + ranged, 3rd person for melee - 7 (9.6%)
Isometric! But there is no chance of that suckah! - 8 (11%)

I guess if you're combining all the other options it's more, but first person still won and ots by itself lost.

 

[ortucis]

I prefer FPS view in some RPG's as well (like the one I am working on). Immersion is more, plus I don't have to imagine NPC's pointing and laughing at the retard wearing gold armour and trying to be discreet (Oblivion).

But like I said, only in some RPG's. Depends on the world and the setting if I find the third/first person choice awkward (though I must say that I have never complained about FPS view.. always it's third person cam that pisses me off and is the cause of complaint).

 

[Clockwork Knight]

So much butthurt and design 101 especialists in this thread

Even big name companies discover later on they are trying to bite more than they can chew, what's so fucking spectacular about Gareth doing the same

 

[Marquess Cornwallis]

I was always under the impression that Gareth focused quite a bit on the stealth element of gameplay (back when I first read about the game on his original site it actually sounded to me as if he was working on a "Thief" RPG). If he manages to pull it off, first person is easily the best choice.

I'd love to see a well done isometric RPG with enjoyable stealth mechanics that goes beyond switching to stealth mode and back (i.e. lighting, sound, facing/line of sight, etc.) and it could be very appealing on a more "tactical" level, but it's hard to beat first person for its illusion of "being there".

Also, I couldn't care less about the things being cut being cut. Race selection and more locations are nice to have but they're not what makes me interested in the game. Too much content is a plague. You can focus on content when you're making a Fallout 2 or a New Vegas where everything else is basically already in place. Otherwise, you end up with something ambitious but broken like Arcanum or Fallout 3 or Prelude to Darkness.

Don't give up on this, Gareth. I've been looking forward to SoW for almost as long as AoD.

 

[Lomm Cuz]

what's so fucking spectacular about Gareth doing the same

Trolling is always spectacular.

 

[Noddy]

SoW was the IT game i was most looking forward to but now... i don't know. Spend 6 years making a shitty game or 8 making a good one?

Also you're getting rid of race selection? Character creation was looking really nice aswell. Luckily it's still on your website so i can remember the good old days.

Unlike other RPGs, not all races in Scars of War are born equal. Some races have more natural advantages than others. These advantages come at a cost however. All races have a Build Point cost associated with choosing them. The more advantages the race has, the higher the initial Build Point cost, and the fewer points you will have left to spend during the later stages of character creation.

As well as the basic advantages all members of a race share, there are also Racial Traits. These traits are similar to normal traits however only members of the appropriate race can select these traits, and only during Character Creation.

Ho hum.

 

[Naked Ninja]

1st person - 28 (38.4%)
3rd person over the shoulder - 14 (19.2%)
Don't care - 1 (1.4%)
Implement Both! - 15 (20.5%)
Alternate, 1st person for exploration + ranged, 3rd person for melee - 7 (9.6%)
Isometric! But there is no chance of that suckah! - 8 (11%)

I guess if you're combining all the other options it's more, but first person still won and ots by itself lost.

It was different at the time, IIRC. If you want more insight into the discussion, read the thread.

Don't give up on this, Gareth. I've been looking forward to SoW for almost as long as AoD.

Don't worry, quitting isn't something I'd consider. I'm just adjusting course to go around some icebergs I've encountered.

I appreciate the continued support.

Also you're getting rid of race selection? Character creation was looking really nice aswell. Luckily it's still on your website so i can remember the good old days.

With the lack of progress on the art side, I've decided I can't give race choice the support I'd like to make it really cool. I don't want race selection to just be a bundle of +/- stats and skills. Better to cut it for this game and implement it well in following games. Sorry if that is disappointing, it's disappointing for me too, I'd like the game to be the perfect shining vision I see in my head. Since that isn't going to happen in any realistic time-frame with this game, I'm going to cut some features, get this game done then add new features to follow-up games.

Sorry if that sounds like dumbing down to some people, but it's not really. It's triage.

 

[torpid]

How many Drog alts posting in this thread?

 

[Metro]

Oh will you be nice? What does it take to melt the Codex's icy heart?

Age of Decadence I'm guessing~

 

[EvilIndie]

SoW was the IT game i was most looking forward to but now... i don't know. Spend 6 years making a shitty game or 8 making a good one?

Also you're getting rid of race selection? Character creation was looking really nice aswell. Luckily it's still on your website so i can remember the good old days.

Unlike other RPGs, not all races in Scars of War are born equal. Some races have more natural advantages than others. These advantages come at a cost however. All races have a Build Point cost associated with choosing them. The more advantages the race has, the higher the initial Build Point cost, and the fewer points you will have left to spend during the later stages of character creation.

As well as the basic advantages all members of a race share, there are also Racial Traits. These traits are similar to normal traits however only members of the appropriate race can select these traits, and only during Character Creation.

Ho hum.

It depends what he wants to make but I don't think a small art asset size is necessarily bad. Having a content light world and bad gameplay mechanics is much worse problem.

 

[Rhett Butler]

I lost interest in SOW when I heard the nifty magic system was being cut. Why even do this if the game ends up being ordinary? Make something unique or don't bother IMO. I hate to say this as you are a nice guy, but I don't think I will be getting SOW.

 

[Naked Ninja]

Well, I'm hoping that the game doesn't end up being ordinary for other reasons, like plot and how all the gameplay elements work together, the overall tone and experience.

I am sad to lose the complex magic system (for this game), and if there is any chance to sneak it back in I will. But I need to focus on the core, I can reevaluate the magic system when the game is further along the road to completion.

I"m sorry if that loses you as a customer, but I need to take a long-term view here. Better to cut back scope a bit, complete a game, then gradually add features back in for future games. I hope you'll try the demo when it comes out and see if you like it enough.