Game News Blackguards, a new Dark Eye RPG from Daedalic Entertainment

[Infinitron]

Tags: Blackguards; Daedalic Entertainment; The Dark Eye

The incline just keeps coming this week! The latest news is that Daedalic Entertainment, a German developer more well known for their adventure games, plan to release an oldschool turn-based RPG this year by the name of Blackguards. The game will be set in the world of The Dark Eye, which is also the setting of Drakensang and the classic Realms of Arkania games. GameBanshee has the press release:

Daedalic Announces Blackguards, Its First Turn-Based RPG ​

Bolstered by the success of their celebrated adventure games, the developers at Daedalic Entertainment are now off to new frontiers. This summer, Blackguards, the studio's first turn based RPG will be released.​

Framed in a significantly darker story than you usually find in Daedalic games, the player will walk in the boots of a convicted murderer as he travels through Aventuria's wild south. On this journey the protagonist is accompanied by companions of varying loyalty: scoundrels and thieves like the half-elf Niam (and her latent drug addiction) or the lecherous wizard Zurbaran.​

Blackguards features hordes of lethal creatures and other enemies waiting to be taken care of on more than 170 unique battlemaps. A number of major and minor quests ensure exciting and diverse gameplay through the campaign.​

As can be expected in all Daedalic titles, Blackguards focuses on strong storytelling, now combined with action-packed gameplay and tactical, turn-based combat. Blackguards delivers more than 40 hours of adventure in Aventuria.​

Blackguards will be available internationally in Q3 2013.​

About the Game ​

What happens when the only hope of a threatened world lies not with heroes in shining armor but in the hands of a band of misfits and criminals? Blackguards – the new turn-based RPG by Daedalic Entertainment – explores this very question. The player takes on the role of a convicted murderer, who with the help of a team of more-than-questionable characters, must save the world from a dark menace. During the wild chase throughout the South of Aventuria, the world of The Dark Eye, there is more to fight than vicious creatures – chapter by chapter, a story full of intrigue and surprising twists unfolds. But when life and death are in the player’s hands, how far will they go to reach their goals?​

The first turn-based RPG by Daedalic Entertainment unites the studio's high standard of a suspenseful storytelling and unique characters with gripping battles in elaborately crafted 3D-environments. In taxing campaigns the player takes part in a dark story full of doubt, betrayal and loss.​

Whether the player chooses to go into battle as a mighty warrior, a clever wizard or a skillful hunter, the first battle isn’t far away. Over 170 individually crafted battle maps full of interactive objects and strategically complex situations lead the player to exotic locations and put them through deadly trials. http://www.blackguards.de​

An exclusive interview at the website Riot Pixels has more information:

Riot Pixels: How long Daedalic has been working on this project?​

Florian Pett: This April it’s been two years.​

RP: What is the story of Blackguards? And who are these Blackguards, anyway?​

FP: The story of Blackguards is basically that of a circle of childhood friends who get separated after one of them, the main character of the game, is accused of murdering one of their friends.​

The Blackguards are a fellowship of rogues and outlaws, joining the main character on their way through the world. Everyone is hiding something and they aren’t of the confiding type either, but they are the only friends the main character still has in this dangerous world. The protagonist is in search for the real murderer but on this journey struggle and setbacks will be a constant companion in a story written by death and betrayal.​

The interview is very informative, and there's way too much for me to quote it all, so just go over there and read it.

 

[kazgar]

i await a codex interview. looks good though.

 

[catfood]

I'm dissapointed that there's no full party creation (apparently), but I like the premise of playing a band of ruffians. Here's hoping there are going to be plenty of opportunity to be evil.

Also

FP: The number of companions the player-character travels and fights with at any given time varies depending on the story but is usually between two and four, making up a group-size typical to a party in the pen and paper version of The Dark Eye.

Sound super storryfaggy. At least make the story good if you're on rails all the time.

 

[Jaesun]

Daedalic can definitely tell a story (I love their Adventure Games). <3

Now I just hope they understand Stats/Skills Stat/Skill based combat, a rich magic system and good encounter and area design.

 

[Tolknaz]

Of their games i've played A New Beginning and Dark Eye: Chains of Satinav. Nice little adventures with gorgeous graphics and somewhat meh plots and characters. More than competent, but hardly remarkable games. This will probably not push any boundaries, but could still turn out well.

 

[FeelTheRads]

Of their games i've played A New Beginning and Dark Eye: Chains of Satinav. Nice little adventures with gorgeous graphics and somewhat meh plots and characters. More than competent, but hardly remarkable games. This will probably not push any boundaries, but could still turn out well.

You've played their worst games, I'd say. Those were the more serious ones, though, so they might be more relevant to this game in terms of story and stuff.
Don't what to think about this, yet. Hopefully it will be more than a Return To Krondor.

 

[MicoSelva]

I don't mind not being able to pick the current party if it's story-relevant and the story is actually good. This may be a bad example, but Final Fantasy 4 comes to mind.

 

[Q]

So much incline these days in codex news... Need to find more decadent site...

 

[Wizfall]

So much incline these days in codex news... Need to find more decadent site...

Yea, it's like they are trolling us.
It's truly unbelievable all those TB cRPG in development right now after a decade of absolutely nothing.
The only thing missing would be a Sirthec resurrection : W9 and JAG 3 in the same time...
I think i would lost control if that happen :D

 

[toro]

So much incline these days in codex news... Need to find more decadent site...

Yea, it's like they are trolling us.
It's truly unbelievable all those TB cRPG in development right now after a decade of absolutely nothing.
The only thing missing would be a Sirthec resurrection : W9 and JAG 3 in the same time...
I think i would lost control if that happen :D

You do realize that 90% of everything is shit ?

 

[Brother None]

I dig getting a new TDE game, and dig it being turn-based even more, but my heart does ache at the abandoning of the light-hearted tone of setting of the classic TDE PnP that Drakensang: TDE and TRoT emulated. Post-Borbarad Return Aventuria makes me sad-face.

Now, it's all grimdark...wolf rape?

 

[Jaesun]

Is loverslab making this game?

 

[Excidium]

Looks alright to me, of course it's going to be grimdark, the main theme of the game is that the PCs are a bunch of criminals and not a band of heroes. Although it would be better and actually stand out from the rest if it was designed with an evil party in mind, fuck those 'save the world' plots.

Gotta find something to complain though, I'll think I'll wait for the needlessly streamlined mechanics with cooldowns that kill the whole point of making a game based on a tabletop system.

 

[~RAGING BONER~]

I'll never understand the people who think that just because a game has Yawn-Based combat it is automatically good...

not saying this won't be, as a matter of fact I relish the fact I can play a villain, but turn based combat does not a good game make. It has ever and will ever be the right combination of elements; combat, story, setting, characters and execution.

all that said, i wish these guys the best. I for one am sick of playing the hero.

 

[evdk]

Is loverslab making this game?

No, Germans.

 

[Indranys]

The game will be set in the world of The Dark Eye

The world of The Dark Eye

The Dark Eye

Finally I can use this emoticon:



Need to calm myself a bit. I don't even know this studio before.
And they never make an RPG before?

Please don't let me down.

 

[Wizfall]

You do realize that 90% of everything is shit ?

You do realize we didn't have TB games this last decades ?
Of course "90% of everything is shit" but you totally miss the point.
The fact that so many TB games are being made while it was a totally dead genre is the great thing.
TB does not mean good, it's stupid to think people think like that.
But if you are looking for TB games, it sure has a better chance to be good game than of it was RT. I don't think it's too hard to understand.
The trend is what we can be happy with.

 

[catfood]

Now, it's all grimdark...wolf rape?

One can only hope.

 

[CappenVarra]

Tell me about the character system; everything else is incidental

 

[Zed]

wolf rape. is that tasteful rape or not?

 

[Gelbvieh]

The woman in that pic is also dead, I think. Mm mm! If nothing else, I think I will remember this image.

In not-entirely-shocking twist, a lot of Daedalic's games are on sale right now as part of the Steam Indie Spring Sale. Hats off to them for marketing savvy.

 

[evdk]

wolf rape. is that tasteful rape or not?

Depends on whether the wolf devours her afterward or not.

 

[mindx2]

Not sure my heart can take all these news posts about upcoming games. Ever since Wasteland 2 shot onto the scene it seems that the is building. Yet even with all of the euphoria that's been infesting the Codex for a little over a year, we have yet to actually PLAY any of these games... W2, P:E, CC, AoD (demos don't count ), T:ToN, M&MX, DS, DT, SR etc. What I do LOVE is that I am actually excited about the future of cRPGs that I haven't felt in well over a decade. In fact, a little over a week ago I started to lose hope when I started to see the abominations that were being announced like Thief, RG's MMO, and Deathfire. I started to think that maybe the was only temporary. And perhaps it still is since none of these games has been released and many of them may crash and burn. Till then I'll let my heart swell a little (yes, I said my HEART heathens!) and dream that the new cRPG Renaissance is here to stay.

 

[Monty]

wolf rape. is that tasteful rape or not?

Apparently the general rule of thumb is wolf rape is tasteful, pig rape is.... not.

 

[Aeschylus]

Looks interesting. Daedalic's recent adventure games have been quality stuff, though that doesn't necessarily translate into making a good RPG outside of storyline. The again, some of the better RPGs of all time (Betrayal at Krondor, Quest for Glory) came out of studios mainly known for adventure games, so...