Development Info Space Hack GOOOOOOOOOLD

[Saint_Proverbius]

Tags: Space Hack

I forgot to post this yesterday, and since no one else posted it, <A href="http://www.meridian4.com/games/SpaceHack/index.html">Space Hack</a> has gone GOLD. Here's the release:
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<blockquote><b>Space Hack Goes Gold!</b>
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Montreal, Canada. September 29, 2005 - Interactive software publisher, Meridian4 and game developer, Rebelmind are pleased to announce that their upcoming Sci-Fi Action/RPG, Space Hack has gone Gold. Space Hack is scheduled for release to retail stores November 15th, 2005
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“We are very pleased with the North American version of Space Hack. The game was very successful in Europe and we know that with its highly addictive gameplay, it will do very well over here.” said Andrew Sher, CEO at Meridian4, “We are looking forward to its online and retail release in the coming months.”
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<b>About Space Hack</b>
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Space Hack is a sci-fi Action/RPG title in real-time 3D graphics. The story puts gamers on a colony transport ship that suddenly gets trapped inside a Black Nebula, but that’s only their first problem. While trapped, they get boarded by aliens that take over the ship and begin to kill and eat the colonists.
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Playing the role of a tough, gristled ex-military man, gamers will struggle to reach an emergency transport module at the far end of the ship to free the remaining colonists, hacking and slashing their way through hordes of alien creatures along the way.
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<ul><li>Approximately 80-100 hours of gameplay.
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<li>45 levels with Earth-like environments, futuristic interiors, post-catastrophic locations, deserts and frozen lands.
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<li>Over 80 different alien creatures from 3 unique breeds.
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<li>40 different weapons including a variety of melee and shooting weapons.
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<li>13 hi-tech items including holograms, mind control, teleportation, invisibility…
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<li>45 bio chips allowing gamers to enhance their hero.
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<li>Diverse paths of character development - smash your way through problems, become quick and elusive or gain advantage with sophisticated technology.
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<li>Amazing real-time 3D graphics with 360 degree panoramic views and spectacular special effects.
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<li>Atmospheric industrial ambient music and sound.</ul>Space Hack will be available on <b>November 15th, 2005</b> in all major retail stores at <b>$19.99USD</b> and is rated Teen by the ESRB. The game is currently available for trial on <a href="http://www.meridian4.com">www.meridian4.com</a>.</blockquote>
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The <a href="http://www.excalibur-publishing.com/maxxv/setupMaximusXVDemo.zip">demo</a> was kind of neat and the price is about what I'd expect to pay considering the lack of multiplayer.
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Spotted at: <A HREF="http://www.bluesnews.com">Blue's News</A>

 

[DarkUnderlord]

45 levels with Earth-like environments, futuristic interiors, post-catastrophic locations, deserts and frozen lands.

What's the point of setting it in space if you're going to have land areas? Then again, why the hell would a colony ship have deserts in its bio-spheres?

What's with the roman armour too? A futuristic space game with swords and shields. Right.

Space Hack will be available on <b>November 15th, 2005</b> in all major retail stores at <b>$19.99USD</b> and is rated Teen by the ESRB.

That's not bad actually. Pity about the teen rating though.

 

[LlamaGod]

Isnt this that Abraham Maximus XVIIIXIXIBII: Electric Boogaloo game?

 

[Naked_Lunch]

Space Hack is probably a worse name than Abraham Strong: Space Mercendary XV or whatever it was.

 

[Second Chance]

When I try to download the free trial, it directs me to a page saying:

"We're sorry. Our Systems indicate you are outside the territory authorized for distribution by the software publisher of this title.

Unfortunately, we do not have permissions from the publisher to sell this title outside of our approved territory."

Way to go! New selling system for shareware games: "You're not american? Sorry, then you can't download this"

 

[Baley]

Try this.

 

[Saint_Proverbius]

When I try to download the free trial, it directs me to a page saying:

"We're sorry. Our Systems indicate you are outside the territory authorized for distribution by the software publisher of this title.

Unfortunately, we do not have permissions from the publisher to sell this title outside of our approved territory."

Way to go! New selling system for shareware games: "You're not american? Sorry, then you can't download this"

Well, that was my bad. I didn't know Excalibur limited their downloads to just Europe when I linked to the demo. The meridian4.com link in the release is one click away from the demo as well.

What's the point of setting it in space if you're going to have land areas? Then again, why the hell would a colony ship have deserts in its bio-spheres?

Because metal tiles get boring after a while.. See Harbinger.

A colony ship would have desert bio-spheres to transport desert type plants and animals since Earth like planets tend to have deserts. Dur!

 

[Kamaz]

land-areas and desert on a ship? WTF??

Thats ok, because..bla bla

And about that roman-style armour and swords? What explanation do you have for that? They are cosmic larpers, arent they?

 

[Shagnak]

I played the demo of this a very long time ago. It's amazing that it is taking so long to get published in all the different territories.

It was okay (you'll know exactly what to expect)...yet another game that could have been vastly improved by MP mode.

 

[truekaiser]

looks odd though if copyright was not a issue i think the name, diablo:2250 would fit better.

 

[spacemoose]

If I ever get my shit together and try to make a game, I'll be using a colony ship setting.

The backstory is this: the ship transports not grown humans, but blastocysts, with the idea being that once the ship gets close enough to its destination, the blastocysts are allowed to develop to maturity.

So they don't know shit about who they are or where they came from. The machines are supposed to take care of them and educate them. But it doesn't work! The 'colonists' break what equipment they can, and escape like monkeys into the core of the ship, which is a simulation of an earth ecosystem. Think garden of Rama. So they revert to caveman level culture. There are several tribes, each with their own agenda, and there is also a group that is trying to understand the workings of the ship and what is really going on. The game itself would focus on the powerstruggle between several factions over control of the ship.

I'm going to make millions.

 

[Jed]

I'm going to make millions.

...of role players happy. Not dollars.

Not that you had any illusions, anyway, of course...

 

[Saint_Proverbius]

And about that roman-style armour and swords? What explanation do you have for that? They are cosmic larpers, arent they?

Chalk it up to the style of the setting. It's like the reviewers bitching about Serenity having western style dialogue, dress and weapons or Fallout using vacuum tube tech in the 22nd century.

 

[Second Chance]

I actually enjoyed Harbinger for quite awhile -- until I found out that drops didn't have random stats. When you get the same weapon with the same stats 4 or 5 times, it gets a bit annoying.

 

[LlamaGod]

So they don't know shit about who they are or where they came from. The machines are supposed to take care of them and educate them. But it doesn't work! The 'colonists' break what equipment they can, and escape like monkeys into the core of the ship, which is a simulation of an earth ecosystem. Think garden of Rama. So they revert to caveman level culture. There are several tribes, each with their own agenda, and there is also a group that is trying to understand the workings of the ship and what is really going on. The game itself would focus on the powerstruggle between several factions over control of the ship.

this is exactly the plot of Geneforge 1

 

[Naked_Lunch]

The demo was fun for a bit. Dunno if it was enough to make me buy the whole game.

 

[spacemoose]

this is exactly the plot of Geneforge 1

Except that in geneforge, you play one of the powerful shapers. In this game, you're a 'caveman' like everyone else. Plus there would be awesome laser guns (eventually).

There is no faction like the shapers at all. There are a ton of other differences, but that goes into the details which I don't want to do right now. The atmosphere I'll be aiming for will be sort of like Albion.

The big similarities are that the factions in both games are competing with each other, and are 'low tech' with high tech possibilities around them. In other words, the plot is that of rivalry, in this case between factions. And rivalry is one of 20 Master Plots you could fit any story to.

What I'm trying to say is, all stories have been written already. Any new ones are only variations on a theme. The trick is making the reader, or player get so engrossed in the story that he doesnt realize that he has seen this story before many times.

Honestly, I was not thinking about geneforge when I came up with the idea for this game, I was thinking of a short story I once read in Russian. I think it was 'Orphans of the Sky ' by Heinlein.

Give me any game/book, and if I've played or read it, I can classify it into one of the 20 Master Plots


In any case, I'm not planning to start this anytime soon so debating about a nonexistant game is sort of pointless.

 

[Elwro]

I think that in Europe the game has been selling badly, as I got it with a magazine iirc half a year ago already.