Game News Beamdog announce Baldur's Gate: Siege of Dragonspear, with Chris Avellone onboard

[mindx2]

I see MCA's name prominently in the thread title but what exactly will he be doing on this.....?

 

[Excidium II]

I see MCA's name prominently in the thread title but what exactly will he be doing on this.....?

He's freelancing as a buzzword

 

[mindx2]

I see MCA's name prominently in the thread title but what exactly will he be doing on this.....?

He's freelancing as a buzzword

I guess being a human stretch goal has lost it's luster.....?

 

[Ismaul]

That 20 years old 2D engine is still the best fucking engine roleplaying games have ever been crafted on.

It's RTwP, therefore shit by definition, right?

 

[Decado]

Even MCA can't get me excited about this tired bullshit.

 

[Ismaul]

Being hyped for this expansion because of MCA is akin to being a fanboy of a sports team because one of the cheerleaders is hot. (while all the others are ugly as fuck.)

 

[Athelas]

In this case it sounds more like the equivalent of a cheerleader of a sports team who doesn't actually cheerlead herself but has some mild input in the choice of cheerleading outfits.

But who knows? It might eventually lead to Planescape Torment: Director's Cut.

 

[Zorba the Hutt]

Even MCA can't get me excited about this tired bullshit.

Come on bro, it's a thankless task writing the positive review but someone has to do it.

 

[Decado]

Even MCA can't get me excited about this tired bullshit.

Come on bro, it's a thankless task writing the positive review but someone has to do it.

Listen, I'm only for sale a few select weeks out of the year. I'm already on the hook for a positive Fallout 4 review, I'm not a machine!

 

[Andhaira]

I would pay premium for a Baldurs Gate III using 5e with Avellone on board, even if it is RTwP and not TB.

But... why? Bhaalspawn saga is over, adding more stuff to it will not make it more awesome. Might as well make new game using 5e with Avellone. BG3 would be just name rape, and i can't support that.

I hear you and you make a good point, something I have considered many times while thinking about a possible BG III. I think it can work, and the main appeal is a game in the same sense as the BG series; while you don't play the Bhaalspawn, you can still interact and meet up with the old characters and see how they are doing like Jaheira, Edwina (first tranny in RPGs), Sarevok, etc. And you can revisit old locations like Amn, Candlekeep, and see how they have grown. It will feel like coming back home.

 

[Tuco Benedicto Pacifico]

Also, are you seriously confident Beamdog will be able to come up with content that will match the original games?

Not realy. But that is irrelevant to how good IE was.
I'll make it realy simple for you why the critisisms that Beamdog using a 15 years old engine are idiotic.
We know IE is capable to produce a game like BG2. So there is absolutely no fucking reason not to use it. Any other engine, even if technicaly superior, will cut into their budget.

Yeah, you see... "WAS" is the key word here.
And what's actually idiotic is how clueless you can be in your struggle to boast how much of a refined old schooler you are.
A more old and limited engine is not going to make development easier or cheaper either, since there are good chances to hit walls and be confined by unexpected restrictions at any given time.
Of course, UNLESS the plan isn't from the beginning to just recycle anything from a two-decades-old product and attempt the cash grab with the lowest possible effort... Which seems to be exactly the case here.

And no, by the way, PoE wouldn't be better for fuck with the IE; it would be the same game, with the same rules (which aren't tied to the engine, even if it's apparently hard to grasp for dense people) just looking shittier.

Beside, you know what, I'm 37 years old, I've been playing PC RPGs since the '80s, I got myself used to any sort of clumsy interfaces and technical limitations over the decades, if I had to list my 50 favorite games of all times at least 35 would probably be from before the year 2000... And yet, I'll be honest, I'm growing a bit tired of dealing with complete tools and rabid mongoloids who are even willing to applaud this kind of low effort shit, in the desperate attempt to prove how progressive they are and how much they don't care about tech.

No, using the Infinity Engine assets from BG1 in a 2015 game is not fine, for shit, especially if aren't a bunch of fucking amateurs working for free in your basements on your fan mod, but a development studio that owns the right of what used to be a glorious million+ seller franchise.

Aaaand I think I'm done with my rant at this point. Fuck your stupid excuses.

 

[Irenaeus II]

 

[Excidium II]

Also, are you seriously confident Beamdog will be able to come up with content that will match the original games?

Not realy. But that is irrelevant to how good IE was.
I'll make it realy simple for you why the critisisms that Beamdog using a 15 years old engine are idiotic.
We know IE is capable to produce a game like BG2. So there is absolutely no fucking reason not to use it. Any other engine, even if technicaly superior, will cut into their budget.

Yeah, you see... "WAS" is the key word here.
And what's actually idiotic is how clueless you can be in your struggle to boast how much of a refined old schooler you are.
A more old and limited engine is not going to make development easier or cheaper either, since there are good chances to hit walls and be confined by unexpected restrictions at any given time.
Of course, UNLESS the plan isn't from the beginning to just recycle anything from a two-decades-old product and attempt the cash grab with the lowest possible effort... Which seems to be exactly the case here.

And no, by the way, PoE wouldn't be better for fuck with the IE; it would be the same game, with the same rules (which aren't tied to the engine, even if it's apparently hard to grasp for dense people) just looking shittier.

Beside, you know what, I'm 37 years old, I've been playing PC RPGs since the '80s, I got myself used to any sort of clumsy interfaces and technical limitations over the decades, if I had to list my 50 favorite games of all times at least 35 would probably be from before the year 2000... And yet, I'll be honest, I'm growing a bit tired of dealing with complete tools and rabid mongoloids who are even willing to applaud this kind of low effort shit, in the desperate attempt to prove how progressive they are and how much they don't care about tech.

No, using the Infinity Engine assets from BG1 in a 2015 game is not fine, for shit, especially if aren't a bunch of fucking amateurs working for free in your basements on your fan mod, but a development studio that owns the right of what used to be a glorious million+ seller franchise.

Aaaand I think I'm done with my rant at this point. Fuck your stupid excuses.

Got a boner reading this

 

[DeepOcean]

I blame Obsidian, if they have made a decent BG clone we could still treat Beamdog like hobo losers on crack like before.

 

[Volourn]

"Bhaalspawn saga is over"

Doesn't have to be unless you lack imagination like you.

 

[Excidium II]

It's not over until the fiction has been completely run to the ground

 

[abnaxus]

Though Sarevok is dead and his plan for war averted, peace eludes the citizens of Baldur's Gate. A crusade marches from the north, seizing supplies, forcing locals into military service, and disrupting trade along the Sword Coast. A charismatic warrior known as the Shining Lady leads this army, her background shrouded in mystery. Can the rumors be true—is she, like you, the child of a god?

The closer you get to the Shining Lady, the more you realize your father, the dead Lord of Murder still casts a long shadow upon your path. Baldur's Gate has put its faith in you, but you must determine whose interests you truly serve before you face the Shining Lady among the ruins of Dragonspear Castle...

Interesting SJWism allegory

Shining Lady gonna get raped

 

[Irenaeus II]

Yeah, I want to kill her already.

 

[Bonerbill]

"Bhaalspawn saga is over"

Doesn't have to be unless you lack imagination like you.

In fact, it's not over since Bhaal and the bhaalspawn came back in the forgotten realms canon.

 

[Dorateen]

tl;dr: if anyone wants a new DnD game the choice is this or SCL.

 

[crawlkill]

How much of Beamdog is old IE modders now? I've got a fair amount of faith in those people. The EEs were never really necessary, but, well, they're here now. Not sure how necessary this expansion'll be, either, but it'll do to make my next once-every-few-years crash through heavily-modded BG1/2 distinct.

Of course, they lost Liam Esler, who was my favorite. But that's how it goes.

 

[Excidium II]

How much of Beamdog is old IE modders now?

"Some IE modders are part of the beamdog staff" has always been a conveniently vague statement, but I'm sure someone like Infinitron can shed some light on the matter

 

[Zeriel]

It's not like BG2 modders are an elite group. For every reasonable guy who did good mechanics and QoL changes, there were 10 "fuck Imoen nao!" mods. And the TC mods (i.e the ones that added actual content like new areas) tended to be the worst of the crop.

 

[Infinitron]

How much of Beamdog is old IE modders now?

"Some IE modders are part of the beamdog staff" has always been a conveniently vague statement, but I'm sure someone like Infinitron can shed some light on the matter

Actually, I can't really, but maybe aVENGER himself can tell us

 

[aVENGER]

How much of Beamdog is old IE modders now?

"Some IE modders are part of the beamdog staff" has always been a conveniently vague statement, but I'm sure someone like Infinitron can shed some light on the matter

Actually, I can't really, but maybe aVENGER himself can tell us

More than 5 less than a dozen. The majority work as Technical Designers.

I'm the Project Manager on Siege of Dragonspear but I also do a bit of technical design in my spare time. Mostly AI scripting, item design and combat balance.