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Bombshell - isometric shooter starring that cut character from Duke Nukem Forever

Infinitron

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Codex Year of the Donut Serpent in the Staglands Dead State Divinity: Original Sin Project: Eternity Torment: Tides of Numenera Wasteland 2 Shadorwun: Hong Kong Divinity: Original Sin 2 A Beautifully Desolate Campaign Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire Pathfinder: Kingmaker Pathfinder: Wrath I'm very into cock and ball torture I helped put crap in Monomyth
Look for the rest of our interview with Interceptor – which includes the Rise of the Triad developer’s publishing plans and overwhelming desire to acquire the Blood IP – very, very soon.

:avatard:

They should make a source port with some mod tools to change monsters hp/monk weapons/etc.
And than make a new version of the sequel sticking to the spooky houses/cemeteries/swamps and abandon awful bland futuresque thing.

Uh, here's that interview btw: http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2014/03/04/interceptor-3d-realms-interview/
 
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Divinity: Original Sin 2 Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag.
RPS: I know there’s been a bit of minor confusion in the wake of the purchase, because there’s actually another Apogee. People had thought that you had purchased that one. It’s interesting, because that’s the one that has the full rights to Rise of the Triad, right?

Nielsen: Yes, you’re completely right. There has been a lot of confusion. To clear that up, we have not purchased Apogee Software LLC. The confusion arises because 3D Realms, the legal entity of 3D Realms, is actually still called Apogee Software Limited. That’s the confusion. We should have made it a little clearer in our statement that went out to the Danish media and then spread from there. We clarified it quite a lot in our international statement that went out this morning, or at least we tried to.

Just to make it clear, we have not purchased Apogee Software LLC, who own the rights to Rise of the Triad. We work with them through Interceptor, obviously, but we haven’t purchased their shares or assets or anything like that. They’re completely out of this. I think they appreciate being left out of it.

The more you know.

RPS: One last thing. Blood is in kind of a weird spot rights-wise, but are you pursuing it? Is it anywhere on your list?

Schreiber: We would love to do a Blood remake. If you can buy us the license, we’re willing to chew through it [laughs]. Unfortunately, Blood has nothing to do with 3D Realms or Gearbox or Interceptor. That is in the land with Jace Hall and Warner Bros and a lot of other people. That’s pretty publicly known.

But yeah, Blood is one of our most beloved franchises ever. If we were to get the chance to do a remake, we would grab that chance immediately. We would drop everything else and do a Blood game if we got the chance to.

Jason Hall was willing to make a remake of first Blood, similar to Zdaemon and bring multiplayer in easy way for all fans of the game. Atari blocked his idea. As for the new game, I'm sure he would give a green light to it. The problem lies with Warner Bros. When he will talk to them, with guys from Interceptor it can have reverse effect. They'll keep it and make their own game. As for the whole new 5 years plan, it sounds interesting. But new Rott game from what I've read was in horrible state after the release. The patches fixed some issues, the old school vibes are perceptible, but it still wasn't impressive.
 

Infinitron

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Codex Year of the Donut Serpent in the Staglands Dead State Divinity: Original Sin Project: Eternity Torment: Tides of Numenera Wasteland 2 Shadorwun: Hong Kong Divinity: Original Sin 2 A Beautifully Desolate Campaign Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire Pathfinder: Kingmaker Pathfinder: Wrath I'm very into cock and ball torture I helped put crap in Monomyth
This game is now BOMBSHELL:

Lawsuit Takes Toll, Duke Nukem On Hold For Bombshell
By Nathan Grayson on May 15th, 2014 at 10:00 am.

bombshell2.jpg


Remember that legal battle between Rise of the Triad developer Interceptor (who recently ate 3D Realms) and Borderlands border/game license patrol Gearbox over who’s allowed to make Duke Nukem games? Yeah, well it’s still happening, and apparently it’s not going as smoothly as Interceptor anticipated when I interviewed them. From Duke Nukem: Mass Destruction‘s maybe-ashes has arisen Bombshell, Interceptor’s own top-down blast-’em-up starring a hard-fighting, harder-drinking main character. This one, however, is an impractically dressed lady with a robot arm… who just so happens to have recently robbed Duke Nukem’s supply chest/motorcycle garage/lion throne room. Trailer and first details below.



It’s a remarkably Duke-Nukem-esque opening, no? The gameplay – top-down action-RPG shooting – sounds a lot like what Mass Destruction was set to be, too. Here’s the basic premise:

“From the creators of 2013’s Rise of the Triad comes Bombshell, an isometric action role-playing game for PC and PlayStation 4. Bomb Disposal Specialist turned mercenary for hire, Shelly ‘Bombshell’ Harrison must strong-arm her away across 4 planets in an Unreal Engine-powered galactic adventure to rescue the president from an apocalyptic alien threat. With out-of-this-world enemies, a never-before-seen arsenal of devastating weaponry and a host of genre-crossing mechanics, Bombshell is set to blow you away.”

Interceptor claims Bombshell is an attempt at seizing an opportunity born of the Gearbox lawsuit – the chance to make its own IP. At this point, Mass Destruction – which Interceptor never officially announced but revealed through a web campaign – is in limbo. “It’s impossible to say what will happen in regards to our previous project,” the developer wrote. “It might return, it might not.”

Bombshell, however, loves kicking ass and hates bubble gum. Also, her game will be incredibly mod friendly, so you can always just mod in Duke if you really want to see him clomping around a playground that was – in all likelihood – originally built for him.

Bombshell will be out next year. What do you think? Are you a bad enough robot-armed, Skrillex-haired woman to rescue the president?
 

Infinitron

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Codex Year of the Donut Serpent in the Staglands Dead State Divinity: Original Sin Project: Eternity Torment: Tides of Numenera Wasteland 2 Shadorwun: Hong Kong Divinity: Original Sin 2 A Beautifully Desolate Campaign Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire Pathfinder: Kingmaker Pathfinder: Wrath I'm very into cock and ball torture I helped put crap in Monomyth
Oh wow, they pulled this character out of the archives: http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/article_45649

3D Realms have revealed that plans are afoot to create a new gaming franchise based around .. er .. Bombshell. Yes, the blonde sidekick from the terminally delayed Duke Nukem Forever will one day become the star of her own series of games, and CEO Scott Miller is confident that she will be just as big as Duke Nukem and Max Payne.

Published Tuesday, 19 March 2002
 

Astral Rag

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Oh wow, they pulled this character out of the archives

More:


George Broussard, 3D Realms

Ever since the third game in 3D Realms' popular Duke Nukem series came out in 1996, countless others have tried to create a successful lead character by mimicking its overly macho, mouthy, badass hero, Duke Nukem. (Heck, his name says it alone!)

3D Realms president George Broussard offers some advice to those looking to create character-driven action games:

First off, your game has to be great. Without that, nothing you do with a character matters. We try to create catchy character names—like Duke Nukem or Max Payne—that instantly get a reaction from people, or create an image in someone's mind. That's the "hook." Once you have a hook that people find interesting, you just flesh out the character with personality traits, mannerisms, and catchphrases.

Broussard explains why Max Payne is more than just a cool name:

Remedy Entertainment did a great job with Max Payne. His name has a unique hook and people usually get the pun—that he delivers "maximum pain." Then you give Max a compelling reason to act and be motivated. He's an undercover cop, with his back against the wall, out for revenge after the death of his wife and daughter. Finally, you give Max his "personality" through the way he speaks. Max narrates his journey metaphorically, in the style of detective films of the1940s and 1950s. What you end up with is an interesting character who's fairly unique to games, and hopefully people respond to that. Our gaming audience is getting more sophisticated every day and won't settle for less.

Broussard adds that this advice really depends on the types of characters you want to make. He explains:

We typically create over-the-top characters that lean more toward what you might find in comic books or high-action movies. Characters that are larger than life, and for those types of characters there's a pretty basic starting point.

To reiterate and summarize his points made above, Broussard says you can break down any character into the following characteristics:

Personality traits. This defines the character's personality and how he or she reacts to situations.

Appearance. There should be a distinctive look to your character, so people will learn to recognize the character from appearance alone. Examples: Lara Croft, Superman (almost any superhero), Darth Vader.

Motivation. Why do your characters do what they do? What drives them? Once this is established, your characters will get stronger from doing things the way people expect them to.

Catchphrase. The best characters become famous and well known for a simple catchphrase that sticks in people's minds, and usually becomes part of pop culture. Remember the "Where's the Beef?" commercials for Wendy's? Examples: "What's up, doc?" (Bugs Bunny); "Up, up, and away!" (Superman); "Holy hand grenades, Batman!" (Robin); "I'll be back" (The Terminator); "Go ahead, make my day" (Dirty Harry).

Name. A character's name should be "catchy" and unique in some way, so people hear the name and get an instant image in their minds. Rhyming and alliteration are good tools to come up with a catchy character name. Examples: Duke Nukem, Sonic the Hedgehog, Earthworm Jim.
To further illustrate his point on the "parts" of a distinguishable character, Broussard provides these examples:

See if you can guess the character before the name is given, simply from the basic elements:
Personality trait: Egotistical

Appearance: Sunglasses, red muscle shirt, bandoliers, blond flat top

Motivation: Kick alien ass/score with babes

Catchphrase: "Come get some"

Name: Duke Nukem

Personality traits: Determined, inquisitive, loner

Appearance: Black suit, white shirt, tie, cell phone

Motivation: FBI agent/uncover conspiracies

Catchphrase: "The Truth Is Out There"

Name: Fox Mulder, from The X-Files

Says Broussard, "The above is merely a starting point for developing your own characters, and you can make them more or less complex, depending on your needs. But in the end, these characteristics are needed for a really memorable character."

How do you translate sketches to real characters in the game? Is it necessary for a series such as Duke Nukem?

As video games have gotten more and more complex, we've started to adopt the ways that movies do things. A lot of games today have scripts much like a movie, where all the action, cut-scenes, and dialogue are carefully laid out in every detail. Another thing that has been adopted is the idea of concept sketches. These sketches serve to solidify the look and feel of elements in the game, such as characters, locations, and action sequences.

But what about design documents? Are they necessary for all types of games?

Let me tell you about design docs. Duke Nukem 3D didn't even have one. We did stuff as we went, adding bits that were cool and discarding ideas that didn't work. Look how the game turned out. All we had was a vague notion that the game would be based in a future, seedy L.A. The rest came from a dynamic development process.

Duke Nukem Forever has substantially more on paper from the start because it's a much more cohesive and large game. But people who write 300-page design docs beforehand are wasting their time. The game design process (for most) is an evolutionary process. You refine and redesign as you go, learning and making things better. It's insane to write a 300-page doc, then just make the game. There's no way you can think of every cool idea before you make the game, and you have to be flexible enough to roll with the punches and add and refine ideas as you go, all according to the timeline.

Speaking from our experience, design docs are merely a general guideline that gets more and more polished as you go. You just try to stay three to four months ahead of things as you go. The design doc isn't done until the game is.

Also bear in mind that 3D action games are not that complex. They have bad guys, guns, items, and level locations. Not exactly rocket science, or something needing 300 pages.

Be sure to read all about the exciting Duke Nukem happenings at 3D Realms' official web site.

Scott Miller, 3D Realms

We just heard from George Broussard, president of 3D Realms, about creating such hit characters as Duke Nukem—but we'll also turn to 3D Realms CEO Scott Miller to reveal the "secret" to creating successful characters, while so many others have failed.

Positioning and differentiation. Duke is the first white male action hero. No other character will ever have a chance knocking Duke off his particular pedestal, because it's better to be first than it is to be better (a key concept of positioning). Likewise, Max Payne is the first character of his type—a true antihero vigilante cop—and no other developer will ever have a chance making a better character with this description. Thanks to the well-known psychology of the human mind, better doesn't win; being first is what really matters.

George [Broussard] and I have studied and discussed characters for almost a decade, and finally in the last 5–6 years we think we've put together the key pieces of the puzzle better than anyone else in this industry. A bold statement, maybe, but consider that we planned Max to be the next great male action character and franchise from day one of the games design, and guided Remedy (the developers) in the key ways to make it happen. And we're going to do it again with two more coming game characters, Bombshell (appearing first in Duke Nukem Forever before starring in her own games), and another game I can't announce yet (wait for E3 2002).

Miller acknowledges that this is a tough topic to cover in brief, because, as he puts it, "It's worthy of its own book."

But there are specific guidelines to naming a character properly, so that the name is better remembered and has a catchy hook. A character-based game should be named with the character's name (much like most comic books do—which was our inspiration for this particular idea years ago). One commonality of catchy, memorable names is that one of the names is only one syllable long. For example: Johnny Quest, James Bond, Darth Vadar, Luke Skywalker, Duke Nukem, Commander Keen, Indiana Jones, Max Payne, Han Solo, Lara Croft, on and on. There are several important rules like this that should be followed to create a great character name.

Another piece of advice, something that was also touched on by Broussard, is that a character's name should reflect something about the character. Explains Miller:

Duke Nukem and Max Payne do this very well. Other game character names like Lara Croft, Kate Archer, John Mullins, John Blade are just generic, valueless names that say nothing about the personality of the character they represent.

In other areas of this book, Miller shares a lot of great advice on general game design, building a franchise (in Chapter 2) and on breaking into the industry (Chapter 21).

http://forums.3drealms.com/vb/showpost.php?p=30201&postcount=11
 

Pope Amole II

Nerd Commando Game Studios
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I never expected to see Duke described with the word "intelligent".

Well if you apply modern standards he's a fucking genius.

But wouldn't it be a great subversion if he was actually smart? Kinda, you know, like the Dolph Lundgren (once actor who could've definitely starred in a Duke Nukem movie in the 90s, if only they wanted to make one), who looks totally like a bruiser but is a totally smart guy. Just think of potential ensuing hilariousness.
 

Pope Amole II

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How would Duke's intelligence manifest itself in a Duke Nukem universe?

It shouldn't be a main theme, obviously, but, say, Duke Nukem goes for the presidential chair (c'mon, wouldn't you vote for the Duke?) and there are, obviously, debates, and his sleazy whitecollar weakbag opponent (and a sellout for the alien friendship, obv) totally expects to splatter the seemingly muscleheaded moron. Only the contrary happens - Duke metaphorically rips off his head and takes a great rhetorical dump down his neck.
 

Lyric Suite

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I thought Bombshell was supposed to be blond, huge tits Californian type, kinda like Arnold's daughter from Last Action Hero, except with more Baywatch and bigger guns:

4cfHh.jpg


Ho wait, SJW developers.
 
Last edited:

Kuhrazy

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I thought Bombshell was supposed to be blond, huge tits Californian type, kinda like Arnold's daughter from Last Action Hero, except with more Baywatch and bigger guns:

4cfHh.jpg


Ho wait, SJW developers.

Still, good times for those of us with a fetish for amputees and lobotomy patients.
 

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