Codex Interview Knights of the Chalice 2 Pre-Kickstarter Interview

[Valky]

In the end, they are just eye candy that does not improve gameplay

Ahahahaha eat shit, fucking casuals.

 

[slowtard]

Why does all the PCs look like elves, and all the elves look like Michael Jackson?

My first mod will be replace all the elf tokens with sprite made out of this gif



Elves can only equip white linen suit +1.

 

[zeitgeist]

Why doesn't he just pay for the art and visual design from the proceeds of the first game, or at least get someone who can explain the basics of GUI design to him in a few hours? There are many people who would jump on the opportunity to work on something that's going to be released as a commercial game for a very modest upfront fee and a percentage of the sales. Not to mention the desperate artists who would contribute to it for the credit alone. Is it his grating personality that doesn't allow for successful collaboration? Does he genuinely think that this is something that can be released as is? How is it possible for someone presumably living in a civilized society to reach such a state of mind? What else could be the problem, and why does it prevent him from reading, if not a book, at least a wikipedia article on the issue?

 

[thesheeep]

To be honest, I don't think that it would make the game better if I was using sprites or 3D models instead of tokens.

Well, it would certainly make the game sell better.
And look better. I don't think you can fully separate a game from its art.

But hey, at least this graphics style won't cause me any headache due to weird ass perspective like KotC 1 did, so that's kind of an improvement, actually

 

[you know what time it is]

In the end, they are just eye candy that does not improve gameplay

Ahahahaha eat shit, fucking casuals.

Guess it depends on one's definition of gameplay, from where I'm standing this is just blatantly incorrect. I do love me some DFs of this world, but there's no real argument that decent usability/readability improves the experience a ton, not to mention that a nice, meaty animations and well thought out art direction isn't just good for game's longevity, but it also helps player to connect with the game on a simpler, primordial-ape-juice level of existence.

Same with sounds, great sound design can carry a mediocre game (see Subnautica for reference), because gameplay is not how numbers correlate to each other on player's input, gameplay - is in your head.

 

[Zed]

KotC 2 displays the environment using large, hand-drawn 2D images, just like Temple of Elemental Evil, Planescape: Torment and Baldur's Gate.

I fully respect a sensible and budget-friendly approach to graphics assets, and his rationale is sound. But to compare the renders of ToEE, PST and BG to what I see in those screenshots... I mean -- it's technically correct. It's 2D in the sense that my windows wallpaper is also in 2D.

 

[Strange Fellow]

KotC 2 displays the environment using large, hand-drawn 2D images, just like Temple of Elemental Evil, Planescape: Torment and Baldur's Gate.

I fully respect a sensible and budget-friendly approach to graphics assets, and his rationale is sound. But to compare the renders of ToEE, PST and BG to what I see in those screenshots... I mean -- it's technically correct. It's 2D in the sense that my windows wallpaper is also in 2D.

The distinction between 'correct' and 'technically correct' might well elude the man who would do this:

A long time ago, I used to play Cluedo with my brother and my sister. But then I had the idea to write a Cluedo app on my programmable calculator. Each round, you would input everything that was happening on the board: for each player, you would select the room that they went into, the character they accused and the murder weapon they selected, and then you would input the name of the player who showed a card to the current player. The app was using absolutely all of the information available to determine as quickly as possible what cards each player was holding. So, what happened? Well, the app worked so well that it could win the game in about three rounds.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

[Valky]

In the end, they are just eye candy that does not improve gameplay

Ahahahaha eat shit, fucking casuals.

Guess it depends on one's definition of gameplay, from where I'm standing this is just blatantly incorrect. I do love me some DFs of this world, but there's no real argument that decent usability/readability improves the experience a ton, not to mention that a nice, meaty animations and well thought out art direction isn't just good for game's longevity, but it also helps player to connect with the game on a simpler, primordial-ape-juice level of existence.

Same with sounds, great sound design can carry a mediocre game (see Subnautica for reference), because gameplay is not how numbers correlate to each other on player's input, gameplay - is in your head.

Gameplay/interactivity/systems what have you is literally the only aspect that makes a video game a video game and not some gay shit like a movie. A game with good gameplay and shit anything else is a good game. A game with shit gameplay is shit no matter what else you have in it. Pierre was monacled enough to completely ignore the horde of decline and he prioritized the gameplay while treating non gameplay elements as the second class citizens they are.

 

[ERYFKRAD]

What happened to his rts then?

 

[zeitgeist]

What happened to his rts then?

Art assets have been completed, Kickstarter coming soon.

 

[Valky]

What happened to his rts then?

Doesn't appeal to me when I'm shopping for a turn based rpg with the 3.5 ruleset that has combat like TOEE.

 

[you know what time it is]

Gameplay/interactivity/systems what have you is literally the only aspect that makes a video game a video game and not some gay shit like a movie. A game with good gameplay and shit anything else is a good game. A game with shit gameplay is shit no matter what else you have in it. Pierre was monacled enough to completely ignore the horde of decline and he prioritized the gameplay while treating non gameplay elements as the second class citizens they are.

As always

 

[Valky]

Gameplay/interactivity/systems what have you is literally the only aspect that makes a video game a video game and not some gay shit like a movie. A game with good gameplay and shit anything else is a good game. A game with shit gameplay is shit no matter what else you have in it. Pierre was monacled enough to completely ignore the horde of decline and he prioritized the gameplay while treating non gameplay elements as the second class citizens they are.

As always

Because we live in real life, not some leftist utopia of good feelings. And in real life, where Pierre has limited resources to dedicate to Knights of the Chalice 2, I would much rather hope that he puts his effort into the gameplay over the visual bing bing wahoos. Et tu, decline?

 

[you know what time it is]

There are plenty of great artists out there starving for work, besides if Pierre wasn't such an autist he would be swimming in the dough by now and could afford good artwork and animations that would improve gameplay (that's what we are talking about, improving not replacing).

 

[Valky]

I fail to see how looking at pretty pictures enhances the accuracy of the ruleset being used or makes the turn based combat gain more depth. The tokens accomplish what they need to, giving you enough context to understand what is happening so you can focus on the underlying mechanics.
It's only a pleasant side effect that the tokens are acting as a filter to turn away undesirables and give a message that this game is NOT made for them. The core fans of these types of games already know what they are in for and certainly weren't drawn in by visuals. Not every game has to be a fucking AAA blockbuster where money and profit is the only thing that matters, those are kike words. Did you ever consider that an autist just wants to make a really fucking good game?

 

[Murk]

KotC 2 displays the environment using large, hand-drawn 2D images, just like Temple of Elemental Evil, Planescape: Torment and Baldur's Gate.

I am always baffled at people thinking that those game were hand drawn.

I think what he meant was that it isn't tiled/tile based.

VentilatorOfDoom well done m80.

 

[Havoc]

The art is horrendous, nuff said.

 

[you know what time it is]

I fail to see how looking at pretty pictures enhances the accuracy of the ruleset being used or makes the turn based combat gain more depth. The tokens accomplish what they need to, giving you enough context to understand what is happening so you can focus on the underlying mechanics.
It's only a pleasant side effect that the tokens are acting as a filter to turn away undesirables and give a message that this game is NOT made for them. The core fans of these types of games already know what they are in for and certainly weren't drawn in by visuals. Not every game has to be a fucking AAA blockbuster where money and profit is the only thing that matters, those are kike words. Did you ever consider that an autist just wants to make a really fucking good game?

You were arguing that this was by design. I'm arguing that Pierre didn't really have a choice (due to his own decisions) and that given the resources the game would only benefit from it.

Besides dick riding a feller that had a mild brush with 'tism doesn't really make him (or you for that matter) special. Sure, he made a faithful D&D adaptation which seems like quite an undertaking, but more from a logistics POV, than actual design. You do realize that D&D is a pre-existing ruleset right? And there's precisely two reason to bring it to digital space in the first place - AI and Immersion (graphics and sounds)?

 

[VentilatorOfDoom]

Some of you people seem convinced that there are plenty of artists out there who can't wait to jump at the chance to create all the art assets that are required for the game for free. You know, just to "take credit". You should set Pierre up with those guys. Estabslish contact.
If I was a highly skilled artist, capable of creating gfx assets of a sufficient quality to satisfy your refined tastes, it would also be my deepest desire to spend my time creating graphics for this game without getting paid.
Sure, some say for a game like this you need thousands of man-hours to create all the assets, but what do they know? And even if true - can't be that hard to find an artist willing to spend a few years of his lifetime on this project for free.

Of course the gfx of this game will severely limit his target audience, putting the game into a niche of a niche of a niche.
But - he says nothing would stop people from using ToEE style background images in iso perspective in the toolset for different maps, likewise, portraits/tokens can be changed, so modding will fix it right?
Perhaps the release of KotC1 on Steam will bring in enough funds to hire an artist in the future, so the new modules will look better.

 

[holla_cabezas_de_mierda]

Why doesn't he just pay for the art and visual design from the proceeds of the first game, or at least get someone who can explain the basics of GUI design to him in a few hours? There are many people who would jump on the opportunity to work on something that's going to be released as a commercial game for a very modest upfront fee and a percentage of the sales. Not to mention the desperate artists who would contribute to it for the credit alone. Is it his grating personality that doesn't allow for successful collaboration? Does he genuinely think that this is something that can be released as is? How is it possible for someone presumably living in a civilized society to reach such a state of mind? What else could be the problem, and why does it prevent him from reading, if not a book, at least a wikipedia article on the issue?

I don't know. But I do think the art is easily fixable from how the game and engine is designed.

I am defiantly going to be supporting this game and really like the developer but he is a guy who announced he was foraging for roots in the woods to supplement his diet not long ago when he could have perhaps put KOTC 1 on steam and bought ramen and mac n cheese like a proper programmer. Sometimes really bright people are a bit quirky, and I think that describes our friend here, but if he were not quirky, he might not be making this game in the first place, so perhaps its part of the package. My hope is people like the game enough to want to improve it, I think there is a decent chance that this occurs, but I agree some different artwork could make it more of a sure thing....

 

[holla_cabezas_de_mierda]

KotC 2 displays the environment using large, hand-drawn 2D images, just like Temple of Elemental Evil, Planescape: Torment and Baldur's Gate.

I fully respect a sensible and budget-friendly approach to graphics assets, and his rationale is sound. But to compare the renders of ToEE, PST and BG to what I see in those screenshots... I mean -- it's technically correct. It's 2D in the sense that my windows wallpaper is also in 2D.

The distinction between 'correct' and 'technically correct' might well elude the man who would do this:

A long time ago, I used to play Cluedo with my brother and my sister. But then I had the idea to write a Cluedo app on my programmable calculator. Each round, you would input everything that was happening on the board: for each player, you would select the room that they went into, the character they accused and the murder weapon they selected, and then you would input the name of the player who showed a card to the current player. The app was using absolutely all of the information available to determine as quickly as possible what cards each player was holding. So, what happened? Well, the app worked so well that it could win the game in about three rounds.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

lol, jesus...I was trying to find the button to do a 4th root the other day and gave up after a few minutes...I am like a rodent that has been kicked in the head a few times compared to Pierre I believe. Might as well be a different species.

 

[holla_cabezas_de_mierda]

Some of you people seem convinced that there are plenty of artists out there who can't wait to jump at the chance to create all the art assets that are required for the game for free. You know, just to "take credit". You should set Pierre up with those guys. Estabslish contact.
If I was a highly skilled artist, capable of creating gfx assets of a sufficient quality to satisfy your refined tastes, it would also be my deepest desire to spend my time creating graphics for this game without getting paid.
Sure, some say for a game like this you need thousands of man-hours to create all the assets, but what do they know? And even if true - can't be that hard to find an artist willing to spend a few years of his lifetime on this project for free.

Of course the gfx of this game will severely limit his target audience, putting the game into a niche of a niche of a niche.
But - he says nothing would stop people from using ToEE style background images in iso perspective in the toolset for different maps, likewise, portraits/tokens can be changed, so modding will fix it right?
Perhaps the release of KotC1 on Steam will bring in enough funds to hire an artist in the future, so the new modules will look better.

I did a search for "2d dungeon monster tilesets online download for sale" and there is stuff that is not expensive at all and is quit a bit better looking, and I looked for like 4 minutes. I have run across even nicer stuff by accident previously.

 

[VentilatorOfDoom]

I did a search for "2d dungeon monster tilesets online download for sale" and there is stuff that is not expensive at all and is quit a bit better looking, and I looked for like 4 minutes. I have run across even nicer stuff by accident previously.

Great, couldn't be any easier, right?
Does it have all the races, classes, spells, monsters and so on listed here?
http://www.heroicfantasygames.com/FWE/Pages/FWE_Features.htm
Who would have thought 5mins of googling could solve the problem. Can you share the link so I can check the relevance of your 2d monster tileset for a game implementing a large part of the Dnd bestiary?

 

[you know what time it is]

Some of you people seem convinced that there are plenty of artists out there who can't wait to jump at the chance to create all the art assets that are required for the game for free. You know, just to "take credit". You should set Pierre up with those guys. Estabslish contact.
If I was a highly skilled artist, capable of creating gfx assets of a sufficient quality to satisfy your refined tastes, it would also be my deepest desire to spend my time creating graphics for this game without getting paid.
Sure, some say for a game like this you need thousands of man-hours to create all the assets, but what do they know? And even if true - can't be that hard to find an artist willing to spend a few years of his lifetime on this project for free.

Of course the gfx of this game will severely limit his target audience, putting the game into a niche of a niche of a niche.
But - he says nothing would stop people from using ToEE style background images in iso perspective in the toolset for different maps, likewise, portraits/tokens can be changed, so modding will fix it right?
Perhaps the release of KotC1 on Steam will bring in enough funds to hire an artist in the future, so the new modules will look better.

Idk who's been talking about getting anything for free, but there's a ton of good stuff out there that you can get on the cheap, stocks has been around for a while now. Also there are thousands of artists looking to get the foot in the proverbial door by delivering quality work for pennies, not to mention how different 100$ can be in terms of value even in the same country, let alone the whole world (1000-1500 a month is a pretty decent living around these parts).

 

[Darth Canoli]

I don't see artists lining up to offer their services.

Besides, if i was to create a video game, i would prefer to work with the ugly reliable thing rather than promises of great art but no promises whatsoever the artist is going to stick around long enough to finish his work and not let it down halfway done.

Anyway, it's pretty clear now the art is final as the first sequel is ready so either we stop listening our inner self graphic-whore and enjoy the amazing gameplay or we play battle brothers and darkest dungeon.

I've made my choice.