Information RPG Kickstarter Round-up: Sui Generis and Solenttar

[villain of the story]

What art direction? A few character models and generic stock world art? There is not enough assets in the game to talk about an art direction.

 

[JarlFrank]

The few things that are there look very medieval and atmospheric so yeah they got that right.

 

[Semper]

The few things that are there look very medieval and atmospheric so yeah they got that right.

uuhm, no. their wooden framework buildings are wrong - the diagonal beams are crossing the vertical ones, which wouldn't work that way

 

[JarlFrank]

Well I didn't look at it that closely but they definitely got the lighting and atmosphere right.

 

[FrancoTAU]

Until these kickstarter RPGs start to actually get released and prove they aren't vapourware, I guess I'm going to be overly kind to any serious project that pops up. It looks impressive for what they have so far from a small team and shows they're serious. Usually for the last decade, we get a couple of amateur modders that band together thinking they're going to make an RPG until they realize none of them can program anything. It's funny to see the exact opposite with all the heavy lifting being done. The kickstarter would do gangbusters if he hooked up with a creative type a couple months ago to punch up the plot and had some dialogue, quest stuff to show off.

I don't mind the rag doll combat animations, but the ultra realistic physics might end up with the stunlock deaths which would blow. That troll fight looked like it doomed no matter what after that first hit connected.

 

[Cyril]

I dont think its a "I am awesome" attitude that Generis has, its more like a "I am different" attitude.

 

[Volourn]

Too bad about Solettar. It looks like it has ,lots of potential. I might have even pledged $100 but since that isn't an option, I'll pass. I say go big or go home. Good luck with it though!

 

[Cynic]

Sorry I don't care how realistik your physx is, those animations look fucking stupid and retarded. The rest of the engine looks fantastic though.

 

[Bruma Hobo]

If you are having trouble with the Kickstarter UK payment method you can now support us via Paypal by visiting our website.

Please note that this will not help us reach our goal here on Kickstarter.

 

[crafthack]

Until these kickstarter RPGs start to actually get released and prove they aren't vapourware, I guess I'm going to be overly kind to any serious project that pops up. It looks impressive for what they have so far from a small team and shows they're serious. Usually for the last decade, we get a couple of amateur modders that band together thinking they're going to make an RPG until they realize none of them can program anything. It's funny to see the exact opposite with all the heavy lifting being done. The kickstarter would do gangbusters if he hooked up with a creative type a couple months ago to punch up the plot and had some dialogue, quest stuff to show off.

I don't mind the rag doll combat animations, but the ultra realistic physics might end up with the stunlock deaths which would blow. That troll fight looked like it doomed no matter what after that first hit connected.

no offense man but if are gonna take that kind of opinion you should state right now what other kickstart RPG's you have backed, so we can tell if your a hypocrite or not. For example it's not possible for someone to have backed Wasteland 2 or the project eternity, and then voice an opinion like yours on sui generis, because those games showed nothing while this project showed an engine, graphics, animation and rudimentary combat system.

I think double standards exist in this thread

 

[Volourn]

Excvept those KS look to have a shoty at being awesome. This KS (the 2nd one in question) does not. True story. O HELL YEAH!!!

 

[Cyril]

Story and world crap takes so little effort compared to the technical stuff and would not affect the way technical stuff should be much at all, unless you didnt go for a generic medieval/fantasy setting.

 

[wormix]

If you are having trouble with the Kickstarter UK payment method you can now support us via Paypal by visiting our website.

Please note that this will not help us reach our goal here on Kickstarter.

Well it's not like they can just tell Kickstarter to give them the money if they don't reach their goal, but got some money elsewhere. Although it does raise the question of what happens to the PayPal money if they don't get funded on Kickstarter.

 

[Stainless Veteran]

Well, I sorta wanted to support Sui Generic, but than this guy came out of the woodwork:

Hi, Madoc Evans here.

The only explanation I can give you as to why I can do what I did is that I’m extremely passionate about it and I’ve given this everything I possibly can.

I did all the programming, yes. It’s not convenient that I’ve kept a low profile, it’s deliberate. I’ve turned down some very significant job offers because I just wanted to make this game, not develop IP for someone else. We might not have impressive resumes, most of us have known eachother since school and we’ve shared this vision for this game all our lives.

We’re not substituting anything for story and most certainly combat system design, we’re trying to do something more with them. I’m quite confident our combat design can be considered extremely complex by any standards. But we haven’t implemented it yet, nor many other things, that’s why we’re asking for help. To be brutally honest after designing my entire engine and tools from scratch, the design of a combat system seems like the most trivial of tasks to me. We’ve been focusing on implementing the most challenging stuff, not the most significant in terms of gameplay.

While our story might seem shallow and generic at first glance, it is the product of many years of inspiration and the meat of it is in twists, lots of them. You’re supposed to find these yourself while playing, we’re not going to spoil our entire game.

I am sincerely baffled by the amount of skepticism we’ve encountered. It seems we are being compared to the Holy Grail of gaming rather than the actual games out there.

Assuming you can believe that we’re indeed not charlatans after a quick buck, thank you for your compliments .

Madoc

Hi again,

I sure did play Die by the Sword. Fantastically clumsy. Our game is nothing like that, not even close. You don’t direct your sword with the mouse, just your character and It’s extremely fluid and easy to play.

I’m not some kind of idiot savant. My biggest strength is not programming skills but thinking outside the box. I only program so that I may achieve my vision for a fun game. I’m a creative person, I even did a large amount of the artwork such as the demon on our KS page and the armours in the game. 100% original concepts of mine, whether you like them or not is another matter.

Just because we happen to have some nice tech it means that’s what we’re all about? It’s not. It’s simulation over repetive mechanical gameplay, it’s reactive characters instead of heavily scripted ones that turn into complete idiots as soon as you do anything that isn’t exactly what the designer intended. We want immersion and that also means a world that can react realistically to your actions.

Most of us have been avid gamers for over 20 years and before we had computers we played PnP RPGs. We’ve done nothing but criticise game design and work on our own for as long as we can remember. Used to be that great games came from smart people who are seriously passionate about games, not acclaimed industry professionals in a market saturated with formulaic mass market products. Does no one remember those days? We haven’t had fun since. Just what is this fabled skill set? I’m pretty sure it’s mostly targeted at making money, I haven’t seen a complex design I don’t consider fundamentally flawed in over 10 years. We’re here to make intense fun, not money.

I can see how this all sounds hubristic. It’s our vision, it’s what we hoped games would evolve into instead of what we’re offered today and we honestly believe in it. Maybe we won’t achieve everything we hope but so far we’re extremely pleased with what we have and we’re just getting started. At least it will be a step in what we consider the right direction.

Madoc

[src]
Level of hubris is off the charts in this one. Also, err, Qwinn.

 

[Awor Szurkrarz]

His face is fantastically clumsy.

 

[Vault Dweller]

no offense man but if are gonna take that kind of opinion you should state right now what other kickstart RPG's you have backed, so we can tell if your a hypocrite or not. For example it's not possible for someone to have backed Wasteland 2 or the project eternity, and then voice an opinion like yours on sui generis, because those games showed nothing while this project showed an engine, graphics, animation and rudimentary combat system.

Let's not compare experienced developers with proven abilities (nobody doubts Fargo's ability to make a good Wasteland sequel or Obsidian's ability to make a BG-like game or a mix of IWD and PST) with some guys who have nothing but a pretty engine. While the engine is impressive enough, it takes a lot more than good intentions to make a decent RPG.

The burden of proof is on Bare Mettle (or whatever they're called).

 

[Vault Dweller]

Story and world crap takes so little effort...

Sure, if it's a story about an ordinary villager who is no ordinary villager because only he has the power to save the world from the stirring evil.

 

[Spectacle]

Sui Generis seems like they could do better with the Mount & Blade model. Make a dumb but fun fighting game with their fancy engine and sell it for $10, then start adding content and increasing the price for each new version.
Just don't forget to add an actual plot and such before the game goes gold.

 

[Overboard]

Just don't forget to add an actual plot and such before the game goes gold.

So, not like M&B then?

I think the engine has potential, but this guy really does come across as extremely butthurt. "Look at me, I'm so fucking creative, I designed armours (sic)!!!

No amount of playing D&D and CRPGs is going to rescue your shitty fanfiction from the depths of mediocrity.

Maybe I shouldn't be surprised, instead of trying to get a tight team with essential skills together, he lets his girlfriend and assorted hangers-on climb on board for a free ride.

 

[FrancoTAU]

no offense man but if are gonna take that kind of opinion you should state right now what other kickstart RPG's you have backed, so we can tell if your a hypocrite or not. For example it's not possible for someone to have backed Wasteland 2 or the project eternity, and then voice an opinion like yours on sui generis, because those games showed nothing while this project showed an engine, graphics, animation and rudimentary combat system.

I think double standards exist in this thread

Alright, relax there buddy. I was being mostly positive about the project, I'd just like to see a little more about what's going to be in the engine when it comes out as an actual game. I'm still keeping tabs on it and will pledge if I like what they say.

 

[slowdive]

Both projects look takemymoney. The NWN style dialogue tools and simple grid map of Solenttar greatly appeal, looks like it has great potential for a dialogue rich Ultima IV game. Would love to know what kind of faction system it has. One concern would be the giant letters on the map editor occupying a single tile, ie. either an Encounter OR a Chest. It suggests one walk-through only for the single player game. Wonder if it has % respawns or random events. If I wanted a crossroads section and to re-use the map I would want a whole bunch of randomly generated content to spawn on the area each time the PC passed over it, not just the first time. Still the toolset looks very promising.

The faction system hasn't been finalized yet, but should function similar to that of NWN. As far as events per square, multiple events can be on the same square and they can be scripted to be random or based on conditionals. The current (could change as needed) order of events that fire upon entering a square are OnEnter script, Transition to other area, Trap, Conversation, Encounter and Container. With the OnEnter script for that square you could turn Encounters on and off, change the encounter to use for this square, even create a random encounter. You can do just about anything with the scripting system (C# for scripting language). For those who do not like scripting, I may make a few wizards for things like random encounters, respawns, etc. Thanks again Baron for your comments and suggestions. (I plan on adding a Baron party wipe and reload trap in your honor...only with your blessing of course :D )

 

[Baron]

with your blessing of course

Heh, only if it an elegant and subtle trap, like slingshotting a statue of a cow into the back of someone's head as they stoop to pick up a penny.

A script wizard for basic features sounds brilliant. Anything that speeds up repetitive tasks when designing areas is always welcomed.

I better pledge...

 

[mikaelis]

A new update about Sui Generis:​

​

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1473965863/sui-generis/posts​

​

And an artcle in Forbes:​

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http://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkai...generis-a-remarkable-looking-kickstarter-rpg/​

​

They got some boost in pledges as well (15k+ in the last two days). Who knows, maybe it will reach the goal...​

 

[Kitako]

I'm not much interested in what kind of RPG they can make with Sui Generis, that doesn't seem the real focus anyway. I'm interested in the tech, and I'm still waiting since 10 years now that someone would release someting like NWN Aurora, a framework to create stuff for "normal" people. Aurora was a really awful engine, but in the years delivered to us some pretty damn good modules.