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Game News Seven Dragon Saga July Update

Infinitron

I post news
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Tags: David Shelley; Seven Dragon Saga; Tactical Simulations Interactive

In suspiciously close proximity to a post on our forums questioning its status, the developers of Seven Dragon Saga have posted a new development update on the game's official website. It includes new art - namely, an image of a Slyth Warden, a member of the game's Dragonkin faction - and a report on what each member of the team is currently up to. I quote:

Meet the Slyth Warden, one of the many dragonkin who vie for dominance in the mountains of the Firewind Coast. Suspicious of the empire, they are likely enemies, but with the right inducements, they could be powerful allies. It’s all a matter of player choice, as they adventure deep into the Drakelands, in service to their emperor.

We are proceeding along developing different elements of the game. In Engineering, we’ve been running various elements of combat and movement through prototyping. Checking out how best to implement multiple targets, area of effect attacks, and persistent things like zones. On the movement side, Seven Dragon Saga has a number of methods to move, and we want them to feel different and work clearly. Mystic Leap allows characters to leap up onto areas others can’t, and gain height advantage. Special thanks to junior engineer Sebastian for taking point on the prototype process.

Up next is how best for the game to recognize cover, then determine if it is half or full, and convey this in an intelligent manner to the players. Then there are Attacks of Opportunity and the Retaliate ability to work out. Lots of little details where frequent prototype iterations works wonders.

In design, we are creating flow charts for story progression, depending on which factions the player is aiding, and which he’s harming. David Shelley pushes a strategic vision, while Edwin McRae drives things from an NPC and story arc viewpoint. This all feeds into the locations we need, and hence the environmental art required.

In systems, Paul Murray and David Shelley are running through a first draft of the various crafting methods, beginning with Alchemy. Again, this affects other elements, such as the skills system, and especially the economy (meaning what players find as loot, as well as, in stores). While single player game economics has a bit more slop allowed than in multi-player games, we still need valuable items to feel valuable and achievable. All the glittery things scattered on the ground after battle should have some meaning.

The art team is busy as ever, since we revamped under our new art director, Lee Dotson. The animation and rigging team is moving from player characters to the first batch of enemies. The new environments are moving from concept to implementation. And we’ve squeezed in a revision to our main user interface — with much discussion with the designers over what the scribbled wireframes really mean for functionality. Meetings can be noisy, but very positive.
So yeah, don't worry, Seven Dragon Saga is still still alive.
 
Joined
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That art looks really great. It looks that after the kickstarter failure they really moved more into eastern aesthetic territory.
 

Dorateen

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Here's an interesting comment from their Facebook page:

"We are considering going to Kickstarter again, along with some other funding options. We like KS for the close link it provides to future players, but it does require strong marketing acumen to be successful there. We'll keep you updated when we have concrete plans."

Maybe they are realizing there are more reliable methods than crowdfunding to produce this type of RPG.
 
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Worth noting Unreal is free and their studio consists predominantly of SSI and other industry veterans. Not saying they don't need funding, but some if not all of their employees probably are at or nearing retirement levels of funds. They might be able to work with reduced salaries until the company takes off.
 

Dorateen

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Like putting their own money into the project, or seeking outside investors. I have more respect for independent developers who get a project made, and then recoup expenses from sales.
 
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We like KS for the close link it provides to future players, but it does require strong marketing acumen to be successful there.
This is typically a poor excuse.
"Strong marketing acumen" is the *alternate* option you'll need to get noticed on Kickstarter, as are popular names.

The way a lot of no name developers managed it, instead, is by putting out a strong and convincing vertical slice of their product.
 

DarkArcher

Educated
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Mar 3, 2015
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I really like where they are going with this.

Clearly quality RPG's make money, so it doesn't matter whether they go for crowdfunding or find another source of revenue. I just want a good, tactical RPG.
 

Themadcow

Augur
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Feb 17, 2012
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*diarises another 'is it still alive?' post for a months time to prompt another update*
 

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