KickStarter Shroud of the Avatar - Lord British's Not-Ultima Online 2

[Sceptic]

Do it and write a Codex review

 

[Jaesun]

I have not played many MMO's, so I don't really have a good standpoint to make comparisons. But anyways, I just don't have any fucking time any more... :/

 

[grimace]

I have not played many MMO's, /

That's okay SotA is "selectively multiplayer".

 

[Jaesun]

I have not played many MMO's, /

That's okay SotA is "selectively multiplayer".

Oh that's right. Forgot that.

 

[grimace]

Release 45’s Postmortem Mini-Telethon is going to be Oktoberfest themed in honor of our new Munich, Germany based publishing partners – Travian Games! They will be helping us kick off the livestream. As we announced last month, they are partnering with us to bring Shroud of the Avatar to other regions around the world. Travian Games is lucky enough to be headquartered where THE Oktoberfest happens every year in September, hence our choice of the theme.

https://www.shroudoftheavatar.com/?p=76484#more-76484

https://www.twitch.tv/shroudoftheavatar

 

[Metro]

This shit makes Peter Molyneaux look like Warren Spector (pre Epic Mickey, ofc).

 

[thesheeep]

This shit makes Peter Molyneaux look like Warren Spector (pre Epic Mickey, ofc).

Pffft. Epic Mickey was actually a pretty good game in that it achieved what it set out to do.

This... doesn't really seem to achieve what it set out to do so far.

 

[grimace]

I have not played many MMO's, /

That's okay SotA is "selectively multiplayer".

Oh that's right. Forgot that.

2013 was ages ago. Dupre saying how he'd rather not play with others and British saying he wouldn't have to.




https://youtu be/cWqK1y8NLvU?t=468

Lord Britsh and Dupre telling stories!
Portalarium Austin
Published on Mar 19, 2013

 

[Zep Zepo]

Hi guys,

It's been a while. Is this game still shit?

Zep--

 

[Andhaira]

Hi guys,

It's been a while. Is this a game still?

??

 

[grimace]

Hi guys,

It's been a while. Is this game still shit?

Zep--

When is Launch?: You have probably noticed that we do not list one of these releases as a launch release. While we feel we are definitely getting closer to launch readiness each month we do not believe that launching before the end of the year is going to be the right time. Before the end of the year however will be the right time to announce a firm launch date; so stay tuned!

https://www.shroudoftheavatar.com/?p=77776

 

[Shinji]

This is a common thing among most of our old heroes. I've said before that their genius lay in them working with the limitations of the times and knowing exactly what is important to the game experience and what is superfluous. Games were lean but crammed with as many features as they could be and the majority enhanced the experience far beyond what was normally possible. Where cuts had to be made, additional information, lore etc. would be in printed form to further increase the 'immersion' into the world etc.

This is all well and good, but if you read a lot of their interviews then and since, they often come up with really shockingly retarded thoughts about what they'd have liked to add (like full VO, cutscenes, simplified gameplay, RT combat etc.) but couldn't due to the limitations they faced hardware wise. So it's a mix of ability and the happy coincidence of low power hardware that helped create the great stuff we grew up with.

'Lord' British is just one in a long line unfortunately...can go to JVC, Molyneux, Meier, Roberts, Spector, Bradley and so on....

I am very fascinated by this particular topic; that is, how many of these devs that we think of as rock stars of the golden era of CRPGs have stepped up to the plate years later and produced duds. I think about the games we played on Apple IIs and Commodore, with very small teams or even designed and produced by one guy (Akalabeth, etc). I can only conclude that it was a different era that required a different skillset. I also think, like you mentioned, that the lower powered hardware meant there was less ..makeup.. for your game to hide behind. It was pure gameplay and it either worked or it didn't. I was personally drawn in by games like Dark Heart of Uukrul, a game that was graphically fairly simple but had deep gameplay, then was subsequently annoyed at the soon to follow era of CD-ROM FMV that tried to hide shit games behind fluffy new tech.

That said, Origin seemed to be really good at adapting new tech in ways that made awesome games. Wing Commander was an amazing game. Ultima 6 and 7 were awesome. Ultima Underworld was another great game. Maybe it was the right combination of people on these teams? Or making games without being so beholden to stock holders? Curious what other people think.

It seems to me that there's a lot less involvement from their part as well.
When once they would do not only the overall design -- but some of the programming, level design, story and so on -- now they leave that task to young slaves inexperienced developers.
It's important to remember that a lot of the so called 'rockstar' developers were NOT designers, but either directors or producers. So in this sense, they probably know quite a lot about the development process and team management, but not necessarily how to design a game (e.g. Keiji Inafune)

Not only that, but it seems that since they're considered 'legends' wherever they go, for whatever they say, they might feel either that:

• There's nothing else for them to prove to anyone
• They're afraid to do something that would ruin their estabilished reputation entirely
• There's too much pressure and expectation on their shoulders, in the sense that they might think that they HAVE to deliver a game that is AS good as their older titles

And finally, there's the fact that the gaming industry has grown quite a lot. There are a lot more competitors in the industry nowadays, which ends up making people expect more quality in the games they are paying for, making it hard for newer developers to survive unless they stand out somehow -- be it by innovation or pure marketing.

 

[YES!]

I think it is simple to see who are the real greats and the posers. The Ultima games where precursors for console shit for retards. Ultima 7 had particularly bad combat only people with console sensibilities liked. The loved Lands of lore is another example of pre-console revolution console games of superficial bullshit being in higher regard than gameplay and systems.

The old devs that want critical acclaim and commercial hits don't have enough console retardation to make one, but where never real rpg devs for people with adult tastes and place function over form.

In my opinion SotA is the best game by this guy, with the best rpg systems and gameplay. The content is different enough and total unique enough to warrant buying and playing. I cannot comment on how the housing and decorating and dress up systems are because I play games for the gameplay and content and not weird shit.

Unlike in Ultima 7 I can sell things, which is nice. I don't have to not bother looting anything because the game only has 4 or so people that buy only one item each. The combat is more than click and watch. The rpg systems and chardev are much better than in any Ultima game.

In my opinion SotA is worth checking out with an open mind for either single player or online. I played Online but with the option of single player online and thought it was pretty good. For people angry about the cash shop it only sells stupid shit that normal people don't want anyways. The only functional purchase is a $5 bank slot upgrade - everything else is complete shit with no real function besides Barbie doll shit.

Since I have very good taste I honestly can't recommend this game to fans of Ultima as I have no idea what they look for in games beyond superficial weird shit that does not appeal to me. I can only say I was expecting another shit game from a shit developer and got a decent game I got more hours of fun from than I do most games. I don't know the difference between what was promised and what was delivered, but with the new opening and the new areas with lots of quests the game is a lot more fun than what it was when I last tried it. The things I hate most Ultima players love, like the retarded portal Stonehenge system that is just a stupid time sink, the lack of a real global auction house, all the wasted game space and time running due to player housing, all the hiccups the retarded decorating and housing system causes in towns, and shit like that.

 

[Infinitron]

I think it is simple to see who are the real greats and the posers. The Ultima games where precursors for console shit for retards. Ultima 7 had particularly bad combat only people with console sensibilities liked. The loved Lands of lore is another example of pre-console revolution console games of superficial bullshit being in higher regard than gameplay and systems.

The old devs that want critical acclaim and commercial hits don't have enough console retardation to make one, but where never real rpg devs for people with adult tastes and place function over form.

In my opinion SotA is the best game by this guy, with the best rpg systems and gameplay. The content is different enough and total unique enough to warrant buying and playing. I cannot comment on how the housing and decorating and dress up systems are because I play games for the gameplay and content and not weird shit.

Unlike in Ultima 7 I can sell things, which is nice. I don't have to not bother looting anything because the game only has 4 or so people that buy only one item each. The combat is more than click and watch. The rpg systems and chardev are much better than in any Ultima game.

In my opinion SotA is worth checking out with an open mind for either single player or online. I played Online but with the option of single player online and thought it was pretty good. For people angry about the cash shop it only sells stupid shit that normal people don't want anyways. The only functional purchase is a $5 bank slot upgrade - everything else is complete shit with no real function besides Barbie doll shit.

Since I have very good taste I honestly can't recommend this game to fans of Ultima as I have no idea what they look for in games beyond superficial weird shit that does not appeal to me. I can only say I was expecting another shit game from a shit developer and got a decent game I got more hours of fun from than I do most games. I don't know the difference between what was promised and what was delivered, but with the new opening and the new areas with lots of quests the game is a lot more fun than what it was when I last tried it. The things I hate most Ultima players love, like the retarded portal Stonehenge system that is just a stupid time sink, the lack of a real global auction house, all the wasted game space and time running due to player housing, all the hiccups the retarded decorating and housing system causes in towns, and shit like that.

I rate this post 10/10 on the Roqua scale.

 

[grimace]

Let's all reflect back on 48 months (4 years!) of releases.

Here are the release notes

Player's Guide

Known issues and bugs

• Moustache Helm

 

[Doctor Sbaitso]

Yours for only $49.95

 

[Blaine]

Shall we look back even further?

 

[Zep Zepo]

The following images sum up the life of poor, cucked Richard.

Zep--

 

[Delterius]

Say what you will about Garriot but he's the only one who played Star Citizen in real life.

(and paid less for it too).

 

[Zep Zepo]

Say what you will about Garriot but he's the only one who played Star Citizen in real life.

(and paid less for it too).

Haha...took me a while to get it...but I got it.

Zep--

 

[Blaine]

I genuinely feel sorry for Garriott, actually. He's just a pitiful figure.

Here's the man who created the Ultima franchise; its apogee, Ultima 7, indisputably sits high on the elder council of grand incline, while Ultima Online is considered by many to be the father of sandbox MMORPGs.

After reaching such lofty heights, this prince of computer RPGs and aficionado of weird little shoulder braids went on to waste NCsoft's money by going to space with the Russians in order to promote a muddled and doomed mess of a game, developed shovelware garbage you've never even heard of for a while, and currently is scrounging for whale blubber to keep his doomed swan song afloat by selling bizarre mustache reliquaries and digital mementos of his dead mother. Keep in mind, he's classically accustomed to some publisher shoveling mountains of cash at him. It may seem like blatant Jewery to the average person, but he's essentially inside of a space capsule that's almost out of air. Each big whale donation is nothing more than a cupful of oxygen.

The game absolutely is doomed, of that there's no doubt.

If you don't feel at least a little sorry for the guy, your heart is harder than mine, and that's a real feat. Yeah sure, he's still rich, but the wealthy care about legacies, and his legacy is long-forgotten beneath a pile of shit and this latest, obscure, nostalgia-preying rubbish.

 

[Delterius]

Call me a coward who can't face reality, but I see Garriot as a willful idiot who gets to live his last decades larping a great number of characters. Medieval king, space explorer and, most of all, game designer.

Its a nice existence, all things considered.

 

[Blaine]

Well then, I suppose we should call him Con Quixote, eh?

 

[Saduj]

He reminds me of a ponzi schemer who got in way over his head. He started out being deceptive about the type of game he wanted to make but he probably thought it was OK because people wouldn't understand his vision and once they see how everything turns out they will be more than happy. Then he started lying about finances because he believed that with just a little more money he could turn things around and make good. By now, he's so used to lying that he's even doing it to himself. But deep down he knows that at this point, he's taking money from people for the sole purpose of slightly delaying that point in time when it all comes crashing down.

I don't feel sorry for him because it is his own arrogance and greed that brought him to this. After a long string of losses, he could have had an easy win by serving either the classic Ultima fans or the Ultima Online fans. But he wanted money from both and he thought he knew better than everyone else and what he's learning is that greed and arrogance often function as stupidity.

 

[Junmarko]

Shall we look back even further?

I prefer not to.