KickStarter Spaceshock - Sci-Fi Turn Based Dungeon Crawl

[Atomic]

We can not fail with all of you here around! We are working hard every day on the content, now it is the right time to leave our jobs and focus our time on pitch document for upcomming Kicksktarter campaign. Now we know what we need to know from people. You have helped us very very much. Thank you!

If the campaign is successful , you can repay us by adding some kind of RPGCodex shrine in the game.

 

[Cool name]

The turn-based looks pretty sweet.

I did not follow this very closely. Or, say, at all beyond the original video and stuff. Is this going turn based in the end?

 

[evdk]

The turn-based looks pretty sweet.

I did not follow this very closely. Or, say, at all beyond the original video and stuff. Is this going turn based in the end?

Who the hell knows at the moment, when the creators themselves don't. The magic ball says: maybe.

 

[Metro]

Re: tier suggestions. Game $10 to $20. Also offer tiers that give you two copies for a bundled/discounted price. That is, if you sell the game at a $15 tier, offer two copies for $25. Eschew backer exclooooooooooooooooooosive content.

 

[Jaesun]

Yes. Exclusive backer only content is utterly fucking retarded. Nothing wrong with tiers that allow a backer to design some content for the game though. Just be prepared for retards.

 

[Ulminati]

And expect some of the retards to come from this site

 

[Captain Shrek]

Need concrete data to decide or .

 

[DraQ]

Fucking cargo cult design...

 

[Charles-cgr]

2. Legend of Grimrock was more succesfull than anyone (?) would have believed, so clearly there is a market.

But we fall back to that question of if people are really into Grimrock-like games or it was just due it's great graphics and oldschool hype... Remenber, Steam achievments show that only 8% of the players beated the game, and that 60% of them didn't more than 1-2 hours.

Honestly, Notch tweeted it. That and the graphics. End of story. No I'm not bitter.

Edit - a kickstarter is the way to go because I'm not sure the game press will push a title that offers a new Grimrock experience, be it in space, not made by the Finns. At least the KS will tell you where you stand before you invest too much. I suggest waiting a few days into said KS before quiting your jobs.

IMHO turn-based only works if there are at least multiple enemies and preferably distance management. To me turn based looks odd with animated 3D but that is a small thing.

If it turns out the journalists support your project just Grimrock with NPCs, a branching story (I can't imagine the dancing being taken out of that mix - that would lead to brutal frontal combat...) might actually do better than turn-based. TB could work. but it needs to be more tactical than what is shown at this stage IMHO. Just remember that the big game blogs are the gatekeepers.

 

[Metro]

Notch is certainly an expert in not finishing games.

 

[Mother Russia]

http://spaceshock-game.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=23

Pretty awesome. I was one of the ppl who made this happen by aggressively lobbying for it.

 

[Jaesun]

FUCK YES!

 

[AstroZombie]

When will I be able to throw my money at them?

 

[DraQ]

An improvement, but it's still cargo cult design.

 

[mikaelis]

That is definitely incline from awful blobber idea. Still, wonder what this game will be - jast a space ship crawler killing robots in different corridors, or something more?

 

[Jasede]

TB blobber? Eh. I like RT blobbers because they remind me of the classics, like Lands of Lore and Dungeon Master. They're really fun!

A shame they want to change this classic formula up. Hopefully it's optional.

 

[Jaesun]

 

[DraQ]

Ninja editing? Not on my watch.

TB blobber? Eh. I like RT blobbers like Dungeon Master and Lands of Lore better. If it's not RT it's not really a blobber- it's more of a first-person RPG.

...while RT blobber is essentially a poor man's FPS - with discrete, tile based movement, no aiming and clunky popamole interface (you try to hit moles icons as soon as they pop light up).

RT blobbers are essentially textbook example of obsolete genre - whatever they do will be done better by a TB blobber or an honest FPS.
TB blobbers, OTOH are still relevant - they can be used to accomplish things other genres won't accomplish nearly as well.

 

[LeJosh]

Turn based...

 

[Jasede]

Ninja editing? Not on my watch.

TB blobber? Eh. I like RT blobbers like Dungeon Master and Lands of Lore better. If it's not RT it's not really a blobber- it's more of a first-person RPG.

...while RT blobber is essentially a poor man's FPS - with discrete, tile based movement, no aiming and clunky popamole interface (you try to hit moles icons as soon as they pop light up).

RT blobbers are essentially textbook example of obsolete genre - whatever they do will be done better by a TB blobber or an honest FPS.
TB blobbers, OTOH are still relevant - they can be used to accomplish things other genres won't accomplish nearly as well.

This website is all about us hoping for the revival of an obsolete genre. Maybe even in your famous arrogance you can realize that many genres are considered irrelevant - or niche: from the rich, lore and detail filled worldcrafting of a Morrowind to a classic Fallout-like RPG to a classic Wizardry-like game to, indeed, the old-school blobber.

This doesn't mean they didn't have their place at one point. You can't tell me Dungeon Master isn't a great, fun game- nor can you tell me Lands of Lore isn't entertain, despite how shallow it might seem.

So let me hope for more classic waltz-like blobbers without disparaging my preferences, since we're both in the same fucking boat: a boat filled with no RPGs, slowly sinking in an ocean of popamole.

Game over.

Jaesun: Stop that, seriously. Some of us like Dungeon Master and Lands of Lore, and don't know any great first-person blob-style TB RPGs (I don't consider M&M or Wizardry this because they have discrete combat menus).

Why can't I state my opinion without you having to ridicule me? I've been here forever! Why do I still have to suffer this kind of hostility? Can't we just be chill?

 

[Jasede]

I can't believe how much this bothers me.

I feel like I've proven my taste isn't terrible and I'm not totally stupid. I thought I can at least say something without having to be ridiculed. But no. Maybe it'll take another ten years before dear Jaesun here can get off his high horse and stop rolling his eyeballs at me!

I really can't stand this. It makes me feel like I am stupid and I dislike the feeling intensely. I came here because I always enjoyed how intelligent everyone seemed and how everyone was treated with a sort-of hard-earned respect. And yet, after all those years, I have no respect, not even from those who joined about the same time I did. I don't know why I even come here anymore.

 

[Jasede]

Also, what's up with a 1-emote reply? I thought we moved past /b/ years ago.
If you have a problem with what I said, tell me why, or what is wrong about it, or how your opinion differs. Don't just leave me in the dark feeling I made some mistake without even telling me what I did wrong!

I don't even feel like I'm being treated as an adult. I take every opinion here seriously- I wish at least the others who joined around my time could give me the same courtesy.

 

[DraQ]

This website is all about us hoping for the revival of an obsolete genre.

Old and currently unpopular, maybe, but hardly obsolete.

A genre is only obsolete when you no longer can use it and only it to realize at least one worthwhile concept.

RPGs, with their recurring theme of gameplay revolving around different possible abilities of the PC and player having a lot of wiggle room to try and work within such bounds are not only not obsoloete, but still almost untapped.

OTOH I can't really name one thing that you can do in an RT blobber that you wouldn't be able to do better in another genre and I can't really name a set of things you could do well in an RT blobber that would require multiple incompatible genres to be done better.
There is simply no untapped potential in RT blobbers and it isn't an arrogant stement - you can easily prove me wrong by coming up with an example of something or set of somethings you need an RT blobber to implement.

Maybe even in your famous arrogance you can realize that many genres are considered irrelevant - or niche: from the rich, lore and detail filled worldcrafting of a Morrowind to a classic Fallout-like RPG to a classic Wizardry-like game to, indeed, the old-school blobber.

This doesn't mean they didn't have their place at one point.

I don't think being niche or not matters, besides, niches change over time, often unpredictably.
What I'm arguing is that not all of those genres still have their place and that's not because they are no longer popular or something. It's because some other genre overtook them and managed to do everything they did and then some better.

You can't tell me Dungeon Master isn't a great, fun game- nor can you tell me Lands of Lore isn't entertain, despite how shallow it might seem.

Haven't really played DM, while LoL manages to ride almost all the way through on music, visuals and some sort of charm alone - neither of those are particularly genre dependent.

The problem with RT blobbers is that they are first and foremost clunky RT menu navigation excercises.
If your genre is effectively defined by it's failure to present usable interface to the user, then you have a problem.

I can't believe how much this bothers me.

I feel like I've proven my taste isn't terrible and I'm not totally stupid.

True enough (although you are a horrible drama whore).

 

[Jasede]

Ah well, you got me there. But it does bother when some old member like Jaesun won't even grace me with a normal reply.

This might be an asperger's thing: when I am confronted with a single-emote reply or someone shrugging I get extremely butthurt because I have no idea what this means. I assume it means they don't care (shrug) - which bothers me because, why talk about something if you don't care? Or it means they think I'm stupid (eyeroll) which bothers me for, well, obvious reasons.

Maybe I just like RT blobbers because in my memory that genre always came with great, puzzle-filled dungeon design. Sure, you can have that in a TB one, too, but the pressure of real time means you can add some cool stuff: time quests, food and water, that sort of thing. There's a neat sense of urgency in having to finish battles quickly. Even if you had a TB combat system with food/water you'd still be able to just take your time every turn, thus somewhat trivializing the food aspect that honestly added to the fun, for me.

 

[DraQ]

Ah well, you got me there. But it does bother when some old member like Jaesun won't even grace me with a normal reply.

This might be an asperger's thing: when I am confronted with a single-emote reply or someone shrugging I get extremely butthurt because I have no idea what this means. I assume it means they don't care (shrug) - which bothers me because, why talk about something if you don't care? Or it means they think I'm stupid (eyeroll) which bothers me for, well, obvious reasons.

It probably is an asperger's thing - you don't posses a mental model of whomever replied and can't really infer what the fuck they meant (though it can be bypassed if they are driven by simple enough behavioural rules when making one liners/emoticon posts and you interact with this person often enough to find out and memorize that rule.

Maybe I just like RT blobbers because in my memory that genre always came with great, puzzle-filled dungeon design. Sure, you can have that in a TB one, too, but the pressure of real time means you can add some cool stuff: time quests, food and water, that sort of thing. There's a neat sense of urgency in having to finish battles quickly. Even if you had a TB combat system with food/water you'd still be able to just take your time every turn, thus somewhat trivializing the food aspect that honestly added to the fun, for me.

Then again, while having basic needs system can be cool, I don't really consider LARPing a shrew a desirable thing (so stuff like food management should generally be more of a long term mechanics) and besides that, you can have time management independently of TB/RT - after all turns are nothing but discrete chunks of time to help organize input (in non-abstract game).
Finally, TB game can still be RT outside the battles.

What remains is trying to coordinate actions of a number of party members in RT using typically awkward menu, which is a legitimate interface problem - party based games do work better in TB unless you can divide party into *the* PC and followers, with the latter having considerable autonomy (which, OTOH requires decent AI and some order giving system separate from normal control mechanics).

You might try arguing from the angle of RT blobbers requiring more fine-grained time representation to, for example, model projectile flight time, but this still doesn't absolve the party control problem - it could be a legitimate ground for variable game speed or RTWP blobber, but not really a conventional RT one.

Waltz based is either better realized with more FPS-like style or basing your game around an exploit - a simple, repetitive one - again, not a good thing.