Stormgate - sci-fi/fantasy RTS from ex-Blizzard devs - now on Early Access

[Venser]

http://playstormgate.com

Spoiler

Former Starcraft 2 Lead Designer, Lead Artist, Production Director, Gameplay Engineer & more join the new studio Frost Giant to make an RTS game.

https://www.frostgiant.com/

 

[Monkeyfinger]

Zero info about the game other than it's RTS

 

[Lagi]

hype

 

[Venser]

Blizzard vets form Frost Giant Studios
Tim Morten and Tim Campbell raise $4.7m in seed funding for real-time strategy game studio
Brendan Sinclair

Tuesday 20th October 2020

A pair of former Blizzard developers today announced Frost Giant Studios, their new company focused on making real-time strategy games for a broader audience than the genre has historically enjoyed.

Frost Giant is co-founded by Tim Morten and Tim Campbell.

Morten, who will serve as Frost Giant CEO, was production lead on Starcraft 2: Legacy of the Void and spent the past six years at Blizzard. Prior to that he worked stints at Activision, Sony's Santa Monica Studio, and Electronic Arts, where he worked on the Command & Conquer franchise.

Campbell is a Blizzard veteran from another era, having worked there in the early 2000s when he was campaign lead designer for the Warcraft 3 expansion The Frozen Throne. Since then he has helped found a pair of studios (SuperVillain Studios and FireForge) and more recently served as design director for the System Shock 3 project at OtherSide Entertainment and game director for Wasteland 3 at inXile Entertainment.

The two developers have raised $4.7M in seed funding led by Bitkraft Ventures, with participation from 1 Up Ventures, GC Tracker, Riot Games, and Griffin Gaming Partners.

The money will be used "to begin building a prototype for gameplay, conduct consumer research, and expand operations."

"Real-time strategy players are an incredibly passionate community, and they deserve not just a great new game, but one they can share broadly with friends," Morten said. "Building a worthy successor will take time, but we're incredibly excited and grateful to carry real-time strategy forward at Frost Giant Studios."

https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2020-10-20-blizzard-vets-form-frost-giant-studios

Funding from Riot (Tencent) is a second worst case scenario after Activision-Blizzard.

 

[luj1]

SC1 is still the GOAT RTS, but SC2 was solid and among the last pulses of the genre along with DoW1. MOBAs killed RTS so I'm surprised they are even going there, but they have a Korean SC1 guy onboard so maybe they see room somewhere (in Korea?).

 

[luj1]

I like these though:

Don’t radically re-invent, instead build upon what's already great. RTS can evolve, but it doesn't need to become something fundamentally different.

First appeal to the core audience, then also provide a great experience to strategy gamers at large. Establish a strong main before taking the natural.

 

[samuraigaiden]

Is there a core audience for RTS games at this point? Does it live in a resting home in Florida?

 

[Venser]

 

[Xamenos]

Other than the Campaign Designer for The Frozen Throne, none of these guys worked on anything older than SC2. They'd have put it in their resume otherwise. Why are we getting excited, again?

 

[DraQ]

SC1 is still the GOAT RTS

SC1 is overrated as fuck.

And that's without denying that it's a genuinely great RTS, it's just that the amount of ducksicking surrounding it is bound to make pretty much anyone queasy save for maybe Jaesun .
(By the way haven't seen him in a while - anyone knows what happened?)

 

[LizardWizard]

Other than the Campaign Designer for The Frozen Throne, none of these guys worked on anything older than SC2. They'd have put it in their resume otherwise. Why are we getting excited, again?

Seriously, the fat older lady in the video was probably WoW GM that married into the industry

 

[karoliner]

Starcraft 2 was trash. There is no reason to get excited.

 

[HeyCheckOutHowHardICanPee]

Joseph Shunk
Lead Client Engineer
Former Gameplay Engineer on StarCraft II and Warcraft III: Reforged.

Jesse Brophy
Art Director
Former Lead Artist on StarCraft II and Principal Artist on Diablo IV.

"ex Blizzard employees" for a good reason

 

[Venser]

Seriously, the fat older lady in the video was probably WoW GM that married into the industry

It's Day9's mom

 

[BING XI LAO]

SC1 is still the GOAT RTS

SC1 is overrated as fuck.

And that's without denying that it's a genuinely great RTS, it's just that the amount of ducksicking surrounding it is bound to make pretty much anyone queasy save for maybe Jaesun .
(By the way haven't seen him in a while - anyone knows what happened?)

I've played a lot of RTS, mostly the Age of Empires series, and when I recently tried Broodwar (when it went on sale) I was blown away. It DEMOLISHES AoE2, with a couple caveats about not having Castles or Monks (except for niche, near-unusable Dark Archons).
So doesn't that make it the best RTS by a mile?

 

[Zboj Lamignat]

Starcraft is the Baldur's Gate of RTS games. I'm joking a bit, but they actually do have quite a lot in common. Like being good games that became super popular (largely due to lucking out on release dates and utilizing popular fads), but also spelled doom for their respective genres.

Ultimately, I think it mostly depends on whether you prefer your RTS as more of an actual strategy game or rather a twitchy, apm multiplayer fun. I like(d) SC1 a lot, but definitely don't see it as a better game than TA, AoE2 or even Dark Reign. To me it's in the league of C&C, KKND, AoE1 or Dark Colony - good rts fun that I don't see much point in coming back to today.

 

[Morgoth]

Starcraft 2 was trash. There is no reason to get excited.

There's no reason to get excited about any RTS anymore.

 

[Heroic Liberator]

Starcraft 2 was trash. There is no reason to get excited.

There's no reason to get excited about any RTS anymore.

But there are reasons to get excited about the upcoming second expansion of the RTS&RPG mix Spellforce 3.

 

[Venser]

 

[vortex]

I'd rather they make a game like Diablo 2.

 

[Venser]

I'd rather they make a game like Diablo 2.

Mike Mornhaime and some other Blizzard veterans recently left and made Dreamhaven, which houses 2 new game studios: Moonshot Games and Secret Door. Then these guys, who worked mostly on SC2, left and made Frost Gaint to make a new RTS.
So there's still a chance that one of the Dreamhaven teams makes a Diablo like game.

 

[Lagi]

I've played a lot of RTS, mostly the Age of Empires series, and when I recently tried Broodwar (when it went on sale) I was blown away. It DEMOLISHES AoE2, with a couple caveats about not having Castles or Monks (except for niche, near-unusable Dark Archons).
So doesn't that make it the best RTS by a mile?

I enjoy playing and modding sc1. Personally i have more fun with WC3 or DoW1 (or even TA, Tzar).
If you asking if its the best competitive RTS game - i dont know and dont care, getting angry at other people are not my cup of tea.

=============================

Frost Giant suggest it would be some fantasy RTS - good (correct me if Im wrong, dont have time listing to some dudes having video chat).
I will wait for the units / race information. If they dont have a balls to make something else than Footman, Elf Archer, Horse-riding Knight... then I pass.

 

[luj1]

Artosis

 

[DraQ]

Starcraft is the Baldur's Gate of RTS games. I'm joking a bit, but they actually do have quite a lot in common. Like being good games that became super popular (largely due to lucking out on release dates and utilizing popular fads), but also spelled doom for their respective genres.

That's a bit harsh, TBH.

Ultimately, I think it mostly depends on whether you prefer your RTS as more of an actual strategy game or rather a twitchy, apm multiplayer fun. I like(d) SC1 a lot, but definitely don't see it as a better game than TA, AoE2 or even Dark Reign. To me it's in the league of C&C, KKND, AoE1 or Dark Colony - good rts fun that I don't see much point in coming back to today.

Dark Colony's main allure was combination of purty visuals and XTREME BRÜTAL GÖRE, but it was extremely simplistic overall.
Dark Reign was cool in all its mechanical complexity, although it lacked SC's character. If it had as EPIC! storyline and distinctive sides of conflict as SC1 it would have rolled over it.

I guess where SC1 hit the spot was it being the "come for storyfaggotry, stay for multiplayer" kind of RTS.

 

[DraQ]

Mike Mornhaime and some other Blizzard veterans recently left and made Dreamhaven, which houses 2 new game studios: Moonshot Games and Secret Door. Then these guys, who worked mostly on SC2, left and made Frost Gaint to make a new RTS.
So there's still a chance that one of the Dreamhaven teams makes a Diablo like game.

Someone please fucking make this:
http://androidarts.com/diablo/diablo.htm#diabloesque