KickStarter Swordhaven: Iron Conspiracy - BG1-inspired low fantasy RPG from the ATOM TEAM - now available on Early Access

[biffthestiff]

Making something from the ground up, even if it's like a spoon or something, can take a day! That being said, not a lot of what features in our presentation are assets. We made a lot of our own models for everything and where we use stock, we never use it out of the box, unless it's a placeholder, we always customize it in some ways. It's not even 50\50, more like 75\generic assets in some locations. But that's the thing, since we are going for a realistic style on a realistic planet with realistic lighting and mostly realistic people and animals, how can you tell? Unless you somehow google reverse search an asset and find out it was made by our very own studio and not bought, you won't know that. So that's just a fact of life we live in. Some folks find out we're using unity and call it an asset flip, much like Atom gets called a carbon copy of Fallout with nothing new, etc. It's just part and parcel. Hopefully others will feel the soul and craft behind it tho! There's a plenty!

When I said "generic" I wasn't referring to "self-made vs bought in an asset store", as a gamer I don't care about where your graphics come from. I certainly don't play enough games to recognize assets. It's the setting I was complaining about. Like, why not an Arabian desert with their monsters and mythology? That would show me new things (even if you buy those assets)? I feel like if I play your game I'm gonna roaming the forest and rural farmland killing spiders, goblins, and bandits. So it's hard to get excited. I would unironically prefer AI-generated 2D sprites showing an original setting.

Of course, that's just my opinion, other people may (probably) disagree.

I would definitely be more interested in this kind of images. Imagine a caravan traveling the desert when some dark magic has started to corrupt the land.

(I just made him in StableDiffusion, ignore the 6-pack, I just used the waifu model I already had loaded)

 

[Atomboy]

Making something from the ground up, even if it's like a spoon or something, can take a day! That being said, not a lot of what features in our presentation are assets. We made a lot of our own models for everything and where we use stock, we never use it out of the box, unless it's a placeholder, we always customize it in some ways. It's not even 50\50, more like 75\generic assets in some locations. But that's the thing, since we are going for a realistic style on a realistic planet with realistic lighting and mostly realistic people and animals, how can you tell? Unless you somehow google reverse search an asset and find out it was made by our very own studio and not bought, you won't know that. So that's just a fact of life we live in. Some folks find out we're using unity and call it an asset flip, much like Atom gets called a carbon copy of Fallout with nothing new, etc. It's just part and parcel. Hopefully others will feel the soul and craft behind it tho! There's a plenty!

When I said "generic" I wasn't referring to "self-made vs bought in an asset store", as a gamer I don't care about where your graphics come from. I certainly don't play enough games to recognize assets. It's the setting I was complaining about. Like, why not an Arabian desert with their monsters and mythology? That would show me new things (even if you buy those assets)? I feel like if I play your game I'm gonna roaming the forest and rural farmland killing spiders, goblins, and bandits. So it's hard to get excited. I would unironically prefer AI-generated 2D sprites showing an original setting.

Of course, that's just my opinion, other people may (probably) disagree.

I would definitely be more interested in this kind of images. Imagine a caravan traveling the desert when some dark magic has started to corrupt the land.

(I just made him in StableDiffusion, ignore the 6-pack, I just used the waifu model I already had loaded)

Hey, that's also a valid opinion. We just don't really think about sticking out with originality. We always liked the idea of a European styled, BG-resembling setting. Was it done to death? Sure! But there's a reason for it - it's imprinted on a lot of folks, like us for example, while more cool and more original settings like the East just don't click with us. Sure, if it was just for the money, we'd look for ways to stick out. We're mostly going with what we wanna play ourselves. There will always be "why couldn't you be more original" crowds, and also "why couldn't you be more grounded" crowds, to which I once felt like I belonged, hating Morrowind of all things when it just came out (and learning how silly I was after a proper playthrough). Trying to please one or the other is useless, so just make what you want! That's sort of a motto for us you could say.

 

[Viata]

But there's a reason for it

Video game designers don't like to try something different. Just like publishers, they go for what sells.

 

[std::namespace]

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[std::namespace]

change flower texture

 

[Mortmal]

It looks far too generic, and that screenshot... Please, no, no, no, not another "kill x rats" quest, please. If you want to create another generic fantasy RPG, it has to be exceptionally well done, or it won't sell at all. Everything I see so far is ultra-generic and bland, and it's better to tell you this before you get too far into it. Of course, RPGCodex is a very easy-going and friendly environment for developers and might give a false sense of security. I doubt such a game would encounter any commercial success. Maybe I'm wrong, maybe it's grimdark and adult, maybe there are lots of morally ambiguous choices like in Fallout, but I don't get that feeling right now.

 

[Viata]

Please, no, no, no, not another "kill x rats" quest, please.

You need to understand, it's imprinted on a lot of folks. You can't make a medieval setting without quests about killing rats, doing something else doesn't click with us.

 

[Moink]

I'm personally pro-rat quests.

 

[Tyranicon]

Of course, RPGCodex is a very easy-going and friendly environment for developers and might give a false sense of security.

 

[Quillon]

Hey, I don't even know how to change topic names, so it was the choice of the guy who named it! We're still low-fantasy. Too late to change that and make mages.

I've checked the steam page also before posting, no low-fantasy detected

So no mages!?

 

[notpl]

yyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

First screenshot I've been interested in.

 

[notpl]

Literally the entire time I was playing the opening act of Baldur's Gate 3 I was thinking "please god just let me walk into a tavern and get a quest to kill rats or something." I never want to do anything "epic" in a video game again.

 

[Viata]

I hate doing "epic" shit in RPGs. Way tired of saving the world again and again. Just give me simple stuff. Getting into some dungeon to get some gold, someone heard this old house is haunted, maybe we should go see if it's really haunted, etc. No save the world bullshit, just a bunch of niggas doing some fun adventure, wasting all that gold in some tavern drinking til kingdom come.

 

[std::namespace]

I never want to do anything "epic" in a video game again.

oh you are in for a surprise: the rat is named

they should have been badgers at least...

 

[Tenebris]

I wish the whole "hero's journey" narrative wasn't so reviled by most writers. Instead we've been getting stories where your character is almost immediately thrown right into the epic garbage.

 

[Serious_Business]

I wish the whole "hero's journey" narrative wasn't so reviled by most writers. Instead we've been getting stories where your character is almost immediately thrown right into the epic garbage.

A progression towards epic garbâge is what we desire then, sire

For me, the important part is gabâge. TRASH. How much are getting of it, and how much can I just fill down my fucking orifices, in order to fill to void, as they say

 

[Mr. Magniloquent]

I'd like more classic myth and legend tropes in fantasy RPGs. They've kind of taken a life of their own, become self-referential, and lost the heritage. How about proving you are true of heart to wield the beast slaying sword? Navigate through the enchanted forest? Discover the assassin at the ball before midnight strikes and your enchanted disguise fades. Discover the true name of the fiend. Break a curse. Save a princess. Find a unicorn to cure a poison. This kind of stuff. Nowhere is that found in "standard" medieval fantasy anymore. That timeless stuff that made it charming.

 

[Justinian]

I wished they had take inspiration from Icewind Dale or even Temple of Elemental Evil. I miss modern RPGs (non-wizardry clones) allowing me to create my own party.

ToE and especially IWD will always be among the games I constantly replay, so there will be some inspiration from that, no doubt about it. I think I already posted this here years ago, I'd love to be the one to bring full party creation back into the spotlight in traiditonal RPGs, and this was discussed when planning SH, however it was considered too risky for our singular current project. Guess more people just prefer partners with personal stories and would get alienated.

Do both, like adventurers in PoE (just don't make them one level below your player for no fucking reason). Even in BG2 I would play multiplayer on my own so I could at least add another player made character.

 

[flushfire]

If I saw this kind of art direction in a CRPG I'd probably lose interest before even seeing gameplay. Don't get me wrong, in a metroidvania or visual novel I'd probably think its fine, even great. But for a CRPG I'd rather buy the "generic" looking one.

 

[Serus]

Hey, I don't even know how to change topic names, so it was the choice of the guy who named it! We're still low-fantasy. Too late to change that and make mages.

You could always go Battle Brothers'/Darklands'/Conan's way.

What is the Conan way? You mean books, as in sword & sorcery genre? Battle Brothers are like that but Darklands did it differently. You do have "mages" there, their magic is just integrated with lore very well and is relatively weak - but the player has access to it.

Anyway, really low fantasy is great. There is so little of that. Atomboy - keep it up.

 

[Maxie]

puttin 'iron conspiracy' right there in the title is what Tyranicon is allowed to do in his porn parodies, a company aspiring to release original ass games being this on the nose is just debilitatingly churlish

 

[ERYFKRAD]

What is the Conan way?

1000% offense. Occasionally position your back to a wall.

 

[roguefrog]

BG1 was the game that got me into CRPGs (although I wish it was Fallout which I played soon after), so I'm very interested in this one. I liked ATOM RPG well enough. It didn't blow me away though. Funny how on-the-nose it is about being inspired by BG1 specifically. They were like fuckit, let's just put Iron conspiracy in the name. Show some rats, wilderness areas...

 

[Serus]

What is the Conan way?

1000% offense. Occasionally position your back to a wall.

When you are at it, sometimes running with a half-naked hot chic over the shoulder:

 

[Harthwain]

What is the Conan way? You mean books, as in sword & sorcery genre? Battle Brothers are like that but Darklands did it differently. You do have "mages" there, their magic is just integrated with lore very well and is relatively weak - but the player has access to it.

In Conan (yes, the books) magic is either "magic" (special dust, for example) or is wielded by someone other than the main character (mostly enemies, sometimes allies) and genuine magicians are not common encounters.