Kreation’s Edge

Finally beat this one today along with Army of Two: 40th day (this weekend). I thought Star Ocean was a pretty solid RPG. Added a short writeup below

Update:

Okay going to keep this one brief. No spoilers. Total playtime was around 50 hours (hard to be certain, I go afk alot)

Pros:

1. Really enjoyed developing my characters

2. The Combo system was quite clever. Really enjoyed maxing out the combo skill and allocating skills to consume my combo points

3. Really enjoyed the powers my characters learned

4. Really liked some of the eldarians

5. Fairly clever use of the party system. You can take the entire party with you on adventures. However only 4 people can be active at once. I actually preferred this system over Dragon Age Origins

6. Fun combat system with a bit of twitch in there. Was pretty fun

7. Game endings for party members was a nice touch’

8. I’ve read game has a final dungeon after you beta the game.

Cons:

1. Cannot select enemy mobs directly. I am very puzzled by this decision. This almost completely ruined a fun combat system for me.

2. Lymle or whatever her name was; she was a total pain. Really hated all of her lines. Maybe Japanese voices in the International version will improve this

3. I found the main character, Edge, somewhat highly annoying as well after mid way through the game. However, his character sort of at least rebounds again a few hours later

4. I love watching Anime. But really didn’t dig the anime art style at all

5. Long stretches between Save points later on in the game. I mean, for hours. That long of a stretch. Luckily, this was literally the last dungeon. But that was pain

6. Final boss fight (last stage) was just total too long winded. Took way too darn long. Just endless repetition. I really feel Bayonetta did a much better job with their boss fights. You really should only punish the player for not following the routine or making the wrong moves. But once they solve the puzzle, you proceed. Not so with this game. I dreaded the final boss cause I knew it would be pain. And it was. Almost was a deal breaker. Way too long winded

7. Cutscenes way were too long winded for my taste. Could’ve sworn they went 45 mins or so. And I LOVE cutscenes. In particular, it’s the cutscenes towards the end of the game that a bit long winded. Before that though, they were okay

RPG, Video Games

Spore is still a game many sandbox players are waiting for.

Star Wars: Force Unleashed looks like the game that will put Lucas Arts on the map as a leading first party developer of Star Wars content. I hope this game will have a lot of content be truly amazing….

Lost Odyssesy is almost upon us. I have this game preordered. What is interesting it sounds like you can learn skills from other characters you group with or from accesories.

Devil May Cry 4 is almost upon us. The demo seemed pretty fun I preordered this as well however I am baffled how I will find the time to play. I still have Bioshock sitting on my shelf! I need to try to find the time to get going on that game. I also have Assassin’s Creed collecting dust on my shelf…..

Burnout Paradise is a bundle of addictive fun. It’s pretty much a full blown sandbox in a way. Large, free roaming world with lots of races and challenges players can pursue. I did notice if you want to unlock cars, you have to play in single player mode. Online, you can only engage in events and races with other players. Very awesome game still should keep me busy

Played that new Conflict xbox360 demo with a friend this weekend and beat it.  Right now I have simply too many games on my plate to make room for it though

 Titan Quest is a game I picked up lately to play with a friend. It’s a Class based game with talent trees however, it uses a What-you-see-is-what-you-get looting system which is interesting (guess this was employed in Diablo but my memory fails me). Seems like an interesting game. Debating between whether I should play this or try to finish Dungeon Siege 2 or NWN 2.

Consoles, RPG burnout paradise, devil may cry, lost odyssesy, titan quest

Great definition of a Sandbox MMORPG:

“Sandbox is a style game where the objectives are not predefined by the developer, you are given a world with some minimal predefined rulesets and you make your own game in it. Like a childs sandbox, which is just a box of sand, the actual game comes from the childs imagination and doesn’t have a set objective such as Ludo for instance.”

Not every MMO abides by that definition below but some do to a degree. So I’ve listed them here.

Here is a list of Sandbox MMORPGs I’ve come across:

RealmLords is an Indie MMO that calls itself a ‘Half Sandbox’

Earthrise - Science Fiction MMORPG cast in the future. Warcry posted an interview with the CEO. From what I understand, their parent company is the same one that owns Warcry which I think is very cool

W.E.L.L. Online - Science Fiction MMORPG. There is also an unofficial international forum for it

Link Realms - Fantasy MMORPG that will allow players to create their own “realm”

Citadel of Sorcery is a sandbox type of hybrid I’ve just heard about

Mortal Online will be a full PVP MMO with no Levels and a dynamic world controlled by players

Fallen Earth will be a partial sandbox featuring a Classless system, exciting futuristic setting, and responsive combat

Infinity will be a full blown, space MMO

I think all 3 will use an open skill system. I find it interesting there are a lot of folks out there willing to take a chance on skill-based development.

There are also many other Sandboxes and games “close” to Sandbox. Here’s the List (add more if I’m missing some):

Saga of Ryzom - Skill-based MMORPG

Starport - Space, 2d MMO. Has full collision detection, aim/dodge, takeover planets, quests, no grinding for skills, etc. Very fun game!

DEICIDE Online - skill-based mmorpg (no Classes) and no Levels

Darkfall Online - was in development for a long time before finally releasing for online purchase. Features skill-based development, dodge, strafe, aim, full collision, own land, and total freedom. It’s pretty fun mmorpg from the bits I played where your player skill can contribute to winning encounters in PVP/PVE

Asheron’s Call 1 - realtime dodging and aim, skill-point system, etc

EVE Online - Time Based character advancement (similar to use based skill system) , deep crafting, politics, player owned world, salvaging, tough penalties for death, PVP, PVE. Very, very fun and looks great!

Ultima Online - This is Daddy, one of the first. The first Sandbox I know of. The Classic UO was skill-based, not heavily itemized (at least Classic UO, pre-Age of Shadows expansion), etc

Wurm Online - Open Sandbox, Skill-based RPG developed in Java. Very original work

Second Life - Pure Sandbox MMO

Jumpgate Evolution also looks pretty sweet. Not sure if it will be a Sandbox at all but at least it should be Classless…

Runescape is also a sandboxy MMORPG with skill-based gameplay instead of Classes

Global Agenda and SOE’s The Agency will probably try something new

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FPS MMORPG List:

Welkin4591

Neocron 2

Endless Ages

Huxley

WWII Online

10six

The Agency

Planetside

MMORTS List

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I’ve always been a fan of RTS since the early Starcraft days and probably a little before that due to the Total Annihilation stuff made by Chris Taylor. Anyway below is a list of Persistent Online RTS games. Will also add a partial multiplayer RTS list below it. I stress partial because there are so many its too much to track them all.

Persistent Online RTS List:

SpaceCiv

Celetania

Beyond Protocol

Saga by Sega

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Multiplayer RTS:

Command and Conquer series - yours truly worked on those

Sins of a Solar Empire

Company of Heroes

Supreme Commander

MMO, RPG MMORPG, RPG, sandbox

Been playing KuF: CoD with my bro still. On release day a Level 60 joined our party -and- get this, she leveled up. Apparently, there is not really a huge disparity between Veteran and Newbies in this game. Our party had level 10s for goodness sake. The RPG system is still very basic stuff. You level up and get points. However, its more of a skill-point system then a Traditional Level/Class system. Apparently, your avatar does not automatically grow stronger at level up but rather- the game let’s you allocate your skill points directly. I vastly prefer this type of system for coop RPGs because if my friend plays the game without me- I can still join up when I get time and still be an asset to the party.

They appear to softly ‘gate’ items. A lowbie can pickup a powerful weapon however, they just appear to use up a lot more SP (stamina) then they have. I like this- they appear to be discouraging newbies from using veteran weapons rather then outright disallowing them. There is no “Level based numbers” attached to items but rather they specify the minimum value of each attribute you must have in order to wield it.

They appear to have Class restrictions that restricts experimenting with different equipment. Typical stuff that we see in almost every single rpg, the warrior cannot pickup a bow, blah blah. One interesting thing, apparently spells are shared amongst the Classes. There does not appear to be a dedicated healer type. So, basically everyone appears to pursue learning Heal spells. I kinda like that element it makes characters a bit more diverse.

Character Custimization blows. I’m not sure what they were thinking I’ve seen much better custimization in single player RPGs. My bro and I look the exact same and apparently always will be (yes even with armor on). They let you put on little details to distinguish yourselves though so I put on a hat.

Advancement!, RPG kingdom under fire, skill-point system

Still playing Monster Hunter at the moment. It’s a pretty interesting title. It’s not really an open world like I expected but rather you start out in a town and acquire Quests from the town Mayor (at least all the way past Quest Level 1).

It would almost qualify as a sandbox title if it had free roaming because everything else screams sandbox. It is indeed WYSIWYG Loot. Dinosaurs and other creatures consistently drop bones that you can give to an NPC crafter to create new armor and weapons for you. The game also teaches you how to fish, cook, and hunt prey. It plays like a survival RPG of sorts. From what I understand, there is no end to the game at all.

I do not have a PS2 networking adapter atm. Might be difficult to track down one. I am hesistant should I invest into a PS2 networking adapter at this late juncture.

Consoles, RPG, Video Games Monster Hunter

Was browing the forums today when someone mentioned Monster Hunter has a Logical Loot system whereas killing a monster merely drops raw materials that can be used to craft items. I have heard of this game before but never took the time to play. Additionally, it can be played in Multiplayer on the Playstation 2. Needless to say, I’m sold. I’ll be buying this shortly.

Unlike Elder Scrolls Oblivion however, Monster Hunter does not really feature WYISWYG Loot (what you see is what you get) because apparently I suppose you dont kill humaniods for items. Still, I’m pretty stoked for this one.

Consoles, RPG, Video Games Logical Loot, Loot, Monster Hunter, WYSIWYG

I had a “zen” moment earlier while discussing Logical Loot with other players at mmorpg.com. I gave them an illustration from Elder Scrolls Oblivion (TES: Oblivion) whereas because you get to loot-what-you-see it makes being a Theif character very interesting. If you see a Guard or Soldier wearing some loot you really want, you might decide its worth risking the local authorities to acquire it. To an extent, TES: Oblivion has Tactical Transparency- we see the soldiers wearing the items we want. On the other hand, it is missing Tactical Transparency. There have been times a Guard has mysteriously popped up after I’ve done my foul deeds to arrest me. What would have been more realistic is only have a Guard single me out if they see me do the deed. Yeah I know there is a mod that fixes this issue but I never bothered….

Game Design, RPG item loot systems, Logical Looting, WYSIWYG

I’ve been sifting through all of Raph’s works on his site. Just got done reading his work on Do Levels Suck?

Anyway this post by Raph really caught my eye:

At this point, I prefer not having a skill cap. Instead, I’d prefer that you can master everything, but kind of like Guild Wars, can only take a given “load-out” with you when you go adventuring, probably curtailed based on limited equipment and inventory.

I just wrote about this topic a few days ago how a player can learn an infinite number of abilities but what makes combat simple for them is binding their abilities by a ‘constraint’. In EVE Online this is a ship. In FPS games the constraints may be your guns and current loadout. The player could literally have knowledge of thousands of skills such as dagger wielding, Tank driving, flying stealth bombers, etc but his current set of abilities are bound by the current constraints

 The advantage of this system is that we accomplish:

• Interdependency. Players can possibly specialize in a specific loadout and become relied on for their current specialization
• We achieve a bit of Tactical Transparency in both PVE/PVP. At the sametime, we can still have a bit of “Hidden Potential”
• We achieve the benefits of “Classes” however we avoid the negatives (like being permenantly pigeon holed)
• One character knows all- like we see in FPS games

Guild Wars sort of does all of this but the skills are permenantly unlocked per account for PVP characters

Advancement!, Game Design, RPG Linear Progression, No Levels, skill-based progression, Skill-based RPG

Just came across a good article about WYSIWYG Loot or what I sometimes call, “Logical Loot”. If you adore Sandbox games like me then also want certain things to make sense. Not everything, but certain things that can help immerse you into the world. Quite simply- I want to loot the items I see a creature wearing. For example, if I see an Orc wearing chainmail and wielding an axe I would like to be able to loot these items.

Other night was playing KUF: Circle of Doom on my xbox 360 and was disappointed yet another RPG followed tradition and used another illogical loot system. Sigh….

 One thing the article forgot to mention was list all the titles using Logical Loot. These titles are Titan Quest, Elder Scrolls Oblivion, Saga of Ryzom, EVE Online, Two Worlds, and Titan Quest. I love action RPGs so much I want to see more complexity and sandbox happening….

Game Design, RPG item loot systems, Logical Loot, RPG, WYISWYG Loot

KUF: Circle of Doom was just released on Xbox live. I’ll probably buy it. The demo is fun. It feels like  a typical korean RPG and it even blatantly feels very linear. Like, way more linear then Final Fantasy 12 so far. But what I like is the action and character control.

 The management of SP is interesting. The more you swing, the more you fatigue. Run out of SP and you cant even attack. Really brutal. Feels like an RPG jacked up on hardmode kinda. You might even venture into an area that has these monsters that wll drain all of your SP. Brutal. It’s a bit of overkill there.

It appears you grind up XP and when you level up you get more points you can distribute to your attributes. Too bad there is no mixture of skill-based elements. Reading the interviews it appears the developer wants to focus on getting more fans attracted to the KUF universe so they tried to keep level up fairly simple. The action is what appears to be a lot more complex however.

 Almost forgot- this title will be multiplayer! Yes I think up to 4 players will be allowed. Yay! So that alone should help make it worth purchasing. Below is a youtube movie of the multiplayer action on xbox live

Consoles, RPG