Know Of Any D&D Games Being Developed?

[reus]

Pool of Radiance is another D&D style game, is already out and you can try it out from: www.trymedia.com or you can buy it at your local retail shop.

Personally I hadn't try it, it isn't my apple for my eyes, but you can give it a shot, you can only lose time.

[newc0253]

Originally posted by reus

Personally I hadn't try it, it isn't my apple for my eyes, but you can give it a shot, you can only lose time.

yes. playing pool of radiance is several hours of your life that you can never get back.

[reus]

Well, we already losing time playing this game ne way? Actually is the only game I know is using D20 system, I'm not really into this kind of games although I like them very much.

[kellinjar]

Both pools of radiance ruins of myth drannor and Icewind dale 2 use d20 sort of. They don't implement the rules as fully as ToEE does

[Grumbold1]

With the combat speed mod to make battles move at a decent speed PoR:RoMD is just a big hackfest. Personally I found it no worse than IWD2 for endless fighting with minimal plot.

[newc0253]

Originally posted by reus
Well, we already losing time playing this game ne way?

yes, but at least playing a good game you feel like you're getting something back.

re another poster's point about IWD2: it had a plot. not a great plot, but one that moved you from point A to point B. unlike IWD1 which felt like an unfolding mystery, the plot in IWD2 was like a railroad: you find out relatively early on who the main villains are, and pretty much nothing happens in between to make the villains or the final conflict any more interesting.

[taks]

Originally posted by newc0253
yes. playing pool of radiance is several hours of your life that you can never get back.

to say the least... that doesn't even count the subsequent suicide attempts you'll make after watching a dozen zombies rabidly attack your party... for a few hours or so.

stay away from por2: romd.

www.goldenland-rpg.com

it's supposed to be out (english/european versions) within the month including (as some have read it) the expansion called Cold Heaven. it sold well in russia, well enough to merit international release, though i'm always skeptical of russian translations (typically as bad as japanese translations). we shall see.

taks

[Grumbold1]

Originally posted by taks
to say the least... that doesn't even count the subsequent suicide attempts you'll make after watching a dozen zombies rabidly attack your party... for a few hours or so.

The speed mod totally eliminated that. Zombies would move like greyhounds on amphetamines if you wanted to crank it up that fast.

[Grok]

I know of several D&D titles in development...

Grok

[akridian]

*grok places worm on hok and drops line in water*

ok grok. i'll be the first fish to bite. what, if anything, can you tell us?
what are the titles?
who are they by?
when can we expect to hear something official?


if they are by atari/troika then it doesn't really matter until they finish ToEE. even if they make a game right next time. i wont be buying anything if they don't fix this mess.

[Grok]

Thank you for taking my rather obvious bait!

I expect to have an official announcement about the first title out in the next week or two. However, this is a console game and very unlike Temple, NWN, BG, etc. That said, it is absolutely fantastic -- so if you own a PS2 or Xbox you'll want ot keep an eye out for this one.

We'll also be announcing a new D&D title in May. Solid developer but not a RPG. More details to come then.

D&D Online -- this one has been announced and is being handled by the fine folks at Turbine. We'll be showing this game off for the first time in August of this year in Mexico!

There are however, two tentative annoucements we're planning for E3 that should be very big and just what you folks are looking for. I'm a big RPG geek myself and I'm excited...so that tells you something.

We've also got some new NWN stuff in the works that should be pretty cool.

So, lots of D&D goodness in the future.

Grok

[magerette]

Originally posted by Grok
Thank you for taking my rather obvious bait!...

We'll also be announcing a new D&D title in May. Solid developer but not a RPG. More details to come then....

There are however, two tentative annoucements we're planning for E3 that should be very big and just what you folks are looking for. I'm a big RPG geek myself and I'm excited...so that tells you something...
So, lots of D&D goodness in the future.

Grok

Thanks for the information, Grok. It's been a long long time since anyone from Atari talked to us.

Two questions:

What kind of game is d&d but not an RPG?

Are your E3 announcements also console only or is there perhaps a pc title in there somewhere?

And once again thanks for joining us.

[akridian]

thanks grok for that bit of info. much appreciated.

hmm. a D&D title that is NOT an rpg? should be interesting. i have associated D&D with RPG for so long that it almost sounds like an oxymoron. lol. *eagerly awaiting may*

console game? oh well. i can't win them all. lol. i don't own a ps2 or an xbox. oh well. cool for those that do.

D&D online: i checked it out and i have to say i was immediately turned off just because they are not implementing all the normal races. that alone kinda tells me to be standoffish for some reason.

E3: when is this taking place? that is, when can i hope to hear more about this? *i should probably do a search online to see if they got a website. sure they do*
"big rpg geek"? yea i resemble that remark

NWN: more stuff? cool. we always like more just wish i could get it to run on my laptop

"So, lots of D&D goodness in the future." now that is something i like to hear


*edit*
i checked up on this and for those of you that don't know and are wondering the same as i was about the E3 expo, here is what i found out:
E3 2004
Los Angeles Convention Center
Exposition: May 12-14, 2004
Conference: May 11-13, 2004

[kellinjar]

I'm also a little put off by this statement of 'its D&D but not RPG'...
D&D pretty much IS RPG as far as most folks are concerned..even if they don't play it now, they played it at some point (or the RPG they do play is heavily influenced by D&D). Perhaps what you meant to say is that it takes place in the D&D multiverse but isn't specifically a Roleplaying game? perhaps its a hack n slash similar to diablo? or uhm.. i'm not sure where else you could go with this..
maybe an RTS?

[ordinaryjones]

I think it means the title will be used to boost sales.

[Grok]

Some clarification:

The non-RPG game is very much a D&D game...it's just not a RPG (role-playing game). If I tell you what it is, then I'll lessen the impact of the announcement when we make it. It will be PC only.

As a franchise, D&D titles remain predominantly PC, but we are certainly trying to push more of them to console where it makes sense.

We've certainly considered hack-n-slash titles like Diablo, but it's tough to compete with the king -- I still play it occasionally to this day. Not to mention, we're not terribly interested in developing "me too" products.

We're working on new things for the already existing NWN and, of course...oh I better shut up. ;-)

Grok

[kellinjar]

Grok are you working on a console adaptation of the Miniatures system?
It would be interesting I suppose and remain very D&D like.

[akridian]

Originally posted by kellinjar
Grok are you working on a console adaptation of the Miniatures system?
It would be interesting I suppose and remain very D&D like.

oh now THAT would be cool! would kinda in a way sorta be similar to the combat system that was used in "shinning force" maybe?

hehe. kinda, in a way, sorta, maybe.

no wait. you said CONSOLE. ugh. i don't own [and can't afford] a console system

[Volourn]

Grok, as the resident BIO "fanboy" (one who rates the OC the ultra high 75% ); what do you think of the chances of Atari and BIO working on another D&D title together and this incldues any possible NWN expansions? Need more...

[Hell's Puppet]

Hey Grok - What are the chances of a new module being implemented using the ToEE engine? I love the ToEE implentation of the DnD rules. With a patch to the engine to clear up the bugs, and a new module Atari you would certainly get my money. Couldn't be that expensive for them either.

[gygaxian]

D&D miniatures online battlegrounds would be cool.
It's definitely D&D without the RP.

[scrivener]

Thanks for the news Grok... now for some cynicism:
1) D&D + console = not interested. I got rid of my PS2 and Cube, my XBox stays around for DVDs and the occassional tsunami of nostaligia (Read: Ninja Gaiden). When D&D and console is combined you get steaming piles of Gauntlet-clone crap. That is... not fun.
2) Non RPG D&D - It looks like every D&D being developed these days in non-RPG. Just look at all the console crap being marketted as D&D. That being said I see this as falling into one of two categories - Action or RTS. I hope to GOD its not an RTS since I know Atari will try to copy to WarCrap3 to 'reach the widest (read: dumbest) audience possible.' If it's an action game it had better be a damn good one... look at Enclave or the (currently in development) Conan for inspiratation. Oh yeah, and it had better have blood, guts, and suggestive themes or I'm out.
3) D&D Online - MMORPGs are NOT RPGs... therefore... not interested. Besides the market is saturated with this junk. Turbine had it right when they first released Asherons Call but AC2 proved that even they can screw it up and turn a good thing into an 'accessible' pile of crap... therefore... not interested.
4) Bard's Tale - Maybe you havnt heard. This isnt an RPG either... its an 'action/adventure' hacknslash... and they're using the Deadly Alliance engine... and it's only coming out for XBox this year... PC gamers wont get it till Q1 2005. As if PC gamers arent getting screwed enough those guys keep going deeper.

What I want to hear: English language Gothic 2 expansion, Night of the Raven, is finally being released. Fallout 3 has been picked up by Atari and is to be completed by Troika.

[Joelf847]

Grok, I hope when you say the first demo of D&D online will be in August and in Mexico, you also mean to say that shortly thereafter Aug 19-22 it will have a major demo at Gen Con Indy. I'll be there (along with 25,000 other gamers) and will want to check it out.

As for non-RPG D&D it doesn't have to be D&D miniatures, it could be any strategy type game (though I hope a turn based one, not a RTS). A well done D&D strategy game would be a lot of fun. A crappy strategy game that had the name D&D slapped on it would be a major dissapointment (anyone remember the Birth of the Federation Star Trek strategy game?)

JoelF

[kellinjar]

Thats what miniatures is. Perhaps all of you don't know what I'm referring to (you may not unless you actually play D&D) Wizards of the coast released a sort of hack n slash companion to D&D that has alot of uses.
THey release alot of miniatures in booster style packs (with commons, uncommons and rares) These miniatures are the perfect size to use for this miniature game or for your regular D&D session if you like to use miniatures (this is GOOD). They also release dungeon maps and scenarios. The scenarios sort of list what monsters should be in the dungeon and what heroes you get to try and go through it with..
In addition to these scenarios you can create battles with friends and each miniature has an assigned point value (similar to warhammer 40k)
Each army has xxx amount of points and you can pick and choose your monsters (Dependent on the 'leaders') to fight on your side.

Interesting concept, perhaps for anyone with money to burn (alot of people know how expensive warhammer 40k was, with armies costing upwards of 2000+ to make them any good) I think WoTC is going to try and keep the price down (already gouging people on magic cards)

While this is a hack n slash type D&D game, it is actually not a bad thing (I hate hack n slash, but this was actually a good idea) The reason being because of the compatibility of hte miniatures. THey're perfect size for standard miniatures..so they can be used interchangeably..(which makes it easy for you to get miniatures for your games)
Personally I'd like to go back to seeing Ral Partha make miniatures.. but then there was all that lead poisoning... so we don't always get what we want. As far as I'm concerned this would actually be perfect on console. T he rules are already streamlined (basically the same, but there is alot of simplification to make the battles run really smooth and quick) there is no need for fancy stories, and there is lot of opportunity to have flashy graphics. Were THIS to be made for a console game I would actually consider buying a console to play it... anything else..forget it (atari pay attention)

[akridian]

Originally posted by scrivener
Oh yeah, and it had better have blood, guts, and suggestive themes or I'm out.

got issues?

[magerette]

I'd like to echo the on RTS dnd--i think one of the reasons ToEE was so addictive in spite of it's o-so-numerous problems was it's turn-based combat style. If Troika/Atari did nothing else right, they did make a good judgment on making this game turn-based single player.

A turn-based strategy game set in the world of DnD could be very very good. Another RTS is just bloating an already swollen market of borderline games.

Action could be okay, but that's a very difficult area in which to break any new ground...

ah, well, i spose we pc gamers should be grateful for whatever crumbs are thrown our way these days. For those with consoles, i defend your right to have and enjoy them--i just wish pc games could get the backing from publishers and developers that they once had.

[Grok]

Some interesting ideas here...hmmm.

So, you all do realize that just because we make a RTS or a FPS or whatever...doesn't mean we're not going to make more RPGs right?

D&D's strength remains the RPG experience and we recognize that - however we want to expand it into other realms as well. The more people that we help get into D&D the more people we'll have looking at our next major D&D RPG. The more sales of that RPG = more opportunities for the development of more RPGs. Then everyone else will want to jump on the bandwagon and that's even more RPGs! It boggles my mind!

Grok

[scrivener]

Yeah, you have a good point Grok. Still, I wish publishers/developers would start making games for the hardcore again. A lot of people were irked about TOEE shipping with a T rating (As I understand it that was Hasbros fault) and we havnt seen a gritty realistic RPG since Fallout 2. Thats a long time to have gone without being thrown a bone. Arx Fatalis and Gothic 2 got pretty damn close, though... and I'd LOVE to see more games like those.

[Joelf847]

Kellinjar,

I do know what D&D Miniatures is, and overall am not impressed. It has the feeling of D&D Lite to me, and while the miniatures themselves look great, I'd much rather buy exactly the ones I want, instead of random booster packs. That would enable me to use them better in my PnP D&D games.

As for a computer game D&D miniatures, yes, that would be a D&D strategy game, but it is not the only kind of strategy game possible for D&D. I would rather something that had more options for building and diplomacy, instead of just the battles....more like Civilization or Heroes of Might and Magic.

JoelF

[kellinjar]

well once you get into building and diplomacy you've left the realm of straight strategy, and you're just moving into something different.
Civ style games could potentially be called strategy games, but very few of the RTS games actually involve any strategy. Maybe on paper it looks good, but we all know its about the tank rush (or equivalent unit) in most RTS games.
Strategy rarely wins out in those games (strategy rarely wins out in any game that features real time combat, since its so hard to manage so many units its easier to just build hordes and attack)

Civ games are okay... but other then borrowing the universe how would it really relate to D&D? You wouldn't be using the actual rule set for something that large it would be too cumbersome.

To go only strategy with no RPG I think a miniatures style game (turn based) would be the only thing that would even feel like D&D ....otherwise it would just be some odd game borrowing the D&D name for no other reason then to put it on it.

Odd analogy but if any of the female gamers (perhaps a little more experienced ones) or older gamers with wives/girlfriends may know of an old movie called Dirty Dancing. When I was younger my mother loved that movie, and I noticed in my weekly browsing of the apple trailer site that there was a new dirty dancing movie coming out. (this was couple months back when the trailer first appeared) Mentioned it to my mother, but when the trailer was viewed, it was immediately known that it was going to be a HUGE let down.
The movie had nothing to do wtih the original (other then to feature dancing) The only reason they slapped the dirty dancing label on it was because they were hoping it would give it some exposure. However every female I've talked to has uttered things like 'It won't be the Same without Patrik (swayze)' or 'He doesn't even have any muscles' (in reference to the male lead)

So in my mind if they made an RTS (base building unit hording style, like WC3) or a Civ style game it just would be pointless... All you're doing is taking the D&D name for no reason.. you're borrowing a known universe to make a game that has nothing to do with its roots.
Just make the game, make it good, make it fantasy if you want, but don't slap the D&D logo on it to sell units when it has nothing to do with it.

This goes for any well established license. It would be like if suddenly they released an Age of Mythology FPS... why?
it would make no sense and even if it was a decent game, why make it age of mythology there is no real game play benefit to do that (the only benefit is a marketing stand point)