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Author Topic: CSG update #3 - systems overview  (Read 29410 times)
Dewey_Master
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« Reply #15 on: March 17, 2016, 10:16:44 am »

I agree that story- or narrative-related decisions shouldn't require skill checks.

"Skill check" basically meant "non-combat". Surely C&C suggests that different approaches should have different consequences. Otherwise, we only have choice and no ultimate consequences. It's fine for some choices to just be different ways of accomplishing the same quest, but the most memorable moments of AoD were when the nature of the quest itself was radically altered.

Had the final act of AoD included a final faction quest for each main storyline (with the temple more restricted as a "secret ending"), then narrative choices like the First Sword for IG or the Inquisition for AG could have had radical consequences.

On the flip side of those examples, a MG outcome could have been locked behind a mandatory combat. In fact, combat choices are skill-dependent though not skill checked. If that's the only point you're making, that non-combat should be skill-dependent but not skill checked, I'm totally with you. But character skill should still constrain some narrative possibilities.
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DeN DarK
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« Reply #16 on: March 23, 2016, 07:50:20 am »

I think we’ll need 5 years now that everyone’s working full time and has 10 years of experience.

Great ideas and I'm exited but... 5 years is a long time. What about money?
Is AoD was profitable enough for this or future of game depend on crawler success?
 
I, myself, don't have problem with time, AoD was worth it and sure Colony Ship RPG will be too. )
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Vince
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« Reply #17 on: March 23, 2016, 09:07:17 am »

When it comes to games like AoD (or the CSG), there are two sales outcomes: poor and abysmally poor.  Basically, anything that isn't abysmally poor can be considered a smashing success and from this perspective we had a very successful launch. Is it enough to cover a 5-year development stretch? It's not but inspired by dodging the 'abysmally poor' fate of many indies, we're going to try anyway and see what happens.

We hope that AoD will keep selling something for a couple of years (to cover the basic expenses) and we hope that the dungeon crawler will be well received (i.e. won't sell abysmally poor) and that somehow we'll make it to the finish line. However, expanding the team is out of the question for now.
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galsiah
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« Reply #18 on: March 27, 2016, 08:32:19 pm »

Interesting stuff.
Just wanted to mention The Book of the Long Sun, as a potential source of ideas/inspiration.
(click to show/hide)
It's also just a great book (or 4). If this has been mentioned 9 times already, please excuse me for being behind the curve.
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Mfin
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« Reply #19 on: March 28, 2016, 01:22:29 pm »

That's the first thing I thought of when I heard about the csg.. the way that series is linked to the new sun books would make some sense for the csg if it was going to be linked to aod. I think I prefer a new setting, though.
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The_Arbitor
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« Reply #20 on: March 30, 2016, 05:17:14 am »

Already excited for this!
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DeN DarK
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« Reply #21 on: April 05, 2016, 01:12:09 pm »

When it comes to games like AoD (or the CSG), there are two sales outcomes: poor and abysmally poor.  Basically, anything that isn't abysmally poor can be considered a smashing success and from this perspective we had a very successful launch. Is it enough to cover a 5-year development stretch? It's not but inspired by dodging the 'abysmally poor' fate of many indies, we're going to try anyway and see what happens.

We hope that AoD will keep selling something for a couple of years (to cover the basic expenses) and we hope that the dungeon crawler will be well received (i.e. won't sell abysmally poor) and that somehow we'll make it to the finish line. However, expanding the team is out of the question for now.

And it is sad that poor equal success. Shame that much modern RPGs is so far away from AoD in terms of quality and so far ahead in terms of profit. It is like art vs soup opera.
Already AoD is example and maybe it will be inspiration to other groups to make something worthy.
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Captain Shrek
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« Reply #22 on: April 08, 2016, 04:55:10 pm »

To that I have only pessimism to add. The industry standard for non-casual is a shit game like Dark Souls. The standard for C&C is Mass Effect. The standard for turn-based combat is final fantasy. In this world a AoD is a diamond, in the rough.
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« Reply #23 on: September 28, 2016, 05:55:23 am »

Not generally the biggest fan of use-to-improve skills, but dig the other changes I'm hearing, particularly the improvements to dialogue and the feats.

Generally, the biggest weakness of purely skill-based character systems is they often feel like you make most of the interesting decisions about your character up front. If you pick sword, block and alchemy, leveling up is merely a case of funneling more points into those. Ideally, I want to continue to make interesting choices to develop my character all throughout the game. So yeah, good stuff.
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Lurker King
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« Reply #24 on: September 28, 2016, 07:40:26 am »

The industry standard for non-casual is a shit game like Dark Souls. The standard for C&C is Mass Effect. The standard for turn-based combat is final fantasy. In this world a AoD is a diamond, in the rough.

 Salute
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Sotnik
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« Reply #25 on: April 05, 2017, 07:23:59 am »

RPGs approach the concepts of time and distance different ways. How will this be managed in CSG?

In AoD chapters ended with respective story consequances as you moved to another city. In some games travels between locations require resources. Sometimes if you do too much travel or rest too often this affects current quests up to a failure and triggers new events. In special cases you have limited time to finish the main quest (Fallout 1, the first chapter of Tyranny). Many games feature dangerous and harmless encounters during travels or rest. And some RPGs totally ignore the concepts.
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Vince
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« Reply #26 on: April 05, 2017, 12:51:27 pm »

RPGs approach the concepts of time and distance different ways. How will this be managed in CSG?
A ship, even a giant one, is much smaller than a typical RPG land, so we aren't planning anything special. The locations are interconnected, so for example, to get to the Habitat you need to cross either the Factory or Hydroponics. So traveling and exploring are one and the same in the game.
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Sotnik
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« Reply #27 on: April 14, 2017, 01:19:55 pm »

RPGs approach the concepts of time and distance different ways. How will this be managed in CSG?
A ship, even a giant one, is much smaller than a typical RPG land, so we aren't planning anything special. The locations are interconnected, so for example, to get to the Habitat you need to cross either the Factory or Hydroponics. So traveling and exploring are one and the same in the game.
Will new threats (enemies, traps, environmental threats) be spawning after the character passes a location for the first time? Will there be fast travels?
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Vince
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« Reply #28 on: April 14, 2017, 02:24:11 pm »

Fast travel - sure, after you "discover" a new location you, you'll be able to travel there instantly. I'm not a big fan of forcing the player to go back and forth over several maps.

Spawning new threats - if the key word is spawning, then definitely not. If you're asking if things might change as a result of your actions, then yes.
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Stellavore
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« Reply #29 on: April 14, 2017, 08:47:38 pm »


Are you doing anything to combat the need to "save scum"? Or is that not percieved as a problem?
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