News from the 'Net From our Internet Reporter, Alex van Kaam - Altered World - Interviews - Return to Krondor website - Thief the dark project - Drakan preview - UO, one year after - System Shock 2 - New Issue of EverQuest Express - The Highlands - The Mystic Realms of Alhanzar - Plastic Angel - Lord of the Rings (movie) - KK 8 Patch - Baldur's Gate goes Gold - UnReal tournament screenshot - Heretic II - Altered World - Interviews @~Altered World has some good interviews up, here are just a few: Drakan http://www.voodooextreme.com/Alteredworlds/interviews/Drakan.htm Unknown: Quest for the golden dragon http://www.voodooextreme.com/Alteredworlds/interviews/Unknown.htm Gothic http://www.voodooextreme.com/Alteredworlds/interviews/Gothic.htm The Longest Journey http://www.voodooextreme.com/Alteredworlds/interviews/ Longest%20Journey.htm Return to Krondor http://www.voodooextreme.com/Alteredworlds/reviews/rtk/rtk.htm - Return to Krondor website @~Sierra Studios have a nice webpage about Return to Krondor at @~http://www.sierrastudios.com/games/krondor/ where you can get @~your updates, screenshots and lots of other goodies. - Thief the Dark Project @~Well some of you may already have the game, I am not one of @~them, graphically it seems to be way behind but gameplay seems @~to be quite good. Anyways, there is a review of the game here @~at http://www.rpghq.com/reviews/stu/thief/thief_review.html. @~What you also might like to know is that the same engine is @~going to be used on System Shock II. @~It also seems that Looking Glass have taken notice about the @~not-so-up-to-date graphics and are putting the Thief engine on @~steroids so it will produce some better graphics. - Drakan preview @~Drakan is the game to be from Psygnosis, as far as I can tell it @~has nothing to do with the old Drakhen game I once played on my @~ST. Head over to http://www.firingsquad.com/games/drakan/ for a @~preview. For those of you that do not have Internet yet, below is @~a small extract from that page: Back in the days before anyone can remember, a bloody war of global dominance raged between the world of Drakan's two most powerful races, the wily and versatile humans and the deadly and venerable dragons. Through centuries of death, razed homes, epic battles, and utter destruction, an end to this genocide was nowhere in sight. Finally, a ray of reason shone through in the most unlikely of places. In a remote region high in the peaks of Drakan's central mountains, a lone tribe of men made an uneasy compromise with the neighboring dragons. In time, a mutual trust was formed; and thus, the seeds of peace and a great alliance were sown, called the Order of the Flame. The Story But alas, if only they lived happily ever after. As the alliance grew stronger every passing day, so did its group of detractors. The greatest of them all was an evil war mage named Navros, the supreme leader of the underground Dark Union, who managed to also swindle his way into the council of the Order of the Flame. It was on one fateful evening that the secretive Dark Union's evil plot came to light - as the most respected members of the Order convened in Dragon Temple (through Navro's trickery), Navros summoned forth all hell and fury and cast it upon the city. Within minutes, the entire city lay in ruins, hordes of dark, monstrous figures poured out onto the streets, and the brightest minds of the Order were forever sealed in the rubble of the once grand temple. Now this is where you step up to the plate. You play as Rynn, a feisty young fighter who one day awakens to find her village completely destroyed during a raid, and her brother kidnapped by an evil horde. As luck, fate, or perhaps both may have it, she and a legendary dragon, Arokh, are bound by their very souls to each other until death. As her faithful guardian, friend, and steed, Arokh will accompany her through hell or high water and aid her in safely rescuing her brother from the throes of the evil empire. - UO, one year after. @~It is about 1 year ago that UO was released, Gamespot have put up @~an interview with one of the creators at @~http://desslock.gamespot.com/features/ultima/uointerview-1a.html, @~below is a little piece of this interview: Desslock: It's now been more than a year since Ultima Online was initially released. Are you pleased with the way in which Ultima Online has evolved over the past year? Are there any aspects of the game that have evolved differently than you would have predicted when the game first came out? Raph Koster: (chuckles) Online games always play out differently than you expect! So sure, there are things that didn't evolve quite as we expected. Some things were pleasant surprises: the way in which player towns and player-run shops really caught on, for example. It was really gratifying to see that the nay-sayers who said that "nobody wants to bake bread in a game" were really quite wrong. There's a thriving player economy and culture in UO now, thanks to the inclusion of crafting skills - and we didn't expect it to be embraced quite as enthusiastically as it has been. Other things were areas we didn't anticipate. Player housing proved to be too popular, in that there quickly came about a tension between the twin desires to own a house, and to have plenty of wilderness left untouched and wild. And we're working towards trying to satisfy both desires, though there will of course be compromises. The amount of antisocial behavior we got was more than we expected, but we didn't expect to have to evolve the mechanisms for tracking and controlling it to the extent that we have - and we still plan to do more in that area. All in all, though, we are very pleased. UO is today truly a virtual world. We had vague dreams, but really didn't expect to end up with a world in which players could walk to their local player-run tavern accompanied by the their pet dog, buy some player-made food, visit the player-run arms shop, buy a player-made sword of exceptional quality, and join the player militia to defend against the player brigands. The fact that we actually got all of that and more, like weekly sporting events, in-game governments, and all that-it's really amazing, and we're very, very happy at how UO has evolved in that regard. Desslock: As Origin promised prior to the initial, perhaps premature, release of Ultima Online, you've continued to work on the game's problems, enhancing or even redesigning key features such as the game's notoriety/reputation system and planned virtual ecology. Some aspects of Ultima Online obviously didn't work as well as you initially hoped. Now that you have the benefit of hindsight, what do you think were the biggest problems with the initial version of the game? Raph Koster: Well, as you know, the ecology system was probably the single most ambitious aspect of the original design. It turned out to not handle the influx of players behaving in a typical adventurer manner very well. Players tended to overhunt everything, for example, ruining the "spawn" for others. We ended up removing much of the fancy artificial life code in favor of simpler systems that were more fun. On the notoriety system, we expected too much of players. It sounds great on paper to say, "players can shape their society and decide how much they want to police it themselves" but in practice, it's just not all that fun. I think one of the key advantages there is of course that we can go back and redesign. We do intend to get the artificial life stuff back in someday, for example. In both cases, notoriety and ecology, the goals ultimately have to be to make the system more flexible, more dynamic, and more visible. If we can give tools to player to allow them to really shape the world, then it pays off in the end. And both those systems didn't give enough tools or visible feedback to players. But since it's an online game, and it's server-based, we can continue to make improvements - as we have to both those systems - until a good balance is struck. - System Shock 2 @~http://www.systemshock2.com/ is officially open, as you can expect @~from the name, it's the site to go for info on this upcoming @~game, if it will be as good as System Shock 1 then I for one can @~hardly wait. Below is a small Q&A from that page: System Shock 2 & Half Life: How Do They Compare? Half Life is undeniably the most successful first person shooter since Doom itself. (funny hearing me say that ... I couldn't stand Doom) SS2 and HL have many parallels. Both are science fiction first person games, where the main character is an intellectual, rather then a brute, and have a strong emphasis on storytelling and immersion. Some reviewers even compared HL to the original System Shock. So what will set SS2 apart? Will SS2 be a *gasp* HL clone? Absolutely NOT! First and foremost, HL is a shooter, and SS2 is a role playing game. That very distinction sets them worlds apart. To describe this further, we once again have Ken Levine, Lead Designer. First off, I think Half Life is a brilliant product. I played it all the way through and loved it. However, it is a very very different product from Shock 2. Half Life is more like interactive Pirates of the Caribbean, a very stage managed, linear experience. That linear experience is incredible and entertaining. There is little room for experimentation. In order for you to see all those cool sequences, the designers had to have a pretty good idea of the player's position, loadout and state at any one time. System Shock 2 is less focused on presentational elements (though we have quite a few Half Life style in engine cinematic sequences) and much more centered on providing a world with incredible depth of simulation and interaction. We want to provide the player with a nearly endless variety of tools (both from a weapons/tech items perspective and a character skills perspective) and let them approach problems as they see fit. I remember the first time I played Ultima Underworld. I was being pursued by a bunch of goblins. I was in bad shape, near death, fleeing down a hallway, slinging stones towards my tormentors. All of a sudden, I ran smack dab into a spider's lair, and there I was, locked in a pitched 3 way battle. The designers never intended for this to happen. I created the event through my actions and it made that moment unforgettable. That vibe, that feeling of uniqueness is what Shock 2 (and all LG games) are about and that's what we are striving to provide the tools to make happen. Half Life is about expert presentation. Shock 2 is about ultimate improvisation. @~Talking about Half Life, I finished it by now and I agree it is @~brilliant ... until the last 3 or 4 levels, as much as I @~enjoyed the whole game, as much I got frustrated on these @~levels, 3D shooting has nothing to do with platform jumping ... @~or am I wrong ??? - New Issue of EverQuest Express @~The new issue of the EverQuest Express is out at @~http://eqx.simplenet.com/, as always a good read. - The Highlands @~The Highlands at http://highlands.ripp.dk/, are accepting testers @~so if an online RPG is your cup of coffee then go sign up before @~it's too late. - The Mystic Realms of Alhanzar @~Talking about testing, at http://www.mhv.net/~ogn2/ you can also @~sign up for testing this online RPG, same goes as above, go there @~before it's too late. @~Or just go there to read about the game if you want :-) - Plastic Angel @~Aanother game based on a famous engine, this time it's Plastic @~Angel, an RPG based on the SIN engine, which is the Quake II @~engine on steroids. Check out their website at @~http://www.alienphobia.com/plasticangel/ for info on the game. @~Planned Release Date : Late 1999 Public Beta Release Date: @~February 1st 1999 - Lord of the Rings (movie) @~Yes yes I know it's not a PC game, but most RPG/Adventure players @~will know (and read) the book. Over at @~http://www.aint-it-cool-news.com/lordoftherings2.html there is an @~interview with the director "Peter Jackson" ... who you may say? @~.... well "Peter Jackson", I mean who better to ruin a good @~book then an unknown director (and now I will probably get mail @~from people telling me all the movies he ever directed.....well I @~don't care, it probably will be a fiasco anyway :-P ). @~For those of you who don't want to go to the interview, I will @~bring it to you (well part of it) Q: Also at the beginning of The Two Towers, when Boromir is killed, are you going to do it like the book, beginning with Aragorn and having him find that Boromir has been shot, or will you actually show him being shot with arrows?" PJ: We are running that sequence in real time, actually showing him defending Merry and Pippin and getting shot. We're also sliding that sequence into the end of the first movie. @~Yeah great, add stuff that ain't in the book ... ooh boy ... go @~read for yourself, I hate to think what this will turn into - Patches @~As some of you may have noticed, for every game there is a patch, @~so since Sierra want to join the D/L fun, they have released a @~patch for Kings Quest: Mask of Eternity. This patch will update @~version 1.0.0.0 and 1.0.0.1 of Mask Of Eternity to 1.0.0.2. It @~fixes several game bugs. @~Please read the readme file for a complete list of bug fixes. Sierra ftp (478kb) ftp://ftp1.sierra.com/pub/patches/pc/moe12.exe AGN3D http://www.agn3d.com/html/agn3d-files_display.cfm?TheFileID=290 3DfxMania (465kb) http://www.3dfxmania.com/patches/kingsquest8.shtml @~Question: how come every single game has patches these days, when @~I get home with a new game, I install it, then I log on and go @~look for a patch even before I run it ... and I often end up @~with D/L of 18MB or so (SIN) ... Is there no more play testing?? - Baldur's Gate goes gold @~No, not the Gate itself, the game, and this just means that they @~send their Gold CD-ROM to the CD-ROM duplicator and it should be @~in the stores by the time you read this. And in case you do not @~believe me, this is from their site: It's done. Baldur's Gate is being signed off today. Master CDs were sent to the duplicator earlier this week, and after a rigorous final testing, we have given the go ahead to dupe CD 1. It's officially silvered as soon as the paperwork is finished up. Just as a note: Many of you were wondering why we spent the last 3 days testing the product, when in fact the final build was finished up on Tuesday. All I can say is that when you start playing the game, you'll understand. It's just really, really big. We'll all be around on the message board (after we sleep for the next few days), to answer questions and give advice. I think we've made the game that we wanted to make -- I hope it's everything you guys want it to be. See ya on the boards. Chris Parker Producer, Baldur's Gate, Black Isle Studio - UnReal Tournament screenshot @~You just have to go look at @~http://www.voodooextreme.com/images/UT/ut.html, it looks @~brilliant :-) - Heretic II @~If you have not gotten this game yet, AND WHY NOT ???, then go @~check out some of the reviews. I know it's a 3D shooter but it @~closer to Tomb Raider then any other 3D shooter out there right @~now ... and at least it does not pretend to be an adventure like @~KK 8 and it does not turn out to be a lousy adventure or a lousy @~3D shooter like KK 8. (by now you may have understood that I do @~not like KK8) @~You can check out 2 reviews at: @~http://www.electricgames.com/reviews/heretic2.html and @~http://www.gamelinks.net/review-hereticii.html @~Here is a piece of the review for those of you too lazy to dial @~in Instead of the typical first person perspective, Raven has turned the Quake II engine into a Tomb Raider-like third person action/adventure experience. This doesn't even look like the Quake II engine, it's much more attractive, and features some special lighting effects that are just beautiful. There are a few spaces that "waver" when viewed at the right angle, but otherwise the engine is very solid and realistic. Heretic II relies on magical attacks much more than standard weapons, so the associated pyrotechnics allow the designers to push the envelope on lighting, flame, and other special effects. The end result is a world filled with amazing graphical tricks. The sound effects and music are also wonderful. You get so immersed in the game that you don't really notice the music right away, but it is extremely well scored and fits the theme of the game perfectly. Sound effects are not typical, and creatures make unique sounds as they skitter, fly, or slither through the levels. I was impressed how seamlessly the third-person perspective fits into this game. Rather than a gimmick, the viewpoint allows you to perform some athletic maneuvers that wouldn't be possible from first person. Rolls, flips, spinning attacks, and even pole vaulting are not only possible, but necessary for success. Raven has always been a leader when it comes to level design, and Heretic II blows all their previous games away. In Hexen II, we saw architecture reflective of the Egyptians, Meso-Americans, and other recognizable styles. In Heretic II, they've created their own. As Corvus progresses on his quest, he is taken to his home town, an amphibian city, insect-like hive, and more. Each land not only has its own architectural rules, but also blends the fantasy elements of the game into the level design. Again, a brilliant end result from Raven. Enemies are varied and interesting, and generally native to a certain region. Bosses are very imaginative, and don't necessarily come at the END of the hub. A health bar appears when a boss is on-screen, so you can see what kind of damage you're doing to it. Weapons are absolutely non-standard, which is a refreshing difference in the 3D action game genre. You begin with your staff, simply a stick at the beginning of the game, used for striking and pole-vaulting. This is powered up as the game progresses, so your standard weapon actually keeps its value. Other attacks come in the form of both weapons and spells. Spells are powered by mana, and weapons have their own associated ammunition. The Hellstaff is back, with all new graphical effects. Bows and arrows are also present, and are among the more innovative weapons in the game. The Storm Arrows, for example, not only do direct damage, but also create a red cloud over your target that rains damage on the enemy and strikes them with red lightning. The first time you use one of these, you see how incredible the weapon design really is. Spell attacks include the fireball, thunder blast, flame wave, sphere of annihilation, and others that are not only different, but allow the developers to design wonderful visual effects around them. Powerups have changed a bit. Rather than finding one-shot items that must be carried and used, here you'll also find the ability to use mana to defend yourself. While health vials are still present, things like the Tome of Power or Ring of Repulsion are now present in the form of defensive spells. Mana is more clearly defined now, and comes in the form of offensive and defensive types. To activate a Tome now, you cast a spell. What this means is that you're not limited to the number of Tomes that you find, you may use as many as you like as long as your defensive mana lasts. This also gives you the opportunity to only use the powerups you really like. Don't want to ever use the Tome, but love the Meteor Swarm or Lightning Shield? Fine, just use your mana on that instead. It's a great system, and very flexible. @~And that is it for this issue....... - o -