State of the Game Address II

[system]

It is pretty surreal that we’re actually nearing a release.

I’ve been following the game for so long now, it just doesn’t even feel real that the game is coming into an alpha release soon…

I wonder what happened to the “Old Crap”?

[Equisilus]

Great update! Glad to hear things are moving along so well; there are certainly a lot of positives in there. I’m psyched to see how it evolves in the months to come.

[eisprinzessin]

I got another question: Are the chances of epic/legendary items dropping about as high as in TQ or are you going down the Diablo3 route of dropping 1 legendary every 60 hours of playtime?

Unique item drops will definitely be a lot more common than D3 and will probably not be too far off from TQ. I don’t quite remember what the rate was like in TQ but I remember we had originally tried to shoot for something like one unique drop per hour or so. […]

We’ll probably shoot for something like 1 unique per hour again though. We’ll see how it works out during testing. […]

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I think the there is already enough content for alpha testing.

I don’t want you guys to overwhelm us with that much content, otherwise alpha testing might be a difficult task at first.

I feel we need sufficient content, so that we can play long and level high enough so that we can test skills and game balance without getting bored to death.

[JohnNamikaze]

I feel we need sufficient content, so that we can play long and level high enough so that we can test skills and game balance without getting bored to death.

Boredom is bound to happen in the alpha/beta stage since the game will still be incomplete, mostly alpha because a good chunk of the content still not implemented. At this stage (alpha) it is best to try out every class, and get a feel of them before full release, and as well find any game-breaking mechanics (beta) that some class tends to have when we are first exposed to. There are more to say, but eh, might as well hold back in the mean time.

[medierra]

I wonder what happened to the “Old Crap”?

Much of it was cannibalized and rearranged to create the new layout and other were moved off into other areas that are still WIP.

The way I work, I tend to initially consider what I’m going to do but then just sort of set about generating unique content. One I have a bulk of content, I step back and think more about what the structure should be and how it should all fit together. I often go through a few cycles of making stuff and fitting it together both in world building and in things like creating the skill masteries.

I think if you spend too much time just trying to iron out all of the structure and mechanics ahead of making anything creative, it can limit the potential for creativity and also can be unproductive because you can often end up over-thinking things and going in circles because there is no tangible “stake in the ground” in terms of existing work that you want to try to retain and utilize. Either that or you can think things through to the last detail conceptually and then, as soon as you start implementing it and testing it, you realize it sucks and it becomes obvious things should have been done differently. Often the pieces of work you generate inform how the larger task itself should be done… if that makes any sense.

So, I like to work things from both angles but it results in a development process where I go through periods of creating content and then reassembling it.

[TECHNOmancer]

I’ve been following the game for so long now, it just doesn’t even feel real that the game is coming into an alpha release soon…

I feel the same way. It’s been a lot of fun to follow its progress over nearly three years, due in large part to the fan-focused members of the Crate team. Thanks!!

TECHNOmancer

[medierra]

I might be getting ahead of myself here, but are beta and alpha going to have same content ? I mean areas, storyline, quests etc. Meaning you guys are going to do first run in alpha, then tweak/improve stuff and then do a beta on same content more or less. Or is beta going to be larger (content-wise) as well ?

Needless to say, good updates and great to know that a lot of progress has been made Good luck in further development.

I expect beta would be a larger chunk of content, like we’d hopefully be able to role out the next segment of the game by then.

[all_zebest]

Great news! You have never disappointed us and never will, for sure. Thank you for making such an awsome looking game.

[system]

What an awesome update. Seems like you’ve been progressing a LOT. My fingers are already tingling for some Alpha-gaming!

I’d like to ask how are two-handed weaponry coming along? Any chance we’ll be getting to try out some in the alpha?

[system]

This is an amazing update! That world map is looking much better! I really like the way the overall layout looks like a realistic map. Keep up the good works guys, can’t wait! (Well, i probably can, since I’ve been doing it for a while now :P)

[system]

Crate’s dedication, passion, along with their thoughtful and player-oriented approach to game development is truly inspiring. You guys are a large part of why I am still working on my own game and have not yet shattered a keyboard out of frustration.

[zidders]

Hey Medierra,

I know I rarely post here anymore but that doesn’t mean i’ve forgotten about you guys. I want you to know that even though a friend already got me one of the kickstarter tiers, I’m still going to buy a bunch of copies for friends. I did the same for Torchlight and Torchlight II and i’m going to do the same here.

You’re right up there with the folks from Runic Games. Those guys rock and have a lot of integrity, and you do, too. Whenever people bitch at me about game developers being greedy assholes, I point out people like you, Travis Baldree, Max & Eric Schaefer and the teams at Crate and Runic as an example of people who keep it real, aren’t greedy and have the kind of integrity that is worth rewarding.

Don’t you dare give up on your dreams, dude. You’ve earned a lot of my respect as well as my support.

[DeMasked]

New Map: Seems a bit linear, will you be filling it out a bit more later on so that it won’t look like one long chunk of land? I notice that towards the left of Devil’s Crossing it starts to expand a bit more. The “old crap” looks a lot more realistic in how the areas are close together and no giant pieces of black darkness taking away any effect.

Release: When you said “final release in latter half of 2013” is that just the alpha? Or the whole game?

Monsters: Great to hear about all the monsters and variants added. When you say “monster heroes” or something does that mean EVERY singe one looks different from each other and their related normal monster? Or do you mean that you just slapped on a different skin on the enemy and increased the size a bit. If you truly customized each one to look different in more then just the above I would truly be amazed. In any case great job.

“Secret Doors”: Are these really going to be secret? Or will the door be highlighted so it’s obvious that you should click it. Or… will you have to hover the mouse over the area and then it will show up as a secret door?

[system]

New Map: Seems a bit linear, will you be filling it out a bit more later on so that it won’t look like one long chunk of land? I notice that towards the left of Devil’s Crossing it starts to expand a bit more. The “old crap” looks a lot more realistic in how the areas are close together and no giant pieces of black darkness taking away any effect.

You do realize “Crossing” in Devil’s crossing ? I don’t think it is fair to call the whole map linear because you are looking at a part of it (alpha build)

Release: When you said “final release in latter half of 2013” is that just the alpha? Or the whole game?

I think he means final release since alpha is supposed to begin hopefully in early 2013/late 2012.

Monsters: Great to hear about all the monsters and variants added. When you say “monster heroes” or something does that mean EVERY singe one looks different from each other and their related normal monster? Or do you mean that you just slapped on a different skin on the enemy and increased the size a bit. If you truly customized each one to look different in more then just the above I would truly be amazed. In any case great job.

Look at Zantai’s work here: http://www.grimdawn.com/forums/showthread.php?t=4692

“Secret Doors”: Are these really going to be secret? Or will the door be highlighted so it’s obvious that you should click it. Or… will you have to hover the mouse over the area and then it will show up as a secret door?

Only Medierra can tell that I guess

[eisprinzessin]

New Map: Seems a bit linear, will you be filling it out a bit more later on so that it won’t look like one long chunk of land? I notice that towards the left of Devil’s Crossing it starts to expand a bit more. The “old crap” looks a lot more realistic in how the areas are close together and no giant pieces of black darkness taking away any effect.

Yes, there is huge lake / inland sea to the north of the first area and to the south it is bounded by mountains. Later gameplay areas wrap around either side of the body of water, with a few towns on its coast.

I think it may look more linear than it really is from that zoom because it is a long piece of land but it is also fairly large and has some randomized dynamic barriers so you don’t always run through it the same way. I mean, by that standard you could also say Florida is linear (not that this is quite on that scale).

On the other hand, however wide it is, it does progress in one direction toward Burrwitch Village. We didn’t want to immediately overwhelm players with a totally open landmass that stretched in all directions and that wouldn’t have been very suitable for this style of game where you are essentially progressing forward into increasingly higher level areas and wanting to encounter new enemies and environments. So the way we’ve retained some of that structure while allowing the player freedom to go in different directions is to have different areas that branch off from starting town that the player can open after meeting certain open-ended requirements - namely, gather the requisite materials to fix the bridges in whatever order they choose. Also, from Burrwitch Village, which is at the end of the alpha area, it will open up more, branching off in different directions. So as you play, you’ll have more and more options as to where you can go.

here you go

[system]

I’m so happy I backed GD - take your time guys, i’d rather wait a little longer and get high quality/size

[system]

Alpha Release
It looks like alpha is taking a little longer than we predicted in the last state of the game address but it is still within the late 2012 / early 2013 time-frame that we’ve been saying for a long time

I’ve heard it said a few times… That “any release date with multiple possible dates won’t be hit”, so no one should worry too much if that early 2013 release starts to seem too tight a crunch.

About the world size, I also think that you can’t make the world too big. Of course that requires that the areas have a nice tempo going, with enough content that they don’t become hollow and/or boring.

[koovan]

Thanks for the detailed update - it is very much appreciated. As many have said previously, please take as much time as you need and can afford.

[Ballistic]

Its coming along very nicely. I can’t wait to play a Nightblade Demolitionist. Nothing like planting powerful explosives behind enemies and then standing back and doing the chicken dance.

[system]

Awsome update greatly looking forword to this game!
Two questions

1.Do you still have factions in the game you havent mentioned them for awhile and if so how many will you have in the final release?

2.You said that the final game may have 20 hours+ worth of content is that number just for a straight playthrough or will that include all the side content if not how many hours do you predict in the final release if you do all the side content?