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Revival and why you need to care
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1GpXxAnoZyC_citsD4Xjmg
https://www.revivalgame.com/philosophy/mission_statement
https://www.revivalgame.com/philosophy/game_design_theory
https://www.revivalgame.com/features/live_storytelling
https://www.revivalgame.com/features/living_world
Of course many right now think that the game is simply an idea written down on paper, the housing is already up and players are already walking around in their homes.
Ten ton Hammer visits the developers and interviews them. Many of the devs were lead developers on Rift.
http://www.tentonhammer.com/interview/tentonhammer-visits-illfonic-studios
Finding the way isn’t as easy as it seems...
When we began discussing Revival internally, we were stricken by the state of MMORPGs today and the way they had, in our eyes, strayed from the course. We vowed then that we would not make the same mistakes and that we would bring back (“revive”) what was lost, but what does that really mean?
The Rule of World
First and foremost, it means that nothing that goes into Revival can detract from the experience of being in Theleston, the world of Revival. Don’t mistake us; Revival is a game and there will be some systems that “feel gamey,” but given the choice between two potential features, systems or mechanics, we will always prefer the one that makes the game world feel more like a real place, however fantastic. This isn’t a game where you’ll find “Level 12 Blade Lords.” Instead, it’s a world where you’ll meet other people and they will possess skills they worked to cultivate, be they combat skills, crafting skills or something else. You’ll know a Blade Lord by the way he or she wields a sword, not by the words hovering over their heads or the specific outfit being worn. The real world doesn’t work that way and neither does Revival.
Static is a Four Letter Word
With the Rule of World as our guiding principle we establish a tangible, credible, world, but that’s not enough. If the world is a stage for grand adventures to play out upon, then the feeling of a world depends just as critically on the adventures themselves. The most striking issue with MMOs of today is the static nature of the content. Even when MMOs offer “dynamic” content, they often actually mean that they add a set of new quests for a while and then remove them later. They tend to be more of the same - more grinding for more items to use in your standard day to day slog. Often the content in these games, newly added or not, all feels the same. This is simply not enough for Revival.
Revival is a game where story develops out of the interaction between player and game devs, not a world where we devs present a story to the players. Presenting the classic “Railroad adventure” detracts not only from the sense of there being a world, but it also takes away from the sense that the players can make a difference in the world. Thus, all of our content and the systems that support them are built to make interactive and emergent content. Where other MMOs offer public quests, we offer adventures that not only respond to the player’s actions in the moment, but leave their nigh indelible mark upon the world.
Any mmo worth its salt should be like a good prostitute when it comes to its game world- One hell of a faker, and a damn good shaker!
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Walking the fine line
It’s easy to assume from our central philosophy that Revival is a subscription game. After all, our point is to present an evolving and interactive world, not a game or a treadmill. It seems like the best way to provide that experience at first glance, is to ensure that every person there has paid for the privilege and is therefore invested in the world. But, is that really how it works?
When you think back to the sandbox games of old, all of which were subscription games, were the paying players really any more or less invested than the other players? We think not. We do, however, think that player investment is important. In fact, it’s the basis of our monetization strategy.
That might seem strange, but hear us out.
The currency players can buy is called the SP, or Standing Point. As you might expect, you can use SP in lieu of in-game gold when needed, but that’s not really what SP is for. As the name suggests, SP is a way to track who is invested in the world: People with SP are people who have a standing in Theleston and care about its future.
Maybe that’s a bit of a hard sell, considering that people can buy SP with real money, but maybe that’s just a matter of perspective. After all, people who invest real money to purchase SP have, in their case literally, invested in the world of Theleston, haven’t they? Whatever their desires, it can be said that they have a stake in the way Theleston works and their pool of SP reflects that.
It helps that real money isn’t the only way to gain SP, too: Players can earn SP by participating, as well. In fact, for the true players of Revival, participating in the game -- shaping the course of the world of Theleston -- is the easiest way to earn SP.
Most of the world’s events are driven by its players; whether players move to prevent the machinations of the gods, or support them, players participation decides what happens next. This participation is tracked and players are regularly rewarded with SP, both by the Panopticon system that watches how we play and by the live storytellers, themselves, who individually reward the stars that arise out of the progression of any particular story. Every player who plays Revival will gain SP just by being there, but those that participate, and thus make the game more interesting for their fellow players, will gain SP more quickly.
That’s key to how SP works, in fact: Our expectation is that the vast majority of those “Rich in SP” will not be those players paying real money to gain them, but will instead be those players who earn their SP by doing the thing they came to Revival for in the first place: Participating in the ever-unfolding story of the world and deciding the fate of Theleston.
Still skeptical that SP is a pay2win system? Well, then let’s talk about what your SP gets you.
Revival will not be a game where free players only get middle of the road “Green” gear while the paying players get ultra-powerful “Red” or “Purple” gear. Ever. It is core to the design of Revival that players shape their characters by playing and that leaves no room for shortcuts. If a player wants to master the sword techniques of a fencing master, it’s up to that player to train hard and track down the fencing masters in the hopes of convincing them to share their secrets. So what does spending SP get you?
SPs are valuable for a number of reasons, but perhaps most important among them is this: SPs are used by the live storytelling team as one of our indicators for how “into” the game a player is. That matters because those players that are most into the game are the ones most likely to be directly affected by the gods. No, it doesn’t mean that players with high SP will always be at the center of the world’s events, but it does mean that chances are they’ll be there when those big events happen, playing important roles.
Any mmo worth its salt should be like a good prostitute when it comes to its game world- One hell of a faker, and a damn good shaker!
A mind behind the action
In the world of Role Playing, nothing compares to a live Game Master’s ability to react quickly to player activity, or to steer the events of the world onto a path that the players most want to experience. Furthermore, there has not yet been an NPC AI yet that can react to player exploitation, nor a patterned boss that can’t be predicted.
Sure, many MMOs have had live representatives on their servers, watching, helping out newbs, and banning bad guys, once in a while they may even be handing out unique items, or twigging players onto “special” quest lines, but never are they actually playing along as would a live Game Master. Rarely does a living Storyteller call players to action, or lead a march against a castle. But we’re changing that.
In Revival, our live agents will mingle with the server population, taking the part of villains, heroes, monsters, even the gods. Storytellers are not mere custodians of a lifeless mechanical world, rather they are the architects of fantasy. More than the ‘man behind the curtain’ -- our Storytellers walk amongst the players, on the streets of our cities and in the depths of Theleston’s wilderness. They are behind the tradesmen, the bandits, even the beasts of the world In short, our Live Storytelling team allows Revival to offer unprecedented Content direction in the online multiplayer role-playing sphere.
But we won’t just be directing. Storytellers do more than simply kick-off content packages and peruse game metrics. Our tools allow us to reach into the world and act as directly as any player. From the lowliest wandering beast, to the greatest monster of the deep, and everywhere in-between.
Far more than a simple cadre of guides, Storytellers can take possession of any creature in the world. They may deliver prophecy, raise armies, or guide adventurers to new lands. They may appear as man or beast, beggar or god. The Storytellers are hands-on content creators that can (and will) interact with the playerbase at any time, creating dynamic stories and opening the door to endless possibility.
Our Storytellers will have their hands on the reins of warlords and kings, dark gods and cults, but even the simplest mob may be driven by a Storyteller if the mood strikes, or if it serves the storyline. We may even drop in just to mix things up. Anything that can be imagined is in the realm of possibility, and that is the true power of Live Storytellers.
Another thing that our most well-known large scale online games do not do well is player history. Day by day the same characters make the same speeches, and the same foes stalk well-worn pathways into the landscape. Players may pack up and raze the server of enemy mobs, but they’ll just repopulate and life goes on unchanged.
However, content for Revival is being created under a fundamentally different paradigm than that of the typical MMO. This change in process and ideal allows our Live team to dynamically alter populations, choreograph world events, and directly alter the content of the world, on the fly to create real results in response to player actions.
No longer will players queue up to fight the same enemy time and again. When a leader of Theleston falls, they truly fall, and our Storytellers will discern the future of their armies and their holdings. The actions of players drive our Storytelling Team, and our Storytellers work amongst the playerbase to develop the many stories that define the histories of our world.
Every day will bring new developments to the world of Theleston, and players will not want to miss even a day of the action. Simply put, while a player is not online, they’re not there when it all happens, and with our constantly evolving storylines, they might just miss something!
In the current Online Role-playing market, there is precious little role-play, and players invest primarily in statistic builds and loot galleries rather than in the events of their virtual world. A typical play-session equates to running the ‘best line’ through the level and logging out levelled up. They log-out assured that when they return, everything will be just as they left it. This is antithetical to the idea of a virtual world. When you close the door to Theleston, it will keep living without you, we will make sure of that.
Any mmo worth its salt should be like a good prostitute when it comes to its game world- One hell of a faker, and a damn good shaker!
Great Stories Often Start with Profit Motive
Some of the best stories ever told begin with the desire to profit. Han could have simply fled, but he lingered in Tatooine in the hopes of taking on some passengers to pay the bills. Mal takes his passengers aboard Serenity for the same reason. In short, the ability to make a quick buck has been the source of some of our most treasured stories. And if you think about it, that means a world that wants good stories could benefit from a good economy. This game is no different, but just like everything else we do for Revival, that means we’ll work hand in hand with the players to make it happen.
Very few online games have really captured the value of large scale commerce. In most MMOs, in fact, what should be commodities are considered “trash loot” -- players literally feel like the items have no value and should be sold. (You might know this sort of loot as vendor trash or vendor loot) Admittedly this is a two-part problem. A player has no reason to do anything else because the items have no other use. This is further compounded by the way prices in most games are static. Not only does a player have an item in their inventory they can’t use, but that player also has no incentive to keep the item in the hopes of greater profit elsewhere; it literally just takes up inventory space. In this model most players would be better off directly receiving the gold the trash loot was worth.
The thing is, the problem isn’t actually an issue with the idea of items, but rather with the way they are specifically implemented in most online games. In Revival, players will have multiple reasons to hold on to every item they find, at least for a time. This is because items in Revival, even the things you might think of as trash, will have uses in some aspect of the game, such as crafting or magic. There is no “trash” in Revival -- even Theleston’s literal trash will be useful to someone.
When items are useful like this, it increases demand for those items. Take iron ore, for example. Before people worked iron, its ore was mostly seen as a red rock that wasn’t very useful, but as people began to realize it could be turned into iron, demand grew and the value of the rock -- in those places -- increased. This created regional trade, import and exports, and that created markets.
Just as in the real world, towns and other sites in Revival will have differing demands, demands which will fluctuate based on what’s happening in the world. If Crown’s Rock is girding for war, its desire for iron, horses, armor and weapons will increase, while its desire for luxury goods such as silk, will decrease. Prices for those goods in those markets will change as a result and, for a clever player, that means an opportunity to profit.
It’s the very basics of economics: A player looking to make money through trade will want to buy a commodity where it is available most cheaply and transport it to a place where it can be sold for the highest possible price. This simple and core practice is what makes economic play content, not just for traders and merchant players, but for players focused on success through other means, as well.
The reason trade like this makes for good content is travel. In many online games, travel from one large location to another can be accomplished instantaneously, or nearly so, through something called fast travel. The “how” is different from game to game, but there is generally always a way to quickly and safely travel from one population center to another. In other words, in most games, moving a trade good from one market to another could be done without risk. This is not the case in Revival.
In Revival, goods have to be physically moved across Theleston. Specifically, if a player isn’t carrying the item in their inventory directly, the item will have to be sent via caravan. The safety of a caravan isn’t guaranteed, however, and this is where the opportunity for adventure begins. Left unescorted, chances are a caravan will be intercepted by bandits, monsters or less ethical players.
Revival isn’t a game where you’ll find a networked and linked auction house in every city, forming an instantaneous network of trade. Every town has a market where commodities are bought and sold, true, but every market is unique and unconnected. You won’t be buying Tide’s End coffee beans from the comfort of your home in Crown’s Rock; you will travel the world like the rest of the merchants, NPCs included, acquiring and transporting your goods from place to place. This disconnect may seem inconvenient, but it’s also a source of incredibly compelling content and fun.
Any mmo worth its salt should be like a good prostitute when it comes to its game world- One hell of a faker, and a damn good shaker!
Nice insight into some of the principles going into the game though.
"The knowledge of the theory of logic has no tendency whatever to make men good reasoners." - Thomas B. Macaulay
"The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge." - Daniel J. Boorstin
Blog Update #40 - Special Planeswalking Update
https://www.revivalgame.com/blog/41-blog-update-40-special-planeswalking-updateSnipehunter: 25 days ago
Special Edition
Since we promised you all a Planeswalking blog, but we’ve been holding off on releasing the full blog for... reasons... I wanted to take a moment and discuss the original blog topic. This is not the full blog, but is instead a special edition we’ve put together as a way of saying “thank you for your patience.” We hope you like it!Planeswalking is an ability reserved almost exclusively for players and is the primary means of “fast travel” in the world of Theleston. As you can imagine, this makes it a critical skill for us to get right. So how does it work? Let me walk you through it.
First, let’s talk about how you acquire the skill. Technically, anyone can “walk the planes” - all you have to do is go mad. However, that descent into madness that results in losing your connection to the prime plane isn’t under your control directly. You can’t transition at will, and finding your way back is incredibly difficult. Going mad also won’t get you to every alternate plane of existence that is out there to be found. Instead, a planeswalker will have to pursue different means. More specifically, a planeswalker will have to first become a mage.
Knowledge from the schools of invocation and evocation both are needed before you can tackle manipulating the barriers between realities. However, planeswalking isn’t exactly a master profession, so complete mastery of both schools of magic isn’t necessary to begin. A mage may be half way up their quest for mastery of both schools when they become aware of the possibility of planeswalking and he or she would be able to manage the feat. However, mastery of both schools is necessary to master planeswalking as it makes possible the most powerful method of planeswalking available: portalling.
But even before such skill and knowledge is acquired, a planeswalker can shift to another plane. How far a person can shift, and what they can shift along with them, depends on two factors: The caster’s skill at planeswalking and the amount of aetherial energy the mage can channel to the task. For most, shifting only themselves across multiple realities, say from the prime plane of our existence through the realms of the Elder Gods all the way to the planes of strange time where the Great Old Ones hold dominion, is an impossibility using the magic they possess alone. Instead they must shift from one plane to another in shorter “distance” hops, resting between each one before they can repeat the process. Even a mage that could shift alone that far would be hard pressed to bring others along using only the energy he or she could invoke unassisted.
The act of opening a portal even to a “close” plane takes even more energy. For the planeswalker that wishes to harness this sort of power there are really only two options: The planeswalker can turn to the arts of ritual magic, working on concert with other mages who possesses the knowledge and skill to pool their energy together, effectively forming a “magical circuit” that the planeswalker can then use. Or, if the planeswalker is willing to take more risks for the sake of individual, the alternative is to learn the magical art of tapping.
Any mmo worth its salt should be like a good prostitute when it comes to its game world- One hell of a faker, and a damn good shaker!
https://www.revivalgame.com/blog/30-weekly-blog-29-reap-what-you-sow-no-really
I have a pretty diverse set of influences when it comes to games, but when it comes to farming in particular, there’s no question in my mind that the experience offered by the Harvest Moon, Rune Factory, and Innocent Life series of games collectively represent the high water mark in terms of basic mechanical feel. Revival isn’t going to clone those games or anything, but we’ve definitely set out to capture a similar sense of fun in our farming and ranching mechanics.
I suppose I should start there: Farming and Ranching are separate but related practices. In general, an area of your farmable land will have to be given over to pasturing animals that you want to ranch or kennel. The amount of space needed to do this depends on the type of animal, as well. It takes far less space to raise a chicken than a cow, for example.
Imagine that your farmable space is arranged in something like a grid, or more accurately as a series of squares or tiles of arable land. Each tile can be developed differently, so in some ways the number of tiles at your disposal and their arrangement determines what you can do in your farmable area. For example, if you wanted to build a chicken coop, it will take a large chunk of one of your tiles, but allow you to raise up to six chickens, and because of the way they feed, you really wouldn’t need to dedicate another tile to pasture land, per se. You might instead dedicate your remaining tiles to planting, or to building kennels for larger animals. Coops and other types of kennels are built using a version of the carpentry minigame, though carpentry skill isn’t necessary to actually build them. Instead your skill in carpentry will help to determine the quality of the resulting object.
Any mmo worth its salt should be like a good prostitute when it comes to its game world- One hell of a faker, and a damn good shaker!
Any mmo worth its salt should be like a good prostitute when it comes to its game world- One hell of a faker, and a damn good shaker!
Weekly Blog Update #28: The Arena
Great Minds of Theleston
Arenas are an amazing thing, but they usually serve as something off of the beaten path in most MMO experiences. Arenas provide a core element of gambling in the world of Revival. Like everything in the game, arenas and gambling are rooted in the world with NPCs that live their lives in and outside of work.Most arenas are run by a gambling guild. The gambling guild operates the arena and is usually attached to the Arena itself. Within a gambling guild you will find a bulletin board for upcoming scheduled fights, current fights in progress and more. Players and NPCs alike can sign up for Arena matches at specific times or wait around in a lobby system for challengers to arrive.
You can place bets using a pari mutuel betting system, or wager with other NPCs and other players on a personal level. If you see NPCs hanging out in the lobby of the gambling guild or in the spectator area before a match, they might place wager bets with you - but only if they like you. Some NPCs will even come up to you and ask you if you want to bet, but it all depends on the mood of the NPCs. Some NPCs just come to enjoy the spectacle but most are their to try to earn extra coin. All bets must be made before a match and there is always a house fee that goes to the gambling guild.
Revival doesn’t just randomly generate things though, the guild needs money to expand and grow. As the guild makes more money off bets, the structure will upgrade and the inventory of things to fight will grow. If an arena in a city has no money, it will rely on NPCs and players to fight each other. Creatures cost a lot. Beast tamers (players and NPCs both) help with this and can sell their captured beasts to arenas around the world, if the arenas have the money.
You will often find NPCs, generally guards and soldiers, coming to the arena to put themselves in the fighting to try to make extra coin for themselves. In cities that are not so favorable, you might even see Gambling Guilds holding their own slave gladiators for fights. Rich gambling guilds usually pay their own staff to fight within the arena though. Those same fighters sleep, eat and spend their free time in the tavern just like the rest of the NPCs, so they aren’t people that magically spawn from a door.
NPC run gambling guilds are able to host tournaments but these generally only happen if they are sponsored. Cities can host these tournaments with local gambling guilds to help boost local economy and other goals. This all depends on the politics of the city; some cities might decide they don't even want an arena and ban it completely.
Speaking of banned fighting, players can also create their own gambling guilds using the agenda system for guilds and secret societies. This does mean you could have your own fight club in your basement… to the death! Depending on a city’s laws, this type of fighting might be considered illegal.
Like we’ve discussed before, NPCs (beasts too) and players both share the same life and death system. This also means they can be under the same protection from the gods players can be placed under. Gambling Guilds usually play host to the temple of Bharak, who salutes combat and fighters. Under the protection of Bharak, fighters and beasts are under the protection of not dying while fighting. Not all gambling guilds do this, but you will normally find it in them.
Cheating is certainly a possibility within an arena. But if guards spot you doing something you shouldn’t, you will be killed on sight. The amount of guards around depends on the amount of money the gambling guild has. Don’t worry, we are structuring this to be something insanely difficult to do, but we feel it is an element that is welcome in the world of Revival. Wagering and Betting systems are all handled through automated systems so players never need to worry about getting their payouts properly… unless of course the guild is robbed and all of their money is taken away. At which point, pari mutuel bets can be off. Wager bets are generally always secured through our database system.
Love balance? Gambling guilds usually have gear you can use for a match which forces both sides (if human vs human) to be on equal equipment levels. However, your character stats will always come with you.
With this system’s design, arenas and gambling guilds bring something rich to the online world that can allow everything from the gutter arena to an all out mega coliseum; it creates a lifestyle and industry that actually has purpose and sustainability in Theleston’s real world economy.
Before you ask, yes, the gambling guild will also host other types of gambling too!
Any mmo worth its salt should be like a good prostitute when it comes to its game world- One hell of a faker, and a damn good shaker!
There isn't a "right" or "wrong" way to play, if you want to use a screwdriver to put nails into wood, have at it, simply don't complain when the guy next to you with the hammer is doing it much better and easier. - Allein
"Graphics are often supplied by Engines that (some) MMORPG's are built in" - Spuffyre
This generation of developers needs to get past that utterly false belief in FFA PvP as a viable and necessary game system. Whoever sold them that bill of goods is laughing their collective ass off.
Let's hope that doesn't happen.
* more info, screenshots and videos here
I'm following both games. It's impossible to say so early which will be more immersive and interesting for role-playing. Revival should have a few unique advantages in the form of virtual DM and live storytelling DM teams, but maybe CoE has something unique up its sleeve too.
People who are still uncertain or may be planning to divide their gaming time between Revival, CoE and perhaps some other game(s) shouldn't probably buy any housing in Revival, at least none of the more expensive houses or manses. House owners will be bound to spend time in Revival regularly because of property taxes, insurance fees, burglars and fear of property damage or destruction.
* more info, screenshots and videos here
I am guessing this will play out exactly like Kronos in EQ2 a lame idea to introduce RMT into the gaming economy.
A games economy should NEVER be influenced by outside sources of real money be it by the developer or rmt traders.It sounds like they are really beating around the bush with SP,there is going to be an obvious benefit to having it.Also to say it is better to get it via the game play than just buying it,that would not make any sense if they rely on that system to fund the game,i sense there is more incentive to buy it than via the game play.
I don't like the idea of live GM's i am not after that type of game experience.I want the entire game to be MY experience,what i make of the game.
Is the game interesting enough to keep an eye on it?Sure i think so but i just get the feeling the cash shop idea will be a big turn off.I also do not get the idea this game will have in depth systems but more so a fly by night game design trying to rely on GM's to keep players involved in content.My gut feeling also seems to notice that perhaps SP is going to give players the ability to warp directly to these GM events.
Never forget 3 mile Island and never trust a government official or company spokesman.
Let's hope that doesn't happen.
Brenics ~ Just to point out I do believe Chris Roberts is going down as the man who cheated backers and took down crowdfunding for gaming.
SP measures a character's involvement in the world and it is used to immerse more into the world. It's more of a role-playing, storytelling currency. It will also be used to buy temporary immunity from PVP, though perhaps the intention with it is to help players get more PvE immersion that way. It's possible that SP will also be used to buy insurance for houses. Devs have said that SP purchases with real money will be very heavily regulated and the main source of getting SP will be by playing the game. SP will also be untradeable "currency". It cannot be traded away from one character to another.
Revival devs have some really vicious plans for RMT sellers, gold farmers, bots and player characters or guilds who start overhoarding resources. They've promised things like NPCs and NPC organisations becoming aware and beginning to stalk, assassinate or raid warehouses or guild houses of player characters who engage in such activities. Everyone who hoards gold or resources will have to stash it somewhere in the world because items and gold won't exist "virtually". They will be "physical". For RMT sellers this will be a huge challenge. There were a lot of dev forum posts on the topic. They want to do their best with game dynamics, systems and PvP elements to make life really hard for RMT sellers.
Live DMs will be setting different "hooks" in the world that may be activated by player characters. They will also have systems that notify them what's happening in the world, so that they can react and modify or set the "hooks". They won't force themselves on people's gameplay (like live DMs in Neverwinter Nights). Live DMs will lurk behind the scenes pulling the strings but they won't directly intrude or impose themselves on people's gameplay. Virtual DM systems will also be handling something like that automatically. Lead lore designer has also vowed that hiring live DMs into the company will be a painstaking process and they will have a lot of demands for the potential candidates for the job.
Monthly subscription fees on gold servers will be used to maintain these live storytelling teams.
I believe that cash shop in Chronicles of Elyria will be a lot worse. In CoE they will sell gold for real money, probably like Perfect World Entertainment with their Zen shop in Champion Online, Neverwinter, Star Trek Online.
In Revival having SP might give a better chance of experiencing live storytelling. I feel that's actually fair because that way live DMs would get paid for their effort if some of the players buy SP with real money. SP will probably also be bought by players who like PvE without PvP elements and want to get immunity from PvP as often as possible.
People who've been following dev posts on the forums will tell you that the systems will be very complex and there will be hundreds of them. In Revival they'll have many small systems that will create bigger systems, like small gears in a clock create a larger mechanism. On free-to-play servers they won't even have live DMs. They'll have virtual DM systems handling everything there.
* more info, screenshots and videos here
Besides I love the fact that RMT traders can get robbed because gold is physical currency.
Different strokes for different folks.
Any mmo worth its salt should be like a good prostitute when it comes to its game world- One hell of a faker, and a damn good shaker!
https://www.revivalgame.com/
Imagine a world where people actually read the start of the thread that lists the information you are looking for.
Any mmo worth its salt should be like a good prostitute when it comes to its game world- One hell of a faker, and a damn good shaker!
I voiced some worries about this game being for "rich" people only in the official forums way way back and one of the game spokesperson, I forget if it was a dev or not, actually replied saying and I'm paraphrasing here, "it was intended to be a niche game and wont be for everyone". He basically admitted the games targets those with lots n lots of cash to burn and anyone that feels the house are expensive,( think Star Citizen ship prices here) will only be peasants in game and have to "rent" from other players or be homeless.
Brenics ~ Just to point out I do believe Chris Roberts is going down as the man who cheated backers and took down crowdfunding for gaming.
I think the coolest thing about Revival is the evolution of the live DM experience. From all the dev posts I've read on the forums and blogs, they are planning something a lot more advanced than what Neverwinter Nights has. Live DM experience won't work on such individual level as on NWN persistent worlds but that is a necessity when they'll have 10,000 players on each server instead of only 30-75 players. Revival's live DMs will have lots of automated systems aiding and guiding them, something that NWN DMs don't have.They'll also have a lot more tools and options to set up "hooks" in the world that trigger new events or adventures, in combination with their tag system and virtual DM systems. Moreover, live DMs will have professional company programmers, scripters and artists to assist them and create content for their needs.
* more info, screenshots and videos here
Houses are for sale only for real money. Gold will be used to pay the house taxes. SP (or gold) will be used to buy insurance policies. Neighborhood upgrades will be purchased with gold, SP or a mix of those two (SP spent on political influence).
DM event can damage or destroy a house in the following way. DM sets up a "hook" in the world. Someone triggers the "hook" and unleashes something. Players fail to notice what has been unleashed, ignore it, or fail to prevent it from happening.
Destroyed houses can be rebuilt with in-game resources. House cannot be rebuilt only if both the house and the land on which it stood has been completely destroyed. That would require a really big disaster like a horrible volcano eruption or an island with a town sinking into the sea. I doubt that will happen lightly. It would mean that the company destroys game content that they spent time and resources developing. A game company who are not uber-rich can afford something like that on an extremely rare occasion, and they probably understand that it can have a big backlash among the player community.
Character with PVP immunity acquired with SP will loose the immunity through any hostile action. Getting temporary blessings and PVP immunity prerequires that nobody has destroyed the religious shrine in the region that grants such an immunity. If the shrine is destroyed, everything is nullified and SP cannot be used to buy a blessing, protection or immunity. Revival devs consider PVP to be a lot more than just fighting. PVP is going to be more like a scale from minor ridicule to murder and everything in between.
* more info, screenshots and videos here
2. Tenements go for as low as 37 dollars. There are plenty of Tenements around and personally I recommend getting a tenenment in Eastwatch or Stonemanor North or Stonemanor South in the first city. All three areas are pretty safe and the best thing about getting a tenement in Eastwatch is the fact that you can also join the Eastwatch Guard which patrols that neighborhood.
Idk about you but 40 dollars for a permanent home in a neighborhood where I can join the guard in that neighborhood is a good deal to me and a much better deal than your average 40 dollar contribution to an mmo Kickstarter. I can't think of one Star Citizen ship that sells for between 37 to 40 dollars. If you know of any list them.
In some neighborhoods you can get a tenement for around 37 dollars, the neighborhood won't be as safe but if you really can't afford 40 bucks well then perhaps 37 is a better price.
Name one mmo kickstarter where you can get an apartment in the game (in a good area at that) for fourty dollars?
Why not do some research and ask some questions instead of assuming that everything is super expensive? - which its not.
Now if you can't afford 37 dollars well then perhaps mmos right now shouldn't be on your list
Tenements in Eastwatch
https://www.revivalgame.com/store/housing/700119
Eastwatch neighborhood lore and yes you can actually join the guard there
Eastwatch - The Eastwatch tenement building is probably the safest in all of Crowns Rock, as many the guards who patrol the adjoining Eastwatch Tower and its sections of outer wall live or have relations in the building. Class may be low, but morale is high because of the Eastwatch Tower Company’s solid leadership, high standards, and professional regard.
Bastet's Rest is cheaper but the neighborhood isn't as safe
https://www.revivalgame.com/store/housing/700030
Bastets Rest - As the city of Crowns Rock grew around the Cathedral to Nodens, other followers of the Elder Gods also came to the isle, and eventually settled with others of their own faith. This neighborhood began as a cluster of hovels wherein a small coven dedicated to Basct came to live. As more devotees arrived, the smaller buildings were built together, and patched into one large building. These days a much more diverse crowd of tenants shares the walls of Bastet’s Rest, but one group remains even from the first days of the district, droves of feral cats.
Now for anyone else who hasn't done the research please feel free to head over to the site and ask questions on the forums or ask questions here. This thread is for answering them.
You can buy an apartment in the game for 40 dollars, next question?
Any mmo worth its salt should be like a good prostitute when it comes to its game world- One hell of a faker, and a damn good shaker!
https://www.revivalgame.com/features/active_crafting
There’s skill in making
Crafting. For players who are looking for more than just a hack and slash romp, no other aspect of MMO gaming sounds as appealing… ends up as disappointing. Far too often, players hoping for a deep crafting experience instead find themselves with the thin alternative of simply acquiring the proper ingredients and waiting out a progress bar for their finished item to “poof” into their inventory. Shouldn’t crafting be more than that? We think so. We think that, no matter what you make, crafting is a skill worthy of passion and dedication and Revival aims to bring that sensibility back.
Crafting starts in the world
Our approach to crafting is focused on the thought that crafting isn’t just another game; it’s another way to drive the course of the world and playing a critical part of the world as it develops. This is a fundamental change in the way crafting is integrated into an MMO world. As players, we won’t simply craft and gather by clicking on an object. With each action, a skill based game is played that tries to closely mimic the core feeling of the related craft.
For example, imagine that you are an alchemist. The mysteries of herbology and chemistry are yours to explore. Why should this be relegated to nothing but clicking on a plant in the world and then later clicking on a table and selecting a potion? We don’t think it should, and so as an alchemist in the world of Theleston, you’ll find that clicking on a plant brings that plant closer into view, allowing you push, pull and examine each stalk, stem and flower, deciding exactly which parts you want to harvest. You’ll examine the plants for quality, for blights and even perhaps contend with the poisonous parasites and other creatures that make their homes on the plants leaves.
Likewise, when you bring your gathered materials back to a workshop, clicking on an alchemy table and picking your desired recipe is only the first step, from there your ingredients will be laid out on the table and its tools will be made available for you, but it will be up to you to crush, distill, infuse and otherwise concoct your potion, in real-time, in the game world.
That’s the point: Crafting is part of the world, complete with the same visceral feel every other aspect of the game presents.
Every craft is different
Capturing the feel of each craft is an important aspect of our approach to crafting. Tailoring and alchemy are not the same things and they shouldn’t feel the same, yet this is exactly how crafting works in many online games. In Revival, the ‘game’ of each craft is uniquely matched to the actual work in that skill. Smithing is about heating and hammering while tailoring is about cutting and stitching. Each of these skills has its own associated actions with its own unique crafting game.
Crafting is fun!
Since each crafting skill has its own game associated with it, we have the luxury of ensuring that each game is as fun as it can be without worrying about how that will impact the other games. We don’t need to “dilute” the experience so that it can work with all types of crafting. Instead we can capture the unique essence of each type of crafting in a game built to maximize what is fun about that experience.
Our crafting systems are so fun that they can stand alone as fun short-session games like you might see on your mobile device or tablet. In fact, you literally can see the crafting games on your mobile device or tablet through the Revival second screen app. Have an inventory full of the materials needed to make a batch of healing potions just burning a hole in your characters pouch while you toil away at work in the real world? Why not take a break for a few minutes and cook those potions on your phone so that they’re waiting for you when you get home? Even if you don’t have any materials, but want to get some training in through practice, the second screen app is there for you.
You see, we want you to be a part of our world and to have a great time doing it; even if the only way you can is to take small part of our world with you, wherever you go.
Crafting is fun(damental to the economy)!
But don’t think our ability to bring you crafting as second screen experience means we think that’s all crafting is. Crafting powers the beating heart of our living world. Theleston is a world just being rediscovered; a frontier waiting for its denizens to rise up and tame her and very little plays a greater part in that effort than crafting.
Crafting drives the economy. Theleston is a living world, its cities and towns grow and expand only when times are good for them. When times are bad, cities might fall into disrepair or fade away completely as their residents move on to more prosperous hamlets where their needs can be met. This is because players are not a crafter’s only customers.
Cities have their own needs and consume the resources up for sale by players and NPCs alike. If a city is supplied well enough, and has an economy healthy enough to purchase the supplies, it will expand, but it those supplies are unavailable or are priced out of reach - if the crafters and merchants in our playerbase have neglected the town - the town won’t be able to expand and will stagnate or even collapse.
This could have serious repercussion to the world. Imagine, for example, the collapse of a city that is home to a major temple to the gods, or a great library full of arcane knowledge. What will happen to those assets when the city itself can no longer support them? Maybe they’ll be looted by bandits, or burned to the ground by rival factions, to be lost for ever. In a very real way, the fate of Theleston lies in the hands of its crafters, each of them skilled and talented artisans with a deep connection to the world in their own right.
Any mmo worth its salt should be like a good prostitute when it comes to its game world- One hell of a faker, and a damn good shaker!
The key word I used is HOUSE and anything of that size or larger is super expensive. The rest of your post is pretty much irrelevant and SP will be used for more that you admit unless they have gone back on what the have said originally which is possible as I haven't followed the game for awhile.
tenement are hovels 40$, cottages are slightly bigger hovels 80$+, HOUSES 380$+
Brenics ~ Just to point out I do believe Chris Roberts is going down as the man who cheated backers and took down crowdfunding for gaming.