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The Chronicles of Spellborn: Game Preview
Dana
Member Posts: 2,415
The Chronicles of Spellborn recently took Staff Writer Garrett Fuller on a video tour of the game and spoke to him at length. Based on this experience he has formulated this first look at the title and the mechanics behind it.
;) More and more MMORPGs are coming on the market in the next year. Some will be a standard version of everything you have seen before. The Chronicles of Spellborn plans to break the mold of a typical MMORPG and take the genre into a new exciting direction. With stunning visuals the game presents a wonderful look to its respective players. With the world gone and only shards remaining after its destruction the travel aspect and looks of the realm are very unique. Spellborn also presents a change to game play by building the game on skills, not loot. With these two elements in mind the game also features plenty of options for both PvE and PvP oriented players. Spellborn also keeps a very close tab on their community and the growing appeal of MMORPGs to gamers. In a genre of grinding, looting, and endless hours of play, the Chronicles of Spellborn offers something different to the players. The game mantra, What Lies Hidden Must be found, gives players a chance to drive the storyline as well as their own character development. |
You can read the full preview here.
Dana Massey
Formerly of MMORPG.com
Currently Lead Designer for Bit Trap Studios
Comments
From reading this article, the Chronicles of Spellborn looks fantastic. Much more diversity than most other MMORPG's and I love how the devs have included the community and player-base to incorporate part of the game. I like the skill based system, the crafting system (gathering resources and letting NPC's make your items as this will make resources much more valuable to obtain), and the shard control with PvP.
This one sounds like it might be a winner.
Graphic looks a bit like WoW to me
When Garrett said...
"It is certainly refreshing to see a game company include players in the fun of its dungeons, as well as listen to the community about development and game play."
My first reaction was...
*cough* BULL$#!t *cough*
Let's be honest here, gaming development companies don't give a flying fark about their customers, beyond keeping them paying their $15 US a month.
Any so called collaboration with the players is just a way for a company to suck up to the player base, give them the illusion that they are important to them and most importantly keep them paying to play.
At its most basic level, obviously it is about making money. This is an industry, not a charity.
However, also at the most basic level it is about making something fun for people to enjoy... a game.
Any game company that completely does not care or consider its playerbase is going to fail. Even those companies some love to hate had to have taken their "market" into consideration or it wouldn't have made a game that anyone played in the first place.
Dana Massey
Formerly of MMORPG.com
Currently Lead Designer for Bit Trap Studios
Obviously, games are the vision of their designers. Why else would you hire the designer?
Having filled that role before, I know how much thought I put into "what players wanted". Yes, I considered what I thought would be fun - that was my job and all - but the idea of what people wanted was firmly on my mind.
It is a delicate balance, but that is why you hire designers. Good ones know what is fun and create games people like.
Let's take CoV/CoH. One - from a design perspective it bears almost no resemblence to EQ. Two - yes, it is Emmert's vision of what a superhero game should be. Three - It is one of the biggest hits in the genre, someone clearly thinks its fun even if you do not.
A lot of times companies do not impliment "revolutionary features to keep their customers", because despite what a vocal minority says, a silent majority gets freaked out when you completely redefine a genre. Does that mean no one should try? No, but sometimes a game can be too different and fail for exactly that reason. In my experience for every one person demanding you rethink every aspect of a game and do something new, you get fifty people upset when you change some convention they've grown used to. Hell - look at the reaction to us taking the word "Discussion" out of "Discussion Forums".
Dana Massey
Formerly of MMORPG.com
Currently Lead Designer for Bit Trap Studios
It looks rad. Can't wait to give it a try.
Remember way back when games would just come out? No waiting 4 years for development and forum buzz? I miss that.
I just wish there were more of these good designers around.
See - I quite enjoy CoH personally. Different people like different things and their several hundred thousand subscribers would seem to indicate I am not alone. You see a problem and you do not like it, that does not mean that the game is not fun.
If CoH listened to you and addressed that issue in the way you wanted, someone else would get angry about it.
My point about the silent majority is that they are often very scared of change. A concrete example in Wish, we had heard often that our combat system was quite boring and uninvolving. We moved to a more involved system.
Upon putting the first version in beta we immediately had a whole new group of players complain that combat required you to pay too much attention and do too much.
My point? You're damned if you do and damned if you don't when it comes to game design.
That is why designers have to trust their instincts and do what they think is best and most fun, because if they "listen to the players" all the time they'll never progress in any coherent way. Someone always wants something.
Dana Massey
Formerly of MMORPG.com
Currently Lead Designer for Bit Trap Studios
Just you try to play CoH solo, when you are up against another Arch-Villain with no hope of taking him down without 7 mythical "friends" watching your six.
I bet after the dozen or so visits to the hospital, you might change your tune.
So, basically you are telling me that since I am NOT a game developer, I am just yet another unwashed customer that should just "put up and shut up" with the current quality MMO games, and without question hand over my $15 US per month, for the false illusion of "fun"?
Eh... I think I might go back to my off-line games. At least I know where I stand there.
No, I am saying that you are one person and developers cannot listen to "one person" because they are responsible to hundreds of thousands of them - no two of which agree on anything.
I am not saying you shouldn't express your opinions, I am just trying to illustrate the other side of the equation.
Ultimately, these are their games. You pay them to enjoy them. If you do not like them, do not pay them. That seems to be the best way about it.
Eventually, if the problem really is as large as you say, then people will make games that you will pay for. They'll be forced to. Yes, games like WoW have stifled "revolutionary features" because people voted with their dollars that they liked that style of game.
Your choices are admitedly quite limited.
1) "Put up and shut up" as you say...
2) Stop paying for games you do not like. Vote with your dollars.
3) Become a game developer and do it your way... (might I add that brings us back to the start when someone else makes a thread saying your way is wrong).
See the problem?
Dana Massey
Formerly of MMORPG.com
Currently Lead Designer for Bit Trap Studios
Oh look, it's another guild wars clone. There was absolutely nothing new or different in the stuff mentioned in the article as far as I could see, and I am disgusted by the heavy reliance on PvP elements. I mean, it's like the standard solution for the endgame these days - the thing you do when you are not inventive enough to come up with anything better. I for one will never buy this game, the PvP aspect alone ensures lack of community.
In case you haven't noticed, there IS - as long as you keep paying, no matter how much you whine your own actions still prove beyond doubt that the company has achieved an adequate medium with your needs. Maybe not a happy one, but the company doesn't get paid to make you happy, it just has to keep you more satisfied with their product than with their competitors. Oh, and, when was the last time a game company threatened to kill you if you don't buy their product? Never? Stop that nonsense about being forced to buy their stuff.
I framed a really nice reply, and then the forums ate it. Hazards of the trade, all forums software is evil by nature.
I'm Corwynn Maelstrom, and I'm the Community Manager for TCoS.
Here are a couple of points rapidly because I don't have time to post in as much detail again:
The game is a less realistic and more fantastic style. This is in part due to our concept team consisting of experienced combic book professionals. The game is further developed with the Unreal 2.5 engine, giving us the opportunity to make some nicely detailed and very cool environments and buildings which stylistically match.
The community for the game is actively involved in the development process. We have over time taken a LOT of what has been said into consideration, and we have attracted some of the most jaded gamers I've ever seen and encouraged them to believe in a company that wants to do things differently. We don't like being the same, so we do our own thing. That includes interacting with the community on a personal level.
We're not remotely close to Guild Wars in most ways. Making that comparison indicates a lack of information. Garrett did a good job here, but he didn't have enough space to tell you everything you need to know. If you got the impression that we're a clone of any other existing MMO, you'd be mistaken. Please take the time to check out our website and forums. You'll probably have a different opinion when you're finished.
Hmmm... someone will have to point out the huge differences that set Spellborn apart from Guild Wars and al. to me.
Because from all the things I read it still looks like "Guild Wars: Evolved" with semi-skill based combat and quest-shards players can battle in (not instanced).
Not necessary a bad thing because the differences are interesting but not a revolution either.
Let's hope the story will be really good and dynamic.
Anyway, keep in mind that this opinion is that of a player who don't see the point of making MMORPGs in which the environment is static. I mean, what's the point?
And no, having a yourcolor/mycolor or on/off switch on assets does not make a dynamic world, it's just a form of capture the flag.
This is one of the most venom filed threads over what, I have no idea.
Why do people feel compelled to compare one thing to another, to generalize - is it so they can attempt to feel they understand without actually thinking it through or looking a little deeper?
COH is not EQ in tights
Spellborn is not a GW clone
Just because things have some of the features of other things do not make them clones.
A clone is a replication of the original, what we have in the MMORPG genre is a slow (painfully at times) evolution. Saying one game is a clone of another is like saying all vehicles are clones of the first wagon ancient man ever built.
Before anyone calls me a fanboy I will beat you to the punch I am a fan of Spellborn, I have been following it for quite a while and I think it looks very promising.
People are WAY to jaded when it comes to games and way to over the top one post used the word disgusted, disgusted is a little strong for a GAME that they seem to know little about or are even going to play isnt it? Not trying to flame anyone here just trying to put a little perspective on things.
Chronicles of Spellborn has a very distinctive flavour that sets it apart from other (existing or in development) MMORPGs. I for one love the vision and I'm looking forward to playing this game. I don't see at all the parallels with Guild Wars (which has to be one of the most shallow and boring games I've ever played! )
Hmm it seems that new things are still misunderstood ^^... to call it a clone of guildwars seems very shortsighted to me, it seems that you just dont understand the difference that does not mean it is a clone.. I myself see it more like evolution and adaption... for if I were to start the clone arguement we would have to go back to the very first MMORPG.. As a product designer most of my design tasks are based on designing a "this" for "that" (because we live in a capitalistic world).. so a table for 20-30 year old chinese women for example (as long as there is a market for it). The game world is not any different they aim for a gamers group and go for it with as base a know and exisiting principle.. in this case a MMORPG game for current base MMORPG gamers. Same target group as the games that this game is said to be a clone of..
Saying that they make the game for cash is a remark that goes unsaid but saying that it makes a game bad is a stupid remark.. for everyone with a bit of sense knows that the better the game the more it sells. To think a game is being made by only computer specialists is short sighted there are many marketeers at work who also need to look at their consumers wishes so ofcourse any MMORPG game that wants to be a game that sells has to listen to the targetted community. One that does not has either no esthablished community, a very little one or has a big chance of becomming a game meant for very few people.
To be totally original they will have to cover undiscovered grounds where there is hardly any simulairity to anything there was before.. so they will not call it a MMORPG and I dont think you will find it on this site since this site is called www.MMORPG.com ... so if you want to see a whole new gaming method go to E3 and see the most creative games that may not even be released on international scale.
Now back to spellborn.. I am very intrested in the game.. I like the graphics and artwork, I like the storyline and am intrested to see the combat system they have come up with.