Monthly Archives: April 2014

Cubical Drift’s Founder Talks To The Planets3 Community

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Michel Thomazeau is the founder of Cubical Drift studios, the masterminds behind the video game project Planets3. With an engineering background, Michel first started working in the area of professional software and remained there for 9 years before quitting everything last year to dedicate himself 100% to Planets3.

Michel first started playing video games when he was 11 and soon discovered RPG/adventure games were his favorite – they remain so even today – Secret of Mana, Zelda, Chrono Trigger and Final Fantasy saga are some examples.

Cubical Drift was started in October 2013 by 3 co-founders, who made sure they were able to solve the main technical challenge in Planets3’s development before founding the studio: the large viewing distance.

Today, Cubical Drift is part of “Paca Est”, a company incubator giving the studio its support and providing financial help for some aspects of the project. In addition, the French town of Cannes is welcoming them into its brand new enterprise seedbed project: CréaCannes.

Planets³ …

Planets³ is a voxel-based (3D pixels) RPG game. Its storyline and Non Playable Characters (NPCs) will drive players through an adventure that will lead them from planets to planets. In the game’s storyline, Aliens that look like humans crashed on Earth some years ago. Players will then embark involuntarily on an adventure that will lead them to discover why the aliens crashed and to help them get out of troubled situations. Thanks to spacecraft they’ll build themselves, players will travel from planets to planets, each of them being different from one another by its landscapes, fauna and flora. Each planet is wide enough so that players get a feeling of gigantism while remaining small enough to encourage them to leave and discover other planets.

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The Planets³ community asked Michel some questions and below are his answers:

 

How is Planets³ like  Minecraft?

Minecraft was the game that generalized voxels. If Minecraft had not existed, Michel and his team would probably never have had the idea of creating Planets³. It is therefore natural to compare Planets³ to Minecraft or event Cubeworld, since these games are based on voxels (Minecraft being the reference). Minecraft was one of the influences that inspired the studio, along with games like Skyrim, Zelda, Mass Effect but also sci-fi movies like Star Wars or even games like Lego.

However Planets³ is not a sandbox game. It is above all an RPG whose main appeal will be its storyline. The game will also have a “creation” mode that will allow players to play without following the storyline.

In terms of art direction, the blocks in Planets³ are smaller than Minecraft’s (25cm2) and different forms allow a real diversity in the world’s creation.

The world is consistent: landscapes depend on their locations on the planet and on their altitude.

In the storyline, there will be dungeons and quests. As the game will encourage players to build vehicles (including spacecraft), there will be a real land and space exploration to it.

The building aspect will be important and integrated in the story. Some quests will require building elements – homes or vehicles – for example, while respecting the “rules” of construction, i.e. placing parts in the right places (for example the wheels of a vehicle must be linked to the ground and to the vehicle itself).

 

What can you tell us about NPCs?

NPCs will be essential to the players’ progression. Some NPCs will be “found” while others will be rescued. It will be more convenient for players to gather all the NPCs in the same village (built by the player himself!). The numerous NPCs available in the game will help him/her by teaching new crafting methods amongst many other things.

 

Is multiplayer an important part of the game?

This is indeed one of the main appeals of the game. Cubical Drift will focus on the cooperative aspect in the first opus. Several players will be able to play the story mode simultaneously.

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Why do a KickStarter?

We attempted the « classical » approach through private investors, but it didn’t work out (in May 2013) which lead Cubical Drift to turn towards crowdfunding through KickStarter especially because it is the number one platform in this domain.

KickStarter is not only a way to raise funds, it is also a good tool for measuring the market and creating a community around the game.

 

How did you come up with the $250, 000 goal?

Cubical Drift has estimated in great detail the necessary budget needed to create the game and concluded that this is the amount we need to make the game we are promising. This budget includes the development of the game, the salary of the team (9 members) and the development of specific tools to create the game (i.e. the software that models the planets / the software that manages the progressive vision).

 

Thanks for your interest in our game.  If you haven’t already, we invite you to support our cause before it ends on April 5th! https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1247991467/planets3

“Scourge: Outbreak” now available on Steam

Tragnarion Studios is proud to announce that “Scourge: Outbreak”, a futuristic squad-based 3rd person shooter, is now available to buy on Steam for PC and Mac. Outbreak is perfect for playing with friends, offering 8-player PvP modes (Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch and Capture The Flag) in 5 action-filled maps and a 6+ hour Co-op campaign for 4 Players in which each Player has unique narrative elements. This rich multiplayer experience adds tons of replayability to Scourge: Outbreak and is fully cross-platform, allowing PC and Mac Players to fight each other for supremacy.

Assume the role of one of Echo Squad’s 4 playable characters, each with their own stats and ‘Ambrosia’ ability variants, as you storm the island fortress of your sworn enemy, Nogari Corporation. Blast your way through Nogari’s futuristic research facilities as you battle hordes of genetically resurrected monsters and die-hard special forces in search of a dangerous secret that Nogari is keeping from the world. Whether you’re taking on Nogari with your friends, or fighting alongside your Clan in spectacular online PvP battles, Scourge: Outbreak offers hours of fun and exciting challenges.

For more info, visit http://www.scourgeoutbreak.com/

Final Chapter of EVE: True Stories Graphic Novel Issue 4 Now Available

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CCP Games and Dark Horse are proud to announce the release of Issue #4 of EVE: True StoriesThieves Among Us”, bringing their dramatic digital sci-fi graphic novel series, based on the in-game adventures of EVE Online® players as recounted on the EVE: True Stories website, to a stunning conclusion.

Issue #4 of EVE: True Stories Thieves Among Us” carries this final chapter of tales inspired by real player events in EVE Online® to a gripping, unforgettable climax and is currently available as a free download from Dark Horse Digital or via the Dark Horse Android and iOS apps.

Penned by comics fan-favorite Daniel Way (Wolverine: Origins, Deadpool), with artwork by famed Chicago illustrator Daniel Warren Johnson (Prophet, The Shaolin Cowboy), and cover art from the legendary David Palumbo, Issue #4 of EVE: True StoriesThieves Among Us” concludes this deadly tale of intergalactic intrigue, taking readers deep into the nefarious events behind the dismantling of a galaxy-sprawling super power in the EVE universe.

With this unique, living sci-fi tale now complete, readers will be able to enjoy all four issues of EVE: True StoriesThieves Among Us” in a single, collected hardback edition on sale June 4, 2014 from Dark Horse Comics.

Check out the latest Developer’s blog about EVE: True Stories here!

Protobird Games Announces Kid-Friendly TCG The Dreamland Chronicles

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New independent game development studio Protobird Games announced their Kickstarter to support development of the upcoming kids’ mobile trading card game, The Dreamland Chronicles. Adapting the award-winning web comic series by Scott Christian Sava, the game is currently in development for iPad, with an Android release as the Kickstarter’s first stretch goal. Protobird will debut their work-in-progress at PAX East in Boston, MA at Booth #1035. The Kickstarter campaign can be viewed at dreamlandcardgame.com.

Founded in 2013 by game industry veterans Parker Davis (Tomb Raider, Red Dead Redemption) and Scott Hyman (Star Wars: Battlefront, Tony Hawk’s Motion), Protobird Games launched development of the first mobile trading card game for kids after the founders could not find such an app appropriate for their young sons. The app boasts unique features for a mobile trading card game, such as animated characters battling in a Final Fantasy style turn-based showcase arena and “virtual toy” character cards that level up, come to life and react when kids tap and swipe them.

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Previews of the game have excited game industry veterans. “I like the all-ages game experience Protobird is making,” said David Jaffe, founder of The Bartlet Jones Detective Agency and the creative force behind God of War and Twisted Metal. “The Dreamland Chronicles updates the card collecting and games I enjoyed as a kid. I can’t wait to play with my daughters and see how they enjoy it with their friends.” Based on Scott Sava’s rich and vibrant Dreamland Chronicles web comic universe, The Dreamland Chronicles card game spotlights the feature-film quality 3D animated characters and environment artwork directly from the original pages.

“Kickstarter is the perfect place to introduce The Dreamland Chronicles to the gaming community,” founder Scott Hyman said. “From avid trading card game fans to gamer parents like ourselves to the web comic’s core supporters, everyone has embraced Kickstarter as the best place to discover new, exciting independent projects.” The team is working towards a goal of raising $35,000 via the crowdfunding platform. The campaign includes stretch goals related to additional platforms, more content, and better bonuses for project backers.

To ensure the safety of young players online, Protobird Games is partnering with Privacy Vaults Online (PRIVO), a third-party Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) Safe Harbor and identity & consent service provider. PRIVO enables websites, apps, games and other online services to comply with COPPA when they interact with and market to children online under the age of 13.

SMITE Launch Cosplay and Giveaway

By Darren Henderson (DizzyPW), God of Paparazzi

This past weekend was a wild ride for SMITE in Atlanta as the best teams of Europe and the US clashed for the title of masters of the west, a chance to face off against the east in an upcoming summer tournament, and of course, the largest prize pool Hi-Rez Studios has even offered!

And while the matches offered mind blowing levels of gameplay, with teamwork, dodges, and snipes so well timed and well placed you’d think the players had the game hacked, the cosplay is what surprised me more than anything. It turns out Atlanta has a rather thriving secret cosplay community, so when a gaming tournament on this scale was announced, they showed up in force. And I’ve take some time to edit my favorite shots below!

But before we get into it, let’s talk giveaways! Scroll through the images below and tell us your favorites on our official forum giveaway event. We’ll be randomly selecting 12 entries to give out codes for the extremely rare Convention Guan Yu on Friday afternoon during JamesBl0nde’s livestream!

Now onto the Cosplay!

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Thanks to all the cosplayers for taking the time to take shots with us. Don’t forget to enter to win your Guan Yu Convention skin now!

Black Gold – An Early Look

By Jordan Hall (ApocaRUFF)

Black Gold is the up-and-coming title being brought to us by Snail USA. Using an updated and modified version of the engine that was used in Age of Wushu, we will experience a world where steampunk technology and fantasy magic clash. The game has two factions, the nature-loving and magic using Erlandir Union and the techno-steampunk Kingdom of Isenhorst. As opposed to Snail’s previous title, Age of Wushu, Black Gold will use a class and level system, with questing and other traditional MMORPG features playing a much larger role. The hope is that this more Western-friendly setting and familiar game mechanics will be more attractive to the North American/European crowd.

Before I continue, I want to stress that my experiences were within the alpha version of the game. This means what I write in this impressions article may not be true or accurate at a later date, and there’s a chance for changes to be made to the game.

The Customization

Just like in Age of Wushu, you have quite a decent amount of customization. You can create the girl of your dreams, or that mutant guy from your nightmares. There’s pretty much a slider for just about everything you could think of. Heck, there’s even a boob size slider. About the only thing you might be able to complain about is the short supply of hairstyles to choose from.

That brings me into the races and classes. Right now, there are six races and four classes per faction (so a total of eight classes). The Kingdom has the human Buvont and Dwarf Lokemean, while the Union has the elvish Kosh and human Yutonian. The Upryian and Yuton races are not yet available in the Alpha version of the game. The classes fulfill the usual MMO archetypes: rogue-types, spellcasters, support, tanks, etc. If you’ve played WoW, or an other traditional themepark MMORPG, you’ll find the classes quite familiar.

Graphics

Something you’ll notice is that the game looks great. Just like Wushu, there are a lot of amazing vistas to view, areas to explore, and you can have a lot of fun by just wandering around. However, I did feel that the Union areas were a lot more beautiful than the Steampunk zones. This is to be expected, as Steampunk is attributed as a dirty and gritty-type theme, but it also felt like the Kingdom zones were just of an over-all lower quality for the most part. I’m hoping Snail can do some touch ups to fix this.

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I really wish I could provide some screenshots, but due to the NDA, I can’t. When I first started playing, I rolled a dwarf assassin in the Kingdom and was a bit disappointed by the quality of the graphics. Later on, I rolled a human pyromancer in the Union and my mind was instantly blown as soon as I loaded in. The starting area for the humans in the Union is just plain amazing to look at. It definitely has a mystical fantasy feel to it, with a calm and homely nature. The architecture of the buildings in that area, combined with the music, remind me a lot of the Hobbit village in the Lord of the Ring films.

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Questing

Something that will become apparent right off the bat is that questing is an important part of progression in Black Gold. Unfortunately, most of these quests are the typical-and-boring “kill X of Y” or “Gather X of Z” or a combination of both. The tediousness of these quests is slightly mitigated by the auto-pathing system in the game. There are also semi-spontaneous area quests that will appear that you and other players can participate in. For example, you might help hold off a horde attacking a city.

Generally, I was disappointed with the questing experience I found. The game is still in alpha, and there’s still hope that the Devs can take player feedback into consideration and change the game, but I don’t think that something that seems to be the core of the game will change much. I would have much preferred a modified Age of Wushu system, where you weren’t forced to do mind-numbingly tedious tasks in order to progress your character. I honestly think this new quests-driven progression will be something that a lot of former Age of Wushu players will instantly not like after having experienced the more fun and laid-back progression in Wushu.

Combat

Combat in Black Gold is tab-target with a bit of an action twinge. The “action” portion comes from the dodging function and the importance of facing your target, which means movement is a huge aspect of a fight. Other than that, the combat is quite similar to any other themepark MMO. Depending on what class you choose, you might be using energy, rage, or mana as your class “resource” for using your abilities. For example, as an assassin you’ll be using rage which is generated by using some attacks, such as your basic attack, and is consumed by using the more advanced attacks. Speaking of assassin, for those who like rogue-type classes, you can turn invisible.

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It seems like all attacks are “AOE” in nature. Even the basic attack of my rogue is capable of damaging multiple enemies in one swing. As long as they’re grouped up together and you can withstand their damage output, you can take out a group of enemies incredibly fast. This gives the combat a more intense feeling that kind of makes you forget that the combat is really just a tab-targeting system. Although, at least from what I’ve seen, the combat doesn’t have the same complexity as Age of Wushu, which is a bit of a let down.

Magic, and ranged combat in general, seems to be about the same as in other MMOs. It had a very nice feeling, and I found it a bit easier (and more fun) than melee. Of course, I tend to roll a mage as my main in a majority of games a play, so I may be a bit biased in that regard. There’s a mixture of instant, charged, and channeled abilities. One thing I instantly liked, and this is apparent for both melee and magic, is that enemies will sometimes literally be blown away when they die. It’s a bit mean, but there’s nothing more hilarious than hitting a rabbit with a fireball and watching it fly into a building or an NPC.

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While I didn’t get a chance to participate in PVP during the alpha, I have been told that just like in Wushu, PVP will be a huge part of the game. It was even described as one of the primary end-game features. I wasn’t able to confirm it, but a few of the in-game alert messages I received gave the impression that there was a similar guild territory control system as Age of Wushu, guild bidding and all. It seems like the primary focus is taking control of special resource nodes.

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Crafting

The crafting system seems to be similar to Age of Wushu in some ways. For example, there is a stamina system, which the professions in the game use. This means you’re limited to how much you can actually do per day which may promote the use of alts. It seems like high-end gear will make use of relatively hard-to-obtain materials, similar (once again) to Wushu. Crafting was one of my favorite experiences in Wushu, as well, so I’m looking forward to it in Black Gold.

General Gameplay

In general, the gameplay in Black Gold had a clunky feel. The combat was difficult to get used to at first, as I found it sometimes hard to get my character to face the right direction in a fight. Sometimes, he would seemingly turn around in a fight for no reason (but perhaps that is some-sort of combat mechanic?). The mounts, especially the motorcycles (which you get very early on), seemed to be a bit stiff. Being able to do impossible turns, and even turning while staying completely up-right, on a motorcycle feels a bit weird and sort of breaks the immersion. However, this is an alpha version of the game and there will hopefully be a ton of polish done before the game is released.

Speaking of mounts, each faction has their own style of mounts. As you might guess, the Kingdom has steampunk-themed mounts, such as motorcycles or robotic wolves. On the other-hand, the Union has organic mounts which you might expect from a fantasy setting. These mounts do not allow for combat, however there are “battle vehicles” that do.

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The level cap is currently set to 40, which doesn’t seem like it will take very long to achieve. I was able to get to level 20 in a relatively short amount of time. Perhaps the later levels will be significantly harder to achieve? Either way, the monotony of the leveling process will hopefully be broken up thanks to the hidden cave-dungeons, public events, and other similar features. More than likely, however, you will spend a lot of your time doing PVP battlegrounds, guild wars, open PVP, crafting, and instances.

Dungeons seem to be everywhere. There aren’t quite the same as instances, as they’re more like small caves that multiple people can enter to kill mobs and collect loot. There didn’t seem to be much story to them, at least in the earlier areas. I did like the abundance of them, as I felt like I was discovering something new quite frequently. You feel like an adventurer that is exploring a new place, which is something a lot of new MMOs fail to convey.

The Sands of Time

Some of you may be familiar with Snail’s experimental payment model for Black Gold. In this model, you essentially have to pay real money to gain access to some of the best stuff you picked up during your gameplay session once you log off. At least in the alpha, you got two free Sands of Time exchanges a day, which I guess makes it accessible to even completely free players. There were also hints of a “sand of time” auction, so perhaps players will be able to sell their sands to others for in-game currency. However, there also seemed to be a lot of different types of sands, and I honestly was completely confused about how the system worked.

A bit of tinkering made it seem like you could, depending on your accumulated “Treasure Value,” gain access to better items. Once you get your Sand of Time, you can right click it and either turn it into an enhancement item (which could be used on equipment) or a piece of equipment. Opening the Sands of Time interface lets you see what pieces of equipment of enhancement items you have a possibility of getting when you use the Sand of Time, and I’m guessing the higher your Treasure Value, the better stuff you have a chance of getting. There was a “Items in save file” list of items as well, but I had no idea how to actually get those items. Like I said, the system was just confusing and I wasn’t able to find any resources that explained it well, so all I had to go on was my own experimenting and best guesses.

Conclusion

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to use any of my own screenshots for this impressions due to the NDA. Hopefully my writing will be enough to convey what I’ve experienced, and the screenshots I’ve provided will placate you. Black Gold seems to be shaping into a good game that fans of both the fantasy and steampunk genres can enjoy. Personally, I have great hopes for this game as I love the steampunk setting and I had a blast playing Age of Wushu. This is definitely a game to keep your eye on in the near future.

 

Guild Launch Announces Exclusive Partnership with Artix Entertainment

Guild Launch

Guild Launch, the world’s leading guild hosting and community management platform, has become an exclusive partner of Artix Entertainment. This partnership allows all AdventureQuest Worlds players to instantly access their own customizable website at Guild Launch for their entire community website hosting needs.

“Artix is a forward thinking company that sees the value in focusing on building their game while partnering with Guild Launch to provide key community tools.” said Stephen Johnston, President and founder of Guild Launch. “Guild Launch will be embedded right in the game and this brings a whole new depth of features to the AQW community such as cross server chat, server rallying functionality and fully game-integrated user management with more to come over the life of the partnership.”

AdventureQuest Worlds is one of the most popular online MMO games, with more than 55 million registered users. Combining forces with Guild Launch allows both entities to provide these players an experience they’ve yet to have with this game. From giving them additional team communication channels, providing a single rallying point allowing them progress further and faster in-game, plus a true place for their team to call home, this partnership will take the out-of-game experience for all these players to the next level.

“The AdventureQuest Worlds team is dedicated to creating the best MMO experience on the web, and Guild Launch’s services will bring our players closer together and give them more tools to dominate the game,” said Adam Bohn, CEO and founder of Artix Entertainment. “It is a win-win for the players of AdventureQuest Worlds and everyone involved in the team-up!”

To learn more about Guild Launch, please visit http://www.guildlaunch.com
To learn more about Artix Entertainment, please visit http://www.artix.com

Age of Wushu: Palace of Shifting Flowers Sect Unveiled

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Age of Wushu by Snail Games has just revealed a female-only Sect, the Palace of Shifting Flower in its upcoming expansion, Tempest of Strife.

Elegant yet Deadly, gorgeous yet cold-hearted, the Palace of Shifting Flowers is a place of shrouded legend that people fear yet admire. Its mystery was built upon the dark secrets behind seemingly graceful maidens who sworn to seek vengeance from the men who wronged them.

For more info, visit http://www.ageofwushu.com/news/view/315

Mousee Games Launches Siege Online for English-Speaking Market

Siege Online

Mousee Games today announced the launch of the English language version of Siege Online, a 3D downloadable multiplayer RPG set in a war-torn fantasy medieval land. Siege Online combines in-depth strategy with a complex economy and a sophisticated guild system to create an immersive and challenging gaming experience unlike anything you’ve seen before.

“Siege Online is the perfect game for people who love the depth of a full-featured and complex online RPG, but also want a strategic combat system instead of pure action,” said Irina Kudosova, president of Mousee Games. “Siege Online reflects the kind of innovation you will only see from the small, independent developers, and we’re pleased to have helped bring it to English-speaking gamers.”

For more info, visit: www.siege-online.com