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Darkwind

Name:	Sam Redfern
Date Posted:	Feb 04, 2006
Rating:	Not Rated
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The last 6 weeks or so have been very busy for darkwind. We have recruited several 3D modellers: Alan is working on character models and animation for the special 'themed' NPC gangs; Paul is working on the player character models; Nehal is customising our vehicles by adding big homemade bumpers, rams and spikes, weapons and turrets etc. Brian and Justin have also offered to help out with the modelling. Thanks guys! I have been working on 'aging' the vehicle textures (it's pretty damn rough on paintwork after the apocalypse, didn't you know?) and have also re-worked the website. OK, you might have noticed that! Everything has been moved onto our new Linux server, which involved the re-writing of ASP code, etc. I'll also need to re-write the logon server and am in the process of writing daily/weekly game update daemons.

A database of critical hits and injuries is also being compiled. This includes stamina and bleeding, stunning and concussions, broken bones, twisted ankles, ripped tendons, burning, punctures, explosions.. Many of these injuries will take several weeks (real-time) for a character to fully recover from, if at all. Anyone who has played my Amiga game 'Critical Hit' from 1995 will know what that's all about. Nothing sucks quite as badly as an RPG with a simplistic combat system... 'KewlD00d hits the squirrel for 5 points' ... yeurrch! ... the scary thing is, this accounts for nearly all RPGs currently on offer.

We're hoping to open up for phase 1 alpha testing in the next 8 weeks or so. This is probably wildly over-optimistic.

www.dark-wind.com

Recent Blog Posts

List:	10/31/08 - Deathracing Firetrucks (many images) 06/23/08 - Happy New Year: 2046 01/06/08 - January 2044 Roundup 10/15/07 - Happy New Year 2043 09/06/07 - What you get when you give an indie developer a free reign to rant, and don't argue with him 08/08/07 - Darkwind Retail 04/26/07 - Darkwind Official Opening May 4th 04/04/07 - Characters on Foot

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abc (Feb 04, 2006 at 11:06 GMT)

The necessary level of detail and realism in things like combat really depends on the kind of RPG you're going for. The genre model that everyone's accepted is based on the fulfillment of power fantasies through regular, continuous accumulation of greater abilities and equipment. Hard realism goes against this, as reality dictates your abilities through birth and regular training, not as a direct result of going on adventures. The traditional model, by abstracting out those things, lets the gameplay become entirely focused on fulfillment of the quest at hand. And ability improvement through use, rather than by clicking on the "train marksmanship" button and letting it run for three months, also tends to be a more gratifying way to convey advancement. Realism is outwardly a "boring" model and it allows deadly endings to easily occur by chance.

Nevertheless, I love seeing games that break the mold. Good luck getting this one right :)

Sam Redfern (Feb 04, 2006 at 12:31 GMT)

James: you're quite right on most of these things..

One of the main underlying concepts in my game is that you will only play it for a few hours per week, and that there's no advantage to gain from being logged into it for more than that. There's a lot of people who like persistent, competitive games but aren't willing to spend 10 hours per day at them. A lot of my gameplay design is tied to real-world time: you'll typically be involved in just one or two live events per week, and therefore the long-term training and injuries system fits with this. These things wouldn't fit easily in a traditional "24/7" MMORPG.

You explained the 'fulfilment of quest at hand' goal well, which is indeed what gamplay is typically about in RPGs. I guess my game will be a mix of this short-term stuff with longer-term strategy.

Matt Huston (Feb 05, 2006 at 16:32 GMT)

Sounds a bit like Auto-Assault except that, that game will assuredly suck. I've always though of a post-apocalyptic Mad Max esque RPG with driving involved.

Sam Redfern (Feb 05, 2006 at 18:14 GMT)

Matt: yeah, the basic theme is very similar but I think in terms of gameplay they'll be extremely different..

edit: BTW, what is it that you don't like about autoassault?
Edited on Feb 05, 2006 19:13 GMT

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