shroud-of-the-avatar
Latest
Shroud of the Avatar enters first phase of early access testing
Backers of Portalarium's crowd-funded title Shroud of the Avatar are getting their first glimpse at the game today as the title enters the first part of its early access phase. The game is playable as of today, December 12th, and this phase of early access will end Saturday, December 14th. Between now and then, players will be able to delve into the many features included in Release 1 of Shroud of the Avatar. The devs proudly announce that they were able to implement almost every planned Release 1 feature (except for changeable head shapes in character creation), so even in this early stage of the game, players should have plenty to see, do, and -- if they're doing their jobs right -- break. The full list of Release 1 features, plus a guide on how to get the game up and running and a list of known issues, can be found at the game's official site. [Thanks to Don for the tip!]
Shroud of the Avatar releases first chapter of novel and more in latest update
This week's update for Shroud of the Avatar has a variety of tasty news tidbits for fans of the upcoming fantasy game. For starters, early founders and all those who purchased the Blade of the Avatar novel add-on can download the first chapter, co-authored by Tracy Hickman and Richard Garriott, today. A teaser blurb of that first chapters is available on the site. Dev+ backers also get early access to the pre-release of Release 1 (which hits next week) today to help test the installer and patcher. The news doesn't stop thereas SotA has secured the rights to use the musical piece "Karelia's Song" by David Watson, aka Iolo, the great bard of Britannia. Additionally, fans can get limited-time deals on a skinning knife of prosperity and a taming reindeer call, and founders can get a peek at their special Crystal Sword reward.
The Game Archaeologist: Going forward by looking back at the past
Have you noticed? I'm sure you've noticed. It seems as though ever since this Kickstarter fad flared up, the avalanche of retro-themed game projects has exploded. And it's not just on Kickstarter, either. One of Guild Wars 2's most popular content additions over the past year was a tongue-in-cheek recreation of 8-bit games. And now we've got Trove, which above its controversy is definitely appealing to the glory days of gaming past. The Game Archaeologist has always advocated that the past can influence our present and future in surprising ways. It sometimes irks me that current developers have shown a lot of ignorance for past ideas when coming up with new content, although that irritation has lessened recently now that I'm seeing a growing movement to embrace and incorporate what's come before, both ideologically and aesthetically. So what does the past have to offer the future of MMOs and how can game developers capitalize on it? As usual, I have all of the answers.
Make My MMO: Crowdfunding November 17 - 30, 2013
One thing gamers can definitely be thankful for this year is crowdfunding! Thanks to this phenomenon, we have many more options opening to us than ever before. And there are definitely some good gaming prospects on the horizon, even if news about all but one is seeming a bit scarce lately. While it's true that a few funded projects tossed out a news morsel or two, two new campaigns replaced two unsuccessful ones (neither The Zodiac Project nor Omuni Online made their goals), newcomer The Mandate already made its goal, and another hopeful -- Ever, Jane -- has secured three-quarters of its goal with only a couple of days left, the majority of the spotlight has been stolen the upcoming space sim Star Citizen, which continues to blast the crowdfunding record to smithereens. If you missed any of the news, you can catch up on it all right here in Make My MMO.
Make My MMO: Crowdfunding November 3 - 16, 2013
A quiet fortnight in the land of crowdfunding these past two weeks have not been. In fact, with the popularity of this funding model, it may never be quiet again. The past two weeks have had their share of campaigns starting, campaigns closing, and campaigns obliterating goals and funding records alike. Three new prospective games have popped on the radar (including one for those with impeccable manners!), and one has disappeared. But even that game isn't gone for good; although pledges had climbed to over $86K, Trials of Ascension canceled its campaign in order to "regroup, rework, and return." Another title, City of Titans, is taking its place among the fully funded crowd. And there there is Star Citizen, which proved that a single fortnight can't go by without the game's gathering another million or two. All that information and more can be found here in Make My MMO!
Starr Long explains Shroud of the Avatar's combat, crafting, and magic
Shroud of the Avatar's initial release client is rapidly approaching and fortunately for fans, the dev team at Portalarium has started to ramp up the flow of information. The latest dump is a lengthy post by executive producer Starr Long that covers the game's magic, combat, and crafting systems in quite a bit of depth. You'll find everything from damage types to base stats to active and innate skills in this particular post. You'll also find info about Shroud's two experience types (crafting and adventuring) as well as its magic skill trees.
The Daily Grind: Do you like staggered or modular launch schedules?
Regardless of your feelings toward Kickstarter or crowdfunding in general, you have to admit that it's starting to have an impact on the way games are made. More specifically, two of the larger crowdfunding projects -- Shroud of the Avatar and Star Citizen -- are doing away with a traditional launch date in favor of a staggered release schedule. Star Citizen has already released a playable piece of pre-alpha content, and just yesterday we learned that Shroud of the Avatar's initial client will be available as early as next month. What do you think about these newfangled rollouts? Do you like the opportunity to see games in their raw, pre-beta states, or do you prefer to wait on a more traditional or feature-complete release day? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Shroud of the Avatar's Release 1 due this December
If you're chomping at the bit to play an early version of Richard Garriott's new Shroud of the Avatar opus, you won't have to wait much longer. Executive producer Starr Long posted a schedule of sorts on the game's forum earlier today, and the initial testing phase -- dubbed Release 1 -- begins on December 12th. Like fellow crowdfunding project Star Citizen, Shroud of the Avatar is rolling out in stages rather than sticking with a more traditional "it's done" launch date. Long's post outlines the tentative schedule through March of 2014, and there's a good amount of detail in terms of what playable features are expected. Hit up the links below to learn more.
Ultima creator's Shroud of the Avatar seen in six-month progress video
Led by Ultima creator Richard Garriott, indie developer Portalarium released a new update video for Shroud of the Avatar: Forsaken Virtues detailing the game's progress over the past six months. The 25-minute video covers the scenic towns of Kingsport and Owl's Head, dipping into the types of homes that players can own before showing the game's crafting system and the first prototype of its combat. Garriott and company earned $1,919,275 on Kickstarter in April to develop the game, and has hauled in an extra $698,480 since then through independent funding on Portalarium's website. Shroud of the Avatar is a fantasy RPG for PC that leans heavily on world exploration. The game features single-player and online multiplayer modes reminiscent of Ultima Online. It is currently on pace for a late 2014 launch with backer-exclusive early access planned for late 2013.
Make My MMO: Crowdfunding October 20 - November 2, 2013
The news meter for crowdfunding keeps right on ticking. The last two weeks have seen a score of changes in the realm of community funding initiatives, with some titles experiencing success, others not meeting their goals, and even more joining the ranks. One big name in gaming, Brad McQuaid, is even planning on launching a campaign in the near future. The zombie-centric The Living was unsuccessful, and Story Quest Online failed for a second time. Mixmaster Online removed itself from the field and canceled its campaign. On the other hand, 8BitMMO met its first stretch goal, ensuring that a Mac edition of that game will be available for players. And then there's City of Titans, which is climbing closer to doubling its goal with only two days left. Finally, there are all the progress updates for those already-funded campaigns, conveniently rounded up right here for you in Make My MMO.
Shroud of the Avatar video gives six-month dev update
Buckle down to a half-hour video from Lord British himself taking you through the development progress of Shroud of the Avatar now that it's hit the six-month mark. Lord British begins by showing off Kingsport Village and talking about how housing is one of the big features and choices of the game. The video continues to another town where the devs fade player housing in and out to demonstrate how towns might be built up over the course of the game. The housing decoration system and the different types of dwellings were toured, including Germanic, Druidic, and Nordic dwellings. He also shows off the female avatar, crafting, and the "natural language conversation system." The latter allows players to type full sentences to NPCs, who will then parse the conversation for important keywords. We've got the full developer commentary video for you after the break.
Make My MMO: Crowdfunding October 6 - 19, 2013
This was quite a fortnight in the realm of crowdfunding, and for once we don't mean just Star Citizen news! More than one game met its funding goals, with one title proving that fans can be a very passionate lot: City of Titans reached its lofty goal within days. On top of that, two other games joined the fight for funding. Conversely, Alteil Horizons pulled its campaign at literally the last minute to avoid the stigma of an unsuccessful stamp and plans to launch again. Want the scoop on all these stories and many more? Learn the latest right here in Make My MMO.
Shroud of the Avatar shows off crafting sigil and more
A plus-sized project update for Shroud of the Avatar kicks off with a look at the crafting sigil, the diagram that shows how the game's crafting disciplines are interconnected. The crafting sigil is made of three rings (inner, middle, and outer) that hold five skills apiece. The inner ring is devoted to crafting, the middle to refining, and the outer to production. This setup is not just for eye candy, but provides a visual representation of the crafting process as items are made by going from the inner ring to the outer. The update goes on to tease male avatar armor, a story sneak peek, Shroud of the Avatar swag, and several screenshots of housing exteriors, interiors, and basements. Yes, basements: truly the most requested MMO preview aspect ever. Please try not to wet your pants. Actually, they are kind of cool, so disregard that sarcasm.
Garriott talks 'selective multiplayer' at NYCC
If you missed this year's New York Comic Con, you also missed a meaty chat with veteran developer Richard Garriott. Lord British spent a bit of time looking back at his career which at this point has spanned nearly 40 years. He also looked forward to Shroud of the Avatar, and shared his thoughts on a concept called "selective multiplayer." He compared SotA's blueprint with traditional MMOs, which typically feature large numbers of players who either ignore each other or who are sharded away from one another on different servers. Garriott's aim is to make a single shard game that fills player instances first with preferred friends and then with strangers, while maintaining "ad hock private instances for storytelling." You can watch the full panel video after the break.
Ask Massively: The dilemma of the free-to-play sandbox
Reader Sharvis recently emailed the Massively Speaking podcast with a question I felt deserved more than just a quick verbal reaction on the 'cast. That, and we just discovered that the ask@massively.com email address went dead approximately three weeks ago, and I've not been receiving your letters there (so send 'em again!). In the meantime: Sharvis. What makes a sandbox so susceptible to its business model in comparison to a themepark? I'm not experienced with sandbox titles, and I can only guess on some of the implications. For example, selling boosters in a themepark is fairly acceptable, but in a sandbox, as Jef pointed out [in his ArcheAge column earlier this summer], that'd be cutting into one of the main features of a sandbox. I'd guess it has to do with these sort of MMOs being more player-centric, and that's a very delicate system to be messing with. See? I told you this was a juicy one.
You'll want to own Shroud of the Avatar's Druid town home
This week's Shroud of the Avatar update is a biggun! It features a new combat sigil, which shows off the eight combat schools that a Warrior may choose to follow. There's also a story sneak peek from co-authors Richard Garriott and Tracy Hickman as well as player housing basements. This last bit is a pretty big deal judging by the number of screenshots and verbiage Portalarium devoted to it. And while we're talking about housing, there are also some nifty shots of the game's Druid tree house as well as related discussion from devs Isaac Oster and Michael Hutchison.
Shroud of the Avatar presents founder town home and female armor
If you wanted to be the envy of all of your virtual friends by living in the swankiest house in the neighborhood, chances are that you chipped in to become a founder for Shroud of the Avatar. Assuming that this is the case, the devs have a few impressive interior and exterior screenshots of the Founder Lord Town Home to show you. After all, who wouldn't want to live in a castle in their neighborhood? This latest update of the developing game also includes pictures of the Benefactor Edelmann Village Home and a sneak peek at what leather and plate armor looks like on female avatars. For once in a fantasy RPG, these actually look sensible instead of steel lingerie, so applause all around.
Make My MMO: Crowdfunding September 22 - October 5, 2013
Not all games that turn to crowdfunding need a boost to get off the ground. In fact, one new addition to our column this week -- 8BitMMO -- is utilizing this avenue to help accommodate the exponential growth it has experienced over the last couple of years. The other newcomer, however, is actually trying to build from the ground up; City of Titans wants to give displaced City of Heroes fans a new home. In other news, Star Citizen was the news! Videos, interviews, new goals, and more poured forth from this crowdfunding giant this week. We also heard from Embers of Caerus (which has been pretty quite for a long while). Even Neo's Land chimed in with a new demo. And you can get the whole scoop here!
Shroud of the Avatar dev update shows off Unity scene jam winner, collectors coin
Portalarium's latest Shroud of the Avatar dev blog is up, and its topics range from community contests to the wood grain of a miller's table. The blog introduces the Sigil of Magic, which is an artistic representation of the way Shroud of the Avatar's nine schools of magic interact with one another, along with a new official collectors coin, which will be sent out as a reward for those who backed Shroud of the Avatar at the Early Founder Collector Pledge level or above. Additionally, the blog leaps into each of the game's different crafting tables and talks a bit about their artistic influence. The studio also used the blog to declare a winner in its recent Unity Scene Jam contest. The contest gave Shroud of the Avatar fans 48 hours to build a scene featuring a lunar rift using the Unity engine and some provided resources. The winner will receive a Knight-level pledge, a signed game box, and a Shroud of the Avatar t-shirt. Check out the scene in a dev-hosted video after the break.
Garriott fielding Shroud of the Avatar questions this Friday
If you're free at 3:00 p.m. EDT on September 27th and you're a fan of Shroud of the Avatar, why not stop by the game's latest Hangout of the Avatar broadcast. A quick blurb on the game's official site has all the details, including bits about the 30-minute running time and the VIRTUE-related question-and-answer format. Richard Garriott will field pre-submitted questions during the broadcast. If you've got something to ask, send it via Google Hangout at #LBSotA_Hangout or via the comment section of the announcement post.
