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Sorcery! 2 is a fantastic adventure game for iPhone and iPad
Inkle's Sorcery! 2 for iPhone and iPad (US$4.99, universal) is a fantastic take on Steve Jackson's (not that Steve Jackson) adventure gamebook series of the same name. Despite a cumbersome, yet necessary spell-casting mechanic, Sorcery! 2 retains the fun of an old-school adventure book and feels at home on a modern device. Here's my look at the charming Sorcery! 2. Jackson's Sorcery! series was a collection Fighting Fantasy adventure books, published between 1983 and 1985. Four titles were published: The Shamutanti Hills, Kharé: Cityport of Traps, The Seven Serpents and, finally, The Crown of Kings. Sorcery! 2 tells the story of Kharé: Cityport of Traps. Before you ask, there is a Sorcery! app, based on The Shamutanti Hills, and future releases will feature The Seven Serpents and The Crown of Kings. Gameplay You play as a young adventurer in the port city of Kharé, a wretched hive of scum and villainy. Traps, n'er-do-wells and deception abound, so stay sharp. You've got to find an ancient gate, and your actions affect the story, much like Edward Packard's Choose Your Own Adventure books. As you approach the city gate, you meet an elderly and mildly threatening guard. Right away, you have options: talk to him, fight or cast a spell. A scroll of text appears, describing the scene and your options. Background noise emphasizes the atmosphere and adds to the fun. At the end of the scroll are your options. Tap your choice and see what happens. Note that this will affect the overall story significantly. The guard is old, so be nice (you just might see him again). This game is beautiful. The art feels like prints made from woodcuts. There's a fantastic 3D effect as you move about the city, and your hero looks like a miniature you might use for a tabletop role-playing game. The developers have done a fine job of preserving the spirit of the books, the feel of a board game and an immersive atmosphere. This is very apparent in combat. When you fight a bad guy, you enter combat mode. You and your foe stand toe to toe. A slider lets you choose the type of attack you're after, as well as how much force you'd like to put behind it. The turn-based action is accompanied by dramatic music and fun animation. You can opt for diplomatic solutions, of course, but they don't always work. And then there are spells... Spells played prominently in Jackson's books. They're a bit chaotic in nature, and that's by design. Each spell is cast by using a three-letter magic word. The words are constructed one letter at a time. It gets interesting because you don't always know what any combination of letters will produce. It might be a fireball. It might be increased stamina or a thick fog. Not knowing is part of the fun. Except when it's not. I was rather frustrated when I needed an offensive attack spell and got something altogether useless for the situation. Perhaps I'm just a party pooper, or maybe I'm too used to D&D 4th edition. However, you can browse the spell book and memorize the incantations if you like. When you opt to cast a spell, the scene drops away and you're presented with a spinning globe of letters. Tap one to begin your magic word, another to continue and a third to finish it off. Then the spell is cast. You can "rewind" if you make a mistake or die, or even play again. With so many options, I imagine I'll play Sorcery! 2 several times. It's really a lot of fun and will appeal to those who like adventure stories and games alike. Pick it up.
Sorcery! Part 2 to weave its tale in November, Part 1 gets update
The second installment of Sorcery!, the choose-your-own-adventure collaboration between developer Inkle and Fighting Fantasy co-creator Steve Jackson, will continue its battle-savvy story on the App Store this November. The game's introduction has also been granted an update in preparation for the incoming continuation. Part 2, also referred to as Khare: Cityport of Traps, will "double the narrative content of the first game," introduce "new enemy types, more complex story branches" and add other "gameplay enhancements," the related press release states. Part 2 can be played on its own, but this week's update to Part 1 will allow saves to be implemented into Part 2 in November. The update also introduced the option of leading a female protagonist through the quest, as well as a "3D spellcasting system" to replace the initial spellbook.
Sorcery! on iOS reincarnates Fighting Fantasy books for tablets (video)
If you're going to bring the well-loved, 30-year-old Fighting Fantasy book series to digital screens, you'd better do it right. Fortunately, Sorcery! does. The game is based on the original choose-your-own-adventure series written by Lionhead Studios co-founder Steve Jackson, with a few modern adjustments. The iOS game sidesteps the need for organic books and (unfortunately) our tried-and-tested multi-fingered bookmarking system, digitally keeping note of all your decisions along the way -- in short, no cheating. Making use of the new medium, there are now touch-based sword fights to help break up the wordy play-by-play descriptions of what you're doing. The initial installment is available now for $5 at the App Store, with the remaining three parts expected to follow later this year.
Steve Jackson's Sorcery! gamebook coming to the App Store
Steve Jackson's Sorcery! is an old series back from the early 1980s where you "played" through a sort of Choose Your Own Adventure-style story, except that instead of just flipping pages, you actually cast spells, fight in combat and do other fantasy-based activities. These books were reprinted back in 2002, but it's been announced that they're coming to iOS soon, as fully interactive books to play with. Most interactive books on the App Store are either meant for children or show off only a limited amount of interactivity, but these seem different -- they're heavily dependent on text, but they do offer some nice interactive touches from the original books. There's even some fun procedural stuff: When you do combat in the game, the book creates custom-made text for you to read about the outcome of the battle. It all looks very cool, and it's a nice throwback for those of us who played with these books all those years ago. Steve Jackson's Sorcery! is set to be submitted to the App Store right away, so we should see it for ourselves very soon.
Editorial: Sony needs more than Sorcery to resurrect the PlayStation Move
The first time we saw Sony's PlayStation Move, it didn't even have a name: we only knew it as the PS3 motion controller. The newfangled prototype was Sony's response to the success Nintendo found in the Wii, a motion-sensitive "me-too" that hoped to one up the competition with better tracking, more "core" games and a curious glowing ball perched on its top. Its first outing showed a handful of tech demos, flaunting gameplay concepts that we'd eventually see in Sports Champions and Medieval Moves: Deadmund's Quest. Since then, the Move has seen its fair share of exclusive and compatible titles, but none quite engaging enough to make the peripheral a must-have accessory. With the next generation just around the corner and Sony's portable cards already on the table, E3 2012 is looking a little light on the hardware front. If Sony's going to give the Move one final push, now is the time.
Snapshot: Sorcery
There are so many games out there we couldn't possibly review them all. Welcome to Snapshot, where we highlight games that might fall outside our usual coverage but are still something we think you should know about. Today: Sorcery for PS3. Having been announced along with the PlayStation Move in 2010, Sorcery bears the burden of high expectations. This was supposed to be the game that showed what the Move could add to a non-party, non-minigame, and full-sized adventure in which your Move wand enabled you to fire magic bolts in any direction.It is, of course, unfair to judge the game by the expectations around its announcement. Such lofty circumstances make an enjoyable, if lightweight, game seem more disappointing.However, I will say that if Sorcery is to act as a Move ambassador, it is not up to the task. While there were certainly times I didn't mind using the motion controller, there were precious few times I was glad to; my experience aiming the in-game magic wand was, in equal parts, hitting the target accurately, flailing uselessly, and recalibrating.
PSN Tuesday: Sorcery, Doctor Who
Sorcery arrives on PSN today, allowing players to turn their PlayStation Moves into magic wands that only work within their televisions. It's joined by Doctor Who: The Eternity Clock, about a man who wields a sonic screwdriver, which is basically a magic wand powered by pseudoscience, and Super Street Fighter IV Arcade Edition, about people who can toss magic projectiles sans wand.Both PSOne Classics (Alone in the Dark New Nightmare) and PS2 classics (Need for Speed: Most Wanted, Syphon Filter: The Omega Strain) are available on PS3 today, along with a mess of old Sega games.Meanwhile, on Vita, Table Top Tanks provides AR tank battles.
Sony opens up PSN to digital download pre-orders
Pre-orders are nothing new in the realm of video gaming -- they're the requisite hype before the release day-storm. On the digital download front, however, that anticipatory frenzy hasn't gotten much major industry support, until now. Sony, purveyor of all things PlayStation, has just tossed a bone to its many PSN subscribers, offering the option to purchase unreleased titles in advance of their planned launches. First up for the newly announced service is Sorcery, one of the company's Move-compatible game due out later this month. Gamers who opt-in for the arrangement will receive an unlock key that should allow their consoles to begin the download process in tandem with the software's official debut. Hit up the source below for the full FAQ.
Sorcery kicks off new pre-purchase functionality on PSN
Who has time to accumulate cash then wait for a game to launch before actually paying for it? In this work-a-day world, we need to prepare for such things; we need lead time. And if you're of a similar mind, it may please you to know that Sorcery will be the first game to kick off a new pre-purchase feature on PSN.Right now, you can log onto PSN and pay for Sorcery, triggering a download granted you have auto-download enabled. Once you have the game pre-loaded, you can play as soon as Sorcery launches next week on May 22.Sorcery is the only game you can pre-purchase through PSN right now. We've inquired with Sony about future games.
Sorcery's first dev diary gets a Move on
All right, fine – we're sorry for the pun in the headline. This inaugural developer diary from Sorcery conjurers The Workshop and SCEA covers the game's extensive Move integration, the design processess involved and the satisfying feeling that comes with creating a tornado made of fire.
New Sorcery trailer uncovers a plot
For our next trick, we will make the next two and a half minutes of your day disappear.
Cast your eyes on new Sorcery screens
Screenshotiamus! PlayStation Move's Sorcery enters stores on May 22, which leaves you plenty of time to look through the latest gallery of in-game screens.
Sorcery lighting up PlayStation Move on May 22
Your PlayStation Move, it's so ... lonely. Just the loneliest. It could really use a new, original game every now and then. Sony's about to provide one with the May 22 launch of Sorcery. We weren't in love with the game when we last checked it out, but we hope some more magic has been injected since then.
SCE VP: Move should have done better in Europe (but it didn't)
Sony Computer Entertainment UK VP Fergal Gara said the Move could have, should have done better in Europe, noting that the system's software lineup is crucial to its success. Gara named only one title, Sports Champions, that sold the best "by far" with a few hundred thousand units. We assume he expressed SCE's disappointment with the Move's success in the tone of, "I should have lost 20 pounds by now, even though I never work out and I eat bacon with every meal." Gara is focusing on future titles to support Move, and by "titles" he means Sorcery (a game announced at E3 2010), and "other things that we know are bubbling under." SCE is stepping up its marketing and internal development for Move, Gara said, hoping to revitalize Move in 2012.
The third-person witchcraft of Sorcery
I didn't feel like a magician, sorcerer, witcher, or warlock after playing through a combat demo of Sony's PlayStation Move-exclusive game, Sorcery, at a recent NYC press event. I wasn't sure how I felt, actually. The game didn't leave a huge impact on me, and perhaps that's telling as Sorcery doesn't seem to be remarkably deep or impressive, as much as it is fine. When working on this preview, I was asked if Sorcery's Move mechanic "felt like a tech demo," as so many games for the PlayStation Move have (The Shoot , The Fight: Lights Out, and Sports Champions come to mind). "It feels deeper than that," I responded. "But not by much." As it turns out, that phrase is pretty representative of my whole experience with Sorcery.%Gallery-141778%
Sorcery bewitching PlayStation 3 owners in spring 2012
Sorcery, a PlayStation Move game announced way back at E3 2010 and kept in relative silence since then, is set to launch this coming spring. SCEA hasn't offered a finer launch date beyond that. For those of you who might have forgotten about the title, Sorcery is a third-person, Move-centric title for the PS3 developed by California-based dev The Workshop. Players cast spells to take out enemies and solve puzzles via the PS3's motion peripheral, all the while controlling a player character on screen via Nav controller or DualShock 3. Still not clear? It's often referred to as, "That Move game that looked neat and then disappeared." Yeahhhhh, that one. Exactly.
Sorcery trailer casts a spell on our dignity
We're skeptical when it comes to motion controls, but don't tell us this trailer for PlayStation Move's Sorcery doesn't trigger a deep response in your inner child's even more inner child. Judge us for flailing about like morons all you like, we'll still be the ones putting out fire with tornadoes.
Sony announces Move-enabled 'Sorcery'
Players looking for a Harry Potter-esque game for PlayStation Move which isn't Harry Potter will be pleased to hear of The Workshop's latest game announced for the peripheral: Sorcery. Players will have access to a variety of magic spells (each of which change the color of the Move's spherical tip), which they use to fight through a world of violent goblins, fairies and other mythical creatures. Players choose their spells, then, using the Move, fling them at enemies. Players will also have access to environment-changing spells, such as one that mends broken objects.
Champions Online devs reveal Mystic power sets: Sorcery and Supernatural
Over the past few weeks, the developers at Cryptic Studios have been walking readers through the various powers that will be available to Champions Online players, from Energy Projectors to Martial Arts, as well as Power Replacers. Now they're giving us a look at the game's Mystic power sets -- Sorcery and Supernatural -- for those players who want to dabble in the dark arts. Do you know your Circles of Power from your Circles of Summoning? When should you use a Sigil instead of an Invocation? The Champions Online devs explain all matters arcane in this latest, and final, "All About Powers", and discuss their intent to create subsets of Mystic powers that better fit a given character's concept. Whether you're looking to create a Primal Shaman, a Necromancer, or a pure Arcane-type, you might enjoy this latest dev blog on the official Champions Online site.
Champions Online wants you under its Sorcerous spell
If you've been disappointed by the lack of information in regards to Magic origin characters for Champions Online, you're in luck! Cryptic has released a tantalizing new video that we're sure will those who have plans for creating a magic-based character. In this new video titled Sorcery, we're treated to a first look of some of the magic-based powers in play - and they look sweet! Like we really needed a reason to be any more excited about Champions Online, eh?If you're curious, the video is behind the cut for your shiny viewing pleasure. Now if you'll pardon us, we've got some magic super-hero backstory brainstorming to do!
