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Best class system in RPGs belongs to Wizardry VII
This is a weekly column from freelancer Rowan Kaiser, which focuses on "Western" role-playing games: their stories, their histories, their mechanics, their insanity, and their inanity. One of the defining characteristics of the role-playing genre is its class systems. Although not every RPG has classes – Fallout or The Witcher, for example – some tend to be notable for their lack of classes. In some games, class is a single, permanent decision at the beginning of your adventure, and in others it's something that can be manipulated throughout. In most cases, though, it is the single most important aspect in determining how your characters interact with the game world. Thieves sneak and back stab, fighters charge in and absorb damage, snipers shoot from a distance. The most impressive class system I've seen in an RPG is in 1992's Wizardry VII: Crusaders of the Dark Savant (as well as its less well-known predecessor, Bane Of The Cosmic Forge). What initially appears to be a straightforward, rigid D&D-style system is given massive depth by two things: the importance of racial base stats in determining class, and a dynamic system that allows for both massive improvement and possible disaster. It's possibly the most in-depth system I've seen in any RPG, and one that I wish was more well-known.
The Game Archaeologist: Maze War
It's hard to know how far back to go when chronicling the history of early MMOs and their ancestors. After all, the Game Archaeologist has looked at several titles (Air Warrior, Habitat, Neverwinter Nights) that do not fit the modern definition of an MMO yet were bound in blood to the genre nonetheless. So if today's game seems to be somewhat tenuously related to our favorite hobby, I beg your forgiveness in advance, but I do feel it's pertinent to our exploration of this wonderful genre. The game in question is Maze War, and it holds a general's uniform's worth of medals depicting firsts in the infant genre of video games. Most importantly for us, Maze War was the first graphical video game to be networked and allow players to interact and fight each other. You can see why that may tie in to our current situation. While the game itself certainly never attained the complexity of modern shooters or RPGs, its innovation and pioneering certainly make it worthy of examination. So let's dust it off and get to it!
E3 2012: Wizardry Online unleashes a bevy of screenshots
Sony Online Entertainment brought a big surprise to this year's E3 by announcing that it will publish Gamepot's upcoming super-hardcore MMO, Wizardry Online. Now that the event is in full-swing, SOE has released a slew of new screenshots from the title to show off the game's scenery and combat. For those of you not in the loop, Wizardry Online is an online continuation of Sir-Tech's renowned retro Wizardry series of RPGs. But Wizardry Online isn't your average DIKU-style title; the developers make no bones about the game's hardcore nature, which is a result of features such as permadeath, player-killing, and friendly-fire. Further details are scant at the moment, but Massively will be chatting with SOE later this week at the Expo, so stay tuned for more information on this punishing new title. In the meantime, enjoy the gallery below and check out all the new screens. [Source: Sony Online Entertainment press release] %Gallery-125949% Massively's on the ground in Los Angeles during the week of June 4-7, bringing you all the best news from E3 2012. We're covering everything from PlanetSide 2 and SWTOR and ArcheAge to RIFT's and LotRO's upcoming expansions, so stay tuned!
SOE takes Wizardry Online under its wing
Sony Online Entertainment published its full line-up for E3, and it contained one whopper of a surprise. According to the press release, SOE is now publishing Wizardry Online, the hardcore MMO that we first saw a year ago at the expo. The reveal of Wizardry Online is one of two new titles that SOE's bringing to E3 (the other being Bullet Run). Attendees will be able to get hands-on time with the demo on the show floor. Wizardry Online is being developed by Gamepot and is a continuation of the classic RPG series Wizardry. The MMO is notable for its decidedly tough-as-nails approach, featuring permadeath, non-instanced dungeons, player killing, and friendly fire. [Source: SOE press release]
The Perfect Ten: The upcoming long-shots
In coming up with a follow-up list to my previous Upcoming MMO Contenders list, I found myself almost paralyzed by more choices than I could shake a wireless mouse at. Pointing at the sure bets is one thing, but narrowing down a field of dozens and dozens of interesting -- yet more far-flung -- prospects is far more difficult. It's one thing to have a good idea; it's another to say whether or not this game will actually make it to launch, and if it does, that it'll pull the idea off well. That said, I've lost some hair and two pounds sweating out this list, and I feel sleeker for it. Today's Perfect Ten is all about the long-shots, the titles that may not have the huge budget, big name studios, or anything solid to show for it, but could still become contenders in their own right if everything is played just right. Deep breath -- let's give it a go!
Daily iPhone App: Wizardry Labyrinth of Lost Souls
I'm torn on spotlighting Wizardry here -- on the one hand, it's a pretty successful rendition of the old computer role-playing games made for the Apple II and other platforms. Once you figure it out, the turn-based gameplay is nicely complex and provides for some pretty fun dungeon crawling, running your party of various classes and characters through a first person 2D dungeon. The problem is that getting to that point can be a pain, and if you don't have a lot of experience with this type of game, you might be completely lost as to what you're supposed to do and how to do it. This version of Wizardry's interface is annoying at best and confusing at worst. There's little to no explanation of what your options do and roaming off into the dungeon (if you can figure out how to do that) will likely get you killed and make you give up right away. That's not to even mention that apparently the iTunes reviews say it doesn't work on phones older than the iPhone 4, and it's buggy (though I didn't have any issues with bugs personally). Still, at its current price of free, I can recommend it to players who really want some excellent turn-based combat gameplay and a little nostalgic taste of the old dungeon-mapping and party creation of the old Wizardry games. Anyone not willing to fight through the very rough issues the game still contains, however, should probably go for something a little friendlier, such as Dragon Fantasy or Guardian Saga.
Wizardry Online launches open beta in Japan while eyeing the west
Gamepot's hardcore do-or-die Wizardry Online took a big step in its development last week as the title went into open beta in Japan. Over 100,000 players stormed the castle gates to get a peek at this permadeath MMO, and Gamepot had to add several additional servers during the first day to handle the influx of adventurers. Gamepot's Shuhei Ueda says that seducing Japanese players is just the first step in the company's plans: "For Gamepot, it is truly amazing to see so many enthusiastic fans of the Wizardry franchise participate in the open beta testing, and now live service, of Wizardry Online. Bringing this innovative and legendary series to a new platform has been a rewarding process and we're looking forward to continuing our world-wide rollout to fans around the globe." Work continues on an English version of Wizardry Online, which Gamepot hopes will make it across the Pacific sometime in 2012. The studio is also seeking out a publisher for North American and European markets. While you wait, you can read up on our first look at Wizardry Online from this past summer's E3. %Gallery-125949% [Source: Gamepot press release]
E3 2011: First look at Wizardry Online
"One of the aims of Wizardry Online is to create a true experience of exploration like in classic MMOs," Headlock Games' representative said as he began this E3 presentation. "And to that end, you won't find a linear path funneling you through the dungeons, and your minimap won't show the exact location of your next objective." This set the tone for the company's first reveal of this up-and-coming MMO. Wizardry is a long-running RPG franchise that dates back to 1981, although this will be the series' first steps into online multiplayer. And while the series enjoyed modest success in North America, it's been a phenomenon in Japan, where it's seen numerous spinoffs and sequels. Wizardry's always been known for its open-world exploration and party-based combat, and it seems as though the MMO will continue this legacy as well as retain the hardcore approach that the devs feel has been lost to most modern games. "As this skeleton can attest, life is not so easy in Wizardry Online," the rep said with a smile. Hit the jump to read more about this first look at the game as well as get a peek at the game's first screenshots and trailer!
Wizardry: Labyrinth of Lost Souls finds a home on PSN
The positively historical first-person RPG series Wizardry will continue in North America and Europe in as modern a manner as can be: a downloadable PSN game for PS3. XSEED is localizing Acquire's Wizardry: Torawareshi Tamashii no Meikyū for the West as Wizardry: Labyrinth of Lost Souls. Though the series started in America (in 1981!) in recent years it's been more popular in Japan, with sequels developed by Japanese companies and released only in Japan. That explains why this version looks a bit more anime than the original did. Players will be able to explore a grid-based dungeon and fight 120 different monsters, all with hand-drawn 2D sprites, sometime this spring.%Gallery-119622%
Wizardry franchise revived on PS3, Nintendo DS
Classic RPG franchise Wizardry is making a comeback ... of sorts. The classic RPG franchise is coming back in not just one -- but two -- new games to release in Japan later this year.First is a PS3 game, to be published by Acquire. Details are slim, but Wizardry: Torawareshi Damashii no Meikyou (Wizardry: Dungeon of Imprisoned Souls) is supposedly hitting the Japanese PlayStation Network this Fall, according to a report by Siliconera. The release would mark the first time the Wizardry series becomes available on a current generation console.Next up is a Nintendo DS game, Wizardry: Seimei no Kusabi (Wizardry: Pledge of Life). Supposedly, this will be a 3D dungeon RPG that will be available exclusively on Amazon Japan, almost guaranteeing high resale value on eBay for years to come.Source - Wizardry 囚われし魂の迷宮 Official WebsiteSource - Wizardry Crawling to DS too
Wizard101 launches!
After a summer-long beta period the graphically beautiful Wizard101 is now live! This kid-oriented free-to-play title is now available for any interested parties, and KingsIsle has announced a number of interesting tidbits to go along with the game's launch. While the title is technically free to play, the company is offering a substantial package of benefits for a $9.95/month fee. In fact, it might be better to think of the 'free to play' component of the game as more of a trial than anything else. Large parts of the game world are unavailable for non-subscribers, and the ability to chat with other players is disabled for free players. More details on the game's business model are available in a post from Tipa at West Karana.Interested subscribers can actually get a steal of a deal if they want to pay a bit upfront; KingsIsle is offering a year-long subscription for just $60, allowing you a full year of the cards-and-kids magic title. For full details on the game, be sure to check out our previous features on the title: Our hands-on with the game when the title was announced! An interview with the creators! Plenty of video footage all about the creation of the game. Read on below the cut for the full press release, and enjoy the world of Ravenwood Academy!%Gallery-23433%%Gallery-23340%
Dungeon Lords expansion, sequel announced, world asks why?
2005's Dungeon Lords was a mess of a game. Despite being helmed by PC role-playing vet David Bradley, best known for three titles in Sir-Tech's venerable Wizardry series including the timeless Wizardry VII: Crusaders of the Dark Savant, Dungeon Lords was a shell of a finished product, riddled with glitches, bugs, and incomplete features. So, sequel anyone?Publisher JoWooD has announced plans for not only a "stand alone" expansion to the role-playing disaster, due in the third quarter of 2008, but a sequel as well, which is planned for the PC and an unspecified "next-gen" console a full year later in 2009. This sure seems like a lot of effort to thrown behind a game that was collectively panned by gaming critics, despite being "well-received commercially," according to JoWooD. There is an old saying of being once bitten, twice shy, though perhaps the distant release dates are pinned on hopes that players will forget about the first game altogether. It's possible, though our trusty Magic 8-Balls says "outlook not so good."
LotRO quest inspired by Apple II text adventures
It seems that most gamers these days haven't played any of the old Apple II computer games, much less the particularly ancient text-based adventure ones. Most people now see them as arcane and even intimidating. Those black & white fossils bear no relation to something as modern as say, The Lord of the Rings Online, right?Wrong! Gaming's old-timers will be tickled to hear that a quest in Tal Bruinen was inspired by a gameplay mechanic from an Apple II text adventure game. A Turbine employee revealed this behind-the-scenes tidbit in a thread about the quest on the official LotRO forums.The Apple II was the first widely successful personal computer. It had a large library of games, many of which are cornerstones of computer gaming history. You can play a lot of those games in your web browser at virtualapple.org, one of the best online emulators. It has many of the all-time classic RPGs like Ultima, Might and Magic, and Wizardry as well.
Import game releases for the week of 01/14/07
Always wanted to play import games, but never wanted to mod your system? Well lucky for you, the PSP allows you to play import games right out of the box. But now you may wonder what the newest import games are. Well, that's why every Sunday I'm here to keep you updated. M.A.C.H. (Modified Air Combat Heroes) We talked about this one a few weeks back since it's coming to the US next month. If you can't wait that long though and don't mind if your games aren't localized than you can buy M.A.C.H. this week. If it's not obvious from the game's title (and really it should be), the gameplay revolves around air combat. Initial D Street Stage (PSP the Best) Based on the popular manga, this game is all about not just racing, but drifting. In between races you upgrade your car so you can more easily take down rivals. This game isn't new, but this is the "best" release which means you can buy it cheaper than ever. Wizardry Empire III: Haoh no Keifu Oddly enough this series has had more popularity and sequels in Japan than in its native country. The newest installment still plays like the PC RPGs of old. You move in first person while exploring dungeons and killing monsters. Visit towns, get new weapons and defeat evil. Unless you know Japanese though, it isn't usually a good idea to import an RPG. Talkman Shiki: Shabe Lingual Eikaiwa Talkman is voice-activated translation software It translates words into your language or vice-versa. This release centers around teaching English and key phrases one would need to get by in the US or an English speaking country. The Talkman releases have been somewhat popular where they've been released, so I still wonder why this useful software has never gotten a version in the US. That's it for now , see you back here next week for even more import games! [Update 1: Fixed tagging.]
