f13.net

WTS 1x [Eye of Argon] PST (http://www.f13.net/index.php?itemid=101)

Edit: We also had one more video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jzoaOIeBgFU) that didn't make the final cut for the article itself. And several other really hideous videos that are too terrible to post and mostly retread the other videos' ground.

Ha! You did use the press kit screenshots :-D

When's this coming out again?  I may be tempted to give it a whirl.

Probably Fall of 2007

Well it was May 2006 but that's obviously not going to happen. Latest in their FAQ is "We do not have a set release date yet but we are currently planning for release in 2006".

Edit: oooh I saw that ninja edit!

There was too much glare in ours. :(


Scuttlebutt is Q4 2006. I'm guessing Q2 2007 unless they get a beta going by July.

Heh, I was hoping you didn't. Now you know my dirty little secret (I suck at tags).

First off good article, thanks! Definitely liking the direction this game is headed thus far.

Secondly. Anyway to do a sound edit on the character creation video? It sounds like a hurricane or tornado is going on in the background and I cant hear the actual voices.

Reading about the online part of this game it sounds fairly limited though kind of neat.

Not easily. That'd be one for Ookii or Schild, I don't have video editing software at the moment. And that sound in the background? That's what it sounds like at E3. All. The. Time.

The #1 phrase at E3 is "What?"

The single-player first meme just might become the norm. I was skeptical at first, but it could be a good way to ease people into the gameplay. Also, it might help initial box sales because it should tap the non-MMO gamer just looking for some Conan action.

Bingo.

It's a brilliant move on their part and if it works even slightly well expect to see big names like Blizzard and SOE jump on it for their next MMOGs. On the plus side, it looks like more developers are finally working toward active combat instead of auto attack setups. How long before they evolve it off of the PC entirely and onto consoles in order to take advantage of the controller? Prince of Persia Online in 2008 anyone?

F34R the white noise of nerds!  :-)

Hopefully never. Controllers suck. KB + Mouse FTW.

WTf would the advantages be anyway, besides playing from your couch (which I don't consider an advantage anyway)?

Perhaps one day you'll understand what it means to use the "right tool for the job". I mean, why would someone want to try to delicately juke with a keyboard and mouse in a hockey or football game, or not have their buttons and controls within close proximity of each other in an platformer game that requires rapid movement and actions (not to mention in a more relaxed, ergonomical state)? Why the FUCK would I want to use a keyboard and mouse in Soul Calibur?

All of these examples demonstrate the kind of action that mmo's could evolve to, but it'd never work if people insist on a mouse and keyboard for their input devices. Not everything is Baldur's Gate or an FPS.

It's really a question of anatomy. Why would I want to use my thumbs, which are only good for gross movement, for something that requires a high degree of accuracy?

Mashing a button? That's good for a thumb?

Making delicate movements that require pin-point accuracy, like a good shooter? Let me use my whole hand, which has many mroe muscles than a thumb and is infinitely more accurate and percise.

A "Juke" is not a delicate movement - you mash a button for it.

Yes, for a sports or fighting game, perhaps a controller is better, where most of the action is done through mashing one button or another.

Some games are perfectly fine with a controller. Other games, such as strategy or FPSs, are an abomination on a console.

"Right tool for the job," indeed.

Oh, and ergonomical? You're telling me people who slouch on their couch on ergonomical?

Maybe in Techmo Bowl or Blades of Steel it is. Back in 1988.

A juke is usually handled by holding a button + directional spinning.


Most actions are handled in a much more fluid, organic manner. And when there is button pushing, it's rarely "mashing". Degree/length of pressure is the difference between a bunk pass or shot and a good one. Making a freethrow in basketball could be a matter of lining up two boxes on the screen with both analog sticks. Swinging a jab in Fight Night is a matter of flicking the analog stick in a straight motion, a hook in an arc motion, an uppercut in a round motion, etc.. Wrestling and grappling games have similar schemes. And you'll never, ever get by mashing buttons in Soul Calibur (unless you're playing someone as clueless as you).

Stop being a fucking hater, Strazos. People who play sports games on computers are crazy. Really people who play anything that isn't mouse/keyboard intensive or an FPS on a computer is crazy. But then, there are times where a mouse seems better for a job. But for the most part, no, it's less fun and more work-like.

I'd rather program a macro into my key board and hit one key to execute it, than trying to hit "A+B+UP+RIGHT+A+A+C+DOWN+UP+A+B+B" all with in 2 secs in order to execute some special move.
Its why I have never gotten into console games.

PROTIP: Don't play fighting games.

Of all the subjects one could get irritated about, I happened to choose this one...

Something about the idea of a "gamer" who doesn't like consoles just confuses the hell out of me. I'd attribute it to geezerhood and too much grid based war gaming, but Strazos is younger than I am...So wtf?

He's eritist.

Well I cant answer for Strazos, but as for myself...

I am a geezer compared to most of you.
I dont play sports on TV with a Console. If I want to play football I join our groups football team, we also do rugby and 2 man sand volleyball. ie I play outside in the dirt.
I hate anime, so I dont play FF rpgs.
I play MMOs and RPGs and sometimes strat or FPS games...all of which are better suited to a computer.

Seems to me the only thing a console beats a computer with key board and mouse at are sports and fighting games, neither of which I do as mentioned.

Does that clear up the confusion?

You didn't have to explain yourself. The moment you said you couldn't be competitive with pressing buttons it was sort of a given that consoles aren't for you. Btw, anime and JRPGs are for the most part exclusive of eachother. It's only recently (last 4-6 years) that there's really started to be a good deal of overlap. Not liking JRPGs is one thing. Not liking them because you don't like anime is just stupid. The only reason MMOGs are better suited for PC is because people still design them that way. As for FPS titles, yea, keyboard and mouse is more accurate. But I've got over my childish need to only use a keyboard and mouse for single player portions of games. Finally RPGs being better on a PC? Neg. Not really at all. Or rather, just one type. The isometric Baldur's Gate style with RTS style controls is better on a PC. Nearly every other type has been adapted to consoles in a more than acceptable manner that's been streamlined into a fantastic experience with a peripheral that fits in the palm of my hands.

Should I have said japanimation instead? Its all the same to me. I dont like the style of illustration.

I seem to think the many many many more keys on a keyboard allowing people to set up various macro's and commands has alot to do with it as well. But maybe thats just me.
Also alot of the add-ons and customized UI's you couldnt get in consoles either I dont believe.

I'm not being a hater, and I'm not sure why you took what I said as such. Because I used the word "mashing"? I didn't mean to imply brainless "button mashing", because if I did, I would have said so.

But lets face it - most console games are not exactly accuracy-intensive.

Gross movement, perfect for thumbs, especially when you can lean the analog stick against the edge of the controller to guide your "spinning."


I nearly lol'ed when I read this. I wouldn't argue with what you actually said, but it's the overwrought way you said. Fluid and Organic manner? Please.

But anyway, yes certain games are pretty pointless to be used with a keyboard and mouse. I've never debated that point, and I never will. I don't even hate consoles, but at this time I simply do not play console games. My Xbox? It's been sitting in a box for at least 2 months now, and I have no desire to hook it up.

The games that take up the majority of my attention nowadays are First-Person shooters or RPGs, RTS-style games, and MMOs, all of which would suck utter Ass if I had to use a controller. It has nothing to do with being Elitist - those are just the games I play. I like Soul Calibur. I own SC2 on Xbox....I just don't play it.

And just to throw something funny out that....even when I was playing my Xbox (or my DS now), I Have to be sitting upright in a chair. I've tried playing from bed, and I just don't find it comfortable.

Herzog Zwei is an RTS game that was great with a controller. So is that Nintendo ant game...I forget the name. (You control the different insects and such)

You just have to design things the right way. Contollers are vector-based controls whereas mice are position-based. By that I mean with a mouse you say "move here" and with a controller you say "move in this direction".

It was 2:00 AM. Give me a break. I just meant that it's more ideal to use a control scheme that best mimics the movements and actions on screen. And if one can't get the best, you move to the next best thing (which isn't a keyboard + mouse combo all the time). Having a "boxing glove" controller isn't exactly practical for everyone, so you provide something like what's offered in Fight Night, where your thumb movements are representative of the punches in the game.

Same deal would go for a motorcycle game. A motorcycle handlebar controller would be the most ideal, but the next best step is something like Moto GP (pulling down on the right analog stick controls the gas, trigger button controls the break, etc..).




Then why did you write that first post? I don't understand.



And?

Neg. That doesn't help either. Though, as shallow a reason as it is, it's still better than Strazos inability to get comfortable/have fun.


What, you're saying a persistant game played like Legend of Zelda wouldn't work on a controller? All you did was support exactly what I said. Cumbersome UIs and macros and piles of shitty commands are exactly why a keyboard is necessary. Developers still design shit that way.

You and I have different tastes. That does not make either of our tastes "shallow". Its why there are so many styles of art in the first place.
For example Llava told me that at E3 you drunkenly admitted liking women with facial hair, but I wouldnt make fun of you for that!  :-D (just kidding)


Sure but in order to keep the UI from being a big cluttered mess on your TV you would end up with a lot of nestled menus, where as with a keyboard in a game like WOW you can reach many menus or options all with the touch of one key, and depending on the size of your keyboard you can have 12 or more customized macros you wouldnt have with a single controller.

Cluttered, nestled menus in Zelda?? Those games were designed for buttons and and barely present a player with any menus at all.

The only console game that I think of with that kind of inelegance is Final Fantasy XI....Which is just a run of the mill PC mmorpg in the first place. Or ports from the PC in general (Sim City, some RTS's, etc.).

My first post was in regards to MMOs "migrating" to consoles so you could use a controller, which I contend would be stupid the way things are right now in gaming. FFXI had a horrible UI that was painful enough to use with a KB + Mouse. I can't imagine trying to go through all those nested menus with a controller. Do you even have autorun on a controller?

And besides, if we're talking about MMOs, the keyboard sure isn't going away anytime soon. Integrated Voice Chat? Do you Really want to here what other players actually sound like when they start spouting off nonsense? I think not.

Yes, as MMO requirements stand right now, migrating away from Mouse + Keyboard is a bad idea. I'm with you on that. Soukyan was just talking about migrating away from the need for that kind of input though -- Like, if MMO's starting behaving more like Prince of Persia or something. Using a mouse would be counter intuitive or just plain doesn't work for the kind of action offered in certain types of games.

You are right, but it also didnt offer the choices a modern RPG or MMO does either did it? Basically all you needed was up, down, left, right, attack, jump, and a basic inventory.

Modern MMOs and RPGs need more interface than that due to the increased options the player has. Which was my point.

What are you talking about? MMORPGs today only give you two choices. Walk and attack. Sure the particle effects and numbers are different, but it's all the same shit. Maybe five years ago I'd have been inclined to agree with you on the "choices" involved with playing an MMORPG. There's aren't choices. There's verious flavors of a single option. Now that I'm a higher level, I'll press the button for the higher level attack of the same thing I had at level 1. WEEEEEEEEEE FUN.

You couldn't even get the Zelda mechanics right in the first place, and you're still talking about what they are or are not. Play some of these games and experiment with consoles before you talk first.

Hmmm thats strange because I know in WOW my tank had like a minimum of 8 different attacks he could use at lvl 60 depending on circumstances. And pressing one key for each, or clicking with a mouse on a hotbar is infinitely easier than trying to pull off combos with a controller while tanking Nef.

Plus he normally carried about 10 or more potions on him at any point. All of these were hot keyed as well so I could instantly use them without opening a bag.  Just two examples. Not even mentioning the nestled menu's like quest logs and talent trees and reputation and skills and on and on.

I have played Zelda, it was 50 million years ago on a N64. Sorry I dont remember it exactly. The point still stands it is not as complicated as many of today's RPGs and MMOs are.
Are you seriously trying to compare Zelda and a modern MMO like WOW in their ability to be ported to a console?

Why are you even arguing when you already admitted that it isnt feasible?

No one is saying WoW should be ported to a console. AT ALL. No one wants that. There's a handful of people here, Stray and myself among them, that can't see the differences in PC Based Diku-Derivative MMOGs anymore. They ALL might as well be the exact same game. They aren't fun. They don't provide fun. Those 8 "attacks" your warrior has all look like the exact same attack to us. It's one of the reasons I've all but stopped writing about MMOGs. I haven't seen compelling gameplay in one since Tele-Arena back in the day. You know what MMOGs I'm looking forward to most are? Smash Star, Soccer Fury, and Age of Conan. At no point in any of the videos or gameplay we saw did anything look diku-based. Except for some inventory bits in Conan, but it's an alpha, so I'll let that go... for now. Point being, you can't convince us of your point because you aren't even arguing the right point. No shit MMORPGs are made for keyboards and mice. Most of the developers also probably drool while they eat. Invention isn't their strong suit and none of their games would translate very well to consoles (with the exception of the 3 mentioned above).

And no, we weren't comparing Zelda and WoW. But if you want us too, a persistant zelda would be about 10,000 times more fun than WoW.

Well Schild Im sorry you have grown so jaded toward a field you formerly and obviously very much enjoyed.  :-(

I agree with you on AoC though.

That word, jaded, does not mean what you think it means.

http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=jaded
Cynically or pretentiously callous.
To wear out, as by overuse or overindulgence.
Dulled by surfeit.

Thats what I thought it meant, and it seems my thoughts were correct.

You weren't arguing a point from a jaded perspective though. According to what you said your point was that MMORPGs would not work with a controller and that the variety of MMORPGs doesn't translate to consoles. I called bullshit. Your point wasn't jaded, at best it was an uneducated naive point coming from someone who still has lots of love for the genre and no understand of console play. You weren't cynical. You weren't callous. And you most certainly are not jaded.

I can't even jump in WoW.


No, I mean really jump. Like, out of the way and stuff. Hell, even moving is just an illusory, superficial mechanic in many cases.

This is probably beside the point though.

Yer, so about Conan...

Please stay on topic, this thread is for discussing SWG:NGE2.

This thread has been struggling to be about Conan since the first reply...

Probably because there's already another Conan thread.

lol


Ok, having seen the videos, firstly i loved the fact that the dev you guys spoke with sounds like Ahnold. Adds flavour. Furthermore, i thought the horse looked quite good, especially during the cantering animations.

What i wanted to know though, was; did they say anything about the collision detection in combat? Because while the combat animations looked quite good in the short vid, it felt as if there was a good deal of 'through-character' slippage. I'd hate for them to do so much work on immersion to have it ruined by something as small as this.

There is supposed to be per-character collision detection in order to make their 'formation system' meaningful. I don't think actual weapons will truly appropriately not clip through enemy models though.

Schild,

I dont know if you didnt get your nappy time today or why you happen to be pissy.

But let me lay something out here for you bro. I never said I was jaded.
I said YOU were jaded. Here let me quote my own sentence again and you can try rereading it....

Jesus bro get a fucking grip. Or stop posting drunk.

I'm not sure why I read that the wrong way. But I'm not sure I'd call myself jaded either. There's nothing jaded about what I said. I just want you know, something better. And yea, I read that jaded post after I woke up :P. Whoops. I still love MMOGs. Or the IDEA of them at least. Just not how they're presented by the current chuckleheads.

Screw the console, I've got a PC plugged into my 60" in the basement. It holds my DVD's / DVD player and it is a really freaking huge monitor for gaming.

Consoles are basically a PC's autistic little brother. The things that he is good at, he's really good at. The others......

I like playing sports and fighting games as much as the next guy, but I watched Battlefield 2 on XBox and I about laughed my ass off. This weekend I had a LAN party and the same guys that were playing the XBox version could not believe how much more in depth the PC version was. Same for most games. Consoles have their uses, but at this point the PC is more versatile and better at the things I like to do. But I'm not a hater like that other guy :D

Also, back on the MMO subject. I keep hearing this WoW wasnt fun shit. It was fun for a while. It was an artistic world, with some watered down PVP, and solid content. It wasnt exactly auto-attack. Range was a key factor in the fights, and player skill did play a role...especially in group combat.  I believe its real downfall, for me, was the shit honor system. The end of town raids. The funny thing is, once again some twat complains that "i cant get my quests done the evil hordies took over darkshire" then are a part of a huge noob counterattack eventually running off the enemies. 6 months pass, and he still remembers that experience...and misses that kinda of shit. Maybe he shouldnt have been one of the little girls complaining on the O-boards.