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July 20, 2025, 12:41:09 PM

we're back, baby

No one is forcing you to read our shitey wibble, are they?

Euro beta for me this week-end. Downloaded the 5Gigs just before the week-end.
Played 2 hours.
Going to uninstall it to get some hard disk space back :)

Signe was right. Why do I ever doubt her. And she's ever so cute, too.

d

Quote from: Shockeye on February 04, 2006, 05:34:47 AM

I hope someone makes a Planescape or Steampunk MMO and it sucks beyond belief so I can stop hearing about how much you people want these things.

Pfft, saddup, you know you want it too, Shockeypoo.

Entirely unrelated to everything said previously, I just uninstalled the beta software from my computer.

It freed around 8 GB.

I hope the game isn't that bloated when it ships...

Wait, what beta software? Oh yeah, that. It seems so long ago. You're not writing a Steampunk game by any chance are you Stormwaltz?

That's still a year off, there's plenty of time to turn it into a steampunk game.

There's no rush, they could just patch the steampunk in after release.

On a related note, did anyone notice the idea for Steampunk Transformers ?

It looks amazingly ass.

Steampunk is the most overused genre buzzword on the fucking internet. In the history of gaming, tv, books, and movies there's been maybe 25-30 things that actually were steampunk. I, too, have been a victim of overusing the word without noticing. Granted I've said it less than 10 times in 10,000 posts so if someone says it 1 time in less than 1,000 posts - they're more evil than me. Or sommat.

I can only think of a grand total of one steampunk game that's ever really existed that was truly in every sense of the word: Final Fantasy VI. The other Final Fantasy games had trappings that could be considered steampunk but it'd be a stretch to call them as such. And FFVII wasn't necessarily based in "the past." And stuff based in the near future doesn't suddenly become steampunk 100 years from now. Actually I can think of one other one, that I didn't actually play. Arcanum of Steamworks and Magic Obscura.

While I can think of a massive number of books that could arguably called steampunk, there's only a tiny handful of stuff I'd actually call such - Gibson comes to mind obviously.

It's such an underused genre with an overzealous fanbase that hasn't actually played or read anything steampunk - or maybe they've just seen a couple anime like Last Exile or Steamboy maybe they saw the movie Casshern (which wasn't Steampunk but people often call it such). I think there's a valid market for a steampunk game, just because it's a cool word and people will latch on to that. They won't even refer to it by it's real name. They might as well call the MMOG steampunk.

There's positively nothing even POSSIBLY steampunk about Mass Effect. Bioware couldn't patch Steampunk into a single one of their games.

While I may be mistaken, Grenado Espada could shape up to be steampunk...y (though, I fear it will just be victorian with really nice looking weapons and dresses - which is still ok). Steampunk is not an easy genre and it'll take a masterful mind to not completely fuck it up. More often than not, that sort of High Technology is only available in limited amounts to the people and the more powerful groups/governments are the ones that are all crazy with it.

One thing I'd like to call Steampunk, but it isn't, is Shadowhearts 2. While they never quite made it out of the Victorian era, it's still 1945ish and just because there's stuff running on steam in the game, it's not steampunk. The following things are essential to a steampunk setting:

1. It pretty much needs to be based in an alternate Victorian Era and the years have to be roundabouts 1800-1900.
2. It can be an alternate earth or reality, but much of the setting needs to be comparable to what we'd expect. In other words, the incredibly abstracted world of FFVI fits the bill. But the much more reasonable "The Difference Engine" by Gibson fits the bill to a T.
3. Science and technology is far more advanced than it was during our own Victorian era.
4. Shit is steam powered.

Basically, the word steampunk is a total misnomer. When most people say they want something that is steampunk based, they really want futurepunk (which, I'll admit, is a word I've basically invented) or dystopian or even sometimes just fantasy dressed in technology.

What it all boils down to is Steampunk is very well defined and an unlikely setting. Personally, I'd be all over a steampunk MMOG like white on rice. The invention possibilities are endless. It's a world where you can just make up science all willy nilly. Unfortunately given the total lack of anything steampunk in the grand scheme of things, I'm not expecting much. Cyberpunk is simply much more reasonable. While a dystopian game (a la Digital Devil Saga 2 or, *hackwheeze* Aeon Flux) is even LESS likely. Of the 4 genres mentioned, one of which I completely fabricated from my brain, Futurepunk is the most likely.

Here, let me define it. Ready?

Fantasy or Sci-Fi set in the future that really wants to be dystopian, cyberpunk, or even sometimes Steampunk - but miserably fails. Like Neocron or Deus Ex 2.

It is yet to be seen whether or not Steambot Chronicles for the PS2 will be remotely Steampunk, but here's to hoping. Also, games trying to be steampunk need to stop using the word steam in the title.

-------------fastforward 15 minutes-------->
I decided to try and find a list of stuff, Wikipedia has it. I'm just going to go through the games list (since it's compiled by the internet and therefore WRONG) and pick out the most steampunky games on the list. Ones that actually FIT the bill (unlike things someone just thought was neat and had high technology like World of Warcraft and Nightmare Creatures and motherfucking Septerra Core). Just because something has a steam powered object in it doesn't mean it's steampunk. Christ. Anyway, the list...

Baten Kaitos (I can see someone argue this)
Arcanum (previously mentioned)
Darkwatch (Ok, I can buy that, I don't know when the game was actually supposed to be set, but that's reasonable)
Final Fantasy VI (they try to tribute it to FFIX also, but, I don't know, that's something of a stretch compared to VI)
Sakura Wars (interesting call on somebody's part)
Steamband (go go text based steampunk)

The rest are quite a stretch, imo.

Alright, I think I've taken this converastion too seriously for the last 30 minutes or so. Considering the 5 posts before me were essentially one setence a piece.

Edit: By the way, this post was merely to inform those who look at the word and wonder, wtf? Because I'm sure that's a common thing. Most of the people I know would instantly equate it with cyberpunk and think of it as a dystopian future with steam powered technology. Also, I felt like ranting a bit.

↑↑↑ Well, that should kill this thread. ↑↑↑

Quote from: schild on February 10, 2006, 03:40:37 AM

1. It pretty much needs to be based in an alternate Victorian Era and the years have to be roundabouts 1800-1900.
2. It can be an alternate earth or reality, but much of the setting needs to be comparable to what we'd expect. In other words, the incredibly abstracted world of FFVI fits the bill. But the much more reasonable "The Difference Engine" by Gibson fits the bill to a T.
3. Science and technology is far more advanced than it was during our own Victorian era.
4. Shit is steam powered.

So, anyway, like I was saying, has anyone seen the proposed Steampunk Transformers ? It looks ass.

You mean transformers as in toys? I've googled but I don't think I'm getting the right results. Everything I've found looks like ass but none of them look like transformers.

Oh look, schild is being clever and defining a genre label for us again. For his next trick he'll point out why there shouldn't be a musical genre label called gothic and why it should really be called "gits who wear black clothes and shades at night".

Folks have pretty much decided that steampunk includes the works of Moorcock, Jeter, et. al. and that the genre has expanded beyond Victorian settings. It's kind of too bad if you don't like that and have sand in your vagina about it, because that's what people are going to use. Language is fluid, and doesn't stay fixed on the definition schild has decided upon. It's highly unreasonable, I know.

So, Stormwaltz, if you could change Mass Effect into future-based steampunk just to piss schild off, that would be good too. Make sure you have the label steampunk proudly displayed.

Quote from: Righ on February 10, 2006, 09:11:37 AM

Folks have pretty much decided that steampunk includes the works of Moorcock, Jeter, et. al. and that the genre has expanded beyond Victorian settings. It's kind of too bad if you don't like that and have sand in your vagina about it, because that's what people are going to use. Language is fluid, and doesn't stay fixed on the definition schild has decided upon. It's highly unreasonable, I know.

Yea I know, it's cool when genres change after they're created. Hell, why not, Mario's steampunk too, how else could those pipes possibly work? I mean we don't even have that technology yet. Oh, and Mega Man X? Definately steam punk. Sure, it's 20XX but that Elephant boss runs on steam. How could I not see this before.

Quote

So, Stormwaltz, if you could change Mass Effect into future-based steampunk just to piss schild off, that would be good too. Make sure you have the label steampunk proudly displayed.

I agree. It'd be cool. I'd be so pissed off I'd play it.

Edit: Here Righ, straight from wikipedia -

Quote

Steampunk is a subgenre of speculative fiction, usually set in an anachronistic Victorian or quasi-Victorian alternate history setting. Fiction in the steampunk genre is set in the past, or a world resembling the past, in which modern technological paradigms occurred earlier in history, but were accomplished via the science already present in that time period. The genre typically falls into the realm of science fiction.

I fail to see the problem with my definition. Or even my examples. Did you disagree with the examples or did I just not include enough for you? Did I touch your authors in a bad place?

Nope. I was pushing and prodding because the genre label is an issue for you - the very mention of steampunk riled you up to post an essay on what you though ought to be included under that label. You could call "my authors" wankflabtards for all I care. No matter what you think steampunk is, if the common concensus goes against you, you're pissing in the wind if you try and uphold an alternate definition.

Quote from: Righ on February 10, 2006, 12:17:20 PM

I just posted the "common definition" while it would have been easier than writing the essay, it pretty much covered most of what I just said. I'm not trying to uphold an alternate definition but rather The definition.

Here's Urbandictionaries definition if you're looking for a more fluid response:

Quote

. steampunk

Steampunk is a subgenre of speculative fiction, usually set in an anachronistic Victorian or quasi-Victorian alternate history setting. It could be described by the slogan "What the past would look like if the future had happened sooner." It includes fiction with science fiction, fantasy or horror themes.

Medieval Steampunk: Speculative fiction set during the Middle Ages.

Victorian Steampunk: A modern Science Fiction work (post-1930s) that is set in the early parts of the industrial revolution.

Western Steampunk: Science fiction set in the American Old West.

Industrial/Modern Steampunk: Science fiction taking place in the late industrial age, early modern age; i.e. World War 1, World War 2

Still don't see "future steampunk" listed anywhere.

I don't see the punk in Steampunk.

My favorite steamtech setting: the Thief franchise. Never got far enough in Arcanum to appreciate it.

Quote from: Sky on February 10, 2006, 12:31:18 PM

I don't see the punk in Steampunk.

My favorite steamtech setting: the Thief franchise. Never got far enough in Arcanum to appreciate it.

Steampunk settings are generally counterculture to what the historical setting would be. They're an alternative place. Punk is a rather apt description of it. Though, it was no doubt chosen because it sounds cooler than possible alternatives.

It called steamPUNK because they were riffing off of the cyberPUNK genre. The same gritty realism and crazy tech but not in the far future, instead it's in the past, steam age. What if steam power still ruled the world kind of thing.

So it's not just a world where someone forgot to create the internal combustion engine?

Is WOW steampunk?

No idea if WoW qualifies as steam punk but http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Difference_Engine is the first thing I ever recal reading (other than Jules Verne) that was different enough and coherent enough to be a subgenre. If you look at who wrote it you can see why it got the 'punk' tag attached to it.

The first book that I read which could be reasonably called steampunk would have been "The Warlord of the Air" by Michael Moorcock.

Quote from: Furiously on February 10, 2006, 12:39:16 PM

So it's not just a world where someone forgot to create the internal combustion engine?

Is WOW steampunk?

WoW certainly has steampunk elements in it (steam tanks, clockwork devices, etc.), many of which are "borrowed" from WH (which borrowed them from other places) but I don't consider the setting itself steampunk since magic is still the predominant "technology" in the game. Ebberon is another setting similar to WoW in that it has steampunk elements but it's not a full-blown steampunk world.

If you didn't play Arcanum...you didn't miss much.

Quote from: Strazos on February 11, 2006, 01:17:45 PM

If you didn't play Arcanum...you didn't miss much.

You take that back! Right now!

On a different note whatever happened to Dragon Age? I'm not getting a 360 any time soon, so that's the sp rpg I'm waiting for

It's coming along. I'm content to let BioWare take as much time as they wish. I haven't had a good PC RPG in a long time.

I NEED MY FIX.

Future steampunk really makes no sense. It's the future and things run on steam? The future is less advanced than the present is today? What makes it the future exactly?

Quote from: Margalis on February 13, 2006, 11:50:22 AM

Future steampunk really makes no sense. It's the future and things run on steam? The future is less advanced than the present is today? What makes it the future exactly?

It is obviously after Skynet fucks everything up, silly.

Quote from: Margalis on February 13, 2006, 11:50:22 AM

Future steampunk really makes no sense. It's the future and things run on steam? The future is less advanced than the present is today? What makes it the future exactly?

There's plenty of evidence to suggest that there have been cycles involving regression in history, not just one linear progression from savagery to science. Then of course, this being fiction, one could always use such startling ideas as post-apocalypse, alternate histories, parallel universes, time travel, and so forth. No matter how unpalatable you feel that Victoriana set in the future may be, it has already been done successfully.

But that's the future in name only. It's like fantasy books were the world is basically destroyed and magic takes over from technology again. If the future is just like the past calling it the future is just an excersize in nomenclature, it has no real meaning.

You really are a tediously literal cuss aren't you?

I do have something good to say about the AA beta.

The uninstall program didn't erase my hard drive.

Quote from: Furiously on February 13, 2006, 03:26:48 PM

I do have something good to say about the AA beta.

The uninstall program didn't erase my hard drive.

Careful, you'll end up being grief-titled with words like that.

Alkiera