Archive for the ‘ Systems Design ’ Category
Zynga has finally hit the big time, if you define big time as a perfectly timed IPO. For a company that was founded only in 2007 on by copying a poker site, they have come a long way. Or have they? When Mark Pincus started the company in 2007, he took a big gamble by [ READ MORE ]
Riftforge is finally open for a limited public playtest. You can start playing immediately by entering this secret passcode – SOFIA. eu.riftforge.com Playtest objectives Riftforge playtest objectives are two and we expect your feedback on both: Collect balancing data on the RPG classes Improve the interface and overall interaction with the game Playtest feature list [ READ MORE ]
As a big fan of tactical RPGs, I often browse GOG for old games that have stood the test of time. I have re-played Icewind Dale a few times through the years but I wanted something a bit different, yet D&D. So I reviewed the comments and found that at with the Christmas promotion, you [ READ MORE ]
Another Blizzcon post, this time dealing with WoW’s new talent system. Or rather, lack of talent system: Today’s Blizzcon announced many exciting things, including the removal of one of vanilla WoW’s crown jewels, the talent tree system. Completely gone. You now pick a “spec” and then get to pick one talent every 15 levels. No [ READ MORE ]
Google+ Board games could be pretty near, according to Bat in the Attic. So what kind of features do we need in order to play a roleplaying game like AD&D online? My list would be: Party Character sheets Dice rolling Battle maps Campaign map NPC interactions (portraits, descriptions) Dungeon Master tools Whiteboard/blackboard for free drawing [ READ MORE ]
Winning Civilization 5 on Deity difficulty is a serious test for one’s sanity. It’s not a strategy game, it becomes a fantasy RPG, where you play the kid that rolled 7′s and 8′s for all his attributes: weak, stupid, and poor. In my latest game, Persia has conquered all three nations but me (still friends) [ READ MORE ]
I recently complained that Facebook web games are too expensive. A tractor was going for $25 but it seems that even Zynga decided that’s too much. In their new game, you can get an F-35 Lightning for a real bargain price – $10. Of course, tractors are a lot more useful as they cut your [ READ MORE ]
Despite what “academic” game designers say, rock-paper-scissors is a valid approach to balancing classes. When done right, it is highly intuitive (though I never felt that paper beating rock makes sense conceptually). Case in point: we have assassin units in Riftforge. Based on WoW and many other RPGs, people who play assassins expect that: They [ READ MORE ]
This isn’t a post about Tigers, Panthers or Leopards. It’s about classic RPG archetypes – namely the TANK. What trigged it is a recent game I’ve played where I played Rammus and raked in 8 kills, one of the reasons the enemy team surrendered at 20 minutes. Shut down! So what are the characteristics of [ READ MORE ]
Everyone has their favorite RPG class. I am a bit slow when it comes to APM (actions per minute), so I prefer nukers who can pick their fights and with a few shots kill someone. It’s not that I dont enjoy being a super tough warrior who can initiate fights and get away from almost [ READ MORE ]
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