Octopus Overlords

Never heard of this before now. This is a video narrated by Claudia Black. I think it's MMO but i'll have to look it up to see since as I said it's new to me.

VIDEO

EDIT: Looks single player and with the money from this they will make a MMO ....I think.

Kingdoms of Amalur: The Reckoning is from the game studio of Curt Schilling(Former baseball pitcher) Todd Mcfarlane and RA Salvatore are also part of the development team and the game should be out in February. I think I also heard the MMO rumors. Quite the ARPG but should have plenty of story as well.


One of the developers from OBlivion is also on the team so perhaps some open world exploration as well.

So the demo has been released for the PC/360/PS3 and the full game is available Feb 7th. Probably won't get a chance to try it until this weekend, hopefully they have a decent UI for the PC.

I just played some of the demo, and enjoyed it more than I thought I would. I love the art style, and the combat reminded me of Witcher 2. There seems to be quite a lot of options when it comes to character development.

My only concern is that there didn't seem to be a way to save. I don't know if that was because it was a demo, or the game will rely on save points.

Does anyone know?

Downloaded the demo for the 360 last night. Will give it a go tonight if I ever get home from the office.

Suppose I'd get home from the office sooner if I stopped messing around on OO . . .

This has a different name now, you may want to change the thread title.

Really really like the demo. It’s like Gothic/Risen and Fable had a beautiful and polished baby. I went from knowing nothing about it to putting in a preorder.

Also, I’m still bitter that Mass Effect 3 won’t be on Steam so this made me smile. "All PC versions of Reckoning, except for the Steam version, require a one-time authentication through Origin and the Origin client. If you purchase Reckoning through Steam, you only need to authenticate the game through Steam."

This has a different name now, you may want to change the thread title.

Thanks..fixed!

Yeah, uh, "Destiny and Fate" are two in-game systems being described by the video.

The title to this game--bad as that title is--has never changed.

Well, the title of the game may be bad (it is!), but I tried out the demo last night and really enjoyed it. After spending a gazillion hours in Skyrim, it was a nice change. Looking forward to this one when it hits.

tgb wrote:I just played some of the demo, and enjoyed it more than I thought I would. I love the art style, and the combat reminded me of Witcher 2. There seems to be quite a lot of options when it comes to character development.

I just played the demo (Xbox360) this afternoon and enjoyed it as well. The artwork absolutely gives me a D&D vibe, which considering the pedigree makes sense. I also liked the action-y combat and what I guess the story hook and game mechanic will be with the whole fate time freeze thingy.

I'm not sure if I have the time for a full-on RPG right now, but it really surprised me with how solid the game felt.

Amazon.com just informed me that the pre-load is available.

I liked the demo, but I'm certainly not paying $60 for it. I'm sure there will be a Steam sale at some point.

I'm starting to see claims that the main game is about 35 hours to complete but that there is over 200 hours of questing / game play available. That's unusually large in this day and age.

tgb wrote:I liked the demo, but I'm certainly not paying $60 for it. I'm sure there will be a Steam sale at some point.

Totally agree

/sigh

With all the positive comments, I really wanted to like this game.

I tried the demo last night. Once I finally got it working (instead of just having a black screen), I played through the "intro".

I like the art and style. What little I saw of the talents was kind of intriguing.

However... it drove me crazy that I can't look without turning. I feel like I can see so little. I wanted to be able to look around as I moved without staggering around like a drunk. I'm probably spoiled by WoW. I'm sure I can get used to that. Hopefully.

And the inventory system was also really frustrating. I'd clear out a chest and then have to click through 10 different screens (slight exaggeration) in order to go look at everything. I'd really much prefer a single, unified backpack. And I don't really understand why they couldn't go with the paper doll format. Having to figure out what I'm wearing by which ones have the E next to them? And at one point I managed to equip melee weapons as both the Primary and Secondary because I lost track of where I was - and when you are on Primary, it won't show you what's equipped on Secondary, and vice-verse.

I did eventually start to get a better handle on it. But I still found that sometimes my mouse wouldn't seem want to select the option that I wanted and it would take more than one try.

And I thought that the setting of the quick items was not very intuitive.

I'll probably still pick it up eventually. But likely not until there is a really good sale. I just felt that some of the design decisions were a little odd.

Use the I key to get into the inventory on the PC.

I tried the demo on all of the platforms, and if you're interested, this is what my old eyes saw:
PS3 < 360 < PC

The PS3 version looked like AA had been turned completely off while the 360 looked slightly better. The PC version was very crisp, and even cranking up what little there was to tweak, it ran like butter. I wish I could do screenshots, but I went back and forth, before deciding to get it as a birthday present with Amazon's digital download ($50 with some pre-order bonuses).

Curt Schilling seems to be primarily a PC gamer from the interviews I've seen from him over the years about gaming. Having this one run the best on the PC is no surprise. I'll eventually pick it up in a Steam sale, the reviews seem very positive. Maybe I'll try the demo this weekend for the hell of it, but my budget certainly can't stretch to $60 for a game.

Only £29.99 in the UK for the PC version which isn't too bad, thats about $45. Shall be picking this one up.

My initial and superficial look at the game: I'm intrigued. This is a good looking game that appears to have a solid combat system and the game itself, imo, benefits from its association with writer R A Salvatore. Well, at least I think so. However, it's a bit pricey and - without denigrating the game's value in any way - I too would rather wait for a sale.

I have a couple hours with the game now and I’m very happy. While the game does have some short comings it is a very solid title and so far I highly recommend it.

The setting is well developed and while based on a fairly typical fantasy archetypes go beyond what you see in most games by having wonderful writing and likeable characters. Also, while the storyline has a definite dark tone to it a lot of the dialogue has a reserved humor to it that will have you smiling. Voice acting has also been mostly superb and varied.

Combat is surprisingly deep with branching paths for combat, finesse and magic. I actually took a couple minutes just to look at the move list that you unlock through your weapon and skill choice. Every weapon type in the game (swords, bows, dagger, staves, etc…) has at least three combo attacks that you can learn and some have as many as 7. On top of those you have the branching skill trees common in most RPG’s. Next you have large list of non-combat skills that you also develop as you level up. Finally, you have access to fate cards that offer bonuses based on the type of class you want to play. In an era of gaming where games are simplified to remove stats and customization I found all of this incredibly engaging.

Graphic wise the game is probably most likely to divide people into love and hate. The whole game has a beautiful stylized and hand crafted aesthetic. My biggest problem with the Elderscrolls games is that despite having impressive vistas and environmental graphics it all looked procedurally generated. It was impressive but I didn’t care because I never wanted to go explore it. This game is the opposite, I don’t know if it is or not but so far everything feels handcrafted as if every inch has been touched by an artist or designer. If something looks interesting then there is probably something hidden there worth checking out. Two real complaints I do have with the graphics is that there is noticeable fauna pop in at the furthest view distance and lip synching is pretty hit or miss.

I’m really looking forward to spending more time with the game now. If you’re in the market for an RPG with a lot more gameplay and storytelling than Skyrim but a bit less exploring definitely give it a look.

I am interested. But I hear this has narrow FOV and cannot be changed, is that true? I usually get motion sickness with games of limited FOV.

There was a little piece on this on some video game segment on the Space channel up here in Canada. I added it to my wishlist, even though I have no intention of buying it any time soon.

The videos are certainly intriguing.

Smoove_B wrote:I'm starting to see claims that the main game is about 35 hours to complete but that there is over 200 hours of questing / game play available. That's unusually large in this day and age.

During the tv segment I watched, the pr guy went on and on about how big the game is. *shrug*

I haven't been able to get content codes for downloadable content to work.

Got the game from Amazon, and it came with 2 codes. But they don't fit with the dashes, and nothing happens if I don't use dashes.

Ernest wrote:I haven't been able to get content codes for downloadable content to work.

Got the game from Amazon, and it came with 2 codes. But they don't fit with the dashes, and nothing happens if I don't use dashes.

My amazon goodies were in the chest just off the center of the first town you come to. No need to enter the code. Gothar? Something like that.

It also had a nice set of Commander Shepard plate since I'd done the demo, so I was fully twinked.

Ernest wrote:I haven't been able to get content codes for downloadable content to work.

Got the game from Amazon, and it came with 2 codes. But they don't fit with the dashes, and nothing happens if I don't use dashes.

From what I've read, the pre-order Fate weapons pack was included in the code for the main game. The second code was for the Treasure Hunter pack.

Some of what I am reading indicates that the game is too easy on Hard. Thoughts?

Can I get some comparisons to Witcher? Not that I know anything about Witcher, but I can get Witcher at a cheap price, so if the comparisons are favourable between the two, I can get my Reckoning fix through a cheaper game. Possibly. *cough*

Is the game more action than RPG? It almost comes across as a combat game with an rpg wrapper (which would be awesome if done right). Trailers talk about "discovering" combos. How significant is that in terms of gameplay? Is it like Magicka in that there are tons and tons of combos coded into the game, or is just a couple of a->a->b type combos and that's it.

One of the trailers had a melee attack that knocked the target into the air, then a blast of (what appeared to be) frost magic nuked them before they fell back to earth. If that required coordination such as Street Fighter to pull off, cool. If it was just a preset couple of moves, all pulled off with a single input such as with Killer Instinct, then it is less cool (but still cool).

I mostly stay away from the first person rpg genre, but if the combat in this game is compelling, with a halfway decent story (doesn't have to be great) and fun character build mechanics, I may pick it up.

Trailers have definitely gotten my attention, even though I usually dismiss trailers out of hand.

Peacedog wrote:Some of what I am reading indicates that the game is too easy on Hard. Thoughts?

If my wife would stop having me watch True Blood every evening, I'd get a chance to play the game

It "looked" like you can change the game difficulty in the Options, but I'm not sure. The first Troll in the tutorial area was pretty tough, but, I only had a Rusty Sword.

GreenGoo wrote:Can I get some comparisons to Witcher? Not that I know anything about Witcher, but I can get Witcher at a cheap price, so if the comparisons are favourable between the two, I can get my Reckoning fix through a cheaper game. Possibly. *cough*

Is the game more action than RPG? It almost comes across as a combat game with an rpg wrapper (which would be awesome if done right). Trailers talk about "discovering" combos. How significant is that in terms of gameplay? Is it like Magicka in that there are tons and tons of combos coded into the game, or is just a couple of a->a->b type combos and that's it.

One of the trailers had a melee attack that knocked the target into the air, then a blast of (what appeared to be) frost magic nuked them before they fell back to earth. If that required coordination such as Street Fighter to pull off, cool. If it was just a preset couple of moves, all pulled off with a single input such as with Killer Instinct, then it is less cool (but still cool).

I mostly stay away from the first person rpg genre, but if the combat in this game is compelling, with a halfway decent story (doesn't have to be great) and fun character build mechanics, I may pick it up.

Trailers have definitely gotten my attention, even though I usually dismiss trailers out of hand.

Witcher or Witcher 2?

First of all, this is based on just a short time with the demo. In terms of graphics, atmosphere, story, etc, Witcher is a lot more "adult", for lack of a better word. I like the art style in Amalure, but it's been compared to WoW, which is not far off the mark. There is a lot of role-playing in Amalur. In fact, the argument can be made that you have more flexibility in developing your character than in the Witcher games.

As to combat, the combat in both Amalur and Witcher 2 is very arcade-like, with emphasis placed on learning combos, dodging, waving, rolling, etc. The combat in the first Witcher is a different kettle of fish.

Either/or.

But thanks for the comments. It's possible I've been overlooking Witcher (and II) because I thought of them as more of an Oblivion type game. Arcade-y combat might make them worth a look.

Guess I can always give the demo a try myself.

If you are looking for arcade-y combat, go with 2.

Graphics wise the game may be less gritty than the Witcher but I would argue the storyline and setting are still very serious and adult. You wake up in a pile of rotting corpses; there is blood and decapitations, the story touches of genocide and the repercussions of immortality in regards to mortals.

Combat really varies based on the weapon type you choose to use. Swords are pretty typical to most RPG’s but when I picked up a set of Chakras I basically started playing God of War. As I posted earlier there are a lot of combos of the “a->a->b” type. Every weapon type in the game has between 3-7 combos and there are a lot of weapon types.

The “fatality” you saw was most likely a finishing move. When you charge up your fate pool you can go into fate mode. The first enemy you kill in that mode allows you to multiply your experience you will receive from the encounter. You have to complete a series of button presses and you get a brutal kill animation as a reward. You could technically skip it entirely but it’s a cool way to finish a fight if you choose to.

You didn’t ask but I also need to give special praise to the dialogue. This is the first RPG in a long time where I actually cared about what random NPC’s had to say and the voice acting is strong enough to carry it even if it wasn't. Also, Scottish Gnomes are cool.

I realize I made "a->a->b" combos sound like a detriment, but they aren't, unless there are too few of them.

As an example of almost, but not quite, good enough for me is the WH40K Space Marine game. It's fun for a short while, and pulling off "finishing moves" to regain health is cool, but there just isn't enough variety in how you control combat to keep the game interesting to me, especially since that game offers little else.

I think you were a fan of Space Marine L9. How would you compare the complexity of the combat between the two games? Reckoning/Space Marine.

Actually I was pretty disappointed with Space Marine, although not because of the combat.

That said weapons and attacks are much more varied in Amalur. I’ve really only used Staves, Daggers and Chakras but each of them functions very differently. Daggers for example you start with a very typical slow stealth kill but you can also go into stealth mode, charge up an attack and then you can bounce between enemies in a similar fashion to the dagger fight at the end of V for Vendetta. You have other combos that do more damage but that one move is just too fun to use that I haven’t bothered with any others yet. Comparatively the Chakras are long range thrown weapons that snap back to you after thrown. They are very fast and have a number of AoE functions plus they look awesome in action.

So in short, combat is considerably more complex in Amalur but you probably don’t need to master the combo system unless playing on the hard setting or if you really want to.

Lordnine wrote:Daggers for example you start with a very typical slow stealth kill but you can also go into stealth mode, charge up an attack and then you can bounce between enemies in a similar fashion to the dagger fight at the end of V for Vendetta.

...

So in short, combat is considerably more complex in Amalur but you probably don’t need to master the combo system unless playing on the hard setting or if you really want to.

Damn it. I haven't paid full price for a game in like 3-4 years. I don't want to start now.

I'll try the demo tonight and then decide.

Edit: And the dreaded question, what's the DRM like? I figure the Steam version is DRM-free except for Steam, but that's not always the case. I'll look tonight but if someone wants to pipe in that would be cool.

DRM = The company chose to self-publish the Steam version and is the only version of the game that doesn’t require Origin. You can connect to the EA servers if you want some bonus gear but it's not required.

I think this made EA angry and so the versions you buy everywhere else are considerably cheaper but you have to register with Origin. I was all for spending a few dollars more to support the company who took a chance by self-publishing and if it screws with EA all the better!

Lordnine wrote:DRM = The company chose to self-publish the Steam version and is the only version of the game that doesn’t require Origin. You can connect to the EA servers if you want some bonus gear but it's not required.

I think this made EA angry and so the versions you buy everywhere else are considerably cheaper but you have to register with Origin. I was all for spending a few dollars more to support the company who took a chance by self-publishing and if it screws with EA all the better!

Thanks. I want stay the eff away from EA if I can help it at all. If it were Ubisoft I'd probably skip on it all together despite being somewhat excited about it. It's nice to have some anticipation for a new game for the first time in quite awhile.