Eschalon: Book I is one of the better turn based RPGs released in the last few years. I suppose it’s not such a crowded marketplace for that genre of games these days, but it’s still one of my favorites. I’ve been following the development of Book II for quite some time and over the weekend a teaser trailer was released. While the development is running a little behind schedule, it should release this year. I’m guessing late spring or early summer, but there’s no hard date yet.
I’ve been busy with Aion and dipping my toes into Fallen Earth a bit as well. I’ll write more about those later. In the meantime, I’d like to point out the Torchlight Developer Diary (part 1 of ?) that was released last week. October 27th is almost here!
You might not have heard of Torchlight, but if you’re a fan of the Diablo series, Titan Quest, or similar games, you want to get ready for this one!
Torchlight is due to be released October 27. The team creating Torchlight has a strong pedigree including Travis Baldree (Fate), Matt Uelmen ( music for the Diablo series, World of Warcraft, and more) and others who developed Diablo I and II.
The October release is a single player Diabloesque game with random dungeon levels, pets, and a toolset that will allow players to extensively modify the game. Later, in 2011, a Torchlight MMO will be launched. To learn more about the game look over here and of course wikipedia. In the meantime, enjoy the gameplay videos below for each of the three classes. Diablo III might not be out for a a couple of years, but it’s ok. You’ll be busy playing Torchlight…
I’m anxiously watching the clock today as we near the head start. I created my two preselection characters Friday and I’m ready to roll. I’m excited about the launch and really looking forward to it. Nevertheless, I’m very concerned about Aion’s potential problems.
Problems? Yes, but not with the game itself. Aion’s gameplay is smooth and doesn’t have any show stopping bugs. The NCSoft servers are running well other than perhaps a little authorization server overload headed their way. So what could be the problem? Unfortunately for NCSoft, it’s basic network configuration and routing. Yes, a triple AAA title launch and they’re still struggling with the basic network connectivity at their data center.
The networking problems began to pile up in the late closed betas. Open beta was even worse. Monitoring the routes being used for Aion traffic you could see a few experimental changes as they shifted routing preferences with their BGP peers. Some were helpful, some made it worse. This is NCSoft’s ASN and BGP peering information for the netblock that contains the Aion servers.
As for my connectivity, I’m very fortunate to have a happy ending! I’ll tell you all the details and how it was fixed after the jump! Read more…
The latest patch notes have been translated from Aion’s Korean test server and a new video shows that spirits will no longer be grounded. This is fantastic for SMs as it’s one of the few class issues that really needs attention. Now I’m torn between Sorcerer, Ranger, or Spiritmaster for my starting class!
Update: Translated Patch Notes
From IGN and Gamescon 2009 we have the most in game footage I’ve seen yet for Bioware’s upcoming MMO. While I wonder how well lengthy, voiced dialog will work in an MMO market where players are used to clicking through quests, I’m excited about this title and the possibilities. This has the potential to redefine what we think of as an MMO much in the same way WoW changed our gameplay expectations.
In the videos we see three classes in action: The Bounty Hunter, Smuggler, and Sith Warrior. We also get to see Bioware’s implementation of combat cover and a multiplayer dialogue system. Exciting stuff!
I always enjoy finding a small gem from indie developers. The most recent that I was pleasantly surprised to stumble upon is Trine.
As described by the developers: “Trine is a physics-based action game where three characters allow clever solutions to challenges created by hazardous puzzles and threatening enemies. The gameplay is based on fully interactive physics – each character’s different abilities and tactics can be used to invent new ways to overcome obstacles and save the kingdom!”
Our three characters in the game are the Thief, Knight, and Wizard. The Wizard is a bit of a manwhore as he managed to knock himself unconscious for a fortnight while researching a spell to impress the ladies. Um, what else would you use immense magical powers for? You control one of the characters at a time, but you can switch them out instantly if you have a need to or one of them gets a slight case of stone cold dead. Each character has unique skills that help with puzzles or allow access to semi-hidden areas.
I assembled a few of my video clips from the beta weekend. You can see some of my early experiments with flight, idle animations, and low level newbie zone combat.
