Actually that's something Beamdog could do a bit better IMO - a more robust release schedule for DLC and updated content... a few new classes every few months, a couple of new npcs, a few extra quests etc
For me, CD Projekt Red did this perfectly with TW3.
Well - CD Project Red are huge by now. I wouldn't be surprised if internal teams developing dlcs are as big as Beamdog in its entirety.
I think the current plan of focusing on few projects is a good idea. And with three projects of various sizes, there's a chance we'll get something along the lines of smaller updates as well.
Actually that's something Beamdog could do a bit better IMO - a more robust release schedule for DLC and updated content... a few new classes every few months, a couple of new npcs, a few extra quests etc
Looking at the number of bugs related to the Shaman on redmine, I wonder if introducing new classes every x months is feasible.
It would be nice if there could be some more clarity on the patching front. The idea of redmine is a great start, especially with 'next update' roadmaps, but it would be nice to know if there is actually something being done. For example, the Next Update has been almost completed, with just one bug needed to get fixed for more than a month. No one knows if it is still being worked on, if it is abandoned, if it might be integrated into a larger patch with more bugfixes not necessarily relating to the Infinity Engine.
As I've stated before: I am not expecting timelines. I was hoping for some expectation management on the side of BeamDog. My idea of a general topic in the news-forum could help with that I think.
(I know you said you would look into it @JuliusBorisov, but I thought I'd just say it again )
I think the Shaman class is probably a unique case.
But anyway, I'm only suggesting that not all new content needs to be added all at the same time. Patching doesn't always have to be about bug fixes - it could include extras and improvements too.
By scheduling new content over a broader time period, one advantage is that you have a clear schedule of those updates in advance. When bugs do occur/get reported, the fixes can be planned into that release schedule as well...
It does require working in a different way, but it also allows prioritisation of bugs/changes, whilst giving the users something new, shiny and exciting over a longer period
I think the Shaman class is probably a unique case.
Could be, because of the way for example the spirit dance works you mean? In that case I agree. Maybe some other classes could be more easily adapted (perhaps from mods that have been using those classes for some time and thus ironed out the bugs).
Never gonna happen, I'm afraid. WotC is very adamant about burning older editions down to the ground.
As for adding new classes and Shaman problems, if you design your engine with the idea that it's going to receive new classes over time, that should cause a lot less issues than when you try to squeeze in a class into an old engine that was never designed for that purpose.
The BG series is definitely among the best RPGs ever produced, but let's not pretend they were Shakespeare. There were always some cringy moments, transparent pop culture references, and one-dimensional characters.
I don't intend to say anything about SoD's supposed writing quality, but I will say that the nostalgia regarding the BG series is something I've always found pretty amusing. As one of the folks who contributed, I can personally attest to the existence of said cringy moments, transparent pop culture references (Umar Witch Project!), and one-dimensional characters. We didn't take ourselves all that seriously, which gave the entire series a kind of tongue-in-cheek D&D tabletop-at-2am vibe...which is not to say it wasn't also fun and awesome, but I would not say it had my proudest moments of writing.
Hmm. Except maybe the Spectator Beholder and the "Eye Spy" imps. I take it back. That was indeed my proudest moment of writing.
The BG series is definitely among the best RPGs ever produced, but let's not pretend they were Shakespeare.
And thank goodness for that. Shakespeare is rubbish. Taste is subjective of course, but the guy's stuff gets an unfairly high amount of praise. It's a "it's classic and everyone else says it's good, so therefore it must be" thing.
Actually that's something Beamdog could do a bit better IMO - a more robust release schedule for DLC and updated content... a few new classes every few months, a couple of new npcs, a few extra quests etc
For me, CD Projekt Red did this perfectly with TW3.
About that, when considering the possibility of new content being added to BG2. Is there a bunch of ''red tape'' with WotC about permission to alter content or add new classes and so on. Or is that decision left to Beamdog themselves nowadays?
The BG series is definitely among the best RPGs ever produced, but let's not pretend they were Shakespeare. There were always some cringy moments, transparent pop culture references, and one-dimensional characters.
I don't intend to say anything about SoD's supposed writing quality, but I will say that the nostalgia regarding the BG series is something I've always found pretty amusing. As one of the folks who contributed, I can personally attest to the existence of said cringy moments, transparent pop culture references (Umar Witch Project!), and one-dimensional characters. We didn't take ourselves all that seriously, which gave the entire series a kind of tongue-in-cheek D&D tabletop-at-2am vibe...which is not to say it wasn't also fun and awesome, but I would not say it had my proudest moments of writing.
Hmm. Except maybe the Spectator Beholder and the "Eye Spy" imps. I take it back. That was indeed my proudest moment of writing.
I would say that the "Knights of Pen and Paper" games best recapture the tone of the original Baldur's Gate writing.
and JuliusBorisov which it just dawned on me is Bengoshi :O
whaaaaaaaaaaaat
Lol, i told him it was not a good idea But yeah, Bengoshi = Julius
You believe it, but you are so wrong... Actually Julius is a Skin Dancer/Thief that killed the pour Bengoshi, and wearing his skin stole all his reactions points. Shortly after that he managed to backstab @Dee and stole also his administrator's privileges, the next victim will be king @TrentOster himself.
I warn you, don't trust him, he is not a man like you and me, is a beast, a very dangerous one.
Regarding the writing of the originals, I think BG1 very much benefited from not taking itself very seriously. It's jammed full of pop culture references and "inappropriate" jokes, and it pokes fun at its genre a lot. Aside from a few select moments (Gorion) the game didn't have much melodrama either, and the conversations didn't overstay their welcome. Except for when they did. For the lulz.
I still can't tell if it was meticulously planned or if the devs just slapped it together without giving it much thought, but regardless of their intentions, BG1 managed to hit that sweet spot for me that's somewhere in between "quirky" and "dramafest".
and JuliusBorisov which it just dawned on me is Bengoshi :O
whaaaaaaaaaaaat
Lol, i told him it was not a good idea But yeah, Bengoshi = Julius
You believe it, but you are so wrong... Actually Julius is a Skin Dancer/Thief that killed the pour Bengoshi, and wearing his skin stole all his reactions points. Shortly after that he managed to backstab @Dee and stole also his administrator's privileges, the next victim will be king @TrentOster himself.
I warn you, don't trust him, he is not a man like you and me, is a beast, a very dangerous one.
Well, he is the leader of the Ferret Force Five, after all!
and JuliusBorisov which it just dawned on me is Bengoshi :O
whaaaaaaaaaaaat
Lol, i told him it was not a good idea But yeah, Bengoshi = Julius
You believe it, but you are so wrong... Actually Julius is a Skin Dancer/Thief that killed the pour Bengoshi, and wearing his skin stole all his reactions points. Shortly after that he managed to backstab @Dee and stole also his administrator's privileges, the next victim will be king @TrentOster himself.
I warn you, don't trust him, he is not a man like you and me, is a beast, a very dangerous one.
@TrentOster has contractual immortality until Shattered Steel 2 is released.
Yes, is a confession, I am guilty. Guilty of being hostile to an administrator of those boards, and now the cowed moderators are coming to bring me to Spellhood, the asylum for deviant forumers...
gorgonzola wears the cloak of not detection, casts his chain contingency 3x ADHW and wait, with a ring of air control in his finger
Melicamp presses the reload button and wow, gorgonzola is back, and he has never challenged a team member. Players... this is the first thing that they learn.
Comments
For me, CD Projekt Red did this perfectly with TW3.
I think the current plan of focusing on few projects is a good idea. And with three projects of various sizes, there's a chance we'll get something along the lines of smaller updates as well.
It would be nice if there could be some more clarity on the patching front. The idea of redmine is a great start, especially with 'next update' roadmaps, but it would be nice to know if there is actually something being done. For example, the Next Update has been almost completed, with just one bug needed to get fixed for more than a month. No one knows if it is still being worked on, if it is abandoned, if it might be integrated into a larger patch with more bugfixes not necessarily relating to the Infinity Engine.
As I've stated before: I am not expecting timelines. I was hoping for some expectation management on the side of BeamDog. My idea of a general topic in the news-forum could help with that I think.
(I know you said you would look into it @JuliusBorisov, but I thought I'd just say it again
But anyway, I'm only suggesting that not all new content needs to be added all at the same time. Patching doesn't always have to be about bug fixes - it could include extras and improvements too.
By scheduling new content over a broader time period, one advantage is that you have a clear schedule of those updates in advance. When bugs do occur/get reported, the fixes can be planned into that release schedule as well...
It does require working in a different way, but it also allows prioritisation of bugs/changes, whilst giving the users something new, shiny and exciting over a longer period
As for adding new classes and Shaman problems, if you design your engine with the idea that it's going to receive new classes over time, that should cause a lot less issues than when you try to squeeze in a class into an old engine that was never designed for that purpose.
Hmm. Except maybe the Spectator Beholder and the "Eye Spy" imps. I take it back. That was indeed my proudest moment of writing.
Sadly, the credenza also liked to play Eye Spy.
No way they will pass up that beloved scene.
Beholder: (sigh)
Credenza: Something... *Gasp* Something brown!
Beholder: Is it the chair?
Credenza: Wowie! Omigosh, ur so good @ this game; how did u know?
Beholder: IT'S THE ONLY OTHER BROWN THING IN THE ROOM
Chair: hey who wants to play rock paper scissors again?
Actually Julius is a Skin Dancer/Thief that killed the pour Bengoshi, and wearing his skin stole all his reactions points.
Shortly after that he managed to backstab @Dee and stole also his administrator's privileges, the next victim will be king @TrentOster himself.
I warn you, don't trust him, he is not a man like you and me, is a beast, a very dangerous one.
I still can't tell if it was meticulously planned or if the devs just slapped it together without giving it much thought, but regardless of their intentions, BG1 managed to hit that sweet spot for me that's somewhere in between "quirky" and "dramafest".
gorgonzola wears the cloak of not detection, casts his chain contingency 3x ADHW and wait, with a ring of air control in his finger
C:Eval('ActionOverride("gorgonzola",DestroyAllEquipment())')
C:Eval('DisableAI("gorgonzola",TRUE)')
C:Eval('ActionOverride("gorgonzola",Polymorph(CHICKEN_WHITE))')
C:Eval('ActionOverride("gorgonzola",SetName(14168))')
Players... this is the first thing that they learn.