[IMPORTANT] A campaign to get the official tools released

[Sorry, entering ranting/raving mode]

I have to say I'm also pretty disgusted with Atari. Somehow they've managed to ruin one game after another. KoToR2, by the company developing NWN2, was released with large bundles of missing plot threads so that the game became "linear" about half way through (IMO, the game had a bit more potential). Either Atari or Lucas Arts cut it short. (I'm also afraid to say that I bought Dragonshard, why not just play Starcraft?) I'm not optimistic about NWN2's future. NWN has thrived as a multi-play game, but I think that was primarily due to Bioware's involvement and not ATARI's.

I agree with what some of you guys are saying here. It would be great to see a company that cares about DnD take over the DnD licensing and release games that bring the table top PnP experience to the computer. I think this is the direction ToEE was headed in and what makes it a game with so much potential. Why not take it further?

I think that the WoTC could benefit by doing something like this:

1. Release a game engine that's open source. Sheherd the development (perhaps like Mozilla). It will only get better and run on more platforms.
2. Drop graphics for game features. The creative experience should come from the game content and not the neat graphics.
3. Sell content. There are a lot of existing campaigns to release for the new engine (at some point the game engine stabelizes, but there are always more campaigns).
4. Multiplayer should at least exist in some DM/Player mode, but some form of single player mode should always be available. AI can always get better and become more realistic. It's fun to be an interactive DM, but it's also fun implement a clever DM. Doing both is probably even better.
5. For multi-player, "Pay2Play" is a sticky issue. I'm generally against it unless you're actually getting soemthing for the online fee. Perhaps there would be DM's that are worth paying to play with, or content you can only access online. I don't know about this, but it's sticky for sure.
6. I'm probably rehashing the whole idea of MMORPG (with very little knowledge of what's out there). I guess the only real difference here would be a focus on the DnD rule set in a turn-based system, and using DnD campaigns for "content". Over time, more features of PnP DnD could make it into the engine. How would you have "spider climb" make it into the engine (without worrying fancy graphics that is)?

Perhaps this topic has already been flogged to death before, but I guess I haven't had a wack at it yet

As for ATARI, they should do what they want to do and go after console games. DnD isn't going to do anything for them there, so they should just let go of it (and get a bit of money to try and keep themselves afloat,).

 

It seems that 99% of the readers of these forums are lazy bums like me, monitoring the changes and waiting to play the latest and greatest version of everyone else's hard work while providing nothing of their own. But even I, a grandmaster of laziness, realize the benefits of voting 'Yes' to this thread. Come on ya bums! Vote yes on prop #777!

 

As an occasional visitor, who uses and downloads your wonderful mods, I'd like to encourage all the other lurkers to vote too!

 

I support this course of action 100%. Thanks a lot to all of the modders making this game worth playing!

 

You should do more blaming on WotC then Atari they are the ones giving the rights to Atari when nothing good is being released or released without any real DnD flavor. Why would WotC not give it to another company is simple, Money they are making money off DnD naming license even if the crap that is released is not DnD at heart. Atari will release these games whether it had the DnD name to it or not.

Macer

 

Who's to blame for what is of no use here. I respect your opinion on this, but this isn't exactly the thread for it. Please, all - stick to the subject.

 

Hi all:

The people at Atari make games to sell, I seriouslly doubt that any of the decision makers are gamers. I live to play crpg's and work to support this addiction. I think what you people at Co8 have done with this poorly done and unfinished game is truely remarkable. I'm playing TOEE 5.0.0 now and am still pleasently surprised over and over again. Thanks for what youre doing, and of course I'll happily support whichever action you decide to take. (I voted)

 

I thought that NWN, at least after the two expansion packs and 4700 community-made modules, plus the PRC, CEP and lord knows what other community made add-ons, accomplished quite a bit and got quite a good ways away from the Diablo experience. I think the big difference from TOEE is that Bioware had the resources to support the community without relying on Atari. That said, this isn't really the place to debate the relative merits of those games. I do wish that NWN had the option for turn-based combat, which would have helped get away from the Diablo feel.

In any event, with its stock price around 70 cents per share, I'm not sure that Atari will focus any attention on anything other than NWN2 right now. They are literally in survival mode right now. But I think it's worth taking a chance, which is why I came out of lurkdom to vote yes.

 

IMO - As long as whatever requests are submitted from Co8 [and its ToEE fan base] to Atari and its employees are civil and respectful, not any kind of crude, harsh, or degrading, I think the situation will be okay. When a request for a level of support for their ToEE product goes past what they will support, I know in the past they have directed people here to Co8 for support that they don't provide, themselves. Plus, there are occasional new or repeat purchases of ToEE because of Co8. They don't have to let Co8 remain on the Internet and mod their product, but there are certain benefits as reasons I believe they would like to have Co8 remain in place.

 

I think anyone who wants to play good, authenic, by the rules D&D, turn-based and balanced, has to love C08. I expect 5.0 final to be really good and the standard for turn-based CRPG. As long as there's a demand for good D&D, then C08 is the place.

 

7 members online. 42 guests.

18 people viewing this part of the forum.

Lots of people be using Co8. But they are so, so quiet... :blink:

 

I voted! You have my sword.

 

I'm in too !