Quantcast
Channel: Gollop Games
Viewing all 58 articles
Browse latest View live
↧

Online multiplayer demo progress

September 19, 2013, 5:43 am
$
0
0
I have been working with a new local company, Game Cloud Continental, on the server backend systems for Chaos Reborn. I plan to have a publicly available demo soon, which can be played in a web browser. Here is what we have working so far:

  • Player profile creation and login
  • Join a random match up game
  • Create a private, password protected game
  • Set game play options:
    • 2, 3 or 4 player game
    • 2 vs 2 team game
    • Turn timer length
There is still quite a bit of work to tidy up the interface screens here, but otherwise the demo is feature complete.
↧
Search

Chaos Reborn Logo

September 20, 2013, 1:42 am
$
0
0
A bit of update again, here's a logo proposal for the game, we'd like to hear what you guys think about it. 

↧
↧

Spider Web ability

September 26, 2013, 6:11 am
$
0
0
One interesting creature ability which we have implemented in the current prototype is the Spider's web ability. It's a bit more complicated than the Eagle's Swoop or the Unicorn's Charge, but perhaps more interesting. When the spider attacks a creature in close combat, its initial attack will always be a web attack. The spider attempts to trap his victim in a web before going in for the kill. The strength of the web attack is compared to the target creature's Defence rating to determine the probability of successfully webbing the target. Once trapped in a web a creature can neither move or attack, and its Defence rating is halved. Each turn the creature can attack the web in an attempt to free itself. Alternatively other friendly creatures can come to the victim's aid and attack the web to clear it away. Spiders themselves don't have a particularly strong attack, so they are best deployed webbing as many enemies as possible while other creatures move in for the kill. Undead creatures can be webbed as well. Wizard's may still cast spells while webbed, even though they can't attack normally.


↧

Equipping your Wizard

September 30, 2013, 3:23 am
$
0
0
While we are putting the finishing touches to the online demo, I have been working on the game design. Although core game play of wizardly combat remains faithful to the original Chaos, there is a whole new RPG aspect to Chaos Reborn with randomly generated realms, arenas, enemies and equipment. This makes the game something of a mega-rogue-like system, but with ongoing development of your wizard character through both single-player realm quests and online multiplayer battles. I want the game to have a flexible RPG type system, and for me that means that your wizard should be highly customisable, and not constrained along a path decided incrementally with each level up. My proposal for this is the following:

  • Wizards will level up by gaining XP, but your wizard remains ... well, just a wizard. He keeps his pathetic base stats with him for life. He is just human (or at least humanoid) after all.
  • The equipment can be levelled up separately to your wizard, but you may only equip or level-up an item with the same or lower level than your wizard level.
  • The equipment basically determines all the abilities and base stats of your wizard. In addition, there are special abilities and features for each type of equipment.
  • You can select your equipment and spell deck before each battle. Thus, you can configure your wizard many ways for different play styles or effect, limited only by your selection of equipment and spells.
  • An item of equipment is levelled up by entering its 'inner realm' - basically a series of wizard battles for each level of the equipment, becoming progressively harder with each level. A success in battle here will level up the equipment. The rules, enemies and environments of these battles may have some unusual features. Needless to say you can't use the item of equipment that is being levelled up for these battles. This means that you would often be using various items of equipment to help level up other items of equipment.
  • Equipment comes in matching sets. Thus if you equip the staff of Clordor, bodygear of Clordor and headgear of Clordor then you will unlock a secret special ability. These abilities generally have unusual effects, like flipping the balance of the universe, or spawning a gooey blob at the position of a wizard you just killed.
  • Needless to say, the equipment largely determines how your wizard looks. You might even favour certain items of equipment just because they look cool.
Those of you who have ever played the wonderful, but rather weird, Disgaea games will be familiar with the equipment levelling idea. I thought it was the best idea in the game, and added a distinct quality to each piece of equipment you find.
As for the equipment itself, there are three main types:
  1. Staff: Determines the Ready Spells value (spells in hand), and can be used to boost casting chance and effects of spells, depending on the spell type or other conditions.
  2. Bodygear: Not necessarily the typical flowing wizard gown, but could look more like armour with magical widgets leaking energy all over the place. This determines the basic stats of your wizard - Attack, Defence, Agility, Magic Resistance and Movement.
  3. Headgear: Again, it doesn't have to be the usual pointy hat cliche, but something more like a magical helmet with implants and elaborate widgets. This determines your Spell Memory (deck), modifies some basic stats, and gives various XP/VP bonuses under certain conditions.
I will go into some more details about each type of equipment in future posts.

↧

Chaos Reborn Logo - a Different Take

October 9, 2013, 3:43 am
$
0
0
Some comments I've read about the logo said it doesn't represent the magical and chaotic feel they have in their minds about the game. So I've made a completely new version, which is a bit of an experiment, and I'd really like to hear what you think about it.

↧
↧

Kickstarter for Chaos Reborn

November 7, 2013, 11:56 am
$
0
0
It's nigh time for an update on Chaos Reborn developments. After some discussions with several publishers, I have decided to go for a Kickstarter campaign early next year. I will be attempting to  raise funds for a downloadable, DRM free, PC/Mac/Linux version of the game - everything included (no free-to-play or in-app-purchases). If I raise extra funds then I will consider other platforms, but the initial version will be PC focussed.
I have expanded my team and I have a small, but highly talented group of developers here in Sofia ready to go full time, funds permitting. We are busy preparing materials for the Kickstarter campaign,   so watch this space for further updates.
↧

Chaos Reborn on Prefundia

November 14, 2013, 9:44 am
$
0
0
There is a Chaos Reborn page on Prefundia here. The idea is to build a list of followers who will be notified by email when the Kickstarter campaign launches. It's a nice, simple idea that helps crowd funding campaigns get off to a flying start - which can make the difference between success and failure. If you sign up, please feel free to comment about the information on the page because I will update it when needed.
↧

1979 Revolution on Kickstarter

November 18, 2013, 3:25 am
$
0
0
1979 Revolution: Black Friday is an episodic game with a an interesting theme - it is set during the revolution in Iran which overthrew the Shah. It is definitely one of the more interesting projects on Kickstarter, but I can't help thinking that they got a few things wrong. The main issue is that they are using Kickstarter to finance an iPad only game which is terribly limiting. Their first platform choice should definitely be PC. They are also asking a lot of money for a single episode of the game which would only give 2 hours gameplay. As for the gameplay itself, it doesn't sound too inspiring - a series of mini-games linked by a narrative. At first I thought they would really try for a 'Walking Dead' approach, but it doesn't look that way. However, I wish the team the best of luck, and I hope they do a reboot with some lessons learned.
↧
Search

Rebelstar 2 - The Game that Never Was

November 29, 2013, 11:03 am
$
0
0
I was digging through some of may old game concepts and came across a pitch for Rebelstar 2. This is not the sequel to the original Rebelstar game on the spectrum, but the working title for a proposed sequel to my 2005 GBA game also called Rebelstar. There is a game design document, a story and some interesting character descriptions, and I thought it would be interesting to share some of this, especially the fantastic art of Gez Fry. So here are the key Rebel characters for 'Rebelstar 2: The Meklon Conspiracy.'

Zolar Kropotkin
Rebel Leader

When Zolar was ten years old his family was exiled from the Eurozone after his father was accused of plotting to overthrow the state. He lived a wild life in Siberia, tormenting Zorn police and stealing from Fraylar traders, but always managing to avoid capture. Before long he grew restless and yearned to join a serious rebel force back in the Eurozone. He enlisted in at a small Rebel base and soon began to show his potential as a charismatic leader. His trainers and commanding officers anguished at his wildness, arrogance and disrespect for authority, but at the same time admired his determination and talent. Before long he would make his mark as an inspiring leader of the rebellion.


Skevious KatKlaw
Cyborg Leader

Scattered in the northern wastes a band of rebels discovered a unique method of resistance under the leadership of Skevious KatKlaw. They had captured Meklon mining bots and reverse engineered a significant amount of Meklon robotic technology. After Skevious was seriously wounded during a raid on a Meklon mine he volunteered to have his damaged limbs and organs replaced with prosthetics and implants based on Meklon technology. He was the first of the new cyborg warriors, enhanced in strength, endurance, hearing and sight. His scientists and engineers worked hard to build a small band of Cyborg rebels that would wreak havoc with Meklon mining operations. Zolar soon heard reports of their victories, and after contact was established Skevious KatKlaw and his cyborgs joined the Rebel Alliance under Zolar’s command.

Lysorla Elaatuk
Arelian-human hybrid

Long before Krx Haan became governor of Earth a secret Arelian project was quietly abandoned and all traces of its existence destroyed or covered up. At least, that’s what the Arelian scientists thought. The hybrid breeding program was designed to create a new ruling class for the human population of earth, but the high command thought the project was too risky. Indeed, some of the hybrids escaped and hid from their creators under the protection and leadership of the enigmatic Lysorla Elaatuk. Like all hybrids she was female, and blessed with the Arelian ability to develop psionic powers. Being half human she was sympathetic to the human cause, and eventually joined the Rebel Alliance.


↧
↧

Rebelstar 2 - The Enemy Characters

November 30, 2013, 11:21 am
$
0
0
Following on from my last post, here are some enemy character sketches for you, once again featuring the magnificent art of Get Fry.

Mentat Krx Haan
Arelian Governor of Earth

Krx Haan, the highly decorated veteran of the Fraylar wars and accomplished Mentat warrior, settled comfortably into his last job as governor of Earth. Most thought he would retire modestly with his greatest achievements behind him, but secretly he harboured great ambitions. He thought the ruling elite of the Arelian Empire were weak and complacent in the face of growing external threats. Most of all he despised humans. He loathed their emotional weaknesses and irrational loyalties, but also feared their potential to embarrass and humiliate the Arelian Empire. Their constant tendency to rebel would not be tolerated. Soon after his appointment as governor, Krx Haan devised a plan to solve the human problem once and for all.


Androbot
Meklon warrior unit

The Meklon plan for earth required specialist combat units, and the Androbot was designed to be the main component of the Meklon army. It was deliberately modelled on the human form, which enabled it to use human weapons, equipment and vehicles. It was programmed with the mentality of a fearless warrior, with enough guile and cunning to match the best human fighters. However, it’s strength and endurance were superior to the average human which made it a formidable enemy on the battlefield. The only disadvantage was the immense cost of production, and the hi-tech Meklon factories producing Androbots were vulnerable to Rebel sabotage.


Tracker
Meklon reconnaissance unit
The Meklon Tracker is a small airborne robot used for hunting and tracking rebel forces. It is sufficiently armed to represent a serious threat, and it is fast moving and difficult to capture. Fortunately its armour is weak and its anti-grav are vulnerable to high explosive munitions. Several upgrades and improvements of the Tracker unit were produced as the Rebels became more adept at destroying them. After capturing several reasonably intact specimens the Rebel scientists were able to reverse engineer the anti-grav technology and build flying suits and hover-tanks.


AI
Meklon commander unit
Meklon bases and large spacecraft are often commanded by an AI unit. They exercise complete control of all Meklon combat units, and generally avoid direct combat. However, if needed they can put up a very serious fight, and it has been known for AI units to lead Meklon forces during attacks on Rebel bases. They are quite large and cumbersome, but virtually indestructible and very well armed. They do have some vulnerability to hacking attacks through the Meklon matrix core, which can disorient them on the battlefield. Meklon combat  units don’t fight effectively without the leadership of an AI unit, and Rebel scientists worked hard to develop various methods to neutralise them.


↧

Goblin

January 4, 2014, 2:43 am
$
0
0

Our creature production is improving. Felix has modelled a fantastic looking Goblin. It has the cruel demeanour of a creature looking for the thrill of a fight. It is the easiest creature to summon in the game, with a 90% casting chance. Goblins are the foot soldiers of Chaos, with a reasonably good attack rating, but somewhat poorer at defence and poor magic resistance. Still, you wouldn't want one of them getting close to your wizard without some protection.
↧

Dwarf

January 11, 2014, 2:30 pm
$
0
0
The Dwarf is a relatively easy creature to summon, and is effectively the lawful counterpart of the Goblin. Dwarves are very tough with good magic resistance, but they are slow and not so good on the
attack. The visual design of the Dwarf reflects the general qualities of the Lawful alignment - cold colours and hard edges.


↧

Chaos Reborn Kickstarter Rewards

February 7, 2014, 2:45 am
$
0
0
I have posted the proposed Kickstarter rewards for Chaos Reborn on the discussion forum here. Please join the discussion if you can (but you can always leave a comment here, if you prefer).

I have set the date for the start of the Kickstarter campaign at March 14th, and it will run for 30 days. We are editing the Kickstarter video now - which will contain a real surprise for everybody. Look out for it on March 14th!
↧
↧

Interview about Chaos Reborn

February 8, 2014, 10:40 am
$
0
0
I recently did an audio interview with Anything Geeky Reviewed all about Chaos Reborn, which you can listen to here. There is one mistake - our Kickstarter campaign will actually be launching on March 14th, not February 16th as I said in the interview. Silly me.
↧

Chaos Reborn live stream on Joystiq

March 7, 2014, 1:37 am
$
0
0
You can watch the first ever recording of Chaos Reborn games at Joystiq. I managed to save myself from humiliation by winning 3 out of 5 games, although I wasn't exactly playing my best. It was good fun though, and I hope it gives you an idea of what the final game will be like.
↧
Search

Kickstarter - Monday 17th March

March 16, 2014, 2:02 am
$
0
0
For those of you who didn't hear through other channels, the Chaos Reborn Kickstarter Campaign will launch on Monday, 17th March at 8am GMT. There is a very special guest appearance in the video from a well known game creator - look out for it!
↧

Kickstarter Campaign Launched

March 17, 2014, 3:20 am
↧
↧

Bring Me My Grand Fantasy Strategy Game

October 25, 2014, 1:26 pm
$
0
0
Ever since my board game playing days I have longed for a strategy game that encapsulated a whole fantasy world involving everything from kingdoms and empires to heroes and quests. I was inspired by TSR's 'Divine Right' and SPI's 'Swords & Sorcery'. I even attempted to make my own grand fantasy strategy game with an elaborately hand drawn map and lots of cards and cardboard counters. In the computer era nothing has come close to Master of Magic, in my opinion. As flawed as the game was, especially in its horrendously buggy initial release, nothing has so far matched up to it. I am constantly looking out for fantasy strategy games. This year I have enjoyed Age of Wonders III, a highly polished and impressive fantasy strategy game, but I find it lacking in real character. There is so much stuff that you accumulate so quickly from every race and class that nothing feels terribly special. The tactical battles are well done, but let down by overwhelming hero characters and magic, while the strategic side is just an accumulation race. I tried Warlock II, and now Endless Legend, which is very impressive in its own unique way. I am about to try Worlds of Magic, which is available on Steam early access. I lived in hope. In fact, it really is fantastic that there are so many good quality fantasy strategy games out there. Things can only get better.
↧
Viewing all 58 articles
Browse latest View live
Search