Dungeon and Dragons Online Delayed

[bean19]

Gamespot (http://www.gamespot.com) reports that the release of Dungeons and Dragons Online (DDO) (http://www.ddo.com) will be delayed until the first quarter of 2006.


Players eager to get their hands on Atari's upcoming Dungeons & Dragons Online: Stormreach will have to wait a little bit longer, as the game's release has slipped from November back into the first quarter of 2006.
You can read the full story here. (http://www.gamespot.com/news/2005/08/10/news_6130683.html)

[Heretic Machine]

I really hope Turbine doesn't screw this up... They made one of the best MMO's ever (Asheron's Call), but completly bungled the sequel. They are a good developer, but they seem to run into frequent problems.

Let's hope this is just being done to extend the beta.

[Bushido]

they made asherons call and asherons call2 ...what else? Ac2 sucked so bad it hurts.

[GrinR]

I loved AC, never tried AC2. Frankly, after WoW, I can't wait for someone to up the ante. Basically WoW is the fat ass emperor of the MOG world - imagining something even better makes my gamer nervous system tingle.

[bean19]

Perigon - Could be. . . maybe they are running into a need for a redesign from beta feedback, or it could be as simple as needing to let the art department and level designers have one extra month to have an impresive amount of content out of the gate.

I've been following the beta boards and one of the big things there is that the game is being developed as group dependent and that is bad in the opinion of a LOT of gamers. FFXI enjoys a huge base fan base as well as a larger install base from being released on consoles, but it not making anywhere near the money that WoW does. I speculate that they are trying to add in single player content throughout the game so that they don't disenfranchise solo players. . . but I don't have anything to back that up. In fact, I'm pulling it out of my ass.

Who knows. . . they'll probably make a dev post on it at some point.

I won't cry spin if they say something like, "We want to ensure that the product ships with the highest quality." It's only 3 months before Thanksgiving sales should go out.

[KNOTE]

If you're doing a fantasy MMO at this point, you better bring something new and compelling to the table. WoW crushed all, even mmos outside its genre. The only one to withstand it is Guild Wars, which is compelling because it's free to play every month.

However, D&D online looks good. I'm just hoping it's more than click+quest. What that is, i have no idea.

[Bushido]

/pizza......

[51|RandoM]

Better to be delayed then to be rushed. It will be a good time to strike, WoW backlash should be in full swing by then.

[bean19]

Better to be delayed then to be rushed. It will be a good time to strike, WoW backlash should be in full swing by then.

Perfect time to strike is before Thanksgiving and the holiday season. . . Make no mistake, they lose out from this in the short-run, but I guess they fell behind and have to be realistic.

[Rangoth]

God I hope they don't fuck this up...

[Blue]

Better to be delayed then to be rushed. It will be a good time to strike, WoW backlash should be in full swing by then.

Because WoW will be gearing up - most likely - for their first expansion adding new content to an already amazing game? Like any title, it's not without its flaws, to be sure, but backlash doesn't seem to be the appropriate word. Nothing totally works in any game, there are always threads to are going to stand out making it less than perfect. For me, however, the whole of WoW is much more appealing than a handful of irritations.

I guess I just don't get the "backlash" portion of this. The game is, by most definitions, a phenominal one. You don't have to like it necessarily, but many gamers should easily be able to recognize that it's at least a well done piece.

[Heretic Machine]

Well, WoW is good and all... but it suffers from the same issue I have with CoH: Mid-level grinding is absolutely no fun at all. Currently I'm back in UO and enjoying it quite a bit... Though my only motivation right now is just to make money to decorate my house. All the roleplayers seem to of left the game, which sucks pretty bad... Considering going back to SWG now.

[Kefkataran]

Well, WoW is good and all... but it suffers from the same issue I have with CoH: Mid-level grinding is absolutely no fun at all.

Really? I loved WoW's mid-level game. Of course, for me grinding is nothing as long as I have quests/missions and a percieved purpose behind what I'm doing. In CoH I started running out of missions in levels 25-40, so I had to do literal grinding with no missions and got super-bored of it super-fast. With WoW I never ran out of quests, never got even close. From level 20 or 25 on I constantly had a full quest log.

Either way, I'm sure I'll be going back to WoW with an expansion, and I'm already back in CoH preparing for City of Villains. :p

[K_X_F]

They have already screwed up DnD Online with their no pvp evar!!(tm) posts. The biggest defense for it seems to be that EQ1 had none and that was a big success (hides head in sand when thinking about EQ2)

[Neverborne]

Well, how don't really care how good WoW is, or D+D online will be. To me, like many gamers, it is not worth it to pay $15+ dollars a month to play these games after I've already paid shelf price. That is complete and utter bullshit.

And yes, I have tried some of them (mostly with free trial offers,I've even played WoW), and, no, they are not worth it.

It just causes complete brain meltdown when I try to think of anyone (my friends included) that would pay these fees for a substantial amount of time. Especially when I hear complaints about level-grinds.

Also, I better not hear any arguments about the "Social Aspect" of these games that other games lack. There is nothing social about them. The people I have seen and played with act more mechanical then my toaster. Hell, I've seen people treat it like a second job or even life, and that isn't healthy. You want social, get all of your friends together, if you have any, and play Smash Brothers. Or, even better, get off your ass and go out and meet people.

Oh well, end rant. Let the flaming begin.

[Wombat]

I don't see how they can do this and keep it D&D like. The character classes are not designed to be balanced against each other, and they are also not expected to be capable of independent adventuring. For instance, a low level mage is completely screwed without someone to tank for them. The characters are designed to fill certain roles in a party, and if they have to alter them so that any character can solo kill bands of orcs or whatever, it simply won't be D&D.

[Kefkataran]

The biggest defense for it seems to be that EQ1 had none and that was a big success (hides head in sand when thinking about EQ2)

But EQ1 added it eventually, didn't it?

But yeah, D&D has never really been about PvP.

[BigJonno]

I don't see how they can do this and keep it D&D like. The character classes are not designed to be balanced against each other, and they are also not expected to be capable of independent adventuring. For instance, a low level mage is completely screwed without someone to tank for them. The characters are designed to fill certain roles in a party, and if they have to alter them so that any character can solo kill bands of orcs or whatever, it simply won't be D&D.

That's the point. I can't say that I've played the game, but every single preview I've read says the same thing. It's not an MMORPG, it's a co-op dungeon crawl game with persistant hubs. You need a balanced party. You get XP from completing objectives instead of killing monsters, so there's no grinding. (And whoever says that you only get XP for killing monsters in D&D hasn't read the 3rd ed DMG.)

The only thing that stops this game being on my must-buy list already is the monthly fee. Paying a monthly fee for a vast, complex persistant world is one thing, paying it for a dungeon-crawl game that I'll probably play once a week with a group of real-life buddies is entirely different.

[Malovech]

The only thing that stops this game being on my must-buy list already is the monthly fee. Paying a monthly fee for a vast, complex persistant world is one thing, paying it for a dungeon-crawl game that I'll probably play once a week with a group of real-life buddies is entirely different.

You hit the nail on the head BigJonno. This game is no different then Guild Wars. And I only had to pay for GuildWars once.

[bean19]

$15/month is not a barrier for entry to me. . . and I'm a poor college student.

I guess it's all about the mileage you get out of a game. If I'm having fun with an online game, then I'm definitely willing to pay the cost of going to see 3 movies as I'll definitely play more than 6 hours/month.

Yeah, I guess there will always be people who can't get past the subscription fee, and I don't have a problem with that. My guess is that you aren't that interested in MMOs anyway.

[Vandenh]

The only thing that stops this game being on my must-buy list already is the monthly fee. Paying a monthly fee for a vast, complex persistant world is one thing, paying it for a dungeon-crawl game that I'll probably play once a week with a group of real-life buddies is entirely different.

True. I am looking forward to DnD to bring some new stuff to the genre (more dynamic combat for example) and of course I would love to return to the D&D "world" after playing so many D&D games in the old days ;) But Turbine definitly needs to make sure they have something special.. not just a 3D Diablo.

[OUX]

What I am looking forward the most in the D&D game that will make it head and shoulders different from any other MMO out multiclass.....

[51|RandoM]

Because WoW will be gearing up - most likely - for their first expansion adding new content to an already amazing game? Like any title, it's not without its flaws, to be sure, but backlash doesn't seem to be the appropriate word. Nothing totally works in any game, there are always threads to are going to stand out making it less than perfect. For me, however, the whole of WoW is much more appealing than a handful of irritations.

When i say backlash, I don't mean because WoW is a bad game. I mean the same backlash every MMORPG goes through when a significant portion of their playerbase realizes they've just wasted months of their lives.

Most players wake up one day and say, "WTF am I doing wasting my time on this stuff?"

You know, the guy who has had at least one 60th within the first couple months, now has 2 or 3, and spends all his time organizing or participating in 3 hour raids... for the sake of a chance at a miniscule increase in his character's abilities.

The fun quotient tapers off fairly quickly, while the timesink grows larger, if anything.

[Ernst_Jager]

The potential for this game is huge. The DnD rule set could totally kick ass online. As much as I love my WoW rogue, I much prefer the DnD rogue variety.

[Nesta]

I think I'd rather take multiplayer in NWN2 over D&D Online. NWN seems to bring out the creative roleplayers and module makers that really bring concentrated awesomeness to an already good game.

[Kefkataran]

You know, the guy who has had at least one 60th within the first couple months, now has 2 or 3, and spends all his time organizing or participating in 3 hour raids... for the sake of a chance at a miniscule increase in his character's abilities.


That's the very reason I quit WoW as soon as I got my first 60 and started doing raiding for a while. I was in a great guild and could have easily gone on to defeat Ragnaros and Onyxia as well as the new stuff that's added, but I just don't think it would've been worth it overall.

[Blue]

When i say backlash, I don't mean because WoW is a bad game. I mean the same backlash every MMORPG goes through when a significant portion of their playerbase realizes they've just wasted months of their lives.

Most players wake up one day and say, "WTF am I doing wasting my time on this stuff?"

You know, the guy who has had at least one 60th within the first couple months, now has 2 or 3, and spends all his time organizing or participating in 3 hour raids... for the sake of a chance at a miniscule increase in his character's abilities.

The fun quotient tapers off fairly quickly, while the timesink grows larger, if anything.

Ah, I misunderstood your meaning in it then, my apologies. Yeah, I agree with you there. I'm hoping that when they release an expansion, it's one that really spices things up in terms of gameplay, character use (maybe adding sub-classes to the mix), and makes the game feel new again, not just me running my then level 60 around in new settings. I'm sure they will, though, as - for me - they've delivered before. Though I have a habit of realizing how much time I've put into it and not being able to pull myself away, even when the fun starts to wane. Guess that comes with the genre, though. I take a few months break every now and again and when I come back, find the game fantastic all over again.

But yeah, they'll have to weather that backlash, but with as many people as they having running around in their world, I think they'll manage.

[balamoor]

This one will never see retail. Here is why. Two of my very good friends were recruited by Turbine Moved to Mass and started working on D&D online last year. Periodically I would ask how’s it going, and would always get well it seem were playing more Pen and Paper D&D, and laser tag in the halls than anything else. Or, We seem to be doing a lot of meetings that go nowhere. Then one of their producers left, and the latest I have heard is the Alpha testers are calling it the next Horizons. Also both friends have since quit, one is working for EA, and the other is working for SOE.

So this game will never see retail, and if it dose expect Diakatana like reviews.

[bean19]

This one will never see retail. Here is why. Two of my very good friends were recruited by Turbine Moved to Mass and started working on D&D online last year. Periodically I would ask how’s it going, and would always get well it seem were playing more Pen and Paper D&D, and laser tag in the halls than anything else. Or, We seem to be doing a lot of meetings that go nowhere. Then one of their producers left, and the latest I have heard is the Alpha testers are calling it the next Horizons. Also both friends have since quit, one is working for EA, and the other is working for SOE.

So this game will never see retail, and if it dose expect Diakatana like reviews.

Someone please call bullshit on this. I don't even want to suspect this.

[Kefkataran]

I have heard is the Alpha testers are calling it the next Horizons.

Except Horizons did see retail. Sure, it sucked, but it saw retail.

Anyways, obviously work HAS been done on it, since the game is going into beta soon-ish. And Turbine has already released MMORPGs in the past, so they must understand the work ethic needed to complete a game. Plus your friends went to work for EA and SOE. Now do they sound very trustworthy?

[bean19]

I've seen gameplay videos too. There was this very cool dungeon where a cleric used Turn Undead on an altar to clear away a slew of undead, and a floor puzzle where you had to move tiles to get the light to trace through the lines on the floor to open a door, and a room full of spinning blades that players must avoid.

http://media.pc.ign.com/media/619/619908/vids_1.html

Then I saw another video at Gamespay that showed how the "twitch" mechanics work. In this game, you still roll d20's behind the scenes, but a mob has to hit your player to cause damage and you have to hit that mob to cause damage. Look at the warrior tumbling out of the way of a fireball. :)

http://media.pc.gamespy.com/media/619/619908/vids_1.html

Or the many, many videos at gamespot that show what looks to be a fully functioning game already.

http://www.gamespot.com/pc/rpg/ddonline/index.html?q=dungeons+and+dragons+online

[Heretic Machine]

The next person who mentions Horizons gets a swift ass-kicking. I spent four years pining over that game, only to get to beta where I felt a disapointment so strong that it DESTROYED MY CAPACITY FOR ANTICIPATION! It was like hooking up with a twenty-one year old virgin red head who plays video games and has the body of a goddess, only to find out at the wedding that she's actually a fourty year old bowling champion named Jimbo. So, the name, -that- name can not be spoken. It's very utterence can bring about the death of gaming as we know it, so STFU!

[balamoor]

Yep reminds me a lot of how fully functional Wish was...before it was canceled. :rolleyes:



I've seen gameplay videos too. There was this very cool dungeon where a cleric used Turn Undead on an altar to clear away a slew of undead, and a floor puzzle where you had to move tiles to get the light to trace through the lines on the floor to open a door, and a room full of spinning blades that players must avoid.

http://media.pc.ign.com/media/619/619908/vids_1.html

Then I saw another video at Gamespay that showed how the "twitch" mechanics work. In this game, you still roll d20's behind the scenes, but a mob has to hit your player to cause damage and you have to hit that mob to cause damage. Look at the warrior tumbling out of the way of a fireball. :)

http://media.pc.gamespy.com/media/619/619908/vids_1.html

Or the many, many videos at gamespot that show what looks to be a fully functioning game already.

http://www.gamespot.com/pc/rpg/ddonline/index.html?q=dungeons+and+dragons+online

[Kefkataran]

The next person who mentions Horizons gets a swift ass-kicking. I spent four years pining over that game, only to get to beta where I felt a disapointment so strong that it DESTROYED MY CAPACITY FOR ANTICIPATION! It was like hooking up with a twenty-one year old virgin red head who plays video games and has the body of a goddess, only to find out at the wedding that she's actually a fourty year old bowling champion named Jimbo. So, the name, -that- name can not be spoken. It's very utterence can bring about the death of gaming as we know it, so STFU!

I got into beta as well and was also disappointed. But your little diatribe about the redhead really affected me. I think I've grown a new level of respect for you.