All modders and aspiring developers out there should pay close attention to a new article up on Blend Games. The author takes aim at RPGs calling them on their weaknesses and shortcomings while acknowledging the true greats in “Reasons Your Role-Playing Game Is Disappointing.” This of course translates to “Why your RPG sucks”.

Most of the games that come under fire are Western RPGs with only one JRPG in the mix. As you might expect, there are Bioware titles mentioned in abundance such as Neverwinter Nights 2, NwN2: Mask of the Betrayer, Mass Effect, Knights of the Old Republic and Baldur’s Gate. Arcanum, Final Fantasy VII and Fable get mentioned as well. the only Western RPG that wasn’t touched on was Planescape: Torment.

ERPG Cardinal sins including getting the story started to slowly. FF7 and Mass Effect are held out as sterling examples of what sucks players into a game right off the bat while the intro to Fable is used as an example of what not to do. NwN2 is slammed as well, but NwN2: Mask of the Betrayer is given Kudos for getting the player’s attention immediately. I’ve got to admit that waking up in a crypt hundreds of miles from home is much more interesting than going out for the prize at your local fair.

Also on the hit list is the over use of Fed Ex quests, slow travel between points of interest and unwieldy inventory systems like the one that plagues players in Mass Effect. Fable is once again sent to the corner for repetitive combat. Hopefully we won’t see these shortcomings in Fable 2. Catch the best and the worst of RPGs on Blend Games.

Over on the Neverwinter Nights Forums, BioWare has given the word the Jade Empire Special Edition is now available for the Mac.

Gamers who love the Mac, but hate having few native games for it are slowly getting more options for videogames. EA Games has really lead the way. The big question is how long will it be until Mass Effect shows up on the Mac; and by then will anyone care?

Speaking with MTV Multiplayer, BioWare’s Greg Zeschuk stated that the developer might possibly create more downloadable content for their sci-fi action-RPG Mass Effect.

“Well we said it was a trilogy so there’s some stuff happening. We’re also looking at some other post-release content. We’re working away. BioWare’s pretty busy these days.”

As far as more DLC for the Xbox 360 is concerned, Zeschuk stated:

“We’re talking about that, you know how we are. We’re always very circumspect until we can go ‘Aha! There it is!’ With everything we build now, we want to have this long-term relationship with the customer and always have something for them to try. So we’re definitely looking at that for Mass Effect.”

When Zeschuk says “busy”, I wonder if he is talking about their plans to bring Mass Effect to the DS?

Speaking exclusively to Eurogamer Germany, BioWare’s Miles Holmes stated that the developer is considering doing DS versions of Mass Effect, Jade Empire, Dragon Age: Origins, and possibly a few others.

Holmes, who is the lead designer of the upcoming Sonic Chronicles (DS), is looking at games that will reinforce the franchise  and bring the handheld team’s goal of running at full capacity to fruition.

“I tell you which one I would want. I want the Mass Effect one. We have a lot of big plans for Mass Effect. Having a DS version would be an awesome way to keep interest alive and keep it going in addition to Mass Effect 2.”

Purchased by Electronic Arts last October, BioWare is hoping that Sonic Chronicles, slated for a September 26 release, is a way to get the handheld division off and running. Holmes’ thinking is similar to Mark Darrah, fellow Sonic Chronicles team member who stated back in June that BioWare was looking into the possibility of developing titles for the PSP and WIi in order to broaden their horizons a bit.

While the idea of bringing RPGs Jade Empire and Dragon Age:Origins to handhelds seems plausible, one would think that bringing such a large and detailed game like Mass Effect to the DS would be a massive undertaking. Maybe if they were to make the game a “lost chapter” of sorts it could work, but as a whole, the original port would just be too time consuming for handhelds. Titles that can be completed in one to three days tops are more marketable on a casual gaming systems such as the Nintendo DS and PSP, not huge open-ended RPGs like Mass Effect.

The latest official patch for Neverwinter Nights 2 is now available from the auto-updater. Unfortunately, the word on the BioWare Community forums is that patch 1.13 breaks Divine Might and Epic Divine Might. According to one of many posters, “The damage shows in char sheet, but never is actually applied.”

Obsidian’s Assistant Producer Rob McGinnis has acknowledged gamers’ concerns and promised a fix.

The issue is code side so we will need to do a hot fix. However, it will not be out until next week. For those that are so inclined, please continue posting feedback here so we can catch any other big issues to include in the hot fix.

Patch notes for 1.13 are included after the break.
Read the full article »

A new patch has been released updating Mass Effect to v1.01a.

Here are the release notes for update 1.01a:

• Added some infrastructure support for additional downloadable content
• Updated the image of the Batarian race in the codex
• Fixed an issue where the center channel for hardware audio wouldn’t play correctly sometimes
• Fixed an issue where the hardware mouse pointer would disappear when first selected
• Fixed an issue where Shepard did not auto-crouch when entering cover in some places
• Fixed a tool-tip indicating a game restart is needed before enabling hardware or software audio if the option was changed
• Fixed an issue where ambient conversation would not be heard from rear speakers sometimes
• Fixed a text string to make it clearer on how to exit a vehicle
• Fixed a text string so the tool top for dragging the map is clearer in French languages builds
• Fixed a crash running on certain multi-core AMD systems
• Fixed an issue where video RAM was not being reported properly on certain cards

To get the patch hit the badge below. If you missed out on the previous patch as well as the DLC for “Bring Down the Sky”, you can get it by hitting this.

Games industry consultant Vincent Scheurer has called out supposed video game industry advocates that haven’t spoken out enough against bans and censorship. At the Develop conference in Brighton he warned the industry to expect more bans in the UK based on the stated reasons behind the Manhunt 2 ban, including the level of realism, the lack of a puzzle element and the lack of humour.

“The costs of the Manhunt 2 ban to RockStar were massive – an independent developer would be out of business,” he explained. “It makes the business of making games that much harder.”

“Call of Duty and BioShock could be banned under that criteria… The next game to be banned could be BioShock 2, and then where would we be?” he said.

Scheurer slammed the games media, publishers and developers for not taking a stand on bans and censorship. He spoke specifically against the ELSPA for supporting the Manhunt 2 ban.

“While we fail to fight back we will continue to be blamed for all of societies ills… In my view Tiga was the only association to step up… Tiga realised, where the other’s didn’t, that this was about more than Manhunt 2,” he added.

The same criticism has been leveled at the ESA, and in my opinion it’s totally warranted. It’s not surprising that members have expressed their displeasure by leaving in droves.

via GamesIndustry.biz

I have been looking over these new screens for Dragon Age: Origins for a few minutes now, and for the first time ever since I started to see assets for the game, I can finally form an honest opinion on them. I have to say, that they look pretty yummy. Being a big RPG nerdette, I am always on the lookout for something that piques my interest, and with the lull in anything RPG related that just jumps off the screen and slaps you with a broadsword being released lately, Dragon Age: Origins appears ready to fill the shoes of the much loved dungeon crawler/hack and slash/live vicariously through a mage with special abilities genre. Plus, it is from BioWare, and that is usually a good thing.

I am always looking for a game that will make me feel the way I felt the first time I played Baldur’s Gate – hopefully, Origins will deliver on that front.

The World of Western RPGs is a new article exploring the evolution of the Western RPG. The piece is a companion to a previous article on Asian RPGs.

The author starts off by talking about how broad a term RPG is and how practically worthless it is for describing a game. He uses Bioware and Bethesda to make his point in that these developers are both know for their RPGs, but have very different styles. He then goes on at length defining what different concepts associated to the RPG mean to him personally so that the reader can be on the same page when he gets down to the meat of the piece.

Western RPGs were born from “numbers and dungeons” games inspired by pen and paper RPGs. Over the year they have added art and split into two basic types; world focused and story focused RPGs. The article will take from the infancy of the form to todays modern vastly differentiated RPGs. You find references to Wizardry, Ultima, Might and Magic and the Elder Scrolls as well as Fallout, Diablo, Gold Box and Mass Effect along the way. Just remember this one important piece of advice as you explore RPGs:

Keep in mind that the word “classic” is not a synonym for “good”.

I heartily recommend this work for gamers who are interested in game design or die hard RPG fans.

via Moby Games

BioWare has released a patch for the PC edition of the Mass Effect bringing the game up to version 1.01, which fixes a lot of issues.

Here are the release notes:

• Added some infrastructure support for additional downloadable content
• Updated the image of the Batarian race in the codex
• Fixed an issue where the center channel for hardware audio wouldn’t play correctly sometimes
• Fixed an issue where the hardware mouse pointer would disappear when first selected
• Fixed an issue where Shepard did not auto-crouch when entering cover in some places
• Fixed a tool-tip indicating a game restart is needed before enabling hardware or software audio if the option was changed
• Fixed an issue where ambient conversation would not be heard from rear speakers sometimes
• Fixed a text string to make it clearer on how to exit a vehicle
• Fixed a text string so the tool top for dragging the map is clearer in French languages builds
• Fixed a crash running on certain multi-core AMD systems
• Fixed an issue where video RAM was not being reported properly on certain cards

For the patch, hit the badge below.

In addition, you will also be able to download Bring Down the Sky by hitting the badge below but you will also have to get a new CD key.