New D&D Game

LongBlade · May 20, 2015, 09:30:04 AM

Sword Coast Legends is a new D&D based PC game where up to four players can game, plus, apparently, a DM. Could be interesting.

https://swordcoast.com/preorder

Tpek · May 20, 2015, 10:41:44 AM

Was actually announced a while ago.
Keeps reminding me I need to finish Divinity Original Sin (which will soon get an enhanced edition upgrade).

Greybriar · May 20, 2015, 06:36:59 PM

Sword Coast Legends is on sale at Amazon right now for $34.99 ($5 off). Order it thru GrogHeads own Amazon PC Games Link and help support this site:

http://www.amazon.com/mn/search/?_encoding=UTF8&bbn=11846801&camp=1789&creative=390957&linkCode=ur2&qid=1342981750&rh=n%3A468642%2Cn%3A!11846801%2Cn%3A229575&rnid=11846801&tag=grogheads-20

Rayfer · May 21, 2015, 08:00:57 AM

Quote from: LongBlade on May 20, 2015, 09:30:04 AM
Sword Coast Legends is a new D&D based PC game where up to four players can game, plus, apparently, a DM. Could be interesting.

https://swordcoast.com/preorder

Hmmm...I wonder if it will have a well done single player campaign like Pillars of Eternity and Divinity: Original Sin?

Tpek · May 21, 2015, 09:30:38 AM

Quote from: Greybriar on May 20, 2015, 06:36:59 PM
Sword Coast Legends is on sale at Amazon right now for $34.99 ($5 off). Order it thru GrogHeads own Amazon PC Games Link and help support this site:

http://www.amazon.com/mn/search/?_encoding=UTF8&bbn=11846801&camp=1789&creative=390957&linkCode=ur2&qid=1342981750&rh=n%3A468642%2Cn%3A!11846801%2Cn%3A229575&rnid=11846801&tag=grogheads-20

Americans only apparently.

In any case, everyone's offering 5$ off the basic edition, and the Deluxe edition is the one I want anyway.

Toonces · October 20, 2015, 07:31:19 PM

So this game popped on my Steam page today. I remember seeing Tpek (I think) playing it when it was in early release.

I was all locked and loaded to buy this when I saw it for sale today but it is getting absolutely slammed in the Steam reviews and forums. I know you have to take the Steam forums with a grain of salt, but reading between the lines it seems the devs really made some questionable decisions, eg:

1. Inability to create a custom party for random dungeons
2. Requirement to create an account, even to play the game offline
3. Lack of full DM tools to allow actual creation of custom dungeons; rather you can create a random dungeon but populate it with monsters and traps
4. Lack of many bread and butter monsters, like Kobolds, dragons, etc.
5. Does not follow 5e rules, or any codified official D&D rules...

And that's just what I got from a few minutes on the forums.

I have to think that a D&D game that is a hit with the masses is easy as anything to make. The rules are already done, the lore is there, and there is no shortage of ideas. Heck, just releasing a full DM suite would be enough to get many to buy it, to use it as a RPG maker. So why the devs would shoot themselves in the foot I just don't understand. It's just like SW Battlefront...the path to a good game is so glaringly obvious that one just has to question the decision making process that leads to many unpopular design choices.

Dread Rlyeh · October 20, 2015, 08:05:53 PM

Quote from: Toonces on October 20, 2015, 07:31:19 PM
So this game popped on my Steam page today. I remember seeing Tpek (I think) playing it when it was in early release.

I was all locked and loaded to buy this when I saw it for sale today but it is getting absolutely slammed in the Steam reviews and forums. I know you have to take the Steam forums with a grain of salt, but reading between the lines it seems the devs really made some questionable decisions, eg:

1. Inability to create a custom party for random dungeons
2. Requirement to create an account, even to play the game offline
3. Lack of full DM tools to allow actual creation of custom dungeons; rather you can create a random dungeon but populate it with monsters and traps
4. Lack of many bread and butter monsters, like Kobolds, dragons, etc.
5. Does not follow 5e rules, or any codified official D&D rules...

And that's just what I got from a few minutes on the forums.

I have to think that a D&D game that is a hit with the masses is easy as anything to make. The rules are already done, the lore is there, and there is no shortage of ideas. Heck, just releasing a full DM suite would be enough to get many to buy it, to use it as a RPG maker. So why the devs would shoot themselves in the foot I just don't understand. It's just like SW Battlefront...the path to a good game is so glaringly obvious that one just has to question the decision making process that leads to many unpopular design choices.

You, sir, are speaking the truth. I'm shaking my head on this one as well.

While I still occasionally pull the trigger too early (Skyshine's Bedlam), I have become way, way more gun shy wrt impulse buying games these days then in the past. Unless I can either read a bunch of player reviews, see a significant amount of gameplay via video, or get a chance to play it myself in beta, I'm not shelling out the cash. I can only hope other gamers are following suit, and thus, we can put some pressure on studios to make a better product.

sandman2575 · October 21, 2015, 11:15:41 AM

Quote from: Toonces on October 20, 2015, 07:31:19 PM
5. Does not follow 5e rules, or any codified official D&D rules...

^this to me is the most baffling design decision of the several baffling decisions Toonces lists. Doesn't this completely undercut the rationale of creating a D&D game in the first place?

Rayfer · October 21, 2015, 03:20:51 PM

My excitement for this rpg had been put on hold. On the Metacritic site there are 85 'user reviews' with an average score of 5.6 out of 10. There is only one professional review that gave it 80 out of 100.

Father Ted · October 21, 2015, 03:24:29 PM

Jesus! I clicked on this out of idle curiosity, and now can't un-see LB's sig

bob48 · October 21, 2015, 03:53:23 PM

...yes, its a bit...um.....thingie, innit?

spelk · October 21, 2015, 06:20:18 PM

Fantasy Grounds is the best current implementation of what this game purports to offer.

http://www.fantasygrounds.com

Without the dull Diablo-a-like interface.

Swatter · October 21, 2015, 11:16:49 PM

I wouldn't write it off yet, but coming back in six months could make all the difference. I hear the single player story is well done.

FlickJax · October 22, 2015, 02:53:32 AM

I think we are all very quick to bash games these days, yes it isnt what we want but I think the perfect D&D RPG would be such a monster to program and may not be here for a long time yet..

salazarus · October 22, 2015, 03:47:32 AM

This game shouldn't be called D&D game, because it isn't D%D game. I don't know much about D&D system and yet I can't understand why they advertising it as D&D. Except the lore you can hardly find any rules from paper D&D.
I think that this game reviews are too harsh. People are angry because they didn't get D&D game. I find Sword Coast Legends mediocre in a good way. It is worse than Pillars, Wastelands 2 or Divinity but it is not a bad game. We got lately many good rpgs, and I'm afraid there is not much space for average games.