For those of you that haven't read, valor will no longer be a requirement to purchase PvP gear in SWTOR. Instead, the tier 1 set will be bought with credits and tiers 2 and 3 will be bought with warzone commendations. They have added a new set of PvP gear called "war hero", but have also gotten rid of both centurion and champion gear, thus their claim that they have added anything at all is somewhat misleading.
I am disappointed by the changes to PvP gear in 1.2. First of all, since there is no valor requirement for gear, what's the point of valor at all? I would hate to be someone who has been grinding out warzones and Tuesday night Ilum brawls to get to 65 in order to wear battlemaster, only to be told that next patch anyone who has enough commendations can buy the gear I have worked very hard to acquire. I can imagine open world PvP will also be non-existent on most servers. Yes, I know they are taking out Ilum to work on it. But, if valor is all but meaningless, what sort of incentive could they possibly come up with to draw people to the new and improved Ilum once they do get around to fixing it? Since hearing about the changes last Thursday, I have played a total of 5 warzones. Only 5. What's the point? The week leading up to the patch all I have to do is play enough to get my 1000 commendations and call it a day.
There is one idea that could let Bioware take away valor requirements, yet still leave incentive to PvP: Introduce a full line of orange gear with empty slots that are tied to valor rank and purchased with credits or commendations. Imagine that every 3-5 valor ranks there would be a new piece of gear to buy. Yes, of course it would be purely cosmetic, but that's the point. You can show off your shiny new gear that says "I am higher rank than you" but without all the stat disparity. Sure, coming up with new armor models isn't exactly easy and Bioware isn't exactly good at it, however there were countless times during my trek to level 50 that I have thought, "man, I want that armor that NPC is wearing." I guess the watershed moment will come when they announce the changes to Ilum, but until then, count me out of the warzone marathons and Tuesday night fights on Ilum.
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Friday, March 23, 2012
Help Wanted!
I have begun actively recruiting people to help me with my project. If you are an artist or programmer who loves turn-based strategy games, SciFi, and/or table top gaming, then this just might be the project for you!
Click here for more information.
Click here for more information.
Thursday, March 22, 2012
My Very Own Mega Corporation!
Okay, so it may not be a mega corporation (although my character in EVE does have his megacorp management skill to level 4), but it will do in the meantime. I have decided to start up a website that will be home to the "company" that will produce my computer game. The company will be called "Computer Top Games." The name will make way more sense once the details of the game start being released. I am going to start it off as a blog, which will eventually turn into a full fledged website once I get around to building it.
I will mainly use this blog to write about the actual process of creating the game, as well as my trials and tribulations in the world of computer gaming. I am going to continue to write at least 3 or 4 times a week, as the game's blog will only be updated as new features or news are released.
There is not much to see, but definitely head on over to the new site:
Computer Top Games
I will mainly use this blog to write about the actual process of creating the game, as well as my trials and tribulations in the world of computer gaming. I am going to continue to write at least 3 or 4 times a week, as the game's blog will only be updated as new features or news are released.
There is not much to see, but definitely head on over to the new site:
Computer Top Games
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Haven - First Contact
(This is the first installment of the back story to the universe in which my game will take place in. It's been a long, long time since I have attempted to write any fiction, so please, be gentle.)
The residents of Haven lived an insignificant existence. A small spec of a planet located somewhere in the endless void of the galaxy, little has changed on the world in the last 300 years. Its people know little of their origins. Bits and pieces of history have survived since the first settlement was founded, but even what remains is cryptic at best. It is almost as though their forefathers were hiding something from future generations. Then again, there was little reason for the people of Haven to uncover those secrets. The technology passed down from the original settlers of the planet made life comfortable for the Havenites. There have been no major wars since the Unification Treaty was signed centuries before. Life on the planet offered its inhabitants what every human sought after: stability.
It is not as if the Havenites thought of themselves as alone in the galaxy. The technology they possess rivals that of some space faring civilizations. Astronomers have mapped the stars, satellites crowd the planet's orbit, and astronauts have set foot on two of Haven's three moons. But, the desire to expand their frontier ended there. It is very difficult to motivate a population to explore when there is no necessity to do so. The human population of Haven is a miniscule 107 million spread across eight continents. The largest city is just under two million, making pollution a non-issue for all but the most densely settled areas. This does not all come without a price. For over a century, technological advancement has been at a standstill. With no wars to fight, no pollution to clean, and no mouths to feed, what is there to strive for? As long as the populace could earn a living and provide for their families, what is there to change? What the Havenites needed was a question to answer, a problem to solve. Something that would allow their civilization to once again begin moving forward.
On a blustery spring day, a house-sized object streaked across the sky on the southernmost continent. Although monitoring stations had been tracking it since it hit the stratosphere, it still took the first responders over four hours to arrive. The object had come to rest in a field, far from any major city, leaving a half mile trench behind it. Those at scene that had surmised it was some sort of spacecraft were proved right when the body of the unconscious pilot was pulled from the wreckage. The news outlets had reported a defense satellite had malfunction and fell from the sky. In reality, it was Haven's first known contact with an alien race.
Over the next forty seven hours, Haven's best doctor's did their best to keep the pilot alive while Haven's best linguists did their best to communicate with the alien. All that could be deciphered was the following:
"Followed. Arrive soon. No one knows. Reject brothers. You still have choice."
Although the greatest minds on the planet converged to decipher the meaning, their efforts proved fruitless. It would take another event, second contact, to shed light on those eleven simple words.
The residents of Haven lived an insignificant existence. A small spec of a planet located somewhere in the endless void of the galaxy, little has changed on the world in the last 300 years. Its people know little of their origins. Bits and pieces of history have survived since the first settlement was founded, but even what remains is cryptic at best. It is almost as though their forefathers were hiding something from future generations. Then again, there was little reason for the people of Haven to uncover those secrets. The technology passed down from the original settlers of the planet made life comfortable for the Havenites. There have been no major wars since the Unification Treaty was signed centuries before. Life on the planet offered its inhabitants what every human sought after: stability.
It is not as if the Havenites thought of themselves as alone in the galaxy. The technology they possess rivals that of some space faring civilizations. Astronomers have mapped the stars, satellites crowd the planet's orbit, and astronauts have set foot on two of Haven's three moons. But, the desire to expand their frontier ended there. It is very difficult to motivate a population to explore when there is no necessity to do so. The human population of Haven is a miniscule 107 million spread across eight continents. The largest city is just under two million, making pollution a non-issue for all but the most densely settled areas. This does not all come without a price. For over a century, technological advancement has been at a standstill. With no wars to fight, no pollution to clean, and no mouths to feed, what is there to strive for? As long as the populace could earn a living and provide for their families, what is there to change? What the Havenites needed was a question to answer, a problem to solve. Something that would allow their civilization to once again begin moving forward.
On a blustery spring day, a house-sized object streaked across the sky on the southernmost continent. Although monitoring stations had been tracking it since it hit the stratosphere, it still took the first responders over four hours to arrive. The object had come to rest in a field, far from any major city, leaving a half mile trench behind it. Those at scene that had surmised it was some sort of spacecraft were proved right when the body of the unconscious pilot was pulled from the wreckage. The news outlets had reported a defense satellite had malfunction and fell from the sky. In reality, it was Haven's first known contact with an alien race.
Over the next forty seven hours, Haven's best doctor's did their best to keep the pilot alive while Haven's best linguists did their best to communicate with the alien. All that could be deciphered was the following:
"Followed. Arrive soon. No one knows. Reject brothers. You still have choice."
Although the greatest minds on the planet converged to decipher the meaning, their efforts proved fruitless. It would take another event, second contact, to shed light on those eleven simple words.
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Back Story Revealed!
Just a short post to let everyone know I am announcing what the back story of the game will be about. I have decided to go with the SciFi/Space theme as it interests me far more than any other genre. Thanks to all those who contacted me with their input!
Without further ado, the title of the story is:
The story will involve an abandoned human colony that hasn't had any contact with Earth in half a millennium. All that changes when an alien ship crashes onto the planet with a cryptic message of what is to come. There will be three factions involved in the fighting, all with varying technological advancements. I have written a short story that gives a synopsis of the colony's background which I will post tomorrow.
Without further ado, the title of the story is:
Second Contact
The story will involve an abandoned human colony that hasn't had any contact with Earth in half a millennium. All that changes when an alien ship crashes onto the planet with a cryptic message of what is to come. There will be three factions involved in the fighting, all with varying technological advancements. I have written a short story that gives a synopsis of the colony's background which I will post tomorrow.
Anything You Can Do, I Can Do...uh, the Same.
As I have been researching methods on making a computer game, two websites have caught my eye and have made me exclaim, "THAT'S what I want to do!" As I move forward with my project (which needs a codename, by the way. Any ideas?), one of the most important aspects I am going to have to think about is the design process itself. Take a look at the two sites below and let me know what you think.
1. Games2Gether
Games2Gether is a project created by Amplitude Studios based out of Paris. The goal of the project is to allow players to take part in the game design process. They do all the programming, players do *most* of the design. I imagine that the goal of this is to make people feel invested in the end product and thus be loyal to the game. Perhaps they are even banking on these "player developers" to provide some free advertising as well via social media.
I must say that I am very impressed that someone else out there came up with the same idea as me. Okay, I lied, I am not impressed at all and realized I cannot claim proprietorship over the concept. I will definitely be following how Amplitude handles the whole process.
2. Kick Starter
No, I don't want to create a site like kickstarter.com, but I definitely want to utilize it. It was this site that actually motivated me to up and write a blog to get my computer game idea off the ground. There are several computer game developers on the site already and many of them have received double, and in some cases over triple, the amount needed to fun their project.
Article about KickStarter.com and Computer Games
Monday, March 19, 2012
SWTOR: Follow Up on 50
As you may have read last week, I finally hit level 50 in SWTOR. The post I wrote last week talked mainly about the gear gap that exists between a new level 50 player and one who has been 50 for a while. My fear was that I would be utterly useless in warzones and it would take a long grind in order to be a factor for my faction in PvP.
Let me give you a run down of what I have accomplished in the one week since hitting fifty. I have gone from valor rank 25 to valor rank 45. I have completed the daily and weekly PvP quests once each (yah, my faction doesn't win a lot of WZs). I have acquired 4 pieces of Centurion gear, along with a full set of Centurion relics, implants, and earpiece. My PvP bonus currently stands at 6.44%. I have also done the Belsavis and Ilum dailies 3 or 4 times each, earning me 54 daily commendations plus about 6 item mods I have used to upgrade my orange gear. I must admit that the progress has been satisfying and has certainly fit the casual lifestyle of gaming I must adhere to. There is always something to do when I log in and I have not felt once that a certain tier of gear is unattainable. Sure, there isn't any open world PvP to speak of, and there won't be anytime soon as Bioware is taking out the objectives on Ilum in order to give them a much needed overhaul. To be honest, one of the top reasons I am enjoying SWTOR so much these days is that I finally joined a guild I like. It is filled with like minded people who help out one another and simply have fun while playing.
So what's left to do? Well, my goal is to reach valor rank 50 by the time 1.2 comes out, and it looks like I will far surpass that. Valor rank 65 is also a big deal as then I can wear the top tier PvP set (Battlemaster). I have yet to run any of the top level flashpoints or operations, but then again, I am not a big PvE guy. I will most likely start running them when my guild does just to satisfy the completionist in me.
Even though I have yet to feel like I am through with this game, I can see how people get to level 50 and then quit as it does become your traditional MMO at the endgame. Hopefully it will take a while for me to acquire that feeling, but in the meantime, SWTOR will be my game of choice.
Let me give you a run down of what I have accomplished in the one week since hitting fifty. I have gone from valor rank 25 to valor rank 45. I have completed the daily and weekly PvP quests once each (yah, my faction doesn't win a lot of WZs). I have acquired 4 pieces of Centurion gear, along with a full set of Centurion relics, implants, and earpiece. My PvP bonus currently stands at 6.44%. I have also done the Belsavis and Ilum dailies 3 or 4 times each, earning me 54 daily commendations plus about 6 item mods I have used to upgrade my orange gear. I must admit that the progress has been satisfying and has certainly fit the casual lifestyle of gaming I must adhere to. There is always something to do when I log in and I have not felt once that a certain tier of gear is unattainable. Sure, there isn't any open world PvP to speak of, and there won't be anytime soon as Bioware is taking out the objectives on Ilum in order to give them a much needed overhaul. To be honest, one of the top reasons I am enjoying SWTOR so much these days is that I finally joined a guild I like. It is filled with like minded people who help out one another and simply have fun while playing.
So what's left to do? Well, my goal is to reach valor rank 50 by the time 1.2 comes out, and it looks like I will far surpass that. Valor rank 65 is also a big deal as then I can wear the top tier PvP set (Battlemaster). I have yet to run any of the top level flashpoints or operations, but then again, I am not a big PvE guy. I will most likely start running them when my guild does just to satisfy the completionist in me.
Even though I have yet to feel like I am through with this game, I can see how people get to level 50 and then quit as it does become your traditional MMO at the endgame. Hopefully it will take a while for me to acquire that feeling, but in the meantime, SWTOR will be my game of choice.
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