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[Interview] Shroud of the Avatar: Checking in on Update 9
SBFord
Former Associate EditorMember LegendaryPosts: 33,129
Last week I hosted a livestream interview with Richard Garriott and Starr Long of Portalarium. Portalarium is currently working on Shroud of the Avatar. When I caught up with Richard and Starr they were at DargonCon in Atlanta showing off their game. At the same time other members of the Portalarium team were present at PAX Prime in Seattle. I asked Richard and Starr about the latest news with update 9 and about what we could expect in update 10.
Read more of Rob Lashley's Shroud of the Avatar: Checking In on Update 9.
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Comments
Well, I think that part of the combat system design creates something other than the 'hit 1-2-3 over and over' combat (along with its macro relatives).
It seems to take the combat out of simple rote finger-twitch, and move it to fast recognition of cards and their subsequant use.
If you are holding out for the perfect game, the only game you play will be the waiting one.
Richard Garriott was part of the UO combat system that was one of best ever created and that system took player skills to a new level.
UO combat was never about button smashing as some claims but instead needed very good timing when casting spells.
SotA combat with it's random card combat is moving away from player skills and i have a hard time understanding why they feel they need to reinvent the wheel when they already had a smash hit with the UO combat system.
All learned skills should of course be on your keyboard and always available.
How can a archer forget how to use his bow?
How can a mage forget his spells?
How can a melee character forget how to use his sword?
Not having access to learned skills disqualify this combat system and will make SotA a less successful game.
If the vast majority hate this combat system, they have no other choice than to change it. It will be financial suicide if they don't.
But knowing Richard Garriott. He has way too much of a self inflated ego to admit a critical design mistake and change it.
PS. And so much for winning the contest here recently to gain access to Update 9.
Signed up with same email at Portolarium and never received any email from them. What a joke.
Hi, Chris from the Shroud team here. Just wanted to post a reminder that the new combat system is optional. You can still choose to lock some or all of the buttons and play it just like every other game made over the past 20 years. The guys who are doing the best work with a hybrid approach where they lock 2 or 3 skills/spells and have the rest shuffle in and out. So they will lock a root spell and a heal spell for emergencies and then let the rest of the abilities shuffle.
You really should give it a try for a few hours before criticizing it. There were a LOT of people who raged against the system until we got it live and now it has almost universal support. It is NOT the exact same combat system you've played for the past 20 years. It requires planning before the fight, timing, fast recognition, and a new set of player skills to master.
This was not a system we made different just to be different. Our goal was to get actual skill back into combat instead of making your power purely a factor of level and gear, to remove the fixed class system and instead let people define their party roles by the deck they were playing, get rid of the "Perfect skill build" that you must play to succeed, and allow for more out of combat planning elements. Your gear switches with your deck so you can do things like play a tank for one combat and then swap to play the healer role when your friend joins the party.
Combat in release 9 was worse than in release 8 due to a few bugs and one bad design change, the global cool down. Release 10 should be the best yet. If you actually want to give it a shot, create a free account on the Shroud of the Avatar site, go to the forums and message me. I'll add you to the list for Release 10 for free so you can judge for yourself.
Thanks and hope you give it a try!
Chris
And what do you know about that?
I pledged for the game in kickstarter and decided to not take part in SotA as long as this combat system is still arround. Do you think i am the only one?
I can read a lot of negative feedback on this combat system and it makes me wonder why you seem to have missed them?
And how many do you believe don't give feedback anymore cause they gave up on the game cause of this combat system?
Some feedback on your combat system-
http://www.mmorpg.com/discussion2.cfm/thread/419761/Release-9-combat-feedback-.html
Aragon100, I would argue with you but I refuse to even read your post because I disagree with what I believe I would find if I were to read it. Rather than risk reading your post and liking what you say, I'm going to instead go post in both your forums and website stories saying how much I don't like what your post might say if I were to actual read it.
Seriously though, yes, there are a couple like you that refuse to even try it even though you could just choose to play it like a normal MMO and use a fully static bar. Not sure what to tell you man. System is there for you to give a shot and give us real feedback. If you really want it to change, refusing to even try it is not the best way to get it changed. Help us out and give it a spin in the release later this month.
You decide you disagree before even reading it.
That tell me a lot about you. Having blindfolds towards some of your pledgers isn't what i call listening to your whole community. It tell me you listen to the ones that agree with your own opinion.
Uh, actually I was poking fun at you refusing try the combat system but expressing opinions on it... Didn't think that was too subtle but maybe it was. Anyways, yes, we read an incredible amount of feedback. Not going to argue with you on this stuff. You've made it clear you won't be swayed. Hope you'll give us a shot in a few releases. If not, you can sell your pledge easily to someone else if you want.
I used to hate it, till I ate it!
Seriously though, I still have reservations about the system, but mostly in regards to having to fight the UI. I think they've said that's one of their biggest issues since your attention is being divided. Also, I want to see more Focus skills.
I question why a rep from SoTA is arguing with a troll through an external forum to begin with. Even if this was a SoTA forum, this kind of back and forth shouldn't happen. One post, clear and concise. Make your point, done. Trolls thrive on attention. Replying to him will not solve anything.
Beyond that, the game looks promising! You'll have my pledge soon.
I'm sure it's really hard to bypass blatent misinformation. And you probably don't want it to go unchallenged, if only for the other folks just reading through the thread.
As always, reading comprehension is a good thing.
I'm no great fan of Garriott, or particularly enthused about the game as the next Great Sandbox Hope, but I will give it a fair shake once it comes out. Not going to dismiss it out of hand without trying it.
If you are holding out for the perfect game, the only game you play will be the waiting one.
Telling the truth about how many see the game without pink coloured glasses as most fanbois do is not trolling. only a fanbois would claim that.
If developers decide not to read the criticism they get then it is their choice.
Will the game become better with such a decision, i doubt it.
I was the first at SotA forums to lift the problems the combat system have today. It was all readable for developers. Same with making the game more of a risk vs reward game with consequences or at least give the old UO PvP players that option.
Did developers listen to those in their community? No they did not.
They continued down the same road with same poor combat system and ransom (insurance) as their way of risk vs reward.
As i see it, SotA developers only listen to the yes sayers in their community and none of the suggestions that came as early as in the beginning of SotA forum from old UO PvP players that wanted their type of game was totally neglected. None of their PvP and risk vs reward suggestions have seen the light in SotA.
It was like talking to closed ears. I doubt very few of those type of players (pledgers) still wait for this game. It is laughable at best to read a developer as Chris claim that the combat system have almost universal support.
The old UO PvP group that with their UO subscriptions partly made it possible for Garriott to enter outer space have been totally neglected by SotA developers. That old UO Renaissance playstyle isn't even a selective option is SotA. There is no full loot option and the combat system is light years away being even closely as player skill demanding as that old UO game was.
As i see it - SotA developers listen most to the ones that pledged the most and they definetly don't listen to the old UO PvP players.
I don't follow this game much other then from articles posted on this site. This game is ment for multi platform play? Wouldn't the devs be aiming for a combat system that suits all platforms?
if devs go for a UO type combat system then they would have missed the mark.
I've been playing Ultima's since my Commidore 64 and played UO from launch for almost 10 years. I figured I would kick start this one as soon as I heard about it at the $500 level. I liked everything I saw until I heard about the deck based combat. I remember thinking wow I made a major mistake, I wonder if I can sell my account. I didn't even want to give it a try. Finally in R9 I decided to watch a couple tutorials and loaded up my deck and gave it a try, balanced the rotation and speed with skills points. By the end of the weekend, I preferred it. It was refreshing, interesting, and provided something new to combat.
Try it out before you bash, I wasn't a believer either.
Chris, I'm LOL because when your forum moderators are constantly banning dissenters, people are selling their accounts, and people who are disgruntled never even bother to log in to test the game or comment in the forums, then all you have left are fanboys and a tiny handful of opposition. Of course you're going to get "universal support" from fanboys. The forums are a ghost town due to the above mentioned facts.
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