Indie Archaelund: RPG that combines 1st-person exploration with 3rd-person TB combat - now available on Early Access

[Viata]

So you are saying that it is a dick view camera that becomes third person camera...

Only races with big dicks can do that, though. That is one of the reason Elves are not in this setting.

 

[BlackAdderBG]

Class advancements makes me moist. for sure

 

[DavidBVal]

Small update on development here.

Everything going great and according to plan. Right now inventory is semi-functional, humanoid 3D models look awesome and show different pieces of armor depending on equipped gear. Also I've completed the code related to aggro and initiating combat, wandering NPCs, and many other things. I keep working on improving animation and AI right now.

I still have something like 3 months ahead of me that will be fully focused on coding the core functionalities of the game. In September I'll begin implementing some game content and developing the rules in more detail. If everything goes according to plan, I still expect to release a PC Early-Access version in late Q1 2020. Still, it won't be released until I feel the quality and quantity is enough.

Note: item icons from EK and some of the 3D models below will likely not be used in release version, they're just placeholders.

 

[Viata]

Looking great, man.

 

[vazha]

Very keen but those puzzles scare me. I am too dumb for puzzles.

 

[ERYFKRAD]

Very keen but those puzzles scare me. I am too dumb for puzzles.

If you torture the puzzle enough, it will confess.

 

[Citizen]

Oblivion vibes

 

[DavidBVal]

Very keen but those puzzles scare me. I am too dumb for puzzles.

Worry not, I'll add a "True Codexian" difficulty setting in which puzzles will be trivial but battles become impossible unless you savescum 50 times/round.

 

[Viata]

Very keen but those puzzles scare me. I am too dumb for puzzles.

Worry not, I'll add a "True Codexian" difficulty setting in which puzzles will be trivial but battles become impossible unless you savescum 50 times/round.

Tbh, you should also add a "Real True Codexian" difficulty which includes pause to skip gameplay so it can focus only on plot/cut-scene given how many retards think story is more important than gameplay on this forum.

 

[ERYFKRAD]

Very keen but those puzzles scare me. I am too dumb for puzzles.

Worry not, I'll add a "True Codexian" difficulty setting in which puzzles will be trivial but battles become impossible unless you savescum 50 times/round.

Tbh, you should also add a "Real True Codexian" difficulty which includes pause to skip gameplay so it can focus only on plot/cut-scene given how many retards think story is more important than gameplay on this forum.

No, True Codexian difficulty should keep changing the rules based on a random die rolled at random intervals.

 

[vazha]

Very keen but those puzzles scare me. I am too dumb for puzzles.

Worry not, I'll add a "True Codexian" difficulty setting in which puzzles will be trivial but battles become impossible unless you savescum 50 times/round.

Yes please. What's the point of puzzles in rpg anyway? If you want em puzzles go play point & clicks. I want to kick the butt of evil, enslave entire nations with necromancy and read about argonian maid shenanigans. Puzzles dont come into my RPG enjoyment experience.

 

[Citizen]

RPGs can have some puzzles, because they really add to the exploration aspect of the game, but only as secrets/side quests. Making puzzles part of the main quest just kills replayability of the game (which is probably the only point of an RPG). That's why I would never play grimrocks again, for example - what's the point of doing again the puzzles you already solved once?

 

[V_K]

Puzzles can have build-dependent solutions, while beating goblin #123 (this time in red boxers!) again and again gets old even within the first playthrough.

 

[vazha]

What I hate is puzzles that require mathematical-thinking, patterns etc. I'd not have been kicked out of school at the tender age of 11 if I was any good at maths seeing that kind of puzzle just kills my interest in the game - Druidstone being the perfect example of this.

 

[a Goat]

Tbh, you should also add a "Real True Codexian" difficulty which includes pause to skip gameplay so it can focus only on plot/cut-scene given how many retards think story is more important than gameplay on this forum.

This message gets official Sheep™ stamp of approval.

 

[DavidBVal]

I agree with many posters here regarding the role of puzzles in RPGs. While there can be a few in the main quest, most puzzles (and probably the hardest ones) will be part of the secrets and will not be there to block your world exploration.

Alas, these days I don't deal with lofty design concepts such as these: I'm working on mundane stuff like inventory UI, dragging, looting, equipping, fitting armor and weapons... *yawns*. Should have designed a gameworld populated only by naked wrestlers, I'd be done already.

 

[vazha]

Quests? how is quest and C&C situation at the moment?

 

[mondblut]

Puzzles are insufferable and boring, but you can't have a proper RPG without at least a few.

Just like dialogues.

 

[Darth Canoli]

Alas, these days I don't deal with lofty design concepts such as these: I'm working on mundane stuff like inventory UI, dragging, looting, equipping, fitting armor and weapons... *yawns*. Should have designed a gameworld populated only by naked wrestlers, I'd be done already.

Save that for the sequel, mud-wrestling women seems like a good start.

 

[DavidBVal]

Quests? how is quest and C&C situation at the moment?

I love designing quests, I already have many of them planned for Archaelund, but you can have a look at some EK quests to have an idea where I come from (even if EK, being a mobile game, of course faced limitations). Some quests will seem to involve a harsh dungeon crawl, but being smart about it can make a big difference. Others will be epic, with big choices at the end; or maybe diplomacy-related quests with a big impact on the game, that will be heavily affected by your choices in previous interactions with NPCs, while others will merely ask you to retrieve an item. But even the simplest ones I'll try to add something unique, be it a small twist, an unexpected difficult choice or a chance to learn a little detail that can be useful later; in other words, a reason for the quest to be part of the game.

The quests are one of the two main pillars of Archaelund (the other one being combat) and I'll try to have at least a hundred handcrafted quests, including several secret ones. I can't be certain about this figure, but given I was able to add 90 quests to EK between late 2015 and mid 2018, and given I'll have much better tools now, I think it's a reasonable target.

 

[vazha]

Bless you, sir, for you say all the right words. Best of luck!

 

[DavidBVal]

Progress on inventory management, containers, equipping items, etc.

Nothing groundbreaking, I know. But hey, it works!

 

[iscalio]

All of this looks wonderful. I found myself enjoying Exiled Kingdoms quite a bit, and this looks much improved (turn-based combat is how God intended it).

It is evident that all skills depend on one or several traits (e.g. heavy weapons on Str, light weapons on Str+Dex, ranged weapons on Dex+Awa, "maps & charts" on Awa+Int, etc.). Now, based on the character sheet of one burly bodyguard named Harry_273, it appears that unarmed combat is solely based on dexterity, and not a combination of dexterity and strength. If this is so, why? Why would I need Str+Dex when wielding a knife, but no strength at all when boxing and wrestling?

Furthermore: Harry_273 (did the previous 272 Harrys die, by the way?) has one rank in the skill Dodge. However, his total rank is "-". How does this work? And it seems as if Dodge is not influenced by his dexterity, whereas Armor Proficiency is. That appears counter-intuitive to me. I like it if there are two paths to dealing with incoming attacks in RPGs, one based on speed and reflexes (dodging attacks), and one based on blocking ("soaking" blows with armor and shields). I like it because it means that you don't have to be nimble and dexterous to be a efficient "tank". Seeing both Dodge and Armor skills on the character sheet, at first I thought that Archaelund was going that route. But in that case Dodge should be based on Dex, and Armor Proficiency on End (I guess) - which obviously is not how it works.

Also: What is SLF? "Self"? If so, what does that mean?

And finally: Why is the batrax caster in the artwork wearing clothing? All the batrax in Exiled Kingdoms were nude. And why can I play goblins but not orcs?


Thank you for making the game, and thank you also if you find the time to answer my questions.

 

[Siveon]

Huh, these assets actually work better in this graphical style. Really looking forward to it.

 

[Stormcrowfleet]

When will I be able to wishlist this on Steam ?