Sad news - development team n-Space has closed after 21 years. Most recently known for Sword Coast Legends, but previously better know as Nintendo developers behind the likes of Heroes Of Ruin and Geist, a few waves of lay-offs were not enough to keep the moneywolves from their doors, and now they are no more.
]]>Alec, Graham, and John ventured into Sword Coast Legends [official site] with hearts full of adventure and hope, but trudged back out disappointed. They wanted grand co-op D&D adventures, they found unremarkable dungeon-crawling. Well, developers n-Space say they have a few words for folks who were disappointed: "We hear you." Wait, come back, they have more words too. They've detailed plans for a few future updates fixing complaints and bugs and adding new stuff too. That all kicked off with a Halloween-y update on Friday, and leads to mod support in December.
]]>The most dangerous ideas are the ones so compelling, nobody wants to admit they're bad. Also the atom bomb was pretty nasty, but that's a bit out of a weekly RPG column. Instead, let's pick one of the chocolate teapots that people keep mistaking for the Holy Grail - the idea that RPGs can hope to offer anything close to a classic DM experience. It's a terrible idea. It's not going to work. Stop wasting everybody's time.
]]>The dream: remote D&D for far-flung or time-starved friends. A cackling dungeon master pulling strings, up to four heroes ganging up on monsters and squabbling over loot, amazing adventures which exist only for you.
The reality of Sword Coast Legends [official site]: not that, basically.
]]>We'll have some thoughts on the multiplayer portion of just-released, latter-day Dungeons & Dragons RPG Sword Coast Legends [official site] - including the all-important DM mode - very soon, but while RPS gathers its party to sally forth, I thought I'd share some initial impressions on singleplayer.
]]>The best legends are fraught with adversity and recurrent dangers, so it's probably good that Sword Coast Legends [official site] is delayed once again, right? Besides, if a game needs more work I'd rather it receive that than be shoved out anyway.
The co-op-y D&D action-RPG was due to launch on September 8th, then September 29th, and now... October 20th. Having let some pre-orderers play pre-release versions and heard what they thought, developers n-Space and Digital Extremes say they've decided they want to address a few problems raised.
]]>Seeping out from the D&D fantasy maw from whence all RPGs come is Sword Coast Legends [official site], a new action role-playing slashy-slashy project which expands on D&D's famed Forgotten Realms setting. You may remember me mentioning it earlier in the month when news arrived that its PC release would be delayed until September 28th. Here I am again, this time a harbinger of happier news - and there's 40 minutes of game footage below.
]]>Time and its cruel and relentless forward motion has reared its ugly head once more, causing the makers of the D&D-based Sword Coast Legends [official site] to push the release date back ever so slightly. The game is hitting PC, Mac and Linux on September 29th now, not September 8th as previously planned.
We here at RPS care for your well-being and want to make this news as easy for you to stomach as possible, which is why I've created a handy list of alternative things to do during this 11-day period:
]]>Sword Coast Legends [official site] was one of my favourite experiences at E3. In a little booth off the main show floor, the developers are demo-ing their D&D game's dungeon master mode. I've only recently dipped a toe into D&D with a tabletop campaign but it's been excellent fun so far and I was curious as to how the mode would measure up.
]]>Sword Coast Legends [official site] is not a new Baldur's Gate, but the co-op-packing RPG does look pretty fun. I especially like the look of one player being a dungeon master, altering dungeons and setting up encounters to challenge players. DMs aren't supposed to kill everyone, unless they want to quickly end up rolling dice by themselves, but they should create an interesting journey.
A new pair of videos show someone creating a dungeon, using tools that look more powerful than I'd expected, then letting four players in to tackle it. Come have a look if you want to see 27 minutes of spiders.
]]>Sword Coast Legends [official site] isn't a new Baldur's Gate game, but it is a top-down action-RPG with real-time combat and tactical pausing in the same D&D setting those games explored. If you saw it on the train, you might be startled mistaking it for that kid in your year at school who died then realise no, that's not their chin - and they didn't have online co-op.
Moving on: Sword Coast Legends is due September 8th on Windows, Mac, and Linux, co-developers Digital Extremes (them lot behind Warframe) and n-Space announced today. They've got a new trailer to show off too.
]]>Last time we had a gander at Sword Coast Legends [official site], it was ten minutes of singleplayer questing, monster-slaying, loot-grabbing, and tavern-frequenting. The latest trailer for the Dungeons & Dragons action-RPG follows on from that, but carries the quest over to multiplayer so another player can be Dungeon Master.
It's a curious mode which sees one player deploying monsters, laying traps, setting ambushes, locking doors, and controlling monsters while the heroes romp through it. Come see how it works.
]]>Luskan! City of... of... well, mostly pirates as far as I know. But also, as evidenced in this new gameplay footage from Sword Coast Legends [official site], city of thieves, skeletons, zombies and other stock D&D nasties.
There's also a zombie ogre in there, as if regular ogres weren't already possessed of disgustingly low standards of hygiene.
]]>Brawls! Ghouls! Fifth Edition rules! Oh, what a lively place that Sword Coast is! So vibrant. It's got real character. Of course, in a few years it'll be filled with brunch venues, bars that are also vintage clothes shops, market stalls selling £4 scotch eggs, and young people. Get in while you can, before people like you change it forever. Perhaps take a visit in Sword Coast Legends [official site].
Announced last night, it's a Dungeons & Dragons RPG set in that corner of the Forgotten Realms so popular with games like Baldur's Gate. It'll support co-op for up to four adventurers, and let another play as Dungeon Master too.
]]>
