A Successor to Swordfall
August 31st, 2011
After much pondering, I have at last decided to go ahead and make a successor to Swordfall. As flaw-ridden as it is, Swordfall does have some solid mechanics that could support a much better game. And with the core mechanics remaining in place, the time investment required to build a new game should be relatively modest. Although, admittedly, I am a bit hesitant to make that claim, having failed at project time estimates so many times before. But even with that said, I can’t see it taking more than two months, unless I get incredibly lazy or busy with other things.
So, what should you expect out of this new bastard child of a game? Well, it’ll definitely be different enough that I wouldn’t call it a sequel. The art style is somewhat more cartoony, the setting is fantasy, and there will be long term progression, with a story that takes you through a series of small maps. Think Starcraft 2 single player, if you need a structural comparison. I’m aiming for at least ten hours of gameplay to complete the main campaign and unlock all units, of which there will be many. Each unit will also be highly upgradable and customizable, with a number of different abilities to choose from.
Another thing I’m looking into improving is the battle system, though I’m not entirely clear on the details yet. Armies will definitely be much smaller this time around, preventing the slow attrition of late-game Swordfall battles. Generals are also gone, as I don’t think they added all that much. Active abilities on units would definitely be much more interesting, and would help make the battles feel more controlled. I’ve also toyed with the idea of introducing a turn-based deployment phase that let’s you ponder your army’s arrangement in peace before all the hectic fighting begins. This could work nicely if the battles were heavily based around the use of active abilities, perhaps a bit something like Warcraft 3.
One final thing I can guarantee is that the game will be entirely free. I’m definitely done messing around with Mochi.
– Peace and fair battles
Posted in Project Previews | 3 Comments »
September 17th, 2011 at 4:26 pm
Have you tjought agout the wars between the Aztec empire and its enemies. There would be no cavalry, wrords would be made od stone, particular lands( coast lands mostly) would have the most amout of money. The land would be forest and there would be several trees in battle scenes. Archers would be an only aztec weapon because the other nations would not have bows.
September 21st, 2011 at 6:58 pm
I have thought about it briefly. It does appeal to me just because it’s such different setting that hasn’t been used a whole lot. Then again I also feel there isn’t quite enough variety in the weapons and tactics of the period. It’s pretty much just spears, obsidian swords and atl-atls. And yeah a few bows, as you said. In any case, I don’t think I’ll be doing historical settings again for some time. Even if I do I’ll probably take more liberties with it and go for some type of mythical pseudo-history.
October 15th, 2011 at 9:15 am
Dave
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