Cembrye 905 Share Posted January 18, 2015 A lot of threads tend to talk about what to avoid. I thought it might be nice to start a thread about Shadowbane listing what was good that needs to also be part of Crowfall. Here is my list and I welcome everyone else's thoughts. 1. Guild Comradeship There was something special about being part of a guild in Shadowbane. Doubtless this was due to the fact that risk and defeat had consequences. But it went beyond fighting...you also needed to work together to build a city, to pool resources to get high end guards and crafters, etc. Maybe time makes memories rosy, but being part of a guild in Shadowbane meant something. I hope Crowfall brings back that feeling 2. A Seamless World One of the best things about Shadowbane was that it was a seamless world. No instances, loading screens (well aside from teleports/portals) and if you could see something you could run to it. I hope Crowfall does this too. 3. Combat that rewards thinking and skill In Shadowbane, while raw numbers certainly meant something you would also often see smaller numbers defeat larger just because they were working as a group, understood their skills better, etc. It is a difficult challenge for developers, but since it is some of the same people making Crowfall as Shadowbane, I am confident they will give us some of the same goodness 4. No Set Factions One of the best parts of Shadowbane was the politics. Due to the fact there were no set factions, everything could change from day to day. 5. Fast Leveling This is sort of a design choice, either have no levels or if you have them make leveling fast. Shadowbane, particularly as the game matured, made leveling what it should be in a PVP game - more or less a quick tutorial Anyway, those are the ones that stood out for me. soulein, 447ght, caffynated and 1 other 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mourne 1,574 Share Posted January 18, 2015 6. Build/template diversity and depth. lindorn, Recatek, doc gonzo and 3 others 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doc gonzo 3,087 Share Posted January 18, 2015 1 is there or not, it doesn't depend on the Game, imo... 2-6 i agree with completely 7..... see my sig quote affy, mal, soulein and 1 other 4 let the Code build the World and it's Laws....let the Players build the rest... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lindorn 140 Share Posted January 18, 2015 6. Build/template diversity and depth. Ah thank you! Still to this day the number one thing that sets Shadowbane apart mechanics-wise. I'd also add 1. Player built infrastructure - Shadowbane did this well but I think there is so much more that could be done here. We started to get a taste of a better world when mines/resources hit, but it could have been much better. doc gonzo and frobobo 2 Your milkshake lures all the fine folks to the yard. Verily, it is better than mine. Surely it is better than mine. Would you teach me, or would you levy a fee? - Integ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ganked 40 Share Posted January 18, 2015 Let's not sell the developers short. I don't think anything needs to be persevered directly from shadowbane. Some concepts can be duplicated, but I don't think there's anything that can't be improved upon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doc gonzo 3,087 Share Posted January 18, 2015 to be fair, ganked... i don't think anyone is saying keep it exactly as it was or "preserved" as you put it... if it can be improved...hells yeah... but the design Concepts...those we want to see, yes? with Lindorn's that makes 8 let the Code build the World and it's Laws....let the Players build the rest... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kishijo 63 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Some of my favorite concepts: o- a deep world lore that makes things meaningful (ok, call me a softie for good writing) o- the guild system: players pledge allegiance to a certain guild, and therefore there are consequences for their actions taken while wearing their badge (this is a key engine behind the reason to engage in a siege) o- the very basic archetype system, enabling incredible diversity in classes and builds, without worrying about balance so much as thinking of "team compositions" o- the resource system: it was late in delivery, but I think it was intended to help relieve some of the need to "grind" to get gold, and is a much better method o- those massive, massive sieges that could on for days, with multiple varieties of "spec groups" running around o- ability to attack, dmg, and even kill your own teammates; not in a "duel" system, but just because they are being a jerk o- free looting of anything on a corpse (that isn't being worn or equipped) o- I like the rune system for customization, but I didn't like the randomness and infrequency of certain drops dacher 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shadow2015 11 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Shadowbane character creation was just fantastic. creation points.. starting runes, etc... Shadowbane had real racial differences, not just different color humans... Aracoix flying birdman, Minotaur, Centaur, Dwarf, .... Shadowbane player built housing and keeps. Shadowbane had real depth in character advancement and political intrigue (forum wars!) Shadowbane had mine fights and city sieges everyday! Big fights where each type of character had a role to fill. Stealthers, Scouts, Heavy Tanks, Healers, etc... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spank99 54 Share Posted January 19, 2015 The most important aspect is PVP that means something, the ability to change the map/gameworld and less focus on just scripted NPC quests. doc gonzo 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frobobo 188 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Ah thank you! Still to this day the number one thing that sets Shadowbane apart mechanics-wise. I'd also add 1. Player built infrastructure - Shadowbane did this well but I think there is so much more that could be done here. We started to get a taste of a better world when mines/resources hit, but it could have been much better. This is so important. This is what shadowbane needed to become a long lasting game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phylor.the.Jester 1,026 Share Posted January 19, 2015 1 is there or not, it doesn't depend on the Game, imo... 2-6 i agree with completely 7..... see my sig quote I disagree with what you said on 1 a touch. While true, players don't necessarily change based on the game, SB required you to work as a unit or you failed as a whole. Most other games, the guild is less... meaningful in a lot of ways. You are able to jump around with less consequence, you don't lose much if you leave a guild in most other games where in SB you may lose hours and hours of work you committed to a guild. It was one reason why a lot of SB guilds fell apart when they moved to WoW from SB. It wasn't necessarily that there wasn't a place for organization. It was more on the fact that players could be somewhat greedy and not be hurt greatly if their guild mates turned on them. That is one of the biggest reasons that JoW shattered in WoW resulting in what is now The Tenth. I do agree that you can have that sort of feeling in a guild in any game though. Several guilds are a testament to that. TSP, LoD, TT, OCC, and many more represent that well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vandarr 700 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Scouts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shiden86 13 Share Posted January 19, 2015 (edited) •battle for resources (like mines) •combat on/off toggle •emotes •race diversity •ability to attack anyone at any time •something like dicipline runes •crafting •hot zones •formations •tracking •flying •stances (including traveling) •classes that can focus on either melee or magic (templar, crusader, sentinel come to mind) •stealing from another players inventory •user interface customization, importing settings from others •recorder Edited January 19, 2015 by shiden86 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xornan 0 Share Posted January 19, 2015 (edited) A counter for every class/combo. Buff/debuff/removal mechanics. I would overall give everything more HPs, makes battles a bit longer and more interesting... What I didnt like: buff bots are a must, I wouldnt mind not needing one. Edited January 19, 2015 by xornan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zault 110 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Scouts. No....please no. •battle for resources (like mines) •combat on/off toggle •emotes •race diversity •ability to attack anyone at any time •something like dicipline runes •crafting •hot zones •formations •tracking •flying •stances (including traveling) •classes that can focus on either melee or magic (templar, crusader, sentinel come to mind) •stealing from another players inventory •user interface customization, importing settings from others •recorder This goes with what I think about scouts I guess. I was never a fan of the way tracking was done in SB. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
headlight 5,744 Share Posted January 19, 2015 I feel like the list would be shorter if we said what was bad about shadowbane. Because that list is really what kept it from being a game a decade ahead of its time. But I think we've done enough of those threads. RIP Louis "Snax" Garcia Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doc gonzo 3,087 Share Posted January 19, 2015 and it's kind of disrespectful to talk about a dead hamster like that... we all KNOW that lil bugger was the problem let the Code build the World and it's Laws....let the Players build the rest... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tsp_maj 433 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Shadowbane rewarded organization and teamwork over raw skill or talent. There wasn't a huge skill curve for some classes which let lesser skilled players still contribute. shiden86 1 Maj, Keeper of Da Plank - The Shipwrecked Pirates Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evald 57 Share Posted January 19, 2015 Everything was perfect about shadowbane. Add new graphics engine like UE4, copy the existing content and you get a perfect new game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cinnabar_tsp 113 Share Posted January 19, 2015 •hot zones I'll second 'at one lubber. The Shipwrecked Pirates Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts