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 I apologize
to everyone who has been checking us for updates over the past
few days. Due to unforeseen problems, we were unable to post any
news. A router died, the server reached capacity, my DSL line
went dead, DNS was all messed up, and chipmunks were chewing on
some vital Internet wires down in Topeka, Kansas. I swear it's
all true!
Okay, actually none of that was true. Well, the part about there
being unforeseen problems was true. The problem was that Rao came
to visit me here in New York City with our good friend Tykin...
and, er, we were just too busy partying, deathmatching, and doing
touristy stuff to get any work done. There, now you know the real
truth. I feel better with that off my chest. =P
It was good to finally meet The Legendary Hero, Raolin Darksbane,
face to face and get the chance to discuss Swordplay.net
in person. We share most of the same ideas about where we want
to take this site. We both feel that there are just an awful lot
of cookie-cutter gaming websites out there. You know what I mean,
you've seen them. They've got their news up front, a banner ad
or two, then some large and flashy links to a feature or three
-- usually a (p)review of the game du jour. And then these features
are mostly just paraphrased versions of what can be found on the
game's website or other sites devoted to the game, illustrated
with publicly available sceenshots. There are definitely quite
a few sites that don't follow this mold, or at least do so with
a little class, but the rest are a dime a dozen. We don't ever
wish to turn into such a site. Why should we race through a game
and bust our collective humps to speed a review out the door when
you, the informed reader, can read the exact same thing a dozen
other places?
So where does that put us? Well, there's an old saying.... "You
can wound a room full of zombies with Charged Bolt, or you can
kill one dead with Lightning". Wise words there. Rather than
try to do everything at once, we want to do one thing and do it
well. And for us, that one thing is news. Both Rao and I love
to just talk about whatever is new and interesting in the gaming
industry. What's fun, what's not? What's a fad, what's here to
stay? What new innovations are exciting, what old ones teach us
lessons? Which companies know how to go about making a game, and
which have their heads up their fiscal assets? Bringing the answers
to these questions is something we know we can do very well. And
it's something that no other site that I've found really does
on a daily basis for the world of RPG gaming. Sure, the 3D Action
gamers have Bluesnews to
serve this purpose for them. We aspire to one day make Swordplay.net
the equivalent for the world of RPG and Sword & Sorcery games.
Lofty goals, I know... but if one does not set his aim high, the
mark he hits won't impress anyone.
Here's a
brief recap of the most interesting news from this past weekend:
- Everyone seems all aflutter over the postponement of Diablo
II. There are plenty of nasty sentiments reflected for all
the world to see on the official Battle.net
Diablo II Suggestion Forum and other public soapboxes around
the 'net. But as is usually the case with a delayed game, most
of the posts come from the most frustrated and vocal segment
of the game's community. It's understandable that some feel
such angst after building up their excitement for so long, only
to be told they must continue to wait. However there is a also
a large portion of gamers content to just wait and let the artists
at Blizzard take their
time to make the best game possible. Now while there's nothing
particularly new about this, I think it bears following since
many eyes in the industry are on the development process of
this game. How this plays out may affect the scheduling and
public relation strategies of the next generation of games.
After all, this is Diablo II... the recipe and precedent
for reshaping the entire industry is there.
- Anticipation for the imminent release of Ultima
IX: Ascension continues. The most salient new information
comes from several sites which had the opportunity to visit
the Origin offices in
person, meet the design team, and check out the full game. Here's
two write-ups of the experience: one here
at Ultima IX Horizons, and the other up
on Adrenaline Vault.
- Lastly, who can deny the gathering clouds of what will one
day become the storm that is Baldur's
Gate II? If this is up your alley, then I strongly recommend
checking out the Baldur's
Gate Chronicles site. So far they have been doing an admirable
job collating all the scraps of information floating around
on the ephemeral digital interchange we like to call the Internet.
So again, I apologize for not keeping up with the news over the
past few days, but keep looking to us to provide you with all
the pertinent news about your favorite games!
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