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Shadowrun Returns Kickstarter project by Harebrained Schemes [Ended, $1.8M funded]

D

DTKT

Member
A bit more "cartoony" than what I expected. I still like it and most of the cartoon look will be hard to notice with a top down view.

Those in-game mockup look gorgeous though.
 
Dice

Dice

Pokémon Parentage Conspiracy Theorist
Da fuck? 3D models just took it from Gorillaz to DOTA2. Still don't know what to think.
 
L

Lime

Member
mclem said:
The latest update reprints those images from Kotaku but with added commentary about their design decisions.
Click to expand...

Based on the comments in the article, it looks like most people are not taking too kindly to the cartoony art style.

Has Harebrained Schemes said anything about target specs? Are they aiming this for iPhone? I'm asking because the textures and polygon count of these models are extremely low-spec.
 
Sentenza

Sentenza

Member
Looks great to me.
And let me laugh hard at people who pretend to teach to Shadowrun's original creator what's the right mood or style for a Shadowrun game.
 
K

Keasar

Member
From my experience of sitting right now and reading the Shadowrun PnP Core Rulebook, I think this style is fine. As long as it still has the setting of Shadowrun (magic, technology and crimes against corporations) I am totally cool with it.
 
M

mclem

Member
Lime said:
Has Harebrained Schemes said anything about target specs? Are they aiming this for iPhone? I'm asking because the textures and polygon count of these models are extremely low-spec.
Click to expand...

Cheaper. They're probably focussing most of their effort on design. Indeed, nicely stylised - as these are - is a good way to get distinctive appealing visuals without breaking the bank.
 
F

Fjordson

Member
I don't know if I'm crazy about the style, but it looks fine. Will be best in the context of the game I think.

And honestly, the look and feel of the environments and the setting is more important to me than the character models. That probably sounds a little weird but...I don't know. Just more interested in what the world will look like than how cartoony my character looks.
 
D

Decado

Member
Is this still scheduled for January 2013? There isn't even an in-game screenshot yet, AFAIK. All the tablet discussion is worrying. I thought this was primary a PC game and they were porting it to tablets later.
 
V

Vyse The Legend

Member
Decado said:
Is this still scheduled for January 2013? There isn't even an in-game screenshot yet, AFAIK. All the tablet discussion is worrying. I thought this was primary a PC game and they were porting it to tablets later.
Click to expand...

No. They said, due to all the added stretch goals, it won't make January anymore. It'll be a few extra months (definitely first half of 2013, though).

Also, this was a tablet-friendly endeavor out of the gate (PC and iPad/Android). When the Kickstarter first went up, they said they were doing it for both.

TucoBenedictoPacifico said:
It never was, as far as I can remember.
Click to expand...

It was originally planned for January. However, when they got the extra funding to do a new city, class and quests, they said it would take longer -- but not by much.
 
L

Lime

Member
New news on classes:

http://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2013/01/02/shadowrun-returns-online-feature.aspx

Example:
Street Samurai

These powerful warriors are the martial masters of the Shadowrun universe, wielding smart weapons that are directly connected to their bodies’ reflexes. For players who want to slash and gun their way to victory, the street samurai is an ideal starting place.

Weisman Says: “In Shadowrun Returns, Street Samurai can gain the ability to carry up to three weapons into combat and special ranged skills such as snapshot, armor piercing, and head-shots. In close combat, Samurai can gain actions like slash, stab, and cleave with bladed weapons, and the ability to disarm an opponent.”
Click to expand...
 
L

lawrence7

Member
Harebrained Schemes

The February issue of Game Informer's Digital Magazine is out, featuring a 10 "page" article about Shadowrun Returns!
New art! New info! New quotes from Jordan!
Click to expand...

HBS posted a preview pic on their Facebook page:

393158_428224180579088_1996468831_n.jpg
 
K

Keasar

Member
Just bought the issue on my iPad, gonna read through it and see what it says, lots of new images from the game though that looks lovely.
 
L

Lime

Member
Summary of the Game Informer article:

Without further delay, here’s a rundown of the new information the article mentions:

  • The mag talks a little bit about the story of the game, “A woman named Jessica Watts approaches your newly created protagonist for help. Her brother Sam, your old friend, has been murdered. You’re the only one she can trust and she begs you to come to Seattle to figure out what happened. We thought the only appropriate place to start a Shadowrun videogame was the morgue, so the first scene is there”, explains Weisman. “Your dead friend Sam is there, and like any film noir tale, the first character you meet is the Lone Star detective, Mitch Macklusky, who is immediately antagonistic. From there you find out that there’s been a series of murders; these people have all been found with organs cut out. You’re charged with solving Sam’s murder, but as you did into that, more and more unravels, and the mystery expands from the lowest echelons of society, like the biker gangs, all the way up to the dynastic control of one of the largest megacorporations.”
  • While creating your character, you’ll answer a short set of questions that help determine your character’s background. (This isn’t implemented yet, so like all of our ideas, we’ll see how it comes out in the wash.)
  • In combat, we simulate stun damage by reducing your Action Points. So a punch may do 5 Hit Points and 10 Action Points of damage, reducing your ability to respond to the best of your ability. • Berlin is going to be released as downloadable content after the game launches and will be free to Backers.
  • We also hope to release downloadable environment packs, like the Ork Underground, regularly so Player-GMs have more places to create their own stories
Click to expand...
 
T

trab pu kcip

Member
and like any film noir tale, the first character you meet is the Lone Star detective, Mitch Macklusky[...]
Click to expand...

this mysterious (a bit darker) film noir mood sounds so awesome & really adds up to what I was expecting, but I just get the feeling that it might conflict with the "cartoony" visuals. :/
still looking forward to it, if story & gameplay are compelling (what they'll propably be) some "flaws" can be ignored.
 
F

Fjordson

Member
I think this might actually be my most hyped Kickstarter project in development. That description sounds awesome.

Can I grab that Game Informer on iPhone?
 
Dice

Dice

Pokémon Parentage Conspiracy Theorist
Okay I am officially down.

...even though I was months ago when I backed it...

Guys, we already bought this game! What a cool feeling.
 
L

Lime

Member
Still not digging the Cartoon Network style of direction with the round and soft edges, but I can respect the end-product. It looks significantly cool.

Dice said:
Okay I am officially down.

...even though I was months ago when I backed it...

Guys, we already bought this game! What a cool feeling.
Click to expand...

Yeah, it's pretty good to know that us backers got it covered - yet it would also be more sad if the game does not end up being good.
 
Dice

Dice

Pokémon Parentage Conspiracy Theorist
Lime said:
Yeah, it's pretty good to know that us backers got it covered - yet it would also be more sad if the game does not end up being good.
Click to expand...
If it ends up failing on anything, it'll probably only do so in battles. From all their updates, they seem like really creative guys who have a ton of ideas they have amassed over the years. It also sounds like they have long been obsessed with how to craft the ultimate dynamic RPG world and figured out a great system that is working in practice. A lot less has been said about battle mechanics, and since it is turn-based, one would assume they are using the tabletop rules or something very close to them. Thus, the key to success with that would be not letting ease of handling mechanics keep them from crafting creative and engaging battle scenarios that make the most out of them.

It's really interesting, since they seem to have many years of super dedication to Shadowrun and experience with it in play. But while they made the originals, it doesn't seem like they had real freedom or ability to do all they dreamed of back then. So it's not like the old Black Isle team making a new project, where we have multiple prior examples of their abilities in the craft fully fleshed out with large budgets. Here we just look at the 16 bit games, listen to them speak and sound genuine and passionate, say "seems legit" and hope for the best. Having backed it in that trust, if it works out to be a great game it will definitely be a cherished experience for me. Representative of what we can do with modern technology and networking, yet reminiscent of those original frontiers of PC game development where programmer nerds with an idea and passion made the first classics.
 
L

Lime

Member
Yes, that makes sense. Good post, Dice. I'm not even a Shadowrun fan, yet this is probably my most anticipated Kickstarter game this year between Banner Saga, DFA, and Planetary Annihilation.
 
F

Fjordson

Member
Wow. It looks so awesome. Easily my most anticipated Kickstarter project for this year.

I wonder what the system requirements for this are going to be (yeah I know, don't laugh =[ ). My laptop is really mediocre and I'm trying to hold off on any sort of new PC purchase until the fall.
 
G

godofcookery

Member
ArjanN said:
Some great new screens from RockPaperShotgun:

shr2big.jpg


shr3big.jpg


HNNNNNG.
Click to expand...

http://harebrained-schemes.com/post/new-art/

Hairbrained Schemes said:
Hi Everyone!

As you may know, Game Informer magazine did a big article about us in their February issue. For those of you who didn’t see it, here’s the art from the article. Please note that these images are not in-game screenshots. They’re concept pieces assembled from real game assets and posed characters. Hope you like them!
Click to expand...

still looks good, but the wording is a bit vague... so not screens? or not representative of actual game?
 
L

Lime

Member
I'm still not to keen on the character design, but from a far-away isometric perspective it'll probably be fine

srr_jake.png


srr_char02_macklusky.png
Click to expand...

Might as well post the earlier environment shots in their high resolution format. It actually looks much better when you can see the attention to detail:

srr_scene06_docks.jpg


srr_scene05b_tenements_crop01.jpg


I really like the worn-down look in the second shot. I hope this translates well into the 3D engine
 
L

Lime

Member
Wow, the quality of the content in that editor is really high-end. It's like a 2013 Cyberpunk version of Theme Hospital :)
 
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