Greetings guys, this is my first post!
I found about this exciting project few days ago, and soon enough i realized this not your average RPG, this is something else. After diving into the available information about the game, trying the alpha and beta by myself, and lurking the forum in-depth for technical details i feel compelled to say thanks to the devs for make it possible. Really guys, is not just you are making possible an epic history, a world or a game; i am excited about that all, but on the top of that what i see most valuable is that you are building possibilities. Many of them.
I am talking about the tools i have been able to see and the ones described on the Updates.
- Editor to make procedural landscape/dugeons, and adding objects dynamically to the maps.
- Framework to make npc dialogues, activities or behaviors.
- Framework to make layering outfits.
- Tool to make "Smart" assets that makes possible for the AI perceive and knows how to use em.
- Tool to make dynamic music.
- Dynamic changes on player and NPC appearance and clothing.
- Dynamic Lighting.
- Dynamic climate.
- Dynamic pathfinding.
I understand that for the ones that just want to play the game, the stuff above doesn't tell much to them. But thanks my little experience on making games can realize you are pushing many boundaries here... as an example that i haven't seem mentioned, but that it's quite an achievement: i doubt no one have been able to make dynamic pathfinding before on an open sandbox...?
As a newbie game programer my sincere respects to Madoc for all this. I can see why you are taking the approach of make this powerful tools and framework first: you save a lot of manpower, time and resources, because yours is limited. It perfectly makes sense. People wanting to see result NOW may be growing impatient, but approaching this project with with modularity in mind will also make it quickly scalable with little effort from now on, and will make possible to expand the game with no issues for many many years.
But not only that. This approach open the path for huge modding possibilities... if the team considers releasing said tools at some point.
Personally, over the last years i have choose only playing games that support mods or really open environments that allow some sort of inworld building. It's a requisite for me, because what i value the most about a game i will possibility like is re-playability, and being able to customize it to my tastes. I am not a gamer, playing 20 games each month is not my thing. I rather prefer to find one that i really like and explore and exploit all its possibilities. And again, possibilities is what i see on this game, even if modding is not confirmed i just can see the potential for it.
On few days i have seen on the forum a lot of feedback and suggestion, ideas that would fit the game perfectly, and i believe it's a natural on a game like this, it's so open that i bet it make imagination run wild everybody with their own concepts, or at least their own little thing or little tweak that would make the game perfect for them. Unluckily it's not possible to make it all this into the official game... But i cannot help but wonder what community would do if they had some tools, even limited, to bring some of those sparks to life. I really like to just think about it.
"We will do whatever we can to make this possible but we're not yet comfortable with promising a complete modding solution. Some of the more advanced features currently require significant technical knowledge and providing a broad user friendly experience could prove challenging. Please consider that our resources are limited."
I totally understand the said on the FAQs. The game have been already postponed, and priorities should be respected in order to make this possible sooner rather that later. Still, i think it would be such a waste not to make the most of what have been done already, that is something really impressive and make possible to add custom armors, custom music, custom lands, custom NPCs, custom quest, custom items with custom properties.... And when the game is out and the pressure is less maybe talk about what else would be possible to add. If you ask me, for me it would be plugins with more realistic game mechanics. I know that's the harder part, but that's what i would like to see someday on Sui Generis: a extremely realistic medieval fantasy sandbox.
Have a good day guys, and keep the good work devs
