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Mass Effect Has Gone Gold
BioWare's sci-fi RPG epic Mass Effect has now 'gone gold'. Essentially, the game is done and is ready to be pressed onto discs in time for its November 20th launch date. "The Limited Collector's Edition of Mass Effect will include a wealth of background on the game. Foremost among the premium package's offerings is a pair of 36-page booklets, one of which offers a primer on the game's universe and timeline, and the other a collection of concept artwork. The set will also include a bonus DVD with documentaries on the making of the game, a look inside BioWare, 18 Xbox Live gamer pics, 16 dashboard themes, 10 songs from the soundtrack, and 600 concept images with commentary from the game's art directors. [Z: But sites have noted it is only available for purchase online.] On top of that, gamers who preorder ... will receive a bonus disc with an introductory documentary on the game, a dozen gamer pics, eight dashboard themes, three songs from the soundtrack, and various trailers."
Quite possibly the last great BioWare game we'll see devoid of EA's vile corruption.
How many times do you need to be told, troll? Quality of an RPG is independant of both the graphics engine and the marketing effort put into it. All this time you've spent trying (and failing) to criticize Mass Effect and not once have you said anything about the plot, game mechanics, or in fact pretty much anything that matters. Probably because you know you don't have anything to say about them that could further whatever stupid little fanboy agenda you have.
I typically don't like Sci-Fi themed RPG's.
AK-47 or Rocket Canon just to do it for me like Holy Sword of Whoop Ass does in traditional setting RPG's. I just prefer pieces that have lore. Gauntlets of Mighty Strength were forged deep in a mine by some special dwarf. The +3 Str Implant just seems meaningless.
KotOR worked for me because the force was enough of a cross-over (and I'm not a SW fan by any means) to bring in the "magic".
But, if there's one company I trust to do it in a manner that's worth playing, it's them. It's #2 on my gamefly list right after Assasians Creed, and only because the order they'll be released in.
I'd personally love to see them port the game to PC, a la KOTOR. I think they're really limiting their market by releasing only for the 360..
MS is still publishing Mass Effect. It's not going to any other platforms any time soon, and it's far to early for EA to have had any influence on development whatsoever. It's the upcoming Mass Effect 2 you should be worried about.
Nothing prevents a gun from having the same lore as magical swords. Just think to real life: Saddam Hussein's rifle, Hitler's pistol, etc. etc. There's no magic in reality, but the story behind these objects is certainly very interesting!
There is no reason you can't have sci-fi with the same kind of lore behind objects. [Heck, even in KOTOR 1 and 2 - the Ebon Hawk had it's story built up, and that history stuck around for the second game.]
And yet in KotOR until you got the force, most of the items were just drab. It's just harder to do I suppose, since most games just don't do it. The implants were just implants. The guns were, for the most part, just guns. The crystals and other augments for the lightsabers were certainly more interesting. And my experience in the Fallout series is similar. There's a few items you get that really make you go "wow", but not many. Plus, you'd have to explain why Hitler's P-32 space modulator is better then any other space modulator.
"Sci-Fi themed RPG's"
the only few that exist are all critically acclaimed and have won multiple awards across multiple categories.
If the idea of another doesn't pique your curiosity, then you're nowhere near the demographic that they're targeting so I'd suggest going to hello kitty online adventures for your gaming instead. You can thank me later.
If you can read this, I forgot to post anonymously.
I like Sci-Fi RPGs more than fantasy ones because of the settings. Though I prefer cyberpunk over everything. There are a few good sci-fi RPGs out there, but I think people like sci-fi less is because we, as players, ask a lot more questions while playing them and often don't find the answers.
For example: If a Mage casts a magic fireball against the goblin. That's it. We know it's magic and it made that enemy dead somehow. How? Who gives a damn -- it's MAGIC! However, if a techno-wizard using a Mako THX1138 Mag Rail Rifle to kill a cyber-enhanced stim junky, then we ask: "Well, how is that rifle powered? Who made it? What sort of round blew a hole six inches wide in that guy? What purpose does that piece of cybernetic hardware that's on his crotch have?" ect.
That's where the line for good sci-fi and bad sci-fi is drawn. A good sci-fi game (or otherwise) would explain just about everything. A bad sci-fi game (or otherwise) wouldn't bother. Not to leave it up to the player's imagination, though sometimes that is the case, they are just being lazy. Kind of like this post, because I didn't explain anything about the Mako THX1138 Mag Rail Rifle or what the cybernetically enhanced crotch is for.
Yeah, +3 Str Implant would seem meaningless compared to +5 Gauntlets of Unrelenting Manliness but Longsword +2 seems rather crap compared to the Mako manufactured THX1183 Mag Rail Rifle, wouldn't you agree?
the only few that exist are all critically acclaimed and have won multiple awards across multiple categories.
False. The few you know probably are. There are several flops. And there's a reason the genre isn't approached as often as fantasy, or without a fantasy-hybrid.
If the idea of another doesn't pique your curiosity
Great point. Only, you obviously didn't notice a few things. One, I posted in a topic about it. Two, I mentioned it's #2 on my gamefly list. Three, I mentioned my faith in the developers.
then you're nowhere near the demographic
What demographic is that? You? I don't think you speak for their target demographics. From my research on the title, they are targeting a wide range audience. This can be ascertained by developer comments on their official forums such as their adjustment of the combat and controls to appeal to a wide range of console players. You knew that before you decided to open up your smart ass mouth, right?
so I'd suggest going to hello kitty online adventures for your gaming instead.
Why? Because you're an idiot that has trouble with reading comprehension?
You can thank me later.
Thanks...
Yeah, +3 Str Implant would seem meaningless compared to +5 Gauntlets of Unrelenting Manliness but Longsword +2 seems rather crap compared to the Mako manufactured THX1183 Mag Rail Rifle, wouldn't you agree?
Yes, I would. But I find that most games that aren't traditional D&D RPG's shy away from the +1's in a fantasy setting. It's just so easy to throw a few adjectives on a weapon or a piece of armor and make it "magic". And even the few traditional D&D CRPG's usually get away from the +1 and +2 stuff as a "name" mid-way through the game. And you end up "looting" stuff from a dragon with nice names with some lore. I can certainly be done in sci-fi, but as I said in a different post, and as you allude to, I think it's just harder for developers to make meaningful lore in a sci-fi setting, so they often skimp on it.
When we're talking imaginary technology like spaceships or magic floating skyships, there's more room for imagination but I think things should still make an internally self-consistent sense. I loved watching the "making of" segments from Lord of the Rings where they showed how they didn't just spank it together and call it a day, they really looked into how such imaginary creatures would work biologically and tried to carry through from that point. They modeled the stress on the freaking bones in the Oliphants to make sure they collided and collapsed properly! That's class work right there.
But what you were saying about the underpinnings of magic, it depends on the kind of magic system you're talking about. If magic operates according to experimentally verifiable laws, it becomes a science that can be studied and applied. But if magic operates under terms of utter illogic and defies scientific exploration, it becomes the realm of the gifted and mad. A man of science will not disagree with you that a fireball just shot from that mage's hand and incinerated a goblin but he'd be somewhat indignant that it even happened at all since he's at a loss to explain it.
Kwisatz Haderach
Sell the spice to CHOAM
This Mahdi took Shaddam's Throne
"going gold" refers to the "gold master" CD/DVD being burned in preparation for mass duplication. Zonk's usage is perfectly fine in this context.
What do kids say these days? Oh, yes: PWNED!
Thank you for updating me on the release dates your favorite games Zonk. Be sure to let me know when all the other exclusive titles go "Gold", such as Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, Ratchet and Clank, Haze... oh wait, wrong system.
Slashdot: Blurring the line between advertisement and news.
How much did Microsoft pay for this piece?
Actually, I think you'll find that Zonk's usage is correct, and yours "wreaks of misinformation". 'Gone Gold', in terms of software, means the product has reached its final or release build, and is about to enter into manufacture. It has nothing to do with sales. A quick google of the term will tell you so.
For example : in many medieval RPGs, the entire "world" eventually rests on the shoulders of a small group of heroes often times led by a teenager. Thats STUPID. These RPGs don't even attempt to convince the audience that there is some reason/some context why they are the ones to eventually save the world (gimme a prophesy, a character with military background, an army to lead, not some 16 year old punk who looks like he just came from rock band/church choir practice).
In comparison : in many sci-fi RPGs, the "hero" is often times ex-military usually with off screen support/aid that can be heard but simply not seen/encountered, like in System Shock 2 (heck even Doom 3 had this). The objectives are often times more roundabout means of attacking the "final boss" too, like plant explosives here or destroy the power plant there which make far more sense than having the player run around the world gathering magical ingredients. Its not perfect, but its far more logical.
No PC, no buy. Thank you.
"Sometimes a woman is a kind of religion, she can save your soul & set you free from all your sins" - Bad Examples
What you say is true for albums. Not a movie/album/game. "Gold record" (and platinum) in your context is a term specific to the audio recording industry. In the context of games, this is correct.
"People who do stupid things with hazardous materials often die." -- Jim Davidson on alt.folklore.urban
The issue with Star Wars games (And I LOVE KotOR and even KotOR2) is that Star Wars has fantasy elements. Magic. Swords. You use your mental powers to help forge a sword that defines who you are using magical stones you seek out. It's Sci Fi with Fantasy and lore. And, IMO, KotOR had everything that I like from fantasy RPGs combined with the Sci-Fi setting that I prefer.
Not a Twitter sockpuppet... but I wish I was.
I was responding to your first line, really. "I typically don't like Sci-Fi themed RPG's."
Can you name for me, all those flops you're thinking of?
I bet they're all MMO's.
I can think of Fallout 1 & 2, the KOTOR series, System Shock and sequel, Anarchy Online, Tabula Rasa, Shadowrun, and many others and don't know a single sci-fi themed RPG that doesn't make the cut of great games. The "demographic" I was speaking of was the long list of people who loved those games and showed it. There are plenty of people who don't like those games. They don't play them. Nor do they ever say "I typically don't like Sci-Fi themed RPG's."
Maybe I'm just an uncultured youngun, I suppose, but I can't help but notice your username is quite appropriate.
If you can read this, I forgot to post anonymously.
Also, the difference between an AK-47 and swords is that swords have more of a history and they come from a time when stories were the way to get information out; to a bronze age civilization, a steel sword seems magical. To us, the difference between an AK-47 and an M80 is purely technical. If there's a company out there that can change the differences between two pieces of equipment from a purely technical exercise into one of backstory, it's Bioware.
...and your usage of the verb "wreak" reeks of ignorance.
I take it you haven't heard about "going gold" in software industry. Here's some information about the subject from Wikipedia.
Then you MUST play Xenosaga, force your way through the boring parts and just follow the story for all three, and you will be amazed. It's probably one of the best Sci-fi RPG's I have EVER played.
You, sir, are both a fucktard and a cock-knuckle in the utmost of duplicities!!!!
/. to ever make me want to punch them !!(and there have been many a valid reason previous to yours - yet the urge never struck)
FFS, learn your shit. I dont know why, but you are the first commenter on
Once again,
Go defacate in your mothers anus you sick, vile, putrid shell of a human being.
(wow, I really dont know why this guy is upsetting me so much)
How, exactly, did this get posted here? I understand that everyone's looking forward to Mass Effect -- I am, too, in fact -- but the game going gold is not news. Back in The Day, games being burned to a gold master disc was news because no developer worth their salt would give a specific release date for a game, thus the announcement that the game had gone gold meant that its release was nigh. Think of all the id games with the nebulous release date of "when it's done." Those were games where it made sense to make a big deal of the game going gold.
Mass Effect, however, has had a specific release date (11/20/2007) for some time now. Telling us that it has gone gold is just confirming that it's on track for the given release date. This is not news. This is the status quo. News would be if the game was delayed. News would be if Duke Nukem ForNever were announced to have gone gold. Telling us that Mass Effect has gone gold is roughly equivalent to telling us that the sky is still blue or the PS3 is still in third place.
"Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read." -- Groucho Marx
Yeah, I don't know why I upset you either. Yes, it seems I was incorrect, and thought that the sales reference refered to any kind of hard media, but why would that piss you off so much?
And good grief, my post wasn't flamebait, it just seemed that I was incorrect... there's a huge difference. I appologize to anyone whose day was ruined by my two sentances.
And here I'm one of the few who usually values Zonk's threads... but I was incorrect about his word usage here.
Multiplayer Gaming (defined): Sitting around, discussing single-player games with my friends, at the bar.
Just what gamers need.
Yawn,,,