RPGWatch 2008 Game of the Year - Most Promising RPG [Archive]

Myrthos

January 12th, 2009, 13:10

As part of our Game of the Year election you also got to answer the question of the RPG that is a must have for you in 2009. This time the Editors' Choice is different from the choice of our visitors. Read it all here (http://www.rpgwatch.com/show/article?articleid=107).
The most promising MMORPGs can be found on our sister site MMOWatch (http://mmo.rpgwatch.com/show/article?articleid=108).
More information. (http://www.rpgwatch.com/show/newsbit?newsbit=11125)

Prime Junta

January 12th, 2009, 13:10

Editors, what were you thinking? AoD didn't even rate a mention from you? Shame!

vanedor

January 12th, 2009, 14:09

At least, it looks like a more promising year than 2008.

Bartacus

January 12th, 2009, 14:38

Editors, what were you thinking? AoD didn't even rate a mention from you? Shame!

Why shame? I never even heard of the game, so it isn't even remotely promissing to me. I want Risen

woges

January 12th, 2009, 14:41

Editors, what were you thinking? AoD didn't even rate a mention from you? Shame!

It's on my list but I had a load of games for this year so hopefully it'll be a better year for RPGs but don't quote me on that.

Prime Junta

January 12th, 2009, 15:07

Why shame? I never even heard of the game, so it isn't even remotely promissing to me. I want Risen

Where have you been? It's high time you found out, then.

Maylander

January 12th, 2009, 15:19

Wow, I missed the whole voting. I blame the holiday.

Anyway, I would've voted Risen, with Dragon Age as runner up, and Alpha Protocol 3rd. Looks like a good year for RPGs.

rune_74

January 12th, 2009, 15:27

Whart bizarre results....note sure of how high AoD placed....but I can understand dragon age.

VDweller

January 12th, 2009, 15:31

Thanks, guys. We'll try not to disappoint you.

GothicGothicness

January 12th, 2009, 15:36

I am surprised Eschalon book 2 did not get more votes even if book 1 was the indie RPG of the year 2007.

Divinity 2 is the only game I tried on that list, let us hope it will satisfy the editors high expectations.

Foss

January 12th, 2009, 15:54

Nice list.
Think the top 3 are the ones I am looking forward to aswell + Alpha Protocol.
Risen and Divinity 2 might sneak onto me in the future but now I don't know much about them.
But looking at this list, if all those games come out in 2009, it might be one of the better RPG years in a long time, assuming they live up to expectations.

JemyM

January 12th, 2009, 16:30

Have anyone seen a release date for an English version of Not the time for dragons?

magerette

January 12th, 2009, 16:38

Editors, what were you thinking? AoD didn't even rate a mention from you? Shame!

Several editors did vote for AOD, but we have a very small staff, and only the top three picks from each were considered in the way Myrthos figured it up, I think. I think we're all looking forward to the game, nonetheless.

Kostaz

January 12th, 2009, 17:03

My list would be
1)Risen
2)Dragon Age
3)Diablo 3
Thank you guys for giving credits to Risen,It seems tha 2009 will be a very good year for RPGs.

DArtagnan

January 12th, 2009, 17:55

Hmm, well, "most" promising is a strange concept as it seems to carry some implicit knowledge or at least sense of what the games will be like. None of the games mentioned stand out as obviously more promising - so I'm thinking they could all be great games.

If we're talking potential, then I think the one that COULD turn out to be the best of the bunch is the Alien CRPG from Obsidian. I've been dying for a decent game set in that world for a LONG time, and a CRPG is just icing on the cake.

Dragon Age died to me when it was announced as singleplayer only, as I'm not really too excited about yet another fantasy solo game. I don't expect much from Bioware these days, especially not after playing Jade Empire and Mass Effect.

Diablo 3 will most likely be a very good hack and slash game, but after the core of Blizzard North left - I'm not convinced it will be a true Diablo game.

Risen is probably my second on the list.

Beyond that, I don't immediate recall anything too exciting coming up. Darkfall, perhaps, but that's an MMO.

Myrthos

January 12th, 2009, 17:59

Darkfall is also (http://mmo.rpgwatch.com/show/article?articleid=108&ref=2&id=167) a most promising game

kalniel

January 12th, 2009, 19:33

I still can't believe people think Diablo III will come out this year..

woges

January 12th, 2009, 20:23

I still can't believe people think Diablo III will come out this year..

About 0.0001% but it'll drop eventually.

Dhruin

January 12th, 2009, 21:39

Yeah, I'd have liked AoD to show up on our list but there are only so many voting slots.

The RPGWatch team has a strong interest in Larian Studios...to pick one example, Thomas Lenzen who worked on the story scripting and localisation used to be an RPGDot editor. I loved DD and I think they are doing some interesting stuff with Divinity 2. So, there's one.

Gothic II + NotR is in my top 3 games ever...so there's a vote. Dragon Age looks intriguing. I've followed David Gaider's comments on the forums for a long time.

But I'm really glad AoD got a strong reader vote and it only narrowly missed my vote.

quasimodo

January 12th, 2009, 21:46

From what I have read on the various developer's sites AOD certainly sounds the most like what I want from an RPG. Whether or not they can deliver of course remains to be seen.

r3dshift

January 12th, 2009, 21:49

It's amusing how Diablo 3 grabbed the top spots, regardless that it surely won't be released this year. In fact, we'll be lucky if it sees the light of day in 2010...

Notorious

January 12th, 2009, 23:27

I'm waiting for Puzzle Quest Galactrix and Divity 2. I love Divine Divinity, even though I still haven't finished it. I play in to bursts of a week or so, then forget it for half a year. I doubt Diablo 3 will come this year.

Corwin

January 13th, 2009, 02:47

The problem with AoD for me, is you can't play as a mage. Any game which doesn't permit that gets placed behind games which do when I rank which games I intend to buy. I may still buy AoD if it gets a good review from people I trust ( say Mike here at the Watch), but it's not yet on my MUST have list.

txa1265

January 13th, 2009, 04:05

Editors, what were you thinking? AoD didn't even rate a mention from you? Shame!

It was my #5 ... which isn't bad given my love of the top 3 and how I gave Eschalon Book I my indie RPG of the year last year.

Alrik Fassbauer

January 13th, 2009, 16:07

What was AOD ?

Myrthos

January 13th, 2009, 18:17

Age of Decadence (http://www.rpgwatch.com/show/reference?ref=0&id=2)

Superguest

January 13th, 2009, 18:38

DArtagnan

January 13th, 2009, 19:33

Well, AoD is very promising in a literal sense. The developers are very open and have given countless examples of gameplay, writing and graphics. Features are discussed on their public forums. So I would say AoD is the most promising game because it promises alot.

I hope Risen will be a great game, but I hardly know anything about it, so I can't consider it very promising.

All the games mentioned promise a lot. In nearly 30 years of gaming, I've heard developers make MANY promises and to me that's just hype. No, I need more insight before I'd be able to recognize one over the other.

So for me, personally, I look at the potential and that's where the Alien CRPG stands out. That's just because I'm a huge fan of sci-fi RPGs and the Alien franchise/settting in particular. The first two films are - to me - absolute masterpieces and the universe remains largely untapped. So much potential and so few examples of it being done right. AvP2 is the only game I'd call really good since Aliens from the mid-eighties on the C64.

Alrik Fassbauer

January 13th, 2009, 19:52

@Myrthos: Thanks.

I've got a bad memory for names.

Polyester

January 13th, 2009, 21:37

The Alien RPG sounds allright, but there is hardly any info on the game yet, is there? Though it might come out before Diablo III :)

Most promising games in 2009 for me would be Age of Decadence, Geneforge 5 (I know it's the same old same old, but it's going to be like an end of an era for me, if I muster my strenght to finish IV before hand, not to mention it gets a merit with the possibilities of a new project) and the I2 projects (Galactrix, Deathbringer, etc). I know I'm missing out the big name titles, but since in the last couple of years I've felt quite disappointed by the likes of them, I'll be aproaching them with zero expectations this time round. Though Divinity 2 and Risen do sound good. Dragon Age I gave up on the second I heard about the console versions (something that Bio were quite adamant before the EA buyout that would not be done) and the title (DA Origins it sounds like the pilot episode for a TV series, and while I'm allright with both pilots and series, I hate it when I get a felling that I'm not getting a complete product. I'm perfectly fine with sequels as long as I don't get the message TO BE CONTINUED in my face straight from the box). Diablo 3 sounds allright for the moment, but it'll probably get the Starcraft trilogy treatment.

quasimodo

January 13th, 2009, 21:43

For me the "most promise" means which games I'm the most sure I will like. For me that means the indie games AOD and EB2. Games from the big name companies are pretty much a roller coaster ride for me, for every feature I love there is something I hate. The last game I played that had everything headed in the right direction was EB1. (Don't get me wrong, a lot of things in EB1 could use some work, but nothing needed to be thrown out and redone from scratch which is more than I can say for any AAA title I have played in the last 5 years.)

rbtroj

January 14th, 2009, 01:45

I know the time to answer this was when the poll ran, but I was apparently unconscious for that poll and the 2008 goty.

If "most promising" means most likely to sell big, then I gotta go with Diablo 3 (if it ships in 2009). However, the ones I'm most looking forward to (from the list here) are: Dragon Age, AoD, Alpha Protocol, and, well, Diablo 3 by default (no matter what decade it drops in). I've only just discovered Risen (again, apparently I've been in a coma or something), and I am definitely intrigued.

Corwin

January 14th, 2009, 02:02

Actually, depending on definition the Ultima 6 Project Archon has already displayed sufficient material to be at the very least highly promising. Entire new lands (for the gargoyles) have recently been created and are currently undergoing testing. This will be a massive re-creation with considerable new content (that was not found in the original), so make sure you still have a copy of Dungeon Siege (it's available in bins for $5) as the game itself will be FREE!!

JDR13

January 14th, 2009, 09:10

Alien RPG? I didn't even know that was in development.

Any links?

curious

January 14th, 2009, 09:20

links to what? if you want screenshots or other media you're out of luck unfortunately. there is very little known about the game even though it's been known of for i think over a year now.

Dhruin

January 14th, 2009, 10:37

Alien RPG? I didn't even know that was in development.

Any links?

Our database. ;)

http://www.rpgwatch.com/show/reference?ref=0&id=245

txa1265

January 14th, 2009, 11:34

Our database. ;)

http://www.rpgwatch.com/show/reference?ref=0&id=245

Yeah, as said, not much real news yet ... didn't realize it was '06 when it announced.

Maylander

January 14th, 2009, 15:26

I doubt we'll see Alien this year. Alpha Protocol is obviously Obsidians big release in 2009, and then we'll start to hear things about Aliens.

woges

January 14th, 2009, 16:19

Josh Sawyer is the Lead for the Alien RPG which, I presume, is the reason why we haven't seen any updates for The Black Hound mod he started.

Polyester

January 14th, 2009, 22:54

Yeah, that in itself is pretty meh, The Black Hound mod I was actually looking forward to. In a way.

Asbjoern

January 14th, 2009, 23:00

I thought The Black Hound was generally considered vaporware? I've always done so, even before the Aliens RPG was announced.

buckaroobonzai

January 15th, 2009, 20:14

Have anyone seen a release date for an English version of Not the time for dragons?

If you go to the RPG watch database page for the game, and click to the publisher site page for Not a Timefor Dragons, it has a English release date of October 08. I emailed thepublisher about any news on the English version for the game, still waiting to hear. The Russian version is out I believe.

Krzychu

January 15th, 2009, 21:47

I voted Risen, naturally...

JDR13

January 15th, 2009, 22:42

I voted Risen, naturally...

I have high expectations for Risen. I hope we get to see it in 2009.

wolfing

January 15th, 2009, 23:08

*snip*
Dragon Age died to me when it was announced as singleplayer only, as I'm not really too excited about yet another fantasy solo game. I don't expect much from Bioware these days, especially not after playing Jade Empire and Mass Effect.

Funny that you mention that, that's one of the reasons that got me interested in the game. If I want multiplayer I'll go play Guild Wars, WoW, EQ2, Vanguard, LotRO, D&DO, City of Heroes, etc. etc. etc. What we need is more single player RPGs.

DArtagnan

January 16th, 2009, 09:52

Funny that you mention that, that's one of the reasons that got me interested in the game. If I want multiplayer I'll go play Guild Wars, WoW, EQ2, Vanguard, LotRO, D&DO, City of Heroes, etc. etc. etc. What we need is more single player RPGs.

MMOs don't appeal to me anymore. I want games that actually end, and I want deep dynamic CRPGs that I can enjoy with friends.

I don't have an alternative, really.

Starwars

January 16th, 2009, 13:20

For people interested in the Black Hound, JE Sawyer has a pretty newly started blog going: http://the-black-hound.com/blog/

Maylander

January 16th, 2009, 13:57

Excellent! This is great news indeed. Things are looking good; he's still making progress, and now he's using the Overland Map in addition to all the old tools of NWN2. With the writing being based on the old Black Hound project, this mod might just turn out to be a very, very good experience for NWN2 fans.