Wizardry 8 - Night Dive Studios Trailer

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Night Dive Studios has released a new trailer for the recently released Wizardry 8 on Steam.



A New Wizardry for a New Generation

The universe is in the throes of violent upheaval and change. Vast and mysterious forces are preparing for the final confrontation. A small group of heroes from distant lands must plunge into the heart of the maelstrom, to uncover long-forgotten secrets, and bring about a new era. Should they succeed, they will gain the powers of the gods themselves. If they fail, countless worlds will fall into the grip of darkness.

Wizardry 8 raises the standard for fantasy role-playing with a vengeance. Prepare yourself for a new level of excitement, immersiveness and depth that made role-playing games one of the best-selling, best-loved genres of all time.

Prepare to experience the culmination of a prestigious RPG series. Enter a vast world of intrigue and wonder. Unravel a gripping, non-linear storyline. Battle your way to victory using your swords, your magic, and your wits. Compete with rivals or align with allies as you struggle to ascend to the Cosmic Circle. Take the battle to the dreaded Dark Savant in Wizardry 8, the phenomenal conclusion to the Dark Savant trilogy, one of the most extensive and challenging stories ever told in classic role-playing games!
More information.
 
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Why oh why can't we have a new one! And no, I love M&M but it ain't the same.
 
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I wonder how the IP ended up. Japanese companies are making some of Wizardry franchises but they tend to be focused on the gameplay of earlier versions. The only catch would have been the anime art style since the mechanic seems to have been decent...well, till the plague called online milking scheme finally caught it.
 
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I'm still trying to figure out who Night Dive Studios are and how they're suddenly connected to Wizardry 8. Also, is this version identical to the original release?
 
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I'm still trying to figure out who Night Dive Studios are and how they're suddenly connected to Wizardry 8. Also, is this version identical to the original release?
After a close look, I don't see anything "non-standard" in the clip beyond the studio's ID at the beginning. My best guess is that perhaps we finally have an answer to who the heck owns the IP now. The Japanese releases that Dusk mentions were done on a special license separate from the main franchise.
 
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I really tried to like Wizardry 8, but the random battles took so long,especially outdoors when you had to wait for all of that movement. Other then that, I thought the game was good. Is anyone aware of a mod that addresses that issue?
 
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I really tried to like Wizardry 8, but the random battles took so long,especially outdoors when you had to wait for all of that movement. Other then that, I thought the game was good. Is anyone aware of a mod that addresses that issue?
Wizfast. Even for a diehard Wiz8 fanboi such as myself, that's a must-have utility. Cranks up those slow monster animations so combat doesn't drag. Available in numerous places. Extremely simple to install and use. The Watch used to host it, but I don't know if we still do.
 
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This is a difficult question. The IP was illegally sold from Sir-Tech to Sir-Tech Canada for an estimated 50 000k just before Sir-Tech went bankrupt. It was then caught up in a lawsuit for over a decade by the actual owners, Robert Woodhead and Andrew Greenberg. When Wizardry 8 was released Werdna and Trebor managed to successfully sue in the State of New York because they sold many copies there. They received about 39k of the 50k in escrow from the bankruptcy judge rather than the $150k they asked for.

What I don't understand is where they came up with the number "as experts" as the judge said they represented themselves instead of using the sales figures for the game.

The other thing is, since the ownership of the name of the name belonged to them (it was licensed from them. Sir-Tech did not own it. It was one of the earliest PC games ever made and copyright law was still questionable so the way companies were going to market games was still in flux), why did they agree to take the cash? By doing this did they not sign over their rights to Wizardry?

Since the Japanese Wizardry's were around since the NES the agreement goes way back. Since this company has been allowed to make a trailor and Steam has re-published the game the ownership seems to me to be either inactive Currie lead Sir-Tech Canada, or whomever they sold/licensed it to. At least for the NA version
 
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I could only say it's quite confusing, even just by looking at the simple fact that Steam versions are sold under the name of Night Dive Studios while GOG versions are done so under the name of Gamepot, a Japanese company which manages Wizardry Online and that both of them can be bought from US, at least, currently. I don' think I've seen anything like this.
 
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Wizardy 8 has the best tactical combats I have seen in a first person party-based RPG. Much more complex than M&M series. But as mentioned above, wizfast is a must. Without that little savior program crowded battles can easily take 1 hour. Also it features many races, clases and skills, so allows for very different character builds and playstyle. Although I loathe monster respawning, the respawning system that is used in W8 never bothers me. I think it’s due to this tactical options. Leveling system is a combination of classic experience points plus skill improvments with use (like Elder Scroll games). Plus with free-roaming and a decent, epic story make this game an all time classic (at least for me). I recommend GOG version to those who want to play this semi-forgotten gem instead of Steam. At least it’s DRM free.

Although I appreciate re-releasing the game for popular gaming platforms, seeing Night Dive Studios’ logo on the trailer seems a bit blasphemy to me. Like beating the dead body. I hope their attempt won’t stay with re-releasing W8 and they would develop a Wizardy 9 in the future. I don’t know who holds the license to what extend for future Wizardy games (I think some Japanese company); but if I were them I would acquire the license, gather experienced RPG developers, make an agreement with D.W.Bradley (although I’m sure not many agree with me about that) from W6,W7 and W&W fame, also start a decent Kickstarter project for that. That would be awesome.
 
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In case it needs to be said, Sir-tech also developed Jagged Alliance 2. I remember reading on their website back around the turn of the century that they were forced to drop out of the games industry for lack of publisher interest, which is a damned disgrace.
 
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If I were a multimillionaire I would give Linda and Ian Currie 10 million each to make Wizardry 9 and JA 3. :gorath:
 
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If I were a multimillionaire I would give Linda and Ian Currie 10 million each to make Wizardry 9 and JA 3. :gorath:

Keep in mind that Woodhead and Greenberg didn't get a darn thing from them or the Sirotek brothers. They had to get what was left the court had to give from the remnants of the old company.
 
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