Planescape: Torment - MCA on what a spiritual successor would look like

Originally Posted by joxer
So it'd be Chris Avellone's no-endless-mobrespawn-grinding game. Name me one person who wouldn't support that. Diablo 3 team wouldn't support it, okay, you got me there.

Here I am and please, say something else apart from mobrespawn or not. It's becoming really annoying…

Originally Posted by Nameless one
Well D&D licence cost and since this will be kickstarter project it will already be on tight budget.Also I am pretty sure he's been planing this for some time and he will have at least some part of work done before kickstarter campaign begins(which is also not going to happen that soon).

I understand the economic argument but I don't agree to the conclusion. In that case I'd say RIP and use the creativity to develop something new or bring back some qualities of their former games in a new product. They should not try to copy their own work.

Originally Posted by Avantenor
I understand the economic argument but I don't agree to the conclusion. In that case I'd say RIP and use the creativity to develop something new or bring back some qualities of their former games in a new product. They should not try to copy their own work.

I didn't make my point clear.I agree with what you said they should make new universe with no restrains.When I said "he will have at least some part of work done"I meant he will have part of story,lore etc. for new universe done so we don't have to wait for 1.5-2 years after kickstarter.Maybe I am just too optimistic but I really want this project to go well.

Originally Posted by syllogz
I don't see why a spiritual successor has to be fantasy, it could easily be sci-fi.

Yeah, or "space fantasy", cyberpunk or a contemporary setting with some supernatural elements.
Sequel would obviously need to be in the same setting, but not a spiritual successor.
From a spiritual successor perspective, manner in which a setting is utilized is more important than nature of a setting itself.
There are quite a few characteristics that define Torment and I donīt think a spiritual successor needs to adhere to all of them to be considered as such.
This

5) A mechanic similar to "remembrance" in the original game – this metaphysical interpretation of your immortality and amnesia is something that can be explored in a number of ways depending on the game premise.

actually, at least without further elaboration, sounds like crossing a line between a spiritual successor and a rehash to me.

Anyway, in quite a lot of ways, to me Mask of the Betrayer and KotOR 2 were already spiritual successors to Torment and personally Iīd prefer this kind of "spiritual successing" from Obsidian/Avellone.

One of the benefits of Planescape: Torment, and indeed the Baldur's gate and Icewind Dale series, was the lack of a need to maintain camera positioning. Yes you definitely need that for first-person shooters, but I think that in a more role-play, multi-character oriented game it diminishes the "suspension of disbelief" effect that you get with a good book or movie. So it's great that some of these game designers are still willing to look at that approach. Still… it would be nice to be able to quickly and easily rotate the display in fixed intervals; maybe 60 or 90 degrees.

Bah. The adjective "spiritual-successor" for me is void of positive value. Bioshock was advertised as the spiritual successor to System Shock 2. Not even close. Spiritual successor are weasel words.