RPGWatch Feature: Venetica Preview

Next in Myrthos' roundup of GamesCom is a look at Venetica - Deck 13's first RPG, which is set in an alternative Venice. Here's a snip:

The city of Venice in the game is not an exact copy of the Venice we know. It is not even a copy of Venice in the 16th century. It does, however, look like Venice and some parts could look familiar if you've been to Venice before.
In Venice you have different ways of traveling. You can walk the streets, the rooftops and enter any building that has a door, you can take a gondola to travel via the canals and you can swim in the canals to enter some areas that can only be reached by swimming to them and you can crawl the dungeons underneath Venice. There are also different areas like the harbor, inner Venice and outer Venice and you even have the opportunity to go to Africa. You have to unlock these areas but once you've done that, you can go anywhere you want.

Read it all here.
More information.

If it wasn't for this site I would of given this game a pass thinking it was another type of adventure game from Deck 13. I stopped playing adventure games when the original Sierra got out of the biz.

So far from what's been said about it and this preview it sounds like a fun game. I may be wrong but I get a Beyond Good and Evil vibe from this preview. I loved that fun little game. It seems like sorta a mix between BG&E with Kult: Heretic Kingdom (the whole phasing in and out of another plane of existance).

I'm looking foreward to this one.

Thanks for the preview Myrthos. The actual reviews shouldn't be too far either and I hope
one of our German friends gives it a go and tells us what he thinks (its supposed to be
out any day now I think).

I like what I am hearing, its different and if it was just a mite less RPGLite (and a tiny
bit less "cute" in the Art direction which is otherwise very good from what I can see)
I'd be jumping up and Down for it to come out already. It still has the potential to be great imo…

I love the rooftop thingy btw (I miss the thief series dearly).

mmm it never interested me much, but after reading this it looks like a fun game and if it is done good, it might be as good as the Blood Omen series? or atleast just as fun

Thanks.
The German Reviews should be out this week.
The games coming out September 4th.

Well, I anxiously await the reviews - this looks like a nice and fun little game. Not expecting greatness, but hoping for some fun - oh, and an English release …

I'd like to hear your opinion on a question that's comming to my mine every time I see a sexy chick in a heroic-action role like this one.

Does the game sell more copies when the protagonist is a sexy girl and there is no choice to choose between male and female character?

I was just wondering…

Originally Posted by Glorian
I'd like to hear your opinion on a question that's comming to my mine every time I see a sexy chick in a heroic-action role like this one.

Does the game sell more copies when the protagonist is a sexy girl and there is no choice to choose between male and female character?

I was just wondering…

I actually think that the reverse is true - since most non-casual gamers are male, and those buying the most new games are the typical 18-34 single males, they like eye-candy (boobs, bombs, etc) but don't want to *be* eye-candy as it messes with their macho transference systems … well, at least that all fits the typical console action/shooter gamer

Regardless, having a female-only lead is a bigger risk than a male-only lead like so many games

Originally Posted by txa1265
Regardless, having a female-only lead is a bigger risk than a male-only lead like so many games

Exactly and I am wondering what makes the devs choose a female-only lead in their game since it is obviously riskier for their business? Unless we have old news and the majority of the casual gamers now a days consists of pretty sexy little girls

Originally Posted by Glorian
Exactly and I am wondering what makes the devs choose a female-only lead in their game since it is obviously riskier for their business? Unless we have old news and the majority of the casual gamers now a days consists of pretty sexy little girls

Heres a quote from DECK13_JAN @DTP Forums
"
'Cause females look good ) Honestly, I prefer a pretty lady running in front of the camera to some bloke… Anyway, I think what matters most is that the character suits the story and the game world, and we tried very hard to accomplish this with Scarlett. And we are very convinced regarding the results. As with e.g. Tomb Raider, the final result, when it all comes together, just needs to look good, no matter if there's a guy or a girl roaming the game world."

Originally Posted by Glorian
Does the game sell more copies when the protagonist is a sexy girl and there is no choice to choose between male and female character?

the graphics will certainly appease those who are still in kindergarten or have never gone past that state of mind, and this is supposed to sell more copies, rather than the heroine's shapely butt.
________
Harmed By Avandia

Great preview. This is sounding more promising by the day.

Originally Posted by Glorian
Exactly and I am wondering what makes the devs choose a female-only lead in their game since it is obviously riskier for their business? Unless we have old news and the majority of the casual gamers now a days consists of pretty sexy little girls

It's far more interesting to look a nice girl for 30 hours than to look at a man for the same time. At least that's my humble opinion.

Originally Posted by baron
the graphics will certainly appease those who are still in kindergarten or have never gone past that state of mind, and this is supposed to sell more copies, rather than the heroine's shapely butt.

I doubt so.

I have rather the feeling as if this was a decision made towards their art style … Just a thought.

Deck 13 has already aquired its own distinct art style, and i think, well, that Venetica fits in there quiite nicely.

Ankh also had two good-looking girls in it - with one of them being very … talented in terms of talking.

On the opposite, I regard that it is quite an prejudice to assume that gamers would rather prefer not good-looking women in games - especially as protagonists.

Me, personally, I'm kind of tired of the typical male stereotype already. Always these totally ugly, muscular looking protagonists seem to assume that there aren't any body forms available. PB would most likely not make Hobbits, for example ! What comes closest to them are the new Gnomes of Risen - which of course look ugly, too.

For my taste, this sterreotype is so much worn out nowadays, that it doesnb't fit anymore - like worn-out clothes. I don't want to see the same clichι again and again, which says: "Men have to be muscular looking, huge, and brute, meanwhile women have only one role: to be the man's sexy-looking property".

Originally Posted by Glorian
Does the game sell more copies when the protagonist is a sexy girl and there is no choice to choose between male and female character?

I would like you to ask the very same question to female gamers who are playing Gothic …

Only with the point being the opposite …

My daughter loves cRPGs in general but she *hates* RPGs where she has to play a guy. Usually she won't even try them. The Gothic games would be perfect for her tastes if not for that.

That said I know some guys who are the same way the other way around. If they were given a female role to play in an RPG they'd never try it.

Originally Posted by txa1265
Regardless, having a female-only lead is a bigger risk than a male-only lead like so many games

Really? Do you believe, that Tomb Raider had selled better having a male protagonist?

Anyway I believe that Alrik is on the right track here: There were many games with a male only lead. This is the case for some games in the cRPG genre (Gothics, Whitcher, PS:T) but even more outside of the genre (nearly all older first person shooters: Doom, Duke3D, Half life, with Heavy Metal FAKK 2 being the only exception I know of, many adventures etc.).
So there is enough room for some compensation.

I believe that the number of people having a real problem with playing a character of the other sex is small compared to the overall number of players (basically probably only those people, who don't feel secure with their own sexual role in real life, which is of course a normal thing during some development stages in childhood and adolescense).

Edit: by the way in story-intense games it may be impossible to give the choice of gender without weakening the story.

Great preview, you guys are on a roll lately!

While I am excited for the game, I have to admit that I am one of those "weirdos" that feels weird role playing a female "toon." I tend to "get in character" when I play games, and often I try to align the in game "toon" with my RL moral and standards (unfortunately, this is the reason why I couldn't get into The Witcher).

But I will get this game nonetheless, maybe it will help me get over my "weirdness."

Originally Posted by leth
Great preview, you guys are on a roll lately!

In this particular instance … Myrthos' fault! He should get around more. And do more previews. And stuff.

Originally Posted by bkrueger
I believe that the number of people having a real problem with playing a character of the other sex is small compared to the overall number of players (basically probably only those people, who don't feel secure with their own sexual role in real life, which is of course a normal thing during some development stages in childhood and adolescense).
.

You realy cheered me up with this diagnosis of the people that do not like playing a character of the opposite sex. :-) Let's assume you're right. Does it mean that the female RPG gamers that do not like playing the Withcer for instance also feel unsecure with their own sexual role in real life? ;-)

I think that the story and the setting are very important in choosing the sex of the protagonist and in some cases a female character is just the right choice.
I hope Venetica is such a case.