Drakensang: TRoT - Release Confirmed for US, UK, RU & Benelux

Originally Posted by Ovenall
The first Drakensang was just painfully slow and dull. Sad, because it looked great, ran flawlessly and is exactly the kind of game I usually like. I was drooling over it when I first played, but by the time I was running (slowly) back and forth across the haunted swamp area, I couldn't take it anymore. Just gave up out of sheer boredom.

You call it slow and dull, I call it relaxed

You can change running speed with this trick

Dwagginz: Thanks. But the running speed wasn't the only slow part. It was just overall sort of dull. I was happy it wasn't a loot-fest. But there was hardly anything of any interest to find -- ever. I played a mage as the main character and his spells were underwhelming to say the least. I didn't find it all that difficult (which is good IMO) but it seemed pointless to even have a mage. Maybe this changes later in the game, but an all melee party with one thief would do better from what I saw. And it felt like the same fights over and over.

Again, I think there was a lot of potential there, and hopefully the second one addresses some of the issues I had with the first. If not, then I'll pass.

Originally Posted by you
Btw are the developers working on additional drakensang or did they get dismantled (I know they went brankrupt but not sure what happened after that).

Oh, how often do I have to repeat it myself ?

Read here : http://www.rpgwatch.com/forums/showp…&postcount=115
And that : http://www.rpgwatch.com/forums/showp…&postcount=118

Can we have that sticky ?

Because every now and then someone drops in and asks the same question.

Or - make a feature for the front page out of that.

Originally Posted by Ovenall
I was happy it wasn't a loot-fest. But there was hardly anything of any interest to find — ever.

It's part of the setting.

Note that this ain't (A)D&D. Aventuria is a world with "low magic" and therefore relatively few magic and better items. Several fans even said there were too many magical items in Drakensang 1 already !

People who are used to (A)D&D-style games are also used to find extraordinary items along the way. It's because (A)D&D is often "high fantasy", whereas TDE is rather "low-fantasy".

Can we have that sticky, too ?

I wonder from what came the fascination of teens to get the next bigger shiny sword every minute in any RPG.

Oh please. You have your opinions, I have mine. I have no gripe about it being a low magic world.

You can design a low magic world and still have interesting things turn up, or at least have some other way of gripping the person sitting in front of the computer slogging through the damn thing.

And will anyone address the point that the fights were repetitive? How many amoeba do you fight in the dungeon under the temple? 50? All exactly the same. And that's just one example. Drakensang was dull, but there was so much potential there.

Originally Posted by Gorath
RoT is clearly improved over DraSa.

Good to know. How is it improved? I kind of liked the first one, but it didnt keep me interested to the end (few games does though hehe).

Originally Posted by bemushroomed
Good to know. How is it improved? I kind of liked the first one, but it didnt keep me interested to the end (few games does though hehe).

All I've heard, personally, is that it allows for more variation in gameplay. Over on the dtp boards, I was quite strongly dissuaded from playing a rogue-like class for DraSa, whereas it's supposed to be a better suited class for TRoT.

Quite odd, I know.

Originally Posted by bemushroomed
Good to know. How is it improved? I kind of liked the first one, but it didnt keep me interested to the end (few games does though hehe).

It is improved yet it's not. There are quite a few nice minor tweaks and additions, an odd fast travel system (you can fast travel from one fast travel point to annother fast travel point of your choice, but not from anywhere to one of the fast travel points), you can customize the appearance of your character, equiped weapons don't vanish into your infinitly deep pockets anymore, the abbility to revisit locations, more than one shot at pickpocketing a NPC … etc. But where TRoT utterly fails is in story (the player character has almost nothing to do with the plot, he or she could be cut without any major impact. It really shows this is the second half of a tie-in novel) and the incredibly limited character pool:

Originally Posted by noctrun
But where TRoT utterly fails is in story (the player character has almost nothing to do with the plot, he or she could be cut without any major impact.

This is a case of NOT being the center of the universe.

Those who love to be the center of the universe won't like this game too much, perhaps.

The plot is still important, though. It is just not the center of the universe , NOT the almighty hero who grows so much he's in the end able to battle even Gods or become one.

Originally Posted by Ovenall
And will anyone address the point that the fights were repetitive?

This has been changed. Less fights, bigger "bosses". Except a single quest, where you've got to do some "dungeon crawling", and - as far as I know - the Add-On, which is said to be very combat-heavy.

Plus a little bit more exploration. Imho, but that's subjective anyway.

Originally Posted by Dwagginz
All I've heard, personally, is that it allows for more variation in gameplay. Over on the dtp boards, I was quite strongly dissuaded from playing a rogue-like class for DraSa, whereas it's supposed to be a better suited class for TRoT.

Quite odd, I know.

Full voice overs, much better storytelling, less repetitive battles, better pace, ca. 80% less walking due to a weird quick travel system and more intelligent level design, a couple of minor tweaks here and there, slightly but clearly improved graphics. Plus it seems the devs simply understood their game better now.

The basic game is still the same. RoT gets rolling earlier than DraSa, but there's still the limitation of low level characters. TDE is very interesting for reasonably developed chars, but early on it lacks variety.

I once called Drakensang a "TDE 3 game with TDE 4 rules". A few pople agreed to that, because TDE 3 (as a rules set)was used for a period of time within Aventuria which was about the same time than Drakensang 2 takes place.

Originally Posted by Alrik Fassbauer
This is a case of NOT being the center of the universe.

Those who love to be the center of the universe won't like this game too much, perhaps.

The plot is still important, though. It is just not the center of the universe , NOT the almighty hero who grows so much he's in the end able to battle even Gods or become one.

Sorry but you completley missed the point: there is not a single TDE publication out there with the player character(s)/protagonist(s) is/are the center of the universe. I personally dislike such things with a passion and that's why I liked TDE in the first place. To explain it further I need to get into spoiler territory:

The player character has no place in this, as the whole thing was concieved as backstory only. The envolvment of the player character is just lazy writing. The only reason for player's character being involved is no player character, no game. The plot explanations in the game are flawed too:

Drakensang was a much better at this (though dragged out longer) than The River of Time.

Originally Posted by Alrik Fassbauer
I once called Drakensang a "TDE 3 game with TDE 4 rules". A few pople agreed to that, because TDE 3 (as a rules set)was used for a period of time within Aventuria which was about the same time than Drakensang 2 takes place.

Well that is simply not true: the period in question 1009 BF (first half of earthly 1991) was actually the ingame present during shelf life of the 2nd edition of the rule set (1988-1993). Besides nobody catagorizes the ingame time by the rule set since later editions heavily expand the ingame past.

Originally Posted by Gorath
RoT is clearly improved over DraSa.

The add-on got slaughtered by in the reviews. I haven't played it yet, but what I take from the reviews is that it's too combat-heavy, and has too little content for a 30€ add-on. Which still makes it better than the average 10$ DLC.

I think it would be a good idea to add it to the international releases for free. It's totally clear the add-on will never see a retail release outside of Germany.

Trials of Luremasters, anyone?!

Sorry but you completley missed the point: there is not a single TDE publication out there with the player character(s)/protagonist(s) is/are the center of the universe.

I was speaking of Drakensang 2, of nothing more.

Compare Drakensang 2 to let's say Baldur's Gate. What happens to the protagonist at the end of the game ? He or she has become an Über-mighty hero, even tending towards god-like status.

The plot usually goes into the direction of "the hero saves the world, nothing less". In Drakensang 2, he does NOT save the world, he or she just helps solving a … politically *very* difficult situation, but it does *not* mean he saves the world.

Originally Posted by noctrun
Besides nobody catagorizes the ingame time by the rule set since later editions heavily expand the ingame past.

The problem is, that past adventures are very dificult to play nowadays with the 4th edition rule set where there are specifically given specs of NPCs and of monsters and other things … At least I have understood it so that adapting older adventures to the 4th edition rules becomes difficult, so no-one does that.

Exceptions are things like 7 and the Philleasson Saga - which were edited and expanded speficically for the 4th edition.

I don't know how far new adventures are plyable with older TDE rule set editions, though.

And just look at Ardo in Drakensang 2 : Isn't he a full TDE3 "Krieger" class instead of a TDE4 archetype ? To me, he's just so much retro, he simply just can't be a TDE4 character. This is my personal opinion.

Originally Posted by Alrik Fassbauer
The plot usually goes into the direction of "the hero saves the world, nothing less". In Drakensang 2, he does NOT save the world, he or she just helps solving a … politically *very* difficult situation, but it does *not* mean he saves the world.

Again, I know what you mean. my point was that this was the case in Drakensang too, only done better. The River of Time-Plot did not improve over the Drakensang-plot thats all.

Originally Posted by Alrik Fassbauer
The problem is, that past adventures are very dificult to play nowadays with the 4th edition rule set where there are specifically given specs of NPCs and of monsters and other things … At least I have understood it so that adapting older adventures to the 4th edition rules becomes difficult, so no-one does that.
(…)
I don't know how far new adventures are plyable with older TDE rule set editions, though.

Actually a lot of the older TDE advantures (especially form the 1980s) are simply not as good as the more recent ones: they are too short, wacky and too much railroading. As for rule edition if you intend to play any adventures with annother rule edition is not as difficult as you make it sound. The editions are not that far apart when it comes to playing, the differences are in details (formulas etc) and character creation options really.

Originally Posted by Alrik Fassbauer
Exceptions are things like 7 and the Philleasson Saga - which were edited and expanded speficically for the 4th edition.

Those five books were actually expanded quite a bit when they were rereleased the newer rules are a just a minor change in comparison.

Originally Posted by Alrik Fassbauer
And just look at Ardo in Drakensang 2 : Isn't he a full TDE3 "Krieger" class instead of a TDE4 archetype ? To me, he's just so much retro, he simply just can't be a TDE4 character. This is my personal opinion.

Ardo is closer to a TDE4 race/culture/profession-combination than a TDE3 class.

Okay, I'll stop it here, or otherwise we'll get into a "TDE3 vs TDE4" flamewar.

I just read that Drakensang 2 will be available on steam at one point, too : http://forum.dtp-entertainment.com/v…180502#p180502

I am still just glad to see the "YES" part of that answer show up…I can be patient…..sort of…..