Kickstarter - Expeditions: Conquistador

Here's anotherr Kickstart project, this time sent in by Nova. Expeditions: Conquistador "takes place in central america around 1518, and is a party-based, exploration-fueled RPG with tactical, turn-based combat and tons of choice and consequence." The goal is $70k over the next 38 days.

A story-driven tactical roleplaying game with a touch of strategic resource management and a pinch of choose-your-own-adventure.
Conquistador is set in a rarely visited part of history which is rife with mystery, political intrigue, and good old-fashioned violence.
You will take on the role of a Spanish Conquistador in South America in 1518-1520. Select the members of your expedition and explore campaign maps based on the actual topological maps of Hispaniola and Mexico. Through intricately branching dialogue, you will engage with the characters and situations that you encounter across these uncharted areas, and when it’s time to spill blood, a tactical combat system of great depth and brutality will let you control your individual troops in battle.
Combat is intimate and detailed, and failure has great consequences. Every expedition member has a face, a past, a set of personality traits, and of course a combat role - their morale will change depending on your decisions, they will chime in when you're weighing your options, and if they fall in battle, their injuries will carry over to the world map, where they must be treated by your doctors until they're back on their feet. Should you fail to treat your expedition members, they will die and be gone for good.
Choice and consequence is central to the play experience of Conquistador. As the leader of the expedition, you will face difficult decisions about the use of your troops and your resources, as well as how to engage with the factions of the savage New World. Will you defy history and be a diplomatic envoy of peace? Or will you be a ruthless conqueror determined to lay all of the Aztec Empire at your feet?

Engaging and intricately branching storyline with difficult decisions and long-term consequences.
• A gallery of unique expedition members who chime in during events & conversations and react to your decisions - pay attention to their morale or you may have to deal with mutiny!
• Random events that throw you into danger, present unexpected opportunities, and build relationships with the members of your expedition.
• High replayability - dynamic endings reflect decisions you've made throughout the story, how much gold you bring with you back to Spain, and how many expedition members you've lost (or gained!) along the way.
• Detailed and tactical combat - make use of flanking, traps & barricades, attacks of opportunity, interrupts, cover & concealment, character abilities, and more.
• Character management - unlock special abilities by promoting your expedition members, assign equipment to your troops, and treat injured or sick characters with a triage system.
• Dynamic trading system - barter with different merchants and buy & sell resources based on local market conditions.
• Campaign maps based on actual topological maps of the Dominican Republic and Mexico.
More information.

Looks good. Puts me in the mind of Seven Cities of Gold, which I played the hell out of as a kid on the Commodore 64. I'm in. I'm such a sucker for Kickstarters. This is project #10 for me, 6 of which are computer games.

Yeah, I just signed up for this as well. The replay value intrigued me the most, I'd have to say.


-Carn

good looking engine.

Nice to see a RPG that are not set in a Fantasy or Sifi setting for a change

Backed. One of the people involved was behind The Nameless Mod for Deus Ex and that's all the credentials i need. I might consider upping the pledge down the line, but i'll probably be a bit short on cash in a month to go for physical rewards.

Seems to be having a tough time taking off though. Have RPS or other "big guns" given this any love?

In all honesty i'm not that surprised it's not doing very well yet. They don't have an iconic industry figure heading their game, like most other successful kickstarters and their presentation shows quite a lot, but isn't very well thought out in my opinion. They don't do a very good job selling their game right now, and frankly that has become a neccessary evil to be successful on kickstarter. Let's hope, they get the party going either through better updates or some prominent coverage. They deserve it, because the setting and gameplay seem fresh and interesting.

They just need some decent PR and they'll nail this. When word spreads, they'll exceed this goal.


-Carn

I doubt it. Next to nobody will be interested in the setting. Yes, a few of you folks will be, but I know I'm not. This game looks abhorrent.

I think the setting is a tough one to draw interest but "abhorrent" seems a bit much…

Why shouldn't someone be interested in the setting? It's an interesting period in history. Why does the game look abhorrent?

Originally Posted by darkling
I doubt it. Next to nobody will be interested in the setting. Yes, a few of you folks will be, but I know I'm not. This game looks abhorrent.

I'd take a historical setting (with a bit of flavor naturally) over a run of the mill ssdd high fantasy setting in a heartbeat. Does Darklands look abhorrent to you too?

Eh, yeah. I guess abhorrent is a bit much. I find it uninteresting and vaguely unpleasant, though.

I'd rather take fantasy over this setting in most cases, yeah. Also, Darklands is fantasy. Sure it's a pretty low fantasy but there's magic and dragons and kobolds.

edit: I originally read 'SSDD' as single-sided/double-density and wondered why floppy disks were getting involved. How old am I? Or perhaps how tired..

Originally Posted by Capt. Huggy Face
Why shouldn't someone be interested in the setting? It's an interesting period in history. Why does the game look abhorrent?

Maybe the historical context?

Originally Posted by jhwisner
Maybe the historical context?

And by that I'm guessing you mean atrocities were committed against the indigenous people during this period? Atrocities are committed in every war, and how many games do we have based on war? And most glorify the subject. With any luck, this game will deal with the subject in an even-handed, honest way. You know what they say about those who ignore history…

Originally Posted by Capt. Huggy Face
And by that I'm guessing you mean atrocities were committed against the indigenous people during this period? Atrocities are committed in every war, and how many games do we have based on war? And most glorify the subject. With any luck, this game will deal with the subject in an even-handed, honest way. You know what they say about those who ignore history…

There is nothing wrong in learning history, it is just knowing that one is playing a game, a role, in committing atrocities that has happened in the past does not sit comfortably with many people, including myself. Imagine a game about how to round people strategically in camps and then starving them and setting them on fire - not good at all to me.

Originally Posted by Capt. Huggy Face
Why shouldn't someone be interested in the setting? It's an interesting period in history. Why does the game look abhorrent?

Ditto. Gods grants us something new for change!

Originally Posted by SpoonFULL
There is nothing wrong in learning history, it is just knowing that one is playing a game, a role, in committing atrocities that has happened in the past does not sit comfortably with many people, including myself. Imagine a game about how to round people strategically in camps and then starving them and setting them on fire - not good at all to me.

I suppose I can understand that point of view. I certainly wouldn't presume to tell you what you should find entertaining. I do, however, think it is a shame if that attitude is pervasive enough to steer developers away from historical subjects.

I prefer to play the Germans in Combat Mission: Battle for Normandy, which, thankfully, includes the Wermacht and the SS, and I don't think that makes me a bad person. They just have way better tanks, for one thing.

And I sincerely doubt this game is going to be a genocide simulator. I have no doubt man has routinely done far worse than i have ever done in any computer game. I played the hell out of Seven Cities of Gold and was never once presented with the option of pouring molten gold down Montezuma's throat. You could play that entire game as a peaceful, benign explorer. As I recall, that was the easier path to victory, because you relied so heavily on the locals for supplies.

I wish these developers every success with their interesting subject.matter.

It will also be DRM free via Desura, assuming the backing is successful, I suppose. Up those backings!!


-Carn