Sorcerer King Rivals: September Update

[Frogboy]

Greetings!

I will try to do these overall updates at least once per season but right now once a month.

## Version 2.02 is coming ##

Just checked in a bunch of optimizations for performance on bigger maps. We are also working on some UI updates to help make it more obvious how to cast the Spell of Ascension (it'll be part of the UI rather than just a spell in the spell book).

## User Manual ##

We are working on an updated user manual for Rivals. If there is anything in particular you want me to focus on, comment here.

## Free new campaign ##

Rivals includes the original campaign from Sorcerer King. However, by popular demand, we are going to add another one which will take the story from what happened in Sorcerer King to the next level.

## How to handle DLC and such in the future ##

Given how many people seemed upset that we released the SK expansion as an expand alone, we will not be doing that again in the future. All DLC and such will be integrated into Rivals.

So the third chapter of Sorcerer King will be a DLC to Rivals rather than a new thing (the third chapter is a long way off but you get the idea).

## Reviews ##

We would *really* appreciate it if you would take the time to review the game. Right now, we have 35 reviews.

## Player Poill ##

How many of you would like the Neutrals to play as full on major civilizations ala FE/Civ/etc that are trying to also ascend, conquer each other, etc.

Versus how many of you prefer to keep the rivalry between you and the SK?

Cheers!
-brad

http://screencast.com/t/2sUQUq2E5

[El Bandito]

Postat inițial de Draginol:

## User Manual ##

We are working on an updated user manual for Rivals. If there is anything in particular you want me to focus on, comment here.

Honestly, talking about abilities, how resources are gathered, what the resources are used for, why would you ever want to customize your sovereign (spellbooks for example).

Postat inițial de Draginol:

## Free new campaign ##

Rivals includes the original campaign from Sorcerer King. However, by popular demand, we are going to add another one which will take the story from what happened in Sorcerer King to the next level.

If you are going to do this, can you make it so that players can make their own campaigns through the workshop and have them added there? That would be a freakin' fantastic feature!

Postat inițial de Draginol:

## How to handle DLC and such in the future ##

Given how many people seemed upset that we released the SK expansion as an expand alone, we will not be doing that again in the future. All DLC and such will be integrated into Rivals.

So the third chapter of Sorcerer King will be a DLC to Rivals rather than a new thing (the third chapter is a long way off but you get the idea).

Excellent.

Postat inițial de Draginol:

## Reviews ##

We would *really* appreciate it if you would take the time to review the game. Right now, we have 35 reviews.

Will do.

Postat inițial de Draginol:

## Player Poill ##

How many of you would like the Neutrals to play as full on major civilizations ala FE/Civ/etc that are trying to also ascend, conquer each other, etc.

Versus how many of you prefer to keep the rivalry between you and the SK?
http://screencast.com/t/2sUQUq2E5

Neutrals should be full civ's. I mean, they should be either trying to stop the SK or me or they should be trying to join the sk or me. I guess if you wanted to get crazy, have them try and ascend too (in which you are moving towards MoM territory, which isn't a bad thing).

[Rob]

Yes, please. Fully operating minors would be better.

Brad, why do you think people don't like Rivals, according to the review average?

[Frogboy]

Postat inițial de The4Xplorer:

Yes, please. Fully operating minors would be better.

Brad, why do you think people don't like Rivals, according to the review average?

I think there are two reasons:

1. People who had Sorcerer King were hoping that Rivals would have more in it than it has.

2. People who are new to Sorcerer King were expecting it to be a continuation of Fallen Enchantres.

[Frogboy]

They wouldn't become playable from t hat alone. That would require a much bigger change.

Rivals is a DLC in effect. But too much gameplay stuff had changed that we would have had to build a launcher like we did back in the GalCiv II days and so we elected to use the Steam client as the launcher.

[Duke Davout]

There seems to be some confusion about the stand alone status of Rivals. Or perhaps it is me. Hope you can clarify.

I love the original SK and will always want to play it as it is. I'm considering buying Rivals because my understanding is that it will appear as a separate item in my Library. So I will have Sorcerer King (original) as one item; and Rivals (expansion) as a separate item -- and thus I can play the vanilla version of SK whenever I want; or I can play Rivals if I want something different. Is this correct?

I would not buy Rivals if that product eliminated SK (original) from my library (meaning that I could not return to the SK vanilla game that I enjoy).

So I remain ambivalent (or just confused) about the DLC model for the future: I would not buy any DLC product that offers one new experience, but takes away another older experience that I already enjoy. Please clarify this for me.

An instance: Beyond Earth is a game I enjoy and will always want to play as it is. I purchased Rising Tide (the expansion DLC) ONLY because it comes with an option (in the Main Menu screen) to uncheck the DLC and play the original Beyond Earth (which is what I do about half the time). This is a model that works. Offering a changed product (DLC) that OVERWRITES an older product that you already enjoy (thus adding one thing, but taking away another) is just a weak model entirely.

Thus, I for one am pleased with the stand alone status of Rivals, if I've got this right; indeed, that is the reason it is on my Wishlist.

Let me know if any of this makes sense.

[Pendragon]

I wanted to post a review, but I'd rather wait a bit more, because if I were to do it now, I don't think it would help the game.
I am waiting to see what happens with the next updates, so that I can post a good and positive one rather than posting a not so positive one and saying "might change/improve later on".

Regarding the poll:

I'd like to see the ones that humans have access to (Ceresa, Dwarves, Athicans) to become full major Civs, able to do anything the player can, AND having the same problems, meaning having to deal with the SK. They might decide to ally with him like now, but I'd like them to be also suffering from his invasions, outpost spawns etc (unless allied)

The rest I'd like to remain minors with the current system, but hopefully a bit flashed out, suggestions have already been made in the wishlist thread, lots of ideas there, my main issue is the ease with which you or the SK can ally with them, and the rewards/troops being always the same. Some randomization would help (meaning, if i choose potions with the swamp giants, I shouldn't know for sure that I'll get iru elixirs. Sometimes I will, sometimes even better potions, sometimes crap potions... and so on, otherwise it becomes automatic to choose always the "better option overall" rather than choosing on a case to case basis)

This way, if you don't like the added full civs, you can still play a normal match with 0 full civs. On the other hand, if you do, you can have BOTH.

[Frogboy]

Just an update:

Got a really awesome saved game from one of our players that let me do some optimization on the bigger maps. Huge difference from what I'm hearing.

Should go up this week.