Well looks like after all the successful Kickstaters by old school developers over the past year, Lori and Corey Cole decided to try their luck. Here it is Hero-U: Rouge to Redemption
Some info from the kickstater
As well as some links
New York Post Interview
Brawsome is Awesome
So what is Hero-U?
Mashable Entertainment Article
Rock, Paper, Shotgun Interview
RPG Codex Interview
Girl Gamer Interview
Update 14 Talks about new interviews, why your pledges matter, and new rewards. An excerpt
Update 13 Gives some more detail about the RPG part of the game.
Update 11 Looks like they are promising Linux support.
Update 10 This update is announcing more add-ons.
Update 9 This update is in their own words "TAHR and Lori followed up on the discussion of adventure vs. role-playing games we started in Update #8, and we thought many of you would be interesting in the conversation." So might be best to read the whole thing. I don't want to risk quoting things out of context.
Update 8 They talk a little about "adventure game puzzles" and what they like and what they don't. As well as some stuff about Meeps. Some excerpts
Update 7 New add ons and a little more game info as well. Some excerpts
Update 6 Changing a tier and they are doing an Ask me Anything on Reddit 6pm EDT today(Oct 31). They are promising that they will be talking more about the story, combat, art, etc in future updates.
Update 5
Update 4
Pretty short so I will just post the whole thing.
Update 3
Looks like they are reassuring people that while it will have more RPG elements then QfG they still plan to have adventure. An excerpt
Update 2
The new update is mostly trying to explain why they are going with this style. A few excerpts from the update.
Update 1
and a for those worried about the art they address it in the update
From the sound of it it looks like they are aiming to create a game that is something very different from the Quest for Glory series. With that said I do like what they are aiming for and do to my love of QfG I am planning on backing this one.
Some info from the kickstater
For those wondering here is a blog post explaining why they are going with a much heavier RPG focus this time instead of the adventure game style they are so well known for.Hero-U: Rogue to Redemption is a classic 2D RPG by award-winning game designers Corey and Lori Cole (Quest for Glory, Castle of Dr. Brain, and more). In our genre-bending style, Hero-U combines classic RPG skills and combat with the rich character relationships of Persona, and the story and puzzles of Quest for Glory in a single challenging game experience.
A classic role-playing game with exploration, combat, and skills
Tactical combat that is much more than "hack and slash"
A rich story that changes based on the way you play
Characters with unique personalities and their own agendas
Adventure-style puzzles that are an integral part of the story
As well as some links
New York Post Interview
Brawsome is Awesome
So what is Hero-U?
Mashable Entertainment Article
Rock, Paper, Shotgun Interview
RPG Codex Interview
Girl Gamer Interview
Update 14 Talks about new interviews, why your pledges matter, and new rewards. An excerpt
Corey: We're not sure if you realize how much power you have. When we left Sierra, the game industry became mired in an endless succession of first-person shooters. Adventure games died overnight because publishers didn't want to spend millions of dollars on games that would only sell a couple hundred thousand copies.
Gaming as we knew it died, except for a few decent MMOs. But now there are signs of life, and you're in charge.
By backing projects you care about, games that have quality and good design, you can help make smaller games possible. Big publishers have so much overhead, they're only interested in mass-market games that don't require any brains to play. They've abandoned the adventure gamer, and are providing only a watered-down husk of role-playing games.
Update 13 Gives some more detail about the RPG part of the game.
Update 12 Project Video redone and talking about what makes Hero-U different. An excerptOn the surface, Hero-U plays much like a typical adventure game. Shawn wanders around a fantasy environment, talks to people, and solves problems. But there is a big difference between Hero-U and most adventure games, and that's progression.
In most adventures, your character is about the same at the end of the game as at the beginning. Your character is also usually a pretty ordinary person who can only solve problems because of things he picks up during the game.
Shawn has some rather unusual skills and abilities, they change according to how you play, and they make a real difference. These skills give you choices in how to solve problems. If there's a locked door, you can find the key or a crowbar, but more likely you'll improve your lockpicking skill until you can open the door.
Shawn also "grows" in the sense of a character in a "coming of age" story. This is a feature that should be in more games, but frequently seems to be missing. As Shawn learns more about Hero-U and the mysteries of the catacombs, he is also learning about himself. You will help define his personality.
We also have a dynamic mix of game play between the University, taking classes, studying in the library, making friends with other students... then going down into the catacombs, exploring, fighting monsters, and solving the mysteries of why Shawn got sent to Hero-U and what's going on in the outside world. Our plan is to have a strong balance between the story, character interactions, and role-playing elements of the game.
We're trying to create a game for which walk-throughs will be inadequate. Each player can make choices about how to interact with other students and teachers, where to spend their time, and on what they want to focus. All of these choices will have effects on relationships and the story, so the game may seem different to every player. That's a much different idea from watching a film or playing a tightly-scripted adventure game.
Update 11 Looks like they are promising Linux support.
Linux Support
We have had a lot of requests for a Linux version, but the team had concerns that spending time on making Linux builds, testing them, and getting them out to the Linux Beta testers might affect the development schedule. A few nights ago, I came up with a solution.
I have decided to personally commit to bringing Hero-U to Linux. Originally we planned this as part of our first stretch goal, but I came up with a new plan. After Hero-U: Rogue to Redemption is complete and on the way to our Windows and Mac users, I will personally port the game to Linux and - with the help of some of our passionate Linux friends - make sure the game is rock solid.
See, there's a little part of my history that 5 or 6 of you might not have heard yet. Before I was a game designer, I was a system programmer. My first job at Sierra was to translate the SCI game engine to the Atari ST and port the first four SCI games to the ST. I'll just put on my software engineer hat for this task.
Why am I doing it this way? It is so that none of the Kickstarter proceeds will be used for the port. I will be doing it on my own time after the game is complete, so that we can guarantee that the Windows/Mac versions of Hero-U: Rogue to Redemption are absolutely the best we can make them.
Welcome, Linux friends!
Update 10 This update is announcing more add-ons.
Digital add-ons available at any tier
Important Note on digital keys to our previous games: We are actually buying these keys from the respective sites. Since Kickstarter and Amazon payments take a percentage of our proceeds, and the purpose of selling these add-ons is to raise money for Hero-U development, all of these keys are more expensive than if you buy them directly. If this concerns you , please buy the previous-game keys directly from Steam, gog.com, or another site. We are offering them here solely as a convenience.
$15: Steam game key to Jolly Rover (PC or Mac)
$15: Steam game key to MacGuffin's Curse (PC or Mac)
$20: gog.com game key to Quest for Glory 1-5 package (PC only)
$18: An additional Hero-U: Rogue to Redemption game key for a friend
$18: Pre-order the second planned Hero-U game featuring a female Wizard main character
$100: In-game Head(stone) of the Class. See Update #9 or main project page for details
$200: In-game School Spirit. See Update #9 or main project page for details
Physical Add-Ons ONLY for Physical Tier Backers
Physical add-ons will be shipped separately from your copy of the game (exception - additional physical game boxes will likely be shipped in one package). When you select physical add-ons, please also add the following shipping charges to your pledge:
1-4 items: $15 US, $20 Canada/Mexico, $30 other countries
Each additional 4 items: Add $10 US/Canada/Mexico, or add $20 other countries
Physical add-on choices:
$30: Hero-U logo t-shirt
$35: Embroidered Hero-U baseball cap
$50: Extra standard boxed copy of Hero-U: Rogue to Redemption
$50: (Extra) copy of the physical yearbook.
$100: (Extra) copy of the Kickstarter-only premium boxed game plus Graduate-level inserts (game DVD, manual, music CD, varsity letter, and Hero-U backer's button)
Update 9 This update is in their own words "TAHR and Lori followed up on the discussion of adventure vs. role-playing games we started in Update #8, and we thought many of you would be interesting in the conversation." So might be best to read the whole thing. I don't want to risk quoting things out of context.
Update 8 They talk a little about "adventure game puzzles" and what they like and what they don't. As well as some stuff about Meeps. Some excerpts
We've said that there will be "adventure game puzzles" in Hero-U: Rogue to Redemption. It's true – There will be. But they might look a little different from adventure game puzzles you've known.
There were certain "rules" to successful adventure game play – Take everything that isn't nailed down. Find a crowbar and use it to take the things that are nailed down. If there's a guardian, kill it, bribe it, or distract it. There isn't a lot of moral subtext to most of those games. Use your intuition to guess the designer's mind – "Ah, violets are blue and so is the sky, so you have to make someone believe a mirror is really a window by pasting on 500 violet petals."
We like to break those fundamental rules. In fact, we think you have to break them to make a great game. Worthwhile games are about innovation and surprises, not about copying formulas that might have worked for someone else in the past... or even for ourselves.
We're not going to require you to navigate a complex maze using your mouse, because those suck. They also don't work well in our interface. We won't make you map out the catacombs on paper, but you might find yourself taking a few notes, such as how to avoid the traps.
There are plenty of things to click on in Hero-U, but everything interesting fills a tile, and we intend to make the important things fairly obvious. Sorry, we don't like "hunt the pixels" puzzle either.
Update 7 New add ons and a little more game info as well. Some excerpts
Torchinomotorino asked about equipment and cross-class skills:
Corey responded: We will have many more equipment options in Hero-U than in Quest for Glory. As Sierra adventures, those games were severely limited in inventory space and options. Rogues at Hero-U rely heavily on their tools and possessions. We'll also get Shawn some stylish changes of armor and clothing.
Lori added: The Rogue can set magical traps and snares, learn to make healing salves and blinding powders, and even itching powders to add to his repertoire of thief skills. He's never going to be a great fighter, but he'll find ways of defeating his foes that no warrior would dream of using!
Shadowfax11 and DeviantBoi asked why we are using a different graphics approach than in the Quest for Glory games, pointing out that SpaceVenture has promised a Sierra-like engine on a $500K budget.
Lori responded: At our $400K goal, we will have $260K after expenses and backer rewards with which to make the game. Quest for Glory IV cost almost $1 million to make back in 1993 when most of the developers earned $15/hour. Costs are higher now.
We've done the math. We know exactly what it took to make Shannara, MacGuffin's Curse, and Jolly Rover, which was a traditional adventure game. Our budget is not enough to make an Adventure RPG as complex as Hero-U will be using the Sierra approach to art and animation. It is enough to make a great game with tiled graphics.
There is another reason we are goingwith the MacGuffin's Curse approach. We know that we can create a game with the same emotional involvement, character development, and story-telling as any Quest for Glory with this engine. In addition, we can create a combat system that is more "Puzzle-solving" than "click, click, click."
You want to sneak past a monster? No problem - if your sneak skill is high enough. But maybe you'd like to set a trap for the monster and then lure it into the trap. Or perhaps you'd like to push a few barrels so that you can keep the monster from getting to you while you investigate it's lair. We couldn't really pull this sort of game style off with the Adventure Engine.
So our decision to go with the MacGuffin's Curse style is as much because we want to add a different sort of game play to the story as it is financial.
Corey added: What we're doing with Hero-U is boiling the game down to its essence - story, characters, and puzzles - then putting in as much art and music as we can to support those. By using the top-down view, we don't need as much animation or backgrounds, and the programming is simpler. That's allowing us to put a million dollars of gameplay in a $260K game.
Update 6 Changing a tier and they are doing an Ask me Anything on Reddit 6pm EDT today(Oct 31). They are promising that they will be talking more about the story, combat, art, etc in future updates.
Update 5
Story Paths and Relationships in Hero-U
There are a lot of "black and white" games out there. They give the players two paths – good or evil, etc. That's an improvement over making the player sit through a linear, non-branching story.
But we can do better. Yes/No, Either/Or, Binary pathing is so last century! It's also not the way life works.
Quest for Glory broke the mold of D&D-style games by eliminating experience levels. Instead, players gradually improved each of their skills through practice. In Hero-U, we are doing the same thing for character relationships. All of your actions during the game will affect how others see you, and how they react in turn.
No two players are likely to see the exact same story in Hero-U. Each player will forge their own relationships, and choose where to spend their time. The subtle connection between these decisions will affect many aspects of game play.
This won't as simple as "You're a Thief" or "You're a Rogue Hero." The game – like real life – will be much more complex and layered. Shades of grey mean something in Hero-U: Rogue to Redemption.
Let's say for instance you've been friendly to one of the other students. Maybe that student saw you in the hallway after curfew, but she'll keep quiet about it. Or maybe she'll mention a useful book in the library. If things work out, maybe you can develop a romantic relationship.
Of course, the opposite is true too. Maybe someone else is jealous of that budding relationship, and decides to make you look bad. There are a lot of ways for a Rogue to find revenge. Maybe one of your teachers will stand up for you, or maybe everyone will hang you out to dry. Everything you do in the game will affect someone's attitude towards you, positively, negatively, or sideways. That would be the case when a plot element hinges on your actions, and a character decides you might be useful to them... or not.
The people who write walkthroughs for games are going to have a hard time with Hero-U: Rogue to Redemption. The players, on the other hand, may find themselves playing the game over and over, trying to see what changes when they take a different attitude. The developers will need to develop some automated tests to check out all the options.
Update 4
Pretty short so I will just post the whole thing.
We're doing very well so far - Thank you everyone for your support! We're rapidly approaching the 1/3 mark towards Hero-U's goal. We're now in the "accumulation period" where we slowly build up towards the goal. We hope all of you are sharing the project with your friends, but being gentle about it.
Ten of us (the most that could fit) got together for a Google+ hangout last night, and had a fun time asking and answering questions about Hero-U, Quest for Glory, and so on. It was an experiment, so we decided not to record it.
I will add some new rewards this weekend as part of our extended Halloween celebration. Remember, you can use "Manage my pledge" to adjust your reward level and pledge amount at any time. If you joined us early, keep checking back - You won't miss out on new rewards! I will also make sure I mention any reward additions in an Update.
We're going to have another party today at 2 pm Pacific Time on Saturday. That will be 5 pm on the East Coast, 9 pm UTC, etc. Google "Current time in California" and you can find out when to show up. We plan to broadcast this one and record it on YouTube.
Speaking of YouTube, we got Andrew Goulding of Brawsome to record some of his thoughts on the project. hanks Andrew! We hope the video will help everyone understand why everyone on this team is so excited to be working together. Talk about your "mutual admiration societies." Seriously, we have a great team and everyone on it knows how to make fun games. This is going to be amazing!
Since I've yet to successfully at a video to an update (someone PM me about that please!), here's a link to Andrew's talk:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YETNRY71UMc
Update 3
Looks like they are reassuring people that while it will have more RPG elements then QfG they still plan to have adventure. An excerpt
Where's the Adventure?
One concern that we've seen raised on many adventure game forums is that Hero-U: Rogue to Redemption will be too much of a role-playing game and not enough of an adventure game.
The short answer is, "Adventure gamers – You are going to LOVE Hero-U!"
When we created the Quest for Glory series, people raised exactly the same questions. Many people – even at Sierra – said that adventure gamers hate CRPG's, and CRPG players had no interest in playing adventure games. With Quest for Glory, we proved that we could make a game that was fun for everyone who likes tales of heroic deeds and high fantasy. Our first hybrid game was named Adventure Game of the Year by Computer Gaming World... and that might have seemed a bit strange for a game that many considered to be a CRPG.
I think we could have done the same with a science fiction game, a Western, a historical romance, or a modern-era drama. You see, we don't think there is a conflict between adventure and role-playing gaming. We think that both genres belong together, and that a game that contains elements of both is more fun than a game that only does one thing. We proved it once, and with Hero-U, we plan to prove it again.
Add enough character development, and a bit of combat, to an adventure game, and you have a CRPG. Add enough story and puzzles to a CRPG, and you have an adventure game. Why settle for just one?
Update 2
The new update is mostly trying to explain why they are going with this style. A few excerpts from the update.
Would it make more sense to make a game “much like” Quest for Glory? Hard to say. In any case, between the original Hero’s Quest and Quest for Glory 5, development budgets ballooned from $250K up to over $2.5M. Even if it was “only” $1.5M, that’s too much to ask on Kickstarter.
You can’t step into the same stretch of river twice. The Quest for Glory games were a unique combination of Lori’s and my background with the tools we had available at Sierra. If we had been working for a company with different tools, we would have made an entirely different game.
What Lori and I will promise is that we are putting the same work and dedication into Hero-U as we put into each of our other games. We still have the same “gamers sensibility” that we applied as a yardstick each time. Hopefully we’ll be funny. Hopefully the dialogue will work as well as it did in Quest for Glory. Is it possible we’ll get this one wrong? Sure it’s possible - but I don’t think it’s the way to bet.
Of course, you can always “wait and see”. But then the game might not happen at all. It’s pretty much up to you, the players, to determine the fate of Hero-U. If you want higher production values, support at a higher level and get more of your friends to support the project. For now, we’ve designed a minimalist style that can be implemented within a reasonable budget. It’s more important to make sure that we can complete the game than to promise a level of polish that we won’t be able to fund.
Update 1
and a for those worried about the art they address it in the update
Concept vs. Final Art
Most of you understand that games are developed using "placeholder art", but I am adding this since we've seen some complaints about the "test dungeon" art in the video. In previous games, we sometimes represented a character with a grey box or a red "X". The "game images" you see in this Kickstarter project are all placeholders. Some of them are really beautiful placeholders, but they may or may not be representative of final game art.
In particular, the 2D top-down image included in the video is a concept piece. That is the point of view you will have in the game, but the actual image is a placeholder. The actual Hero-U game will give you the freedom of movement and tactical actions that the top down view allows, but it will be carefully crafted to look Really Nice in the game. As it is, our prototype is way nicer than boxes and X's.
We will also have closeups of characters for dialogue and combat, and beautiful background screens for key scenes. The number of background screens we can afford will be partially dependent on the budget we raise from this Kickstarter project.
From the sound of it it looks like they are aiming to create a game that is something very different from the Quest for Glory series. With that said I do like what they are aiming for and do to my love of QfG I am planning on backing this one.