[Infernarl]

So they just changed the Unsung Story: Tale of the Guardians Kickstarter, so that even for 20$ you can get any version (inc. PS4 Vita and 3DS) (per update 7).

Why should you care? This is Matsuno's new game (FF Tactics, FF12, Tactics Ogre, Vagrant Story)



http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/482445197/unsung-story-tale-of-the-guardians

[Felix]

there was quite a lot of discussion of this in the news thread last week

seems like they've mostly tightened up their act since a really rough first couple days (lack of focus around the project and some pretty bad copy) but their growth rate has really slowed down and it might actually be a struggle to hit $600k at this point

which is a bummer because I'd at least like to see them get sakimoto and alex o smith, as that should give it a certain degree of unfuckupability

[Toptube]

They have 22 days. that's a lot of time for crowd funding. If they can get some more solid presentation of what this game might actually be like, I imagine they shouldn't have any issues getting at least the base funding. I mean, this is a game that people should theoretically want, yeah?

[mauve]

Yeah I'd like a clearer idea of what it is they're making. Matsuno's already on record saying he's taking a relatively hands-off approach this time, but that doesn't matter a whole lot to me. Games are devved by whole teams, yeah?

My problem with namedropping games like FFT is I am not sure there will ever be another game like it. It really was a product of its time.
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twit

[Felix]

mauve have you ever looked at FFT's scripting engine for the cutscenes

because it's amazing

[mauve]

No, I actually haven't. what'd they do?
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twit

[Infernarl]

I want another game in the vein of the remake of Tactics Ogre for the PSP. I feel like that is my Standout Matsuno game. I want to see what comes next.

[Felix]

SNES Tactics Ogre is still a lot better in every respect but the production values

every cutscene gesture, be it a shrug, or a handshake, or a run-in-and-make-the-wilhelm-scream, is encoded in there as some form of /x7 /D3 /33 and so forth. some of them actually encode move-to-tile coordinates.

it is this which speaks to my disappointment with every game that uses shonen-style sprites for storytelling.

[mauve]

wow, that's cool. I wonder what their editing toolchain for that looked like.
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twit

[Infernarl]

I think the World (999 style time travel) and Chariot (40 levels of undo) systems are great tactics games innovations and they make the PSP the best one. I'm not even sure what Felix is talking about.

[Vikram Ray]

the title made me think this was some kind of sequel to Vagrant Story. alas...

[Pijaibros]

[Felix]

yeah, okay, I will say that the Chariot system is an intelligent and dynamic way to basically implement save states, but I really don't like the new leveling system (it takes the moxie out of what is still to this day the best implementation of permadeath) and the battles are even slower than in the original game, which as Pijaibros surmised, required that fast forward key for me.

[rye]

[Felix]

well, sure -- apart from being really accessible for people like me who want to hack the game, the sheer consistency of all of the cutscenes basically being done in-engine (wherein the characters are basically following a demo mode script around the battle maps) goes a long way in terms of the production. it's almost like a worldbuilding detail; instead of the game having discrete Story Modes and Battle Modes the whole thing feels like a much more coherent whole.

it's such a rare thing in anything but painstaking-animated AAA 3D titles (which typically aren't nearly as much fun to play for me as a good sRPG) to have dialog presented as anything other than two alternating walls of text that having these multi-actor interactions with characters occupying some kind of real space and walking around rooms makes early Matsuno titles really special.

[rye]

[Infernarl]

Playdek's Agricola port is great.

[Felix]

No argument!

[chocolatecoffin]

[OffalAl]

haven't listened to this podcast, but it's got an interview with AO Smith including a discussion about this project:
http://8-4.jp/blog/?p=1876
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[Felix]

profoundly contentful update from the man himself: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/482445197/unsung-story-tale-of-the-guardians/posts/731062?ref=email

[Felix]

and a slightly more legitimizing update despite the fact that they've only gotten fifty grand in the past week:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/482445197/unsung-story-tale-of-the-guardians/posts/732084

[rye]

That's actually pretty nice that they got Yoshida. I can't help but think if they came into this with a little more professionalism and better presentation, it would be going a lot further. It's nice to be seeing them start to kind of shape up in this regard, but I fear they might be realizing this too late.
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[Felix]

yeah. at this point they might just barely creep over the finish line. they'd have done much better to wait a couple weeks...

[Talbain]

[Toptube]

Getting Yoshida pretty much seals the deal. 16 days is a lot of time. and if they can crap out some Yoshida concept art in a week, that last 9 days could be really good for them.

[Talbain]

[rye]

Interesting nugget from a Q&A with Matsuno:

[Dark Age Iron Savior]

Interesting. I wonder if anyone has tested the game on real hardware with all characters in a large battle hacked to have Non-charge (the unused Support ability that may or may not have been a debug option).

Come to think of it, even though I'm not sure how well emulators handle the PS1 being overloaded, it might be interesting to setup a tool-assisted battle along the same lines. But it probably wouldn't be worth the effort.

If this isn't funded, I wonder what will happen to any currently existing assets (besides design documents).

[CONSUME_PRODUCTS]

yeah it's looking bleak

on the subject of matsuno and definitive versions - best way to play fft again in the year of our lord 2014? have access to the original (it's on amerikkka's psn i believe?)/psp/ios versions

ps i actually like the daft purple translations

[Felix]

if you actually like the restranslation, there's a patch that just puts it into the PSX ISO and fixes some bugs and changes nothing else. I forget which patch this is, but it'll work for you. there isn't really an agreed-upon rebalance for the PSX version that doesn't make enemies overuse phoenix downs and make it more of a slugfest than intended.

I'm still working on my own rewrite. I got about two-thirds of the way through the actual script, hit writer's block, tried to do a bit of rebalancing meanwhile, broke something in the first battle of chapter 3 that I couldn't seem to fix, and haven't gone back to work on it since. I will eventually, I swear. please enjoy other felix products like 5 hour MGS4 movie and sunset rubdown DMC3 while you wait.

[Toups]

man, I'll be bummed if this doesn't get funded. matsuno needs work!
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[rye]

they're making the game either way. the kickstarter was to bring the game to other platforms and add other things.

however, they just updated saying that sakimoto and yoshida will be involved with the project no matter what. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/482445197/unsung-story-tale-of-the-guardians/posts
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[mauve]

I'm of the opinion that they thought they were going to blow past the 600k goal so they put obvious things they'd have either way as stretch goals. Then they didn't, so they're folding them back in.

That line about FFT's charge stuff being due to system requiements is amazing.(and come to think of it, attacks do have a bit of a load time if there's no actual delay) Feeds into my view that all the really best games are just total accidents.
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twit

[Felix]

Yup to that whole post

[Felix]

this suddenly looks to be pretty likely to meet its target! this has been such a weird kickstarter campaign (not that I've followed others particularly closely); between them gradually announcing as they went on that they'd already snagged sakimoto and yoshida after all, and the funds being absolutely flat for two weeks, and the new concept art looking really really good ... eh, what the hell

there are now going to be no fewer than three (3)! highly anticipated linux native (!!) turn-based strategy titles coming out in the next couple of years(!!!)

between this, frozen endzone, and massive chalice, I'm a happy guy

[Toups]

50k is a lot to raise in 40 hours, but if it keeps pace it will
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[TXTSWORD]

just kicked a pitiful $20 over. Unsure I'll even play this because tactical RPGs aren't my thing, but I still want to see it succeed because I like that the talented square veterans are trying to do their own thing instead of feeding the ffXII-16-B x TOMBRAIDER DLC monster

[Felix]

The new concept art looks really good and somehow this thing is coming right down to the wire. I'm prepared to go up to $80 but pleased I probably won't have to.

[This Machine Kills Fascis]

Looks like it made its goal just barely ($605k with 18 hours left, as I post).

I'll be excited to see if this ends up feeling like a Matsuno game. The fact that Vagrant story is the CEO's favorite game is pretty heartening.
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"Godzilla could be anyone."

[rye]

I'm pretty relieved that this made it (but still very apprehensive about the final product).

txt (sup), you described exactly how i feel. I was pretty happy to see Yoshida go rouge. I want these guys to finally have a chance to do what they want free of middle-management.
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