"I meant to do that!"

Yeah, but we don't get to see how it increases in power. I know they're working on improving that part of the interface. It's a beta, after all.

Now we'll just have to speculate on whether this is a variant of Terror From the Deep, or something else entirely.

If the only reason you want to do that is for the 'get into the Foundry right away' bit, don't. You'll gain access to it at level 15 (creation access - you can start running them as soon as you get into town). At least that's how STO works. And I doubt it'll be any different for NW.

That is indeed how it works in Neverwinter. However, those 15 levels pass considerably faster than in most other MMOs. You'll be level 5 by the time you even leave the tutorial.

I've started receiving cloaks and titles for my character now due to my Foundry content. I'm walking around with a Foundry Graduate title and cloak, which is cool. You gain these things from completing Foundry-based achievements, such as publishing a quest that gets a 3+ rating after 25 reviews, receiving tips, and so on. Speaking of tips, I'm earning thousands of Astral Diamonds (the game's main, valuable currency) in tips today.

just played through your quest TiLT.  not bad, not sure how the Foundry works but if you can add some music for atmosphere I'd suggest that.  Especially at the Lucky Arrow, it felt a bit lifeless without it.  I gave it 4 stars for each one but forgot to comment on the campaign section before I hit submit.

It's not possible to add music right now. At least the musician should play a few notes on his lute.

PS3 has done that NEVER (for PS3 games).

You're wrong. The PS3 has never, ever, required installs for its games.

This is from 2008.

Grab a spoon, that plate of crow ain't gonna eat itself.

What are you trying to prove? I clearly pointed out that some games force installs by developer initiative, but the PS3 itself never forces it. The developers can choose whatever solution suits them best. What is the difficult part to understand here?

I don't think they can really do anything to fix that.  I mean, these are people's opinions, whether you agree with them or not.  Your quest might do well with a niche group, but there are more than those playing this game and you can't do something like only count those votes.  If I were you, I'd quit worrying about what the majority of people playing this game think about your level and let the fact that you got a spotlight talk for itself.  Keep creating great adventures and let the fact that you know you're doing a great job be what drives you.  Forget the rest.

I'm not talking about restricting people's opinions. This is more about making the ratings more constructive. Here's an example of a suggestion I will give the developers through the Foundry beta forums after the beta weekend concludes:

If a player exits a Foundry quest without completing it, he shouldn't be able to give it a star rating, as that isn't going to tell anyone anything useful. Instead, he should be able to choose between a series of options such as "bugged, couldn't complete" or "didn't like it enough to finish it", as well as being able to add a comment that will be listed along with the normal reviews. This means that someone who hasn't seen the entire quest can't really review its overall quality (they haven't seen enough to do so, in my opinion), but can instead give a simple reason for their problems that will allow the author to understand the problems the players are experiencing to a much larger degree than today. This will also get rid of a large amount of the most "unfair" 1-star ratings in the system.

By the way, you are pretty much the person that makes me almost want to put in money for one of the Founder's packs.  I used to love making adventures in the first Neverwinter Nights (I had made ones that would randomly generate encounters in spots so that they were different each time you played them) and sounds like this would be right up my alley.

Thanks! It's really quite fun, but also a lot of work. It depends on what you want to do though. It's the writing of dialog that takes me the most time, as I'm a bit of a perfectionist.

Are you going to be making adventures in Shadowrun as well? Depending on the editor, thats my number one most interesting thing coming up in the horizon :-)

That depends. I have next to no knowledge about Shadowrun, which limits my ability to tell a good story with it. I'm likely to fire up the editing tools, and if I feel the main campaign gives me enough lore to go on, I might just make something.

Right now though, I'm plenty busy with Neverwinter. My campaign is going to get quite long (and very epic) if I can pull it off correctly.

Thanks! This was a great bit of news to wake up to, even though my campaign still has an average of 2.86 or so stars.

There's a large debate going on (and it has been going on for a few weeks) about how to fix the rating system. There are more problems with it than just what I experience, but I'll be sure to contribute to it. I'd like to be able to make quests for a niche audience without getting slaughtered in reviews.

People's exhibit No 438936091 in the case "Today's music has gone downhill" vs "These kids today"

too bad they didn't include the names on the list on the left.  would have made it easier to round them up for that new rocket to the sun trip. 

You actually take that "infographic" seriously? Comparing a pop song to a rock symphony? You'd get the same extreme difference in writing quality if you took an 80s pop song and compared it to a modern rock symphony too, but in the other direction. It's a very clear case of apples vs oranges.

Would it make you feel better if they compared it to Billie Jean?  It doesn't get pop-ier than the King of Pop, right?  One writer (Michael), two producers (of which Michael was one).

Sure, but that wouldn't make it a fair comparison to the picture above. Selectively picking specific music with extraordinarily good or bad writing doesn't make a good comparison. It's like going to the fruit stand at your local convenience store, picking up the most rotten orange and most pristine apple you can find, then declaring that this proves that apples are way better than oranges.

Thanks!

I'm getting a bit frustrated at the ratings right now. The simpler quests are continually getting top ratings and almost no 1-star ratings, while I'm getting one trash review after another between the good ones. In case any of you think the trash reviews are deserved, let me copy the text from all the 1-stars I've received so far, with my comments after:

"wwww" - Really now? I guess I need to improve that part then.
"Thief skills required for completion" - Read: Player can't solve a "puzzle" that requires talking to two people.
"boring and not intuitive - very poor design" - What can I say? The guy probably got a panic attack as soon as his quest trail disappeared (on purpose, I might add). Also probably thinks reading is something his grandparents might have liked.
"sux, sry dude" - At least he's polite about it.

The rating system needs work so that stuff like that can be filtered out. I even warn these people in the quest description that I'll let them off the leash and have them think for themselves. *sigh!* Even with a whole bunch of 4 and 5-star reviews, my quest currently has an average of 3 (and the campaign 2.5) thanks to these jokers.

Btw, I'm getting some rewards from the Foundry system. I received a nifty cloak and title ("Foundry Apprentice") after about 10 people had rated my quest, which was nice. Looking forward to seeing what else I'll get over time.

People's exhibit No 438936091 in the case "Today's music has gone downhill" vs "These kids today"

too bad they didn't include the names on the list on the left.  would have made it easier to round them up for that new rocket to the sun trip. 

You actually take that "infographic" seriously? Comparing a pop song to a rock symphony? You'd get the same extreme difference in writing quality if you took an 80s pop song and compared it to a modern rock symphony too, but in the other direction. It's a very clear case of apples vs oranges.

I'm sorry, with his lung condition, Grievous would never be allowed on Tower of Terror.

Hey, don't make fun of his lung! It's about the only living thing left on his body!

I have a hard time tracking down these little games that Sony is supposedly putting so much effort into.

Better take another look at their PS4 press conference then, where an indie developer got to show off his small but ambitious project alongside all the big boys. Can you imagine Microsoft doing the same thing?

Yeah, the Independent Games section of Sony's store is really impressive.

What, you're comparing to XBLIG, a concept that was brilliantly thought out, but which Microsoft did everything they could to hide, making it essentially worthless as anything but a learning tool? Or XBLA, which was very heavily controlled by Microsoft? Quickly, name 3 AAA 360-exclusives that aren't shooters!

Sony started out this generation as arrogant pricks, but they've compensated by showing a strong commitment to unusual and independent games. Don't take it from me. Read the post mortems from devs who have worked on games for the Vita compared to those who have tried to make something for XBLA. Microsoft comes poorly out of that comparison.

Microsoft had a big chance to become the most important supporter of indie games when they started the XBLIG initiative, but they squandered it completely. They've shown absolutely no interest in supporting anything but shooters for their AAA titles, and make it very hard for independents to make anything at all for XBLA (many still do, not because they are encouraged, but because they persevere).

PS3 has done that NEVER (for PS3 games).

You're wrong. The PS3 has never, ever, required installs for its games. A lot of games (particularly multiplatform) install anyway since the PS3's Blu-Ray drive is so slow, but it's no requirement. Games like the Uncharted series play directly from disc. Many others either install nothing at all, or give you the option of install to reduce loading times. Others again force installs, but these are by developer choice, not Sony's.

It would be nice if you didn't "shout" out stuff like that as if those you are talking to are stupid, when in truth it is you who haven't done your research.

You guys are missing that this is a tight integration between Unity and Sony, not just Unity porting their platform to work on Sony's products. They're getting access to low-level hardware, allowing game developers of all skill levels to easily do things like use the touch screens on the Vita, the Move camera on the PS4, or the sixaxis on the PS3. The cloud support is also interesting, as it implies that Unity developers can now integrate their games tightly with the PS4's new concepts for demos, streaming and sharing.

Unity coming to Sony consoles this year.

Sadly, this piece of news will probably fly over the heads of most gamers, but it could be very significant. Sony has entered a deal with Unity where the latter will be able to make Unity work with PS4, PS Vita, PS Mobile, and the cloud gaming service. This should seriously lower the barrier of entry to these consoles for small developers. In particular, it should be good news to any of us who's into Kickstarter, as most of the big projects there use Unity. With this upcoming compatibility, those games will be much easier to port to Sony's consoles than ever before.

I really like this quote:

[Sony is] really focused on bringing the most creative studios, with an emphasis on independent developers, on board their platforms and we are leading the charge to make development awesome for studios of all sizes.

That right there is the main difference between Sony and Microsoft in my eyes.

Holy fuck! They've brought in Patrick Rothfuss (yes, THAT Patrick Rothfuss) to write for the game if it reaches $3.25 million in funding, and of course it will.

The only thing that could make this more impressive was if they brought in George R. R. Martin next.

*shrug*

I've never understood profanity as comedy. Humor is very individual, I guess.

This is all taken from a document dated last year though, so things might have changed in the meantime.

This isn't a new rumor, but started appearing when George R.R. Martin signed a producer deal (I think that's what it was) with HBO recently. It would be very cool, of course. On the other hand, I don't think we're going to get Robert's Rebellion as a spinoff, because it sounds like they're actually going to use that in the main show.

Foundry quests automatically scale to your level, so you don't have to worry about that.

The first four alpha reviews for my quest are in, and they're all 5 stars. Looking good!

Just published the quest to alpha, so unless there are major problems, it should be there for the beta.

BTW, Tilt, will you be allowed to give the name of your mission for this weekend's 'final' (maybe) beta test?

The campaign is called "From the Shadows", and the quest is called "A Hidden Blade". Cheesy yes, but this is not just D&D, but Forgotten Realms as well. Cliché and cheese is expected at all times to fit in. Actually, my quests will be somewhat down to earth compared to most D&D quests. This also means my screenshots tend to be a little more boring than others since I don't focus on dramatic architecture. I mean, most of my quest takes place inside a simple inn and the forest right outside.

I can't guarantee that it'll actually be in the beta, but I'm trying my hardest. I've only got a few things to tweak tonight, and if external testing goes well, it'll get published in time.

Here's the quest synopsis:

Your employer has received a letter from his trusted agent, warning him of danger and telling him to come south of the city, to the Lucky Arrow inn, and meet in person. Suspecting a trap, you are sent in your employer's stead. It soon becomes clear that someone, or something, is hunting the agent, but who... and why?

you could buy some extra monitors for your PC gaming:

That setup gets +1 for the sheer visual spectacle, and -1000 for all the goddamn manga and 4chan-stuff.

So how was the Foundry system to use in comparison to similar tools in past games Tilt?

I wish I could talk about it, but I can't. I'm under NDA in a very, very small group of testers. The only thing I can talk about is the quests I've made, and I can show as many screenshots of them as I want as long as I don't show the Foundry UI.

My first quest is almost complete, and should be playable in the upcoming beta weekend. It's quite different from most other content in the game, including other Foundry content, so I'm excited to see what people think about it. It features a lot of dialogue and open-ended interactions. At one point you don't even get the sparkly trail to your next objective, and must instead figure out what to do and how to do it (with multiple ways to progress). It's not much, but here are the two first screenshots from the quest:

This is very interesting. By letting their CEO go, they are sending a signal that they are displeased with how the company has handled recent events. Hopefully this means changes in how EA does things, but that may be too optimistic.

Nothing. This year has been really slow for me so far in games.

With the cost of producing some of the AAA games, you have to sell a million units to even cover your cost, on a new console thats gonna be a very tough number to reach unless you are a stellar AAA release, anything less,  pack up your stuff.

On the other hand, being part of a limited selection of games at a console's launch makes it more likely that the customers present will buy the game. This is what happened for the Vita for example. While there isn't a large amount of consoles out there, the games that are released for the platform tend to sell very well.

In many ways Liberation was a superior game to AC3, perhaps mostly because it had a much tighter focus than the sprawling, unfocused mess of AC3.

An expansion with focus on culture and diplomacy? Count me in! This is the weakest part of Civ 5 right now, since the other leaders are insane and warmongering no matter what you do. If the expansion fixes that, it'll be well worth it.

Nice! I was afraid they'd abandon the Vita versions after the mixed (and partially undeservedly so) reviews the first one got.

Man, I had such a huge crush on her when I was a teenager... Oh well, we all get older!

Yeah, but not all of us go through drug addiction hell.

So, yet another game in the series that will feel schizophrenic and detached because the individual elements were made by different studios. I guess they don't learn, do they.

So, uh... I'm a Foundry Beta tester now.

Expect to see some of my quests during the next beta weekend, or at least at launch. I can't really say much more since I'm under NDA, but I can talk about the quests I make once I get to that point, seen from a player's perspective. I just can't talk about the Foundry itself or alpha gameplay.

Not a thing! I'm eagerly looking forward to completing Castlevania: Lords of Shadow - Mirror of Fate though, as it's very fun.

Got a Guardian Fighter up to level 15 today, and it was fun. Tried three different Foundry missions, all of which had problems of various kinds (grammar, lack of sound/music, poor variety, easy difficulty, etc.), which just made me all the more frustrated that I can't get into the Foundry to produce something myself. The game definitely has a different approach than regular MMOs. In particular, you don't heal automatically in Neverwinter. Instead you heal by campfires or by drinking potions. Most battles don't put you at risk of dying, just like in regular D&D, but they consume your resources, also just like D&D. It's more of a "how far can I get without having to use my precious potions and Daily powers" instead of "how many mobs can I pull without dying" situation. Not that potions are precious at low levels, but they definitely got more useful once I got to around level 13-14. Where earlier I always ended up ahead in potions after every quest, after that point I had less potions after a quest than before.

The story quests are somewhat typical for MMOs, but are over far quicker. You'll often get asked to "kill 15 orcs" or "gather 5 crates" and such things, but you don't have to walk far to get to where you need to be, and you can often accomplish your goals in just 2-3 battles, all of which pass quickly. The real meat of this game will be in the Foundry missions. This is where the real stories and interesting quest objectives will show up. Of the three Foundry quests I played, one was a straightforward but enjoyable dungeon crawl, one was a lore-focused mission with lots of interactive objects, and one was a bar fight tournament (and the best of the bunch). The variety in mission types we are going to see will be huge!

Before this weekend, there was no NDA except for those playing the alpha version. To my surprise, I noticed that there actually is an NDA now in the second beta weekend. Not that it matters much, but it's there.

Got to level 6 yesterday, and it was fun. Too bad all the Foundry missions that were present yesterday weren't all that good. I think I missed the Foundry beta signup by two hours, but I know I could have done a much better job than any of those other Foundry creators. Sigh... (yeah, I'm saying that in public. You can all ridicule me if I can't make anything good after I actually get access to the thing )

Also, Kickstarter's purpose isn't exclusively to get money to fund a project, though that's what we typically see. It's just as much there to build PR and hype, and Kickstarter itself embraces that.