By Jim Rossignol on November 16th, 2012 at 5:00 pm.
Dark Vale Games’ Forge is an interesting proposition (for some people): “Pure PvP”. It’s basically an MMO in its systems, but one designed purely around the PvP arena combat stuff that so often constitutes the end-game of these things. It’s also flat in structure, so beginners are (apparently) on a level playing field with veterans from their first game – at least in terms of the power they wield on the field.
Anyway, the game is our December 4th, and Dark Vale have opted for a buy-one-get-one-free launch model, where your $20 secures you two copies of the game. I’ve posted a gameplay video below for you to peer into with your fiery gaze.
16/11/2012 at 17:04 Soggy_Popcorn says:
Who the hell plays an MMO for the clunky, awkward, tedious hotkey-mashing gameplay? There’s seriously a market for this?
16/11/2012 at 17:09 zeroskill says:
Imagine this: Different people like different things. Shocking, I know.
16/11/2012 at 17:11 mouton says:
From the vids, it does seem more like “Fantasy FPS”, appealing to more hardcore gamers than the usual casual-ish MMO folk. I guess I will try it at some point and see for myself, they got 14 days of free beta I believe.
16/11/2012 at 17:13 Salt says:
I agree that they’re taking a poor marketing angle by describing it as being like an MMORPG’s PvP. As you say, without the surrounding character advancement stuff that’s very weak (and even with it, it’s often not great).
But from watching more in-depth videos, it seems this game plays much more like a third-person action game. It uses constant mouse look, and there is at least some degree of aim needed to get your abilities to hit.
16/11/2012 at 17:23 Vorphalack says:
You know, at the most basic level most games boil down to ”push button to make thing happen”. MMOs are not uniquely plagued by the existence of hot keys, and I think they get an unfair reputation as a result. When people criticise MMO combat, it is almost always due to being static, repetitive or bloated. Examples include giving the player so many abilities that they cannot fit them onto 4 hot bars, creating abilities that are dumb fire and require the player to be stationary, and locking the player into a rotation of cool downs which prevents much variation.
Now I don’t know if this game is going to be any good, but just from the video footage we can see that the combat is mobile and the ability bloat is contained. It looks like it is trying to throw out the worst excess of MMO combat and be a tight, bare bones arena fighting game.
16/11/2012 at 18:10 Brun says:
This. Pretty much any game’s combat system can be reduced to pressing buttons to do things and managing your position.
16/11/2012 at 17:09 mouton says:
I find the philosophy behind the game quite appealing – get the fun “endgame” part and cut out the stupid grind that precedes it. Of course, many people like MMOs for the meditative progression and social aspect, so to each their own.
16/11/2012 at 17:16 zind says:
PvP-only MMO? But I’ve already been playing Planetside 2 for a few weeks now.
I kid, I kid. I am somewhat interested in Forge, but unless it catches on among a group of RL or online friends I already game with, I’m unlikely to jump in, unless it gets all nice and greenlit to tempt my wallet come winter sale time.
16/11/2012 at 17:22 zeroskill says:
I believe the game is already greenlit, so the inevitable sale will happen sooner or later. Maybe already late December.
16/11/2012 at 17:31 misterT0AST says:
it’s like a 3d Bloodline Champions, or a 3d Smite, or Heretic 2 with named characters, or Unreal Tournament in a fantasy setting, or the bastard son of Super Smash Brothers, Quake III, Chivalry and League of Legends. What an orgy of gameplay elements!
And since I absolutely love all of the above, I’m SERIOUSLY looking forward to this.
16/11/2012 at 17:36 derbefrier says:
well now that sounds interesting. I shall now give this game a serious look.
16/11/2012 at 17:31 Chizu says:
I actually thought this looked kind of interesting and was considering getting it.
The getting 2 copies things definitely makes me more interested, since I have a friend who can never afford games, that I’d wanna play with.
The peasant scum.
16/11/2012 at 17:39 Lord Custard Smingleigh says:
I have a peasant acquaintance too. I make him dance like a monkey in exchange for games.
Dance, Bobo! Dance! Faster, Bobo! Faster, I say! Put your back into it! You call that dancing? You disgust me, Bobo! No game for you! Back to your hole, and don’t let me catch you in daylight for the next three days, or your hide will feel my stick!
16/11/2012 at 17:46 Spider Jerusalem says:
reminds me of pre-release fury.
16/11/2012 at 18:05 Dilapinated says:
When I first saw the pic, I thought this article was going to be about Christmas-themed Assassin’s Creed 3 DLC.
16/11/2012 at 18:33 Yar says:
Nox was fun.
EDIT: So was Hexen.
16/11/2012 at 20:07 piesmagicos says:
I get a Spellbinder vibe about this haha. Im excited! That was certainly a niche game that deserved a bigger audience.
16/11/2012 at 21:16 DaftPunk says:
Description sounds good and the whole idea is nice but gameplay video put me off.
17/11/2012 at 01:30 boba says:
“designed purely around the PvP arena combat stuff”. I swear, MMO devs will NEVER learn.
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17/11/2012 at 03:36 Ruffian says:
i don’t get it. Looks like something I’d for sure need to play before passing any kind of judgement on.
17/11/2012 at 15:17 Citrus says:
OMG A MMO! I wonder if this MMO thing will ever catch on after this game makes a billion dollars of nothing.