Rock, Paper, Shotgun

The sequel to Microprose/Cyberlore’s 2000 RTS/RPG/management game has just hit, this time handled by one of Russian omni-developer/publisher 1C’s many studios. I confess I’ve never played the first game, but I was intrigued enough by this decade-on sequel to take a nose…

There’s something rather scathing about Majesty 2. It tears away the pretend philanthropy and nobility of fantasy heroes, leaving the terrible truth of what we really play most RPGs and MMOs for. We want gold, and we want to watch a bunch of numbers increase – because we are greedy and self-obssessed. And Majesty 2’s AI-controlled, massively selfish heroes turn the mirror on us.
Read the rest of this entry »

This was announced of PAX. Keberos, the makers of Sword of the Stars, are apparently working on an action-rpg game for Paradox which will be out in autumn. In other words, pretty damn imminently. The aim of the game is to defend your selected fort – a police-station, prison or hospital, with different advantages – by running around the town, twatting zombies and searching for stuff to build up your defences. Scanning its feature list, what’s most promising is the 3D town formed from some kind of mix-and-match tile system, which implies the potential for variability. It’s apparently a smaller spin off the tech they’re using to build Northstar, their space-RPG-trading thing. Anyway – press release follows and there’s grabs over at WorthPlaying. More news as it emerges, grave-sodden.
Read the rest of this entry »

Emerging from a cloud of dust of E3 is the sound of horse-feet. Hooves. That’s the word, hooves. Sorry – it’s early. As you’ll hopefully be aware, RPS-fave Mount & Blade is getting an expansion. In terms of features they revealed at E3, we’re talking about fancier graphics with redone models and – er – graphic effects I can’t be bothered listing and now 64 player multiplayer (with game modes including team death match and the iggy-pop-inspired Search & Destroy. Worth noting it’s more than just a MP expansion too – the SP will have the ability to become a faction ruler and force people to become your vassals, in a manner akin to how Jim rules RPS. Also, Soldier Morale, adding proper cowards. Run! Run from my horse feet. Er… gameplay trailer beneath the cut.
Read the rest of this entry »

It’s not all impossi-budget shooters being shown to the drooling crowds at E3 here on RPS this week. For a change of pace, we’ve rounded up Steve Breslin and Alexey Kozyrev, editor and producer respectively on upcoming RTS/management/RPG sequel Majesty 2: The Fantasy Management Sim. They’d very much like to give you sterling people an exclusive look at the men, women, beasts and demonic rocky things that’ll be populating Maj2’s tongue-in-cheek world of war and greed. As well as that, there’s a fresh-from-the-show-floor developer interview to feast your ocular organs upon. Oh, and we’ve got a couple more of these developer write-ups due as Majesty 2 approaches its release later this year.
Read the rest of this entry »

The best way to learn about Paradox’s rapidly approaching grand-strategy leviathan Hearts of Iron 3? Sit down with a gallon mug of tea and a family-size packet of custard creams and plough through the fascinating 30-part developer diary. If you’ve already done that, or don’t have the patience/dunkable biscuitry to take on such a task, try the following Q&A in which Lead Designer and Man of History Johan Andersson fields questions on subjects as diverse as HoI3, gulags, and HoI3.

Read the rest of this entry »

We know when we’re being manipulated. And we’re being manipulated by the press release just put out by Paradox. It shows us nothing but this tantalising paraphrase of Hearts of Iron developer, Johan Andersson:

“PC sales makes it difficult for us to consider developing console based titles.”

Ooh, you scamps. It seems Andersson is selling “insane amounts” of his games on PC, and sales are increasing. Which is just the sort of feel-good story we need to start our day.

Read the rest of this entry »

We haven’t mentioned Quazar Studios-developed Paradox Interactive-published Dark Horizon before. Why not? Because we were scared. We saw the word “Dark” and shunned away, fearing the influence of Satan. But hearing that a 700Mb-or-so demo has been released has made us inch closer to discover after the word “Dark” came “Horizon” which shows the blessed touch of our Saviour. Hurrah! Anyway, the demo is six levels of the space shooter and if you want a better feel for it, there’s two videos of it in action beneath the cut…
Read the rest of this entry »

It’s been a bubbling indie favourite over the last few years in its Beta state. Mount & Blade is arguably the greatest horse-based combat game ever, a medieval open-world game with true freedom and genuinely pretty nifty. Having finally reaching V1.0 and its commercial debut, we thought it time to talk to TaleWorld’s lead developer, Armagan Yavuz, about the long journey from inspiration to release
Read the rest of this entry »

In much welcome news – in our interview, Ex-Civ4 veteran Soren Johnson noted it’s a shame a spiritual heir for the game doesn’t exist – Paradox Interactive announces a sequel for Majesty, planned for in 2009. Only shame is that original developers Cyberlore aren’t involved, which is perhaps predictable, as they don’t exist in the same state anymore. Instead, the task falls to 1C: Ino-Co, who you may know from the recent fairly-fun Fantasy Wars. Blues have lobbed up the grabs, but there’s a little more on why Majesty was neat, some examination of 1C: Ino-Co and its trailer beneath the cut.
Read the rest of this entry »