The Younger Scrolls: Morblivion - Frontiers

I am constantly impressed by indie productions that honestly have no business being indie. You know, things of such scope and ambition that they make many triple-A behemoths look like whimpering, glitz-and-glamour-drowned mice. But they also worry me. I look at them and say, "Oh wow, that's being built from the ground-up by a two-person team? Goodness. There is no way." Often, the results end up being mixed bags of wonderful intentions and rocky realities. Cases in point: Miasmata, 3079, Anna, etc, etc, etc. It's with a similar combo of stomach butterflies and stomach acid that I approach Frontiers. It looks like a more laid-back, exploration-and-survival-focused Morrowind, but can a small team really give something so massive the meticulous care it deserves? Fingers crossed. Trailer after the break.

Looks like quite the thing, huh? Here's what AAD Productions is aiming to create, per Frontiers' Facebook page:

"Frontiers blends the feel of first-person RPG classics like Daggerfall with the relaxing tempo and simplicity of a point-and-click adventure. Discover ancient mysteries, live off the land, and fight deadly creatures, all in a beautiful & massive open world."

Last year's initial announcement, meanwhile, carried grandiose plans for environmental destructibility and space travel. Also, death by dysentery.  Like I said earlier: ambitious. Possibly to a fault.

AAD seems to be kicking development into high gear now, though, and it's set a release date of January 2014. Blog entries suggest that real life's interfered with Frontier's progress once or twice, but its creators seem confident nonetheless. Here's hoping the project crosses the finish line - preferably as a good, fully realized experience. Then again, when your initial blueprint basically included everything, I think it's OK to cut a corner here or there.