Shadow Magic Site Up

For those Qt3ers who are AoW2 fans, the offical website for Age of Wonders: Shadow Magic is now up and can be found here.

And still no rebate for AoW2 owners.

Is there an MSRP yet? It may not be a full-priced game.

Ty, just to chime in here: it’s essentially a whole new game. Same engine, new campaign, new standalone scenarios, new random scenario generator, Myrror… er, I mean the “Shadow Plane”… there’s an awful lot of new stuff.

It does cost as much as a full game, but it’s not like you are getting taken to the cleaners on content.

That sounds an awful lot like an expansion pack to me. I am not saying I will not pick it up, I just think slapping some new stuff in and charging 40 bucks smells a bit too much like 3DO’s practices for my liking. It certainly did not cost them the same development dollars or time to create the game. I guess like an exorbitantly priced roofing or plumbing job, we are paying for the expertise and not the time spent on site.

It’s pricey for an expansion, but it has more stuff than most expansions, too. Given the scarcity of this type of game, it’s not like you have many options. Which probably had some influence on the price point, I’d guess.

As I mentioned when discussing this issue with a friend of mine, I think I may wait for a price drop. Or the Empire of Magic stand-alone sequel which will have new campaigns, scenarios, a random map generator, and a fully functional editor. No preview copies are being sent out and it will be priced at $69.99 as it will be a Collector’s Edition. The Collector’s Edition has the added feature of having the words “collector’s” and “edition” not just printed on the front and sides of the box, but also capitalized in some stylized fantasy font. I can’t wait. Astonishingly enough, I am first on the waiting list for that title at EB and Gamestop.

[EDIT] Post removed for NDA reasons.

  • Alan

Here then, what’s that even mean? Is “to Lutes” to roll over and die? 'Cause my track record in multiplayer is pathetic!

I think Shadow Magic looks amazing. You want a cynical money-grab, just take a peek at the two Disciples II add-ons. If you buy them both, it’ll cost ya $40 and amount to little more than an extra campaign for each race.

There are three entirely new races in AoW2, and the old ones each get a race-specific city structure and a new unit. The new city structures will change the way the game plays dramatically, since they alter the “rules” when they are built. There are new terrain sets, a lot of new map structures (many apparently “inspired” by the ones in the HoMM games), and a campaign editor which allows for importable player art. Triumph claims that the new AI will use ships and Pioneers properly (which I will have to see to believe), and if that’s the case, coupled with the random map generator, we’ve basically got MoM2 on our hands.

If this thing had a new graphics engine, it would be a straight-up sequel, no doubt about it. And for my money, AoW2 is still the most attractive fantasy/strategy game out there, so no graphics overhaul is necessary.

Call me crazy, but I don’t have a problem coughing up the cash to support the devs of Age of Wonders. After a couple more incarnations, they may actually achieve MoM’s level of gameplay.

Saw some preview code a while back - really enjoyed it. If it helps them get enough support for a proper third game, good for them.

I agree 101% on that. I am a fan of the Disciples series and I hate it, too. Even with the low price point, there was no need to divide those into two seperate releases only weeks apart. Also, it trumpets the fact it has a random scenario generator, but from what I have read, that is a bit of a misrepresentation and what it does generate is quite unbalanced.

Question to developers: DO you think most gamers are mindless rubes who will lay out their cash for any turn based crap you release as there are so few titles in the genre? Oh wait, I am the one who bought Empire of Magic sight unseen, wasn’t I.

I guess I have done the same thing with the Heroes series, but I had to finally stop and skip this last reaming; HoMM: Winds of War.

[EDIT] Post removed for NDA reasons.

  • Alan

Adamantium Halfling Slingers.

Let’s not get carried away here.

I may be wrong, but I recall reading that the MSRP for AoW:SM was actually only 30 bucks, which means that the developers in Dutchland have pre-emptively stooped to conquer Tyjenks’ complete stinginess. I have to say the Shadow Plane (as I understand it) doesn’t impress me much, nor does the RMG, since I’ve never even finished the AoW2 campaign and Lutes has basically become my own personal random mission generator. But some of the changes these guys are making to gameplay sound like it will play like a completely new game. For one, I understand cities will now have eight gates to defend and floaters can no longer scale walls, making taking a city a lot more possible. The new races look solid and I’m sort of hoping the Shadow Plane is something totally different than just the extra three dimension I keep on thinking it is. It looks great, and just to solidify my homosolidarity with Lutes - I’m more than happy to pay retail price for another iteration of the best looking fantasy RTS on the market.

The shadow plane is actually pretty cool. It has a great visual aesthetic, and the Shadow Sickness (any “normal” units travelling in the Shadow Realm suffer from a penalty to their attack and defense values unless you magically protect them or find a special plant, similar to the “haste berries,” that lets you travel safely for three days) adds an interesting strategic twist.

It so looks like Myrror, though.

Gamestop is selling AOW:SM for 29.99, or taking pre-orders at that price anyway. EB has it for 39.99.

There was a 2 page ad for Empire of Magic in this month’s PC Gamer. And a review that was WAY too kind.

olaf

Never heard of it.

Never heard of it.[/quote]

They are releasing its spiritual sequel, Paradise Cracked, soon. Give it a try and let me know how it is.

olaf