Warhammer 40k: Eternal Crusade - New Information

[Vedrenne]

Bumping for the greater good.

XENOS FILTH!

I love 40K and I loved Warhammer Online so this looks like a winning scenario for me BUT I do hope the scenery is much less colourful than that game and I seriously hope the combat at least tries to capture the furious action of the universe instead of the bog-standard "Lets take it in turns to clobber one another!" MMORPG combat. I also demand playable Guard damnit! And NOT bloody Cadians for a change!

But for all that, I still wish there would be a proper and in-depth RPG set in either universe, perhaps as an Inquisitor/Witch Hunter on an ultimate quest to stop some Chaos related evil but in such a way that the story branches out with black and grey moral choices and the freedom to explore a significant chunk of either setting.

Good News! The current visuals look fairly grimdark and the combat is going to be large-scale with asymmetrical balance between the four starting races (Chaz Marines, Spezz Marines, Eldar and Orks), meaning that Orks are balanced when they outnumber the opposition, Eldar move quicker/jump higher and can mess you up when they all work together, etc etc. Guard are pegged for an after-release...release.

I too would also like an in-depth RPG, but would love to see a Chaos variation, rising through the ranks until you either destroy the universe as a demon prince...or being a slobbering chaos spawn.

 

[CannibalCorpses]

Hrmmm...purchases, subscriptions and micro-transactions...i like my rape to be less financial thanks all the same.

 

[Soviet Heavy]

It's nice that you found some new information, but just a heads up. There was a policy change here at the Escapist. You need to contact a mod before necroing a thread now.

 

[Dragonlayer]

Bumping for the greater good.

XENOS FILTH!

I love 40K and I loved Warhammer Online so this looks like a winning scenario for me BUT I do hope the scenery is much less colourful than that game and I seriously hope the combat at least tries to capture the furious action of the universe instead of the bog-standard "Lets take it in turns to clobber one another!" MMORPG combat. I also demand playable Guard damnit! And NOT bloody Cadians for a change!

But for all that, I still wish there would be a proper and in-depth RPG set in either universe, perhaps as an Inquisitor/Witch Hunter on an ultimate quest to stop some Chaos related evil but in such a way that the story branches out with black and grey moral choices and the freedom to explore a significant chunk of either setting.

Good News! The current visuals look fairly grimdark and the combat is going to be large-scale with asymmetrical balance between the four starting races (Chaz Marines, Spezz Marines, Eldar and Orks), meaning that Orks are balanced when they outnumber the opposition, Eldar move quicker/jump higher and can mess you up when they all work together, etc etc. Guard are pegged for an after-release...release.

I too would also like an in-depth RPG, but would love to see a Chaos variation, rising through the ranks until you either destroy the universe as a demon prince...or being a slobbering chaos spawn.

CHAZ MARINES.

They will murder us all!


That's good to hear, but I was referring to the personal combats between players: one of the most immersion sapping things in WAR was that every combatant politely waited their turn to attack the enemy and that simply should not be when you're a terrified but grimly determined Empire soldier squaring off against a hulking, blood crazed Chaos Warrior, and it MUST NOT be done in 40K.

In an ideal Warhammer RPG there would be plot freedom for that to occur; perhaps you can turn traitor at a mid-way point after a shocking revealation or even play fully Chaotic from the get-go. But I fear the time and effort required for writing such a full game and giving the loyalist and traitor perspectives more weight than a 12 year old's impression of "FOR TEH EMPRAH!/RAWR I DO LOVE CHAOS MURDERING!" will ensure such a wonderful dream will never become reality.

 

[Vedrenne]

It's nice that you found some new information, but just a heads up. There was a policy change here at the Escapist. You need to contact a mod before necroing a thread now.

Ahh, i'm assuming it's too late to contact a mod now? If so, i'll offer my sincerest apologies to any mod who takes up the case.

 

[Vedrenne]

Bumping for the greater good.

XENOS FILTH!

I love 40K and I loved Warhammer Online so this looks like a winning scenario for me BUT I do hope the scenery is much less colourful than that game and I seriously hope the combat at least tries to capture the furious action of the universe instead of the bog-standard "Lets take it in turns to clobber one another!" MMORPG combat. I also demand playable Guard damnit! And NOT bloody Cadians for a change!

But for all that, I still wish there would be a proper and in-depth RPG set in either universe, perhaps as an Inquisitor/Witch Hunter on an ultimate quest to stop some Chaos related evil but in such a way that the story branches out with black and grey moral choices and the freedom to explore a significant chunk of either setting.

Good News! The current visuals look fairly grimdark and the combat is going to be large-scale with asymmetrical balance between the four starting races (Chaz Marines, Spezz Marines, Eldar and Orks), meaning that Orks are balanced when they outnumber the opposition, Eldar move quicker/jump higher and can mess you up when they all work together, etc etc. Guard are pegged for an after-release...release.

I too would also like an in-depth RPG, but would love to see a Chaos variation, rising through the ranks until you either destroy the universe as a demon prince...or being a slobbering chaos spawn.

CHAZ MARINES.

They will murder us all!


That's good to hear, but I was referring to the personal combats between players: one of the most immersion sapping things in WAR was that every combatant politely waited their turn to attack the enemy and that simply should not be when you're a terrified but grimly determined Empire soldier squaring off against a hulking, blood crazed Chaos Warrior, and it MUST NOT be done in 40K.

In an ideal Warhammer RPG there would be plot freedom for that to occur; perhaps you can turn traitor at a mid-way point after a shocking revealation or even play fully Chaotic from the get-go. But I fear the time and effort required for writing such a full game and giving the loyalist and traitor perspectives more weight than a 12 year old's impression of "FOR TEH EMPRAH!/RAWR I DO LOVE CHAOS MURDERING!" will ensure such a wonderful dream will never become reality.

The person-to-person combat is based around that in THQ's Space Marine. So, it should be visceral and fairly seemless in transitioning between melee and ranged.

 

[Soviet Heavy]

It's nice that you found some new information, but just a heads up. There was a policy change here at the Escapist. You need to contact a mod before necroing a thread now.

Ahh, i'm assuming it's too late to contact a mod now? If so, i'll offer my sincerest apologies to any mod who takes up the case.

You might as well contact them either way. I can't speak for the mods, but you did have new and relevant information for the topic at hand, so maybe they'd give you some leeway. Just make sure to contact a mod before you necro a thread next time.

 

[Dragonlayer]

Bumping for the greater good.

XENOS FILTH!

I love 40K and I loved Warhammer Online so this looks like a winning scenario for me BUT I do hope the scenery is much less colourful than that game and I seriously hope the combat at least tries to capture the furious action of the universe instead of the bog-standard "Lets take it in turns to clobber one another!" MMORPG combat. I also demand playable Guard damnit! And NOT bloody Cadians for a change!

But for all that, I still wish there would be a proper and in-depth RPG set in either universe, perhaps as an Inquisitor/Witch Hunter on an ultimate quest to stop some Chaos related evil but in such a way that the story branches out with black and grey moral choices and the freedom to explore a significant chunk of either setting.

Good News! The current visuals look fairly grimdark and the combat is going to be large-scale with asymmetrical balance between the four starting races (Chaz Marines, Spezz Marines, Eldar and Orks), meaning that Orks are balanced when they outnumber the opposition, Eldar move quicker/jump higher and can mess you up when they all work together, etc etc. Guard are pegged for an after-release...release.

I too would also like an in-depth RPG, but would love to see a Chaos variation, rising through the ranks until you either destroy the universe as a demon prince...or being a slobbering chaos spawn.

CHAZ MARINES.

They will murder us all!


That's good to hear, but I was referring to the personal combats between players: one of the most immersion sapping things in WAR was that every combatant politely waited their turn to attack the enemy and that simply should not be when you're a terrified but grimly determined Empire soldier squaring off against a hulking, blood crazed Chaos Warrior, and it MUST NOT be done in 40K.

In an ideal Warhammer RPG there would be plot freedom for that to occur; perhaps you can turn traitor at a mid-way point after a shocking revealation or even play fully Chaotic from the get-go. But I fear the time and effort required for writing such a full game and giving the loyalist and traitor perspectives more weight than a 12 year old's impression of "FOR TEH EMPRAH!/RAWR I DO LOVE CHAOS MURDERING!" will ensure such a wonderful dream will never become reality.

The person-to-person combat is based around that in THQ's Space Marine. So, it should be visceral and fairly seemless in transitioning between melee and ranged.

Excellent! If they can pull that off AND go the extra mile to implement varied and gory killing animations, they shall earn their place beside the Golden Throne. Plus I'll give them money!

 

[Weaver]

I love Steve Lumpkin. He's a frequent GM on the roll play series on JP McDaniel's channels and is the lead level designer for this game.

However, I can't really say I'm excited for the game. It's built upon Relic's Space Marine PvP engine (somehow) which was... I dunno, it was okay. I just don't want a 40k PvP game. Most PvP games are just shit and unbalanced unlock treadmills now a days and they're just ... kind of bad. I just don't care. I just don't have the time or inclination to bother. Even if it's not bad, I don't have time for "not bad" when there is so many great things available to play instead.

If they made a 40k MMO with a PvE focus and good combat I'd be all over it.

 

[Soviet Heavy]

I love Steve Lumpkin. He's a frequent GM on the roll play series on JP McDaniel's channels and is the lead level designer for this game.

However, I can't really say I'm excited for the game. It's built upon Relic's Space Marine PvP engine (somehow) which was... I dunno, it was okay. I just don't want a 40k PvP game. Most PvP games are just shit and unbalanced unlock treadmills now a days and they're just ... kind of bad. I just don't care. I just don't have the time or inclination to bother. Even if it's not bad, I don't have time for "not bad" when there is so many great things available to play instead.

If they made a 40k MMO with a PvE focus and good combat I'd be all over it.

Ten man Space Marine teams against a Tyranid Horde. Not exactly a horde mode, since they aren't coming to you, but a calculated purge of an entire region.

 

[Clowndoe]

Most PvP games are just shit and unbalanced unlock treadmills now a days and they're just ... kind of bad.

Seems kind of unfair to judge a game because "most others" of its kind are bad, not to mention I feel you're looking in the wrong places. Not liking PvP though, that's fine by me. Anyway...

I gotta say, when Steven Lumpkin (lead level designer) told me personally that this isn't a hotkey-based MMO, I genuinely got excited.

If it's based on Space Marine, that's even better. The thing is, despite the combat mechanics being good, the multiplayer was let down by cramped levels, lame game modes and unlock-favoring balance. But that doesn't have to be a problem. All they have to do is make your entry-level bolter/shoota/shuriken catapult really good, enough that most players will *want* to use them, and balance the other guns around them. You don't need to make plasma cannons god-like to make people want to unlock them. This could be really easy. Also, the different areas have to be more than one jump-pack launch wide.

Oh, and there's the obvious "don't go overboard with microtransactions".

So yeah, it's not a pre-order or anything from me, but I'm willing to stick my toe in.

 

[Hero in a half shell]

It will be a shambles, Orks the onlt FtP faction gimme a fucking break no where near enough people are going to pay to unlock a particular faction 80% of the games population will be Orks end of story.

Total disaster right out of the gate.

Except that is actually the developers intent, if you will allow me to quote him directly;

" So to take the Orks as an example, we have two strengths of Ork: Ork Boyz and then the Nobs and Bosses. Now, I think balance is a false goal: war is not balanced. Yes, we are going to make sure everyone has fun, and in terms of making each character equal against another character, we will try and do that, but an Ork Boy against a Space Marine? Well you?d need two or three to have a chance...So certain races will be premium, and we?ll talk about this more, but right now I can guarantee the Ork Boyz will be free, because I want them to represent what they do in the IP...Look at it this way, what?s the difference between how free players and paying players view each other? Paid players think of the free players as rude, uneducated about the game; noise on the line. That?s Ork boyz! So when an Ork Nob player gives an objective to his Boyz, ?go attack the Space Marines here!? well out of 100 Orks thirty are going to say ?yes boss!? and the other seventy will do whatever they like. That?s Orks!?

I just wonder, couldn't they have done this with every race?

Marines have the basic Imperial Guard as cannon Fodder, I'm not sure what dark elves have, but there's probably a class that would work for them too.

It would mean the teams would be a lot more evened out, with a solid helping of Cannon Fodder for each playable race to fight against, and give F2Pers a little variety to get them to play the game more, and get them to the stage where they'll think about dropping some money for more content.

 

[Vedrenne]

Pre-Alpha footage just released:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B9H7LEecCB0

 

[Vedrenne]

I love Steve Lumpkin. He's a frequent GM on the roll play series on JP McDaniel's channels and is the lead level designer for this game.

However, I can't really say I'm excited for the game. It's built upon Relic's Space Marine PvP engine (somehow) which was... I dunno, it was okay. I just don't want a 40k PvP game. Most PvP games are just shit and unbalanced unlock treadmills now a days and they're just ... kind of bad. I just don't care. I just don't have the time or inclination to bother. Even if it's not bad, I don't have time for "not bad" when there is so many great things available to play instead.

If they made a 40k MMO with a PvE focus and good combat I'd be all over it.

THQ tried to make a 40k MMO with a PvE focus, didn't see the light of day and no other studio touched it with a barge pole. Eternal Crusade does have PvE in it, just not a great deal.

It will be a shambles, Orks the onlt FtP faction gimme a fucking break no where near enough people are going to pay to unlock a particular faction 80% of the games population will be Orks end of story.

Total disaster right out of the gate.

Except that is actually the developers intent, if you will allow me to quote him directly;

" So to take the Orks as an example, we have two strengths of Ork: Ork Boyz and then the Nobs and Bosses. Now, I think balance is a false goal: war is not balanced. Yes, we are going to make sure everyone has fun, and in terms of making each character equal against another character, we will try and do that, but an Ork Boy against a Space Marine? Well you?d need two or three to have a chance...So certain races will be premium, and we?ll talk about this more, but right now I can guarantee the Ork Boyz will be free, because I want them to represent what they do in the IP...Look at it this way, what?s the difference between how free players and paying players view each other? Paid players think of the free players as rude, uneducated about the game; noise on the line. That?s Ork boyz! So when an Ork Nob player gives an objective to his Boyz, ?go attack the Space Marines here!? well out of 100 Orks thirty are going to say ?yes boss!? and the other seventy will do whatever they like. That?s Orks!?

I just wonder, couldn't they have done this with every race?

Marines have the basic Imperial Guard as cannon Fodder, I'm not sure what dark elves have, but there's probably a class that would work for them too.

It would mean the teams would be a lot more evened out, with a solid helping of Cannon Fodder for each playable race to fight against, and give F2Pers a little variety to get them to play the game more, and get them to the stage where they'll think about dropping some money for more content.

Imperial Guard are planned to be a faction on their own. If you read the actual quote, by giving all the races a FtP option, it would mean they would all have to be pretty much equal with little diversity between the factions. By keeping the Orks (and IG, potentially) as the FtP faction, they can balance the game around them having superior numbers, as they should do, being Orks and all.

 

[Weaver]

Most PvP games are just shit and unbalanced unlock treadmills now a days and they're just ... kind of bad.

Seems kind of unfair to judge a game because "most others" of its kind are bad, not to mention I feel you're looking in the wrong places. Not liking PvP though, that's fine by me. Anyway...

I gotta say, when Steven Lumpkin (lead level designer) told me personally that this isn't a hotkey-based MMO, I genuinely got excited.

If it's based on Space Marine, that's even better. The thing is, despite the combat mechanics being good, the multiplayer was let down by cramped levels, lame game modes and unlock-favoring balance. But that doesn't have to be a problem. All they have to do is make your entry-level bolter/shoota/shuriken catapult really good, enough that most players will *want* to use them, and balance the other guns around them. You don't need to make plasma cannons god-like to make people want to unlock them. This could be really easy. Also, the different areas have to be more than one jump-pack launch wide.

Oh, and there's the obvious "don't go overboard with microtransactions".

So yeah, it's not a pre-order or anything from me, but I'm willing to stick my toe in.

Well, sure; it's free to play so the 40k fan in me is obviously going to play it asap. I just really don't expect to like it given how much I hated the space marine MP (I actually loved the single player).

The problem is that F2P has simply started to mean 4000 hours of grinding or overpriced microtransactions. Maybe this will be different, but I don't really see why I should expect it to be.

 

[Beretta]

I got hope.
Doesn't have to be crazy deep or complex.
Just let me kill and die as an Eldar soldier, and I'll be content enough.