By Xavier Gonne
With Dragon Age and Mass Effect having shot their respective bolts (yes, yes more to come – but it’s diminishing returns from now on), Bioware was going to need a new franchise. Introducing Shadow Realms, Bioware’s brand new intellectual property. They’re calling it an action RPG in a Modern Fantasy world. Sounds nice. If you’re feeling a certain hesitation on my part, well, it’s because I’m hesitating. Why? I’m glad you asked.
With Dragon Age and Mass Effect having shot their respective bolts (yes, yes more to come – but it’s diminishing returns from now on), Bioware was going to need a new franchise. Introducing Shadow Realms, Bioware’s brand new intellectual property. They’re calling it an action RPG in a Modern Fantasy world. Sounds nice. If you’re feeling a certain hesitation on my part, well, it’s because I’m hesitating. Why? I’m glad you asked.
I am an RP player of old. PnP that is. I loved the first World of Darkness and every iteration thereof. As this is one of my favorite genres, this should be right in my wheelhouse. And yet, I am an RP player of new. I played Hellgate: London and Secret World (both of which eerily similar to Shadow Realms), and both failed to live up to their self-generated expectations. And I’m still a little burnt over the “ending” of Mass Effect.
Shadow Realms certainly looks pretty. The four-in-subway pic on the Alpha sign-up page is nice, if a little formulaic… but, hey, that’s what they’re aiming for, right? But, the early shots of in-game looks hauntingly similar to those released before Secret World came out.
Shadow Realms certainly looks pretty. The four-in-subway pic on the Alpha sign-up page is nice, if a little formulaic… but, hey, that’s what they’re aiming for, right? But, the early shots of in-game looks hauntingly similar to those released before Secret World came out.
Now, there is one feature which jumped out at me; a player-driven Shadowlord. Now, this is something I can get behind (yes, I’m a lifelong GM – players’ tears feed my soul – or the dark pit where my soul should be). The cynic-in-me says that this is potentially just a way to create content on the cheap (remember, Bioware is EA!), but the optimist-in-me says… well, he too says this could be a cheap way of making content, but in a good way. So, there’s that.
This will be a tough needle to thread and there are so many ways this can go wrong. But, Bioware has proven itself to be one of the few game companies which does compelling STORY-telling in games, without turning into a gaming experience into a movie (the “ending” of Mass Effect not withstanding). So the whole episodic “TV show” nature of the game is a promising, eh, promise. The question is, will the story be closer to The Vampire Diaries or Buffy.
This will be a tough needle to thread and there are so many ways this can go wrong. But, Bioware has proven itself to be one of the few game companies which does compelling STORY-telling in games, without turning into a gaming experience into a movie (the “ending” of Mass Effect not withstanding). So the whole episodic “TV show” nature of the game is a promising, eh, promise. The question is, will the story be closer to The Vampire Diaries or Buffy.
Can Shadow Realms create mass effect?
Bioware has made a name for itself in creating quality RPG's. But what do you think of this news? is Bioware on the right track or is an MMO the last thing you want from them?
Let us know what you think of the news in the comments below!
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