Parties: Yes or No?

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Originally posted by saphfire:
**(which I would have preferred been corresponded through emails).

**

For future reference, you can find most (if not all) moderators and admins emails by clicking the box that says "email" at the top of their posts.

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And so the problem remained; lots of people were mean, and most of them were miserable, even the ones with digital watches. Many were increasingly of the opinion that they had all made a big mistake in coming down from the trees in the first place. And some said that the trees had been a bad move and that no one should ever have left the oceans. - Douglass Adams

Quote

Originally posted by saphfire:
**
If you would have reviewed the topics in question or my above post, you would see that Andrew, nor any moderator, gave an answer to multiple PC parties. In fact, Andrew doesn't even mention any of those words in his reply.
**

It's really not a big deal -- I know I don't care about the situation or think badly of you at all. It's just not a question I'm prepared to answer at this time.

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Andrew Welch / el Presidente / Ambrosia Software, Inc.
Never argue with an idiot. They drag you down to their level then beat you with experience.

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Originally posted by saphfire:
< snip>

I never said your questions were irrelevent, but you could simply have posted to your original topic and kept it at the top until you got an answer. Creating new topics for the same question is annoying, so you got slapped on the wrist. End of story. No dramatic courtroom scenes, no wailing women (or men for that matter).

Next time you'll know, so the warning served its purpose.

Best,
Cookie

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Well, I don't want to offense anyone, but aren't we a bit far from the main question ? And hasn't the main question of this topic definitly answered ? It's come to the end...

Lock this topic, it's becoming more a "war" between Saphfire and the moderator than anything else...

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"- No ! Not the wooden box which eats everything ! Noooo !
- Here ! Luggage ! " - Terry Pratchet's Discworld

(This message has been edited by Dark Madman (edited 03-02-2001).)

looks for mushroom clouds, listens for gunshots and explosions

War? Where's the war? 😜

Frandall and andrew were just trying to justify their actions with saphfire, which they didn't have to do. I think saphfire understands now, and all is well. I think a war would qualify as something with insults and jeers...this is just an argument/debate.

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The randomness of life seems to make it appear undirected and unpredictable. Yet when you take a step back, you notice the intertwining cause and effect systems that make up our complex universe. Understand the cause, and you can predict the effect.
"God does not play dice." -Einstein

Exactly, one karma isn't THAT big a deal in the grand scheme of things. Although I think my question was justified, I do now realize that I should have simply rephrased it in the previous topic. As I wish to bother this board no more with pointless debate and it is obvious that we will get no definitive answer about parties until Andrew and Dee are ready, perhaps this topic should come to an end. No hard feelings, I still respect this board and its members, until it gives me a reason not to. But please, be open to all sides of the story and empathetic in your efforts in the future.

Regards,
~Saphfire

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empathetic?
I think it's empathic, I could be wrong though..
😛

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"You will suffer! You will all suffer!"
-Jon Irenicus speaking to the Cowled Wizards

-29°, He is here...

what follows is a message from the Chill!:
**what really amazes me is that you all really think I have nothing better to do than
read this abhorrent 2-3 page posts
detailing all your whatnot and such and such and so on and so on...
please if you can get to the point with brevity it would do wonders,

when I see you lengthy (windbags) posts my eyes begin to cross and my mouise begins to scroll, far far far away from your obsessive "wordlust" and over yapping. Please this topic is an abominable deformed miscreant of a topic(quasi moto in text form). No one wants to hear it, no one likes to read it. Time is money ( phone company is a mother).
**

Don't be a windbag...
...So Says The Chill!

+29°, He is gone??

<A mouse enters.>
This may cost me, but oh, well. I downloaded the picture of the day for CS and it shows a list of various parts of the game(Locations, Events, Picts, Items, etc.) in a finder-list style, and one of the 'folders' is titled "Players." Plural. As in, multiple. However, having looked at the other screenshots for CS, I see that the game engine will most likely use real-time, one-player battle. So even with this evidence, there is no way to be sure other than a post from andrew. This thing is gonna go on, and on, and on...
At least until the release of CS, anyway.
<The mouse leaves very satisfied.>

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Always remeber to pillage BEFORE you burn!
Idiot - A member of a large and powerful tribe, whose influence in human affairs has always been dominant and controling.
There has been an alarming increase in the number of things you know nothing about.

::materializes::

drumroll please.....the answer is ::staring into his ice crystal ball::, most likely a one-player game, just like the previous releases....

::dissapates::

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unseen...
unwanted...
unlawful...
undead...

Quote

Originally posted by chill_rx:
**::materializes::

drumroll please.....the answer is ::staring into his ice crystal ball::, most likely a one-player game, just like the previous releases....

::dissapates::
**

{A mouse enters.}
D**mn! Why can't we have an addon to give us an option?
{The mouse suddenly turns red, then explodes in a puff of Dumb Grey Fur.}

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Guilt, fear, and mass insanity...three cheers for forge!!!
If you don't care where you are, then you aren't lost.
A diplomat is someone who can tell you to go to hell and make you happy to be on your way.

Sorry about the ball of fur. My 'brother' got online again. {Mouse takes the ball of grey fur away from the webboards.}

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Guilt, fear, and mass insanity...three cheers for forge!!!
Cotton Mouse to htjyang: "You strike me as the kind of guy who would hit me with your car and then sue my family for damages.
You're just jealous because the voices talk to OctoberFost.

I think parties are a great idea. Multiple characters give a game a certain level of plot depth.... be it the auxillary character's own situation or the interaction between the main character and everyone traveling with them. Generally, the one character vs. evil plot has a tendency to become very one sided. (Let's take Diablo for example; excellent gameplay, however the plot leaves something to be desired)
As for methods of implementing a party in an Action RPG setting, have you ever played any of the games from the Secret of Mana series?
And, of course, should the company decide not to make a party system, there will likely be ways to "fake it", when programming.

-Shari

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Quote

Originally posted by Shari:
**
And, of course, should the company decide not to make a party system, there will likely be ways to "fake it", when programming.

-Shari
**

-29°
::the glass of water beside you shatters, the liquid takes form::
He is here...

There should be plenty of ways to create Pseudo features such as parties, I was thinking of this scheme in fact:

picture 2 npc's with you as their magnet (they follow you) that don't attack you and are equipped with weapons,spells and equipment,and AI and that attack any thing that is flagged (perhaps has some item in their posession). I mean that would set up a party to some degree but you wouldn't have control over their actions, they would be more like companions/pets/monsters(pokémon,monster rancher) . You could do that alright....

... So Says The Chill!

::the figure evaporates::
+29°
He is gone...??

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-4,-3,-2,
am I becoming a good guy???

I'm not satisfied with "faking" a party, it's just not the same thing. I certainly hope they consider adding support for multiple party members, because it will be a vital feature when I decide whether or not to buy the editor. Quite frankly, I don't think I can deal with an engine without party support.

Saphfire

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Quote

Originally posted by Ellmist (no cookies):
And remember how the Cube didn't as good a response as the iMac? One of the differences was that rumor sites had spoiled the suprise.

I think the most interesting thing about that whole debacle was that due to the immense hype and rumor mongering, the Cube was one of the most hotly followed Mac items around. Everyone said what a marvel it was in engineering, how aesthetically pleasing it was, etc etc. Then noone bought any. Apple dropped the price a LOT, still no bites. shrug I guess beauty isn't everything....

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"Angels banished from Heaven have no choice but to become Demons."
-Vicious

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Originally posted by Severian:
**I guess beauty isn't everything....
**

no kidding. I don't care how cute it is that I can't figure out which side of my computer is supposed to face forwards. if it can't be upgraded because it uses custom hardware and it turns off accidentaly every time I wave my hand over the power button, I don't want it.

my beige box will be back in style soon enough. just you wait.

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Do not follow me for I may not lead. Do not lead for I may not follow. Do not walk beside me, either. Just leave me the hell alone.
-Jedi

Quote

Originally posted by saphfire:
**I'm not satisfied with "faking" a party, it's just not the same thing. I certainly hope they consider adding support for multiple party members, because it will be a vital feature when I decide whether or not to buy the editor. Quite frankly, I don't think I can deal with an engine without party support.

Saphfire
**

...Oh flippin' well, that's all I can think up as far as parties without the actual option existing...

... So Says The Chill!

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-4,-3,-2,
am I becoming a good guy???

Let this post die... they're not gonna give us an answer. Just wait until the engine comes out, check the site, and it will say yes or no. As for faking a party.. I think that it is more realistic if u cannot control your party members fully, although many will disagree with me.. I mean giving your party members a suggestion is one thing.. but controlling every little bit of their movements, attacks, when they retreat, etc... is different. If you have a brave party member, they're not gonna run if they're wounded. If you have a haughty wizard, they will not take your suggestions for spells. This adds a bit of realism, in that you stay as your character, and the other people are not you.. unless you're making a game that requires that. Programming the AI for each NPC in your party would be difficult of course. ... . but what can ya do?

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"Time is unimportant.. to one such as I.."

I believe you should have a multiple party member support, because too much of the storyline and emotion behind my game (And I believe the vast majority of Beenox & Ambrosias fans.) would have to be sacraficed for the sake of policy.
The keystone of my stories are regular character interactions, something which I just can't achieve with a single player party. Sure, I can focus the game's attention on an NPC. But you'll never truely know a character from a game unles you can play as him/her.
I may seem overly emotional about this subject but... well... I am to tell the truth. But this is because I have spent nearly a year serching for an RPG engine that meets my standards, and so far, ColdStone is the only one that does this.
As for those who don't want multiple PC support, I don't think you have any good reason to be complaining. If you don't want a game to have more than on PC, you can simply design it so that no additional PC's will join your party throughout the game.

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"Sataned HAM!!! The only HAM endorsed by the dark lord himself!!!"