Grim Dawn now on kickstarter

[matthewfarmery]

just a heads up, the ARPG Grimdanw has now started a KS page, they are asking for $280,000, to hire more devs, as many are doing full time jobs for other companies,

the game is taking a while because of that, but the game unlike many KS projects is pretty much there, the only issue is content, they only have a couple of people full time on the game, rest are part time, if they meet their funding goal, this will allow for more devs to come in full time, and allow the game to be out a bit quicker

I say this game will certainly beat D3, so if you are interested in playing a good ARPG and not interested in crappy D3, then please check out the page

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/cra ... /grim-dawn

and please support the project

the official website is here in case you want to find out about the game in general
http://www.grimdawn.com/index.php

the funding at the time of writing is currently at $70,576 and 30 days to go

[silverhand]

worthy of a bump - the pre-alpha gameplay footage they've posted looks fantastic

[matthewfarmery]

yeah it does, Im spreading the word where I can, they reached at the time of writing 75k which is really good, but it has slowed down a bit, but even so its doing well, so I really hope they reach the goal and above it. yes the pre alpha videos look good, this is the same engine as titan quest, but has been heavily modded, there won't be a mac or unix builds, as there is only one programmer, and he only really knows windows, the game will have very good modding tools, the TQ community has been fantastic keeping TQ alive and kicking, so Im sure once GD is out and modders have a crak with the tools they will do wonderful things. also expansions should be out in a fairly quick pace too

right now, its content, that is stopping the game from hitting alpha, and release in general, as many are part time staff, I do have high hopes for the game, so I really can't wait to play it, and the pre alpha vids just makes me drool and wants the game so bad

please pledge if you can, and spread the word

[silverhand]

thought I recognized your handle - I've posted where I can - just put this up over at basilisk games:

2,035 Backers
$92,673 pledged of $280,000 goal
30 days to go
This project will only be funded if at least $280,000 is pledged by Friday May 18, 11:59pm EDT.

I upped my pre-buy from normal to the kickstarter $35 package. I have great hopes for this, and hope that Crate gets the funding and love that they need to get this game out the door!

[matthewfarmery]

and the game has a 1 4k and 1 8k backers, so we are pretty close to the first 100k

no idea who backed those tiers, but well done to them, wish I had that kind of money to splash around, I can barely afford $85 after spending a fair bit on DFA and WL2

but if I have the extra funds nearly the end, I will up my pledge but keep to the digital reward still, physical rewards are nice, but the cost of making them will reduce the total amount of funds, including the 5% from amazon and kcikstarter (both taking 5%) if the project is funded

so Im keeping to dgicial rewards only so more money to Crate, but its good to see the funding continue to grow, and we have had a new influx of new forum members as a result

things are looking up

and thanks silverhand, the more that people spread the news the better, so I really hope Crate reaches the goal as it means that can add an extra dev or two, can't wait for the game, more hyped for this game then TL2 and D3 combined, so thanks for your support, as the devs will be happy

[Darklord]

I never actually played Titan Quest, the reviews weren't amazing if I recall correctly...

Daniel.

[matthewfarmery]

the core game might not have been, but the expansion was far better

the real issue was with THQ, they had a lot of say in how the game was and what they liked and disliked, the devs didn't really have much say in what monsters they could have, only when they had an expansion did the lead dev have more leeway over what monsters to add, and the content, it was a very underrated, underscored game, as most considered it as another ARPG while D2 was to many a lot better

but the engine is very flexible, you can tell from the GD videos that a lot of work has been done to enhance the game engine. what is more, without publisher interference, this will be an awesome game, the kind of game that the devs really wanted to make to begin with, if they had more leeway. its the publisher's fault (THQ) that the game was pretty underrated, and probably low scores as a result

however there is still a very healthy modding community, there are loads of mods for the game, and some are really good, like the underlord mod, and many others, some criticised the slow pacing of the game, and judging from the GD videos, that certainly has changed

I really liked TQ, it was an awesome game, better with the expansion, sadly I never heard of the game until it came to steam, lack of publicity on THQ part meant I never heard of the game until much later, until ironlore was shut down

I think GD will be vastly different to TQ, in many ways, they gone out of their way to change the way the game works, using height maps instead of tiles, enhancing the modding tools, and more, for a two man dev team, and some part time help, they have done wonders

I only wish I had a huge bucket of cash to donate to them, as I have really high hopes for GD, when I have lost all faith in Torghlight 2, (which is taking a silly amount of time to come out) and D3 because of the direction blizzard have gone with the game,

but please don't judge GD by TQ standards, as they are going to be vastly different games

[matthewfarmery]

just wanted to let everyone know, the funding level for GD has been reached, with 10 days to go

currently they are at $291,606 but the funding level has increased a fair bit once it did hit the goal, and there is a new update as well (but possibly because its was late, its only for backers) but I will post what it says here

Update #10: 100% Funding achievement unlocked!

Wow, what a crazy day. I'm writing this at 3am and I think it has taken this long for the reality to finally sink in that we actually passed our funding goal. Partially, I just haven't even had time to think about it, I've been busy with so many things, including the creation of this video.

I'm incredibly excited to be able to move into a new phase of Grim Dawn development, with more people working full-time, in the same space were real creative collaboration can happen. I think it will really show in the final game. Also, as much as I tried to convey my excitement in the video, I was also very tired, so if I didn't do a good job, please know I certainly feel it inside. ; )

Oh, I should also mention, I received an email today from an editor of a well-known gaming site that actually lives in Massachusetts. He's going to be dropping by my place tomorrow to do an in-person interview and also play a bit of Grim Dawn (hopefully it behaves). I think this will be cool because its the first time you guys will be able to get an outsider's perspective on Grim Dawn. Hopefully, this will also get us some of the publicity we've been hoping for to speed us toward our stretch goals.

Okay, time for some sleep, tomorrow is another busy day!

and the video showing a new class
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f2MLTlDHUgo

love the looks of the new class, even if its still early in development

anyway, now onward and upward, and see how high this thing can go

[Darklord]

I'm just not sure about this, just looks like a diablo clone. I disliked Torchlight and probably wont bother with Diablo 3. I used to love the original Diablo back in the day though.

Daniel.

[matthewfarmery]

well, the term diablo clone is a bit misleading as diablo did take ideas from other games, and WOW is nothing more then a cut and paste from MMO's. GD will be a lot darker, then TQ, titan quest was pretty much influenced by THQ, they had a lot of say on what the game looked and played like, and very little publicity and more, just led to ironlore closure

I think the team now really can do a better job, as they aren't influenced by a publisher, the game will be darker, grittier, and a lot better, I have my doubts about D3, for all the hype I seriously dont see the game lasting, I think with modding support and long lasting support from the GD devs, GD will be a far better game

but if your not interested then, fine, but I think GD will stand out and its not coming out yet anyway, unlike TL 2 and D3, GD will be out next year, the point of the KS was to help bring in a couple more full time devs to help speed up the development, there might be an alpha test at the end of this year, but if you are thinking its coming out soon, alongside TL2 and d3, then that isn't true, its still a long way off

but I have high hopes for it