Aging Ebberon Discussion

[Maykoe]

*Serious Discussion Warning*

It sure has been a wild ride with the current game engine.

With the latest expansion Ravenloft being a bit pricey for a game engine reaching 20 years old. Is an injection of "modernization" on the horizon for this game?

Below is an old preview for the Dice Frostbite 2 game engine:



I chose this engine because of environmental effects.

Instead of running through the Temple of Elemental Evil let's demolish it if we so desire. Or keep it from being demolished.

I invite the Developers, Designers, Players and even the forum trolls, to openly discuss the future of this game. Let us all toss some serious ideas around instead of the frustration posts on the topic.

No Kobolds (We all know you can't have a serious discussion with Kobolds) :P

Thanks all and Happy 2018

[Memnir]

This game won't change game engines. Ever. It would be far too costly, I would imagine quarterbacking from my armchair.
The only hopes for a graphical upgrade, we'd need to see DDO2. And I also don't think that will ever happen unless SSG finds an angel investor and can make one hell of a sales pitch to WotC. And even then, it won't be up to a AAA shooter's standards.

[Amundir]

I can't recall reading an "I quit" post on the board who's main reason for leaving was game graphics.

[Maykoe]

I can't recall reading an "I quit" post on the board who's main reason for leaving was game graphics.

This post is addressing the pinnacle the game engine has reached.

I did not mean for it to come off as "I quit" because of game graphics.

[Amundir]

If that wasn't your intention, then I apologize. Though the following really made me thing that:

It sure has been a wild ride with the current game engine. The ebb of Dungeons and Dragons Online is reaching a tipping point.

Has it already passed the Point of no return?

"tipping point" and "point of no return" makes it sound like your suggesting that we're getting to a point where if something isn't done, things are going to go bad. Which is why my reply made the point that, so far, people don't really seem to be leaving because of the engine.

[Maykoe]

If that wasn't your intention, then I apologize. Though the following really made me thing that:



"tipping point" and "point of no return" makes it sound like your suggesting that we're getting to a point where if something isn't done, things are going to go bad. Which is why my reply made the point that, so far, people don't really seem to be leaving because of the engine.

Yeah I didn't want this post going that direction at all. No need for apologies. It's discussion

I've been thinking and discussing with friends about what can be done to push this game we love to the top of the MMORPG lists for years to come. I hope WotC, SSG and Hasbro come up with some great ideas for the future that doesn't leave all our investments behind.


I referred to Frostbite because it pits you against your enemies while using the environment as a variable. Either in your favor or your enemies based on your chosen difficulty perhaps. It would also allude to a fresh experience every reincarnation or every run through.

[Captain_Wizbang]

YI've been thinking and discussing with friends about what can be done to push this game we love to the top of the MMORPG lists for years to come. I hope WotC, SSG and Hasbro come up with some great ideas for the future that doesn't leave all our investments behind. .

1) DDO is a niche game. people have come and gone, and come back and left because of how much they like or dislike everything it has to offer. So, #1 isnt our concern

2) Mists of Ravenloft is being spoken about in many gaming circles, so to reference graphics, there's your answer (cant change Eberron and shouldn't)

3) As for hardware, someone answered that.

4) There are many things you as a player can do to make the game more enjoyable, and for some people trying new things is refreshing. Others? They don't want to try, and get bored. Can't help anyone w/ that.

5) Player feedback is important, DDO is one of very few that has developer/ client interaction. It's up to us to provide that feedback in ways which the devs can act on, and facilitate changes and design considerations.

Good thread, just lost a few people in how it was worded.

[Grimlock]

This game won't change game engines. Ever. It would be far too costly, I would imagine quarterbacking from my armchair.
The only hopes for a graphical upgrade, we'd need to see DDO2. And I also don't think that will ever happen unless SSG finds an angel investor and can make one hell of a sales pitch to WotC. And even then, it won't be up to a AAA shooter's standards.

I agree and highly doubt SSG has a snowball's chance in hell to win over WotC for a DDO 2 MMO.

[Maykoe]

If that wasn't your intention, then I apologize. Though the following really made me thing that:



"tipping point" and "point of no return" makes it sound like your suggesting that we're getting to a point where if something isn't done, things are going to go bad. Which is why my reply made the point that, so far, people don't really seem to be leaving because of the engine.

Edited post for this reason.

Thanks for the feedback

[Kraizimiklune]

The thing is, new MMO's are not turning over the numbers necessary to meet expectation. Every company wants their MMO to be the next WOW, but it's not happening. In general, the structure is too confining to innovate with enough depth to revamp interest in the MMO genre. Either the game companies will catch on to that and adapt, in which case we'll see greater investment in older titles like DDO, or they'll (most likely) blame consumers for killing a market and continue pumping out mediocre MMO games that capture people for so long, then die off. If they do manage to get the hint and start trying to pump money into older titles, then revamping the game engines would be a good start. The only problem with this is that even if it is the approach, it's unlikely DDO would be in the minority chosen, at least initially, and the best we can hope for is some kind of secondary or tertiary focus on this title. We'd sooner get a re-release of Everquest or Ultima Online than DDO.