I wanted to write and say how glad I was to see King of Dragon Pass for the iPhone. I bought the original version way back when and played the heck out of it; I have fond memories of staying up late and playing the game. I've been waiting for another product release from you, but a revised KoDP is the next best thing. However, that got me wondering if I should get the iOS version or just dust off my old copy of the game. I noticed you said you added new stories; can you tell me how much was added?
There are currently 25 new scenes in the game, and it’s possible to add a few more. There are also a couple new advisor faces. And there is a lot of new advice for them to say, predominantly in the management screens (where for example they now remind you of your most relevant Sacred Time magic allocations). There are also new treasures. And the manual is in the game, so you can refer to it wherever you are.
The Lore map is new, thanks to Colin Driver. It does a better job portraying things that are actually mentioned in the game, instead of trying to show greater Glorantha.
Game Center is new for iOS — not everyone will care, but I think it’s still worth signing in to Game Center and earning achievements. And other iOS niceties include things like a zoomable map (something we always wanted to do but cut from the original).
We also removed some things — hopefully decisions that weren’t that interesting (like optimizing patrols and crafters, or worrying about sheep).
And there are a lot of bug fixes. I was actually surprised at how many bugs had been in the game, apparently unnoticed, since 1999. Most of them were minor, like typos, though a few would cause problems. (Given how large the game is, I don’t feel like it was actually all that buggy. Software always has bugs. I think my surprise is more that nobody noticed — or maybe we didn’t have a good way to report them in 1999. Maybe nobody cared because they were so minor.)
While the game is still not the easiest, 2.0 took some steps to make a death spiral less likely (if you dig yourself a really deep hole, you will still have a hard time getting out). I did tuning specific to each of the difficulty levels.
And none of these changes can be applied to the original. So if you want them, you’ll need the new version.
But yes, I think it’s the same game, just a better incarnation. So if you haven’t played before, I completely recommend 2.0 for iOS. If you have, you’ll have to decide for yourself.
While the game is still not the easiest, 2.0 took some steps to make a death spiral less likely (if you dig yourself a really deep hole, you will still have a hard time getting out). I did tuning specific to each of the difficulty levels.
And none of these changes can be applied to the original. So if you want them, you’ll need the new version.
But yes, I think it’s the same game, just a better incarnation. So if you haven’t played before, I completely recommend 2.0 for iOS. If you have, you’ll have to decide for yourself.
I installed Itunes solely to be able to buy King of Dragon Pass even though I don't own an Apple device and have no plans of getting one. That's just how good your game is. Thanks for creating and updating it!
ReplyDeleteI own the original boxed PC game and have enjoyed it a great deal (e.g. became Queen on easy difficulty). It's a comforting thought that if an Ios device ever ends up in my hands, my copy King of Dragon Pass is already there and waiting to be played.
That’s a true fan, thank you! (Hope you get a chance to try it on an iPad or iPod touch, because I for one get a kick out of seeing new scenes when I play.)
ReplyDeleteThe boardgame podcast "I've Been Diced" gave KODP2 a really good review at the end of their latest show:
ReplyDeletehttp://ivebeendiced.blogspot.com/
They tied it in with the White Bear and Red Moon boardgame to achieve some relevance, but I think he just wanted to gush about KODP a little :)
I´ed love to see a universal version. This game is made for ipad much more than for iPhones. I only played it on my iPad in fullscreen and i dident mind the washing out on the BG Pictures... but having all the Fonts pixelate is realy not nice.
ReplyDeleteDid you think of doing a universal version that just alters the Text and Text layout to fit iPad a bit better?
How about trying a kickstarter campaign to try getting the funds that you might lake... i seriusly thing this is made for something thats more like the book you read on your couch. :->
LOVED the game to death btw. stole so much of my time!
No matter what the “just” is, there are still ~40 screens to redo. It would not be a minor effort.
ReplyDeleteI suppose I should see if anyone has done it with an iOS app, but Kickstarter rewards don’t seem entirely compatible with the way the App Store works. I suppose if it’s limited to “Give me ten thousand pounds, please” it might work.
That has been don. The Wormworld Saga App or Star Command for example. I just don´t know if this game has the initial nerd lobby to make it happen.
ReplyDeleteSomeone somewere (i think it was the touch arcade Podcast) said it was very easy to just use a jailbroken iPad with a special App to get the font less pixely. Let me see if i can find Info on that.
@Michael,
ReplyDeleteIt's called RetinaPad.
Bought this game, its great! Been hooked on it for weeks but I stopped to do university assessments! But with this update.. BACK INTO IT!