Kickstarter for TUG: a game with Glitchy aspects

[elf]

The blurb says "TUG is a multiplayer open-world sandbox-RPG using new technology and social sciences to directly involve players in the game’s design." It's by NerdKingdom, about which I know absolutely nothing other than "I like their art style."

TUG looks heavy on world-building, heavy on stories to discover rather than having them fed to you, heavy on "your choices affect both you and the world around you," light on combat. (There is combat. It's not mentioned in the ad-trailer, and it's not one of the pitch points.) The art is a simplified high-fantasy style.

It requires a download; doesn't say anything about requiring payment to play. The game will be released without DRM. I love the sample-of-play (??) vid below the main advert at the top; it shows an adventurer (they're called "seeds") walking through the woods and making a musical instrument.

It's not Glitch (nothing's ever going to be Glitch)--it has combat; it has genders. And the style won't appeal to all the lost glitchen. But it's a sandbox RPG aware of social aspects; if you think it's likely to be your kind of game, check it out. Useful backing starts at the $15 level to get a digital copy; I'm going for $45 to get into Beta. They've got 23 days left and almost $150k to make; I've no idea how easy or hard that will be. (They've also got a forum at NerdKingdom, so it sounds like the game will go forward whether or not the K'start is successful; it just might be slower w/o funding.)

Reading the updates has me hooked. Crafting with different ingredients! Animal companions! Awareness that in-game scarcity drives social interaction! NO MENTION OF COMBAT! (It's apparently in the game somewhere--there are giant tigers to evade or hide from, and suchlike--but "how to beat things up" is apparently not one of the priorities of the game.)

Comments

[raanve]

Interesting! Thanks for the link!

[kshandra]

There's been some discussion on FB about the game; a number of folks are disappointed that there doesn't appear to be any Mac support planned at all, and the PC specs are daunting to many others. (I'm not in a position to back it currently, so I haven't gone out to look for myself.)

[elf]

It says it'll be Win7 or Win8 only, which means I'd need a new machine to play it on. (I need to upgrade anyway; getting a Win7 laptop is not a hardship.)

Reading the forums, it's very... normal MMORPG focused. Or the discussion is. I'm looking for an opening to step in and say "Glitch refugee here, and there's a lot more of us, and here's some of what we'd love to find in a new game..." From what the devs say in the video, they'd like to do something new & innovative--more social, more worldbuilding, combat a side-thing--but many of the current pool of potential players don't seem to be able to even think in that direction.

(Every glimpse I get of MMORPG culture reaffirms how unique Glitch was.)

This doesn't look like The Glitchy Answer, but it looks like it'll appeal to many glitchen, and would be a great place to set up a little glitchy realm in.

[troisroyaumes]

It looks awesome, and I'm so intrigued! Unfortunately, I'm on a Mac...still, thank you for letting us know about it; I'll keep an eye on it in case they ever develop a Mac client.

[cme]

Hell, I didn't notice the specs before I backed it (alpha tier). I'll burn that bridge when I get there, I suppose!

I decided to sign up to be an early participant because of the amount of influence they suggest that will have over the world.

[dharma_slut]

Unfortunately, there is at this time lot of mention of combat on the forums for this new game, because it's populated by too few glitchen and a few too many WOW type dudes.

Please, please show up and make your voice be heard -- and pass the word!
http://nerdkingdom.com/administrators/mod/nerds/f/13.aspx