The Arsenal Files 6/The Arsenal Files 6 (Arsenal Computer).ISO/epub/cgw3.zip/ART1.DAT

Text File | 1996-02-17 | 14KB | 231 lines

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│ F E A T U R E D   G A M E │
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║ BETHESDA SOFTWORKS' "THE ELDER SCROLLS: DAGGERFALL" ║
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        NOTE: Screen shots of this upcoming game are available in this issue in
the file DFALL.EXE; to view, simply type "DFALL" at the DOS prompt.  You will
need a VGA color monitor; all shots are in 320x200 resolution.  These prelimin-
ary screen shots were downloaded directly from Bethesda's BBS.  The number can
be found at the bottom of this article.

THE ELDER SCROLLS: DAGGERFALL - PREVIEW
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        Can a roleplaying game truly simulate a world?  Though the answer right
now is a definite no, Bethesda Softworks is trying to break that barrier with
their sequel to the award-winning roleplaying game The Elder Scrolls: Arena.
The sequel in question, Daggerfall, certainly sounds at this stage to be the
closest anyone has come to a real-world simulation.

        What exactly is Daggerfall?  In many senses, it is a typical computer
roleplaying game.  There are quests to complete, characters to interact with,
and nifty weapons, objects, and spells to find and use.  But calling Daggerfall
a mere typical CRPG would be doing it a serious injustice.  No other CRPG has
the flexibility and sheer size of Bethesda's Arena, and Daggerfall looks like it
will top its predecessor easily.

        Boasting a world that is the equivalent of twice the land mass of Great
Britain (!), Daggerfall is perhaps the biggest game since Arena, Betrayal at
Krondor, and other games which attempt to simulate entire worlds.  With over
4000 adventuring locations (thousands of dungeons and major towns), and count-
less miscellaneous areas, this is one monster of a game.

        But size isn't everything.  Though certainly adding to the appeal of
Daggerfall, its sheer size does not make it an instant classic.  What made Arena
such a good game was the myriad quests, flexible interface, elegant combat, and
in-depth character development.  Daggerfall continues that tradition, and im-
proves on it.  There were considerable complaints that all your character did
in Arena was meander back and forth between towns, delivering packages for peo-
ple.  That has been significantly reduced in Daggerfall, according to Bethesda.
The quests really do sound more interesting, more varied, and larger in scope.

        Even better, Daggerfall's innate flexibility means that you can actually
refuse important quests and still complete the game with no penalty!  For inst-
ance, at the beginning of the game, the Emperor asks you to quell a potential
uprising in his court.  If you refuse this beginning quest, nothing happens.
The game doesn't end.  You can simply journey to another one of the 4000 adven-
turing locations and find another one of the hundreds, if not thousands of mini-
quests to complete.  While some players dislike this lack of direction, most
will be delighted with the sheer freedom of Daggerfall's design.

        Conversation in Daggerfall appears to be just as revolutionary.  While
the player can opt for a conventional choose-the-question type conversation, s/
he may also define a specific or general goal of the conversation, and let the
computer navigate through the question trees automatically.  For instance, if
you want to ask a peasant what he knows about a cave outside town, but you don't
want to wade through all the dialogue, you can specify that to the computer and
just sit back and let it find what you need.

        Combat, always an important part of any CRPG, is implemented in real-
time in Daggerfall.  Arming a weapon is made easy by putting it in your hand,
then clicking on the "ready weapon" icon.  To swing, all one has to do is hold
down the right mouse button and drag the mouse left, right, up, or down.  This
can produce some great combinations of strokes.  The spells are just as easy to
use; bring up a menu, choose a spell, and click on the enemy you wish to cast
on.  The spell effects are really well-done, and the weapons (particularly bows)
look even better when readied or used.

        One cannot simulate a world without delving into some possibly object-
ionable material.  For this reason, Bethesda is using its "ChildGuard" feature
to ease the worries of concerned parents.  Any material inappropriate for the
younger set will be in the game for a good reason - not like the useless, irrel-
evant sexual innuendo found in games like Duke Nukem 3-D or Knights of Xentar.

        The basic rules of the game, particularly in character creation, seem to
resemble the systems of GURPS or Champions.  That is to say, there is more to
creating your character than just rolling up some stats.  First, you must answer
ten questions, all of them regarding moral decisions.  This will determine what
character class (there are almost 20 of them) and alignment - good, neutral, e-
vil, etc. - your character is best suited to.  Second, you answer several more
questions about your character's early life.  This will determine his personali-
ty traits, job, etc.  Finally, you will assign numerical stats in a more tradi-
tional way.

        In this way, you can customize your character's personality, giving him
unique advantages and disadvantages, all of which balance each other out.  For
instance, you may have a character trained in combat since he was a baby - but
on the other hand, his social skills are decidedly underdeveloped, and people
may not react favorably to him at first.  The possibilities in this character
creation system strongly resemble those in GURPS - you create the kind of char-
acter _you_ want; you're not limited by numbers.

        Another significant area where Bethesda is trying to innovate is your
character's appearance to others.  In paper RPGs, "reaction rolls" - how non-
player characters react initially to the players' characters - are a staple of
conversation and negotiation.  Daggerfall attempts to simulate this.  Depending
on how you dress your character, different people may respond in different ways.
A half-naked character toting a wooden club will not generate nearly the respect
that one in full armor, wielding a battle axe, will.

        Controlling your character's looks is made quite easy by Bethesda's pa-
per-doll type inventory screen.  From this screen, you can simply drag articles
of clothing (and there are a _lot_ of different clothes!) onto your character's
body, as well as weapons, shields, armor, et cetera.  Some really disgusting
combinations are possible; it will be interesting to see how that affects the
NPCs' reactions!

        On the same path, your character's reputation is not a generic numerical
rating, as it is in many CRPGs.  Different groups of people will react in diff-
ering ways to your character, depending on the deeds s/he has done, the way s/he
looks, and numerous other variables, including organizations you are a part of.
Such organizations can include fighter/mage/thief/merchant/etc. guilds, temples,
religious orders, etc.

        In many CRPGs, sufficiently advanced characters can keep a steady flow
of cash - but with nothing to spend it on.  Players in Daggerfall may not have
to face this irritating play balance problem any more.  You can settle down in a
town and purchase a house!  In addition to this impressive feature, you can fur-
nish the house to your liking, using defined objects that represent furniture,
art, treasure, etc.  Your house will have to be secure, because thieves roam the
world of Daggerfall.  All this makes for even more world immersion than Arena,
which lacked the "build your own house" feature.  But to pay for the mansion of
your dreams, you may have to take a trip to the local bank.  The money system is
sophisticated - the banks will loan and finance large payments such as houses,
boats, etc.; and letters of credit can also be issued.

        Also unique features of the Elder Scrolls series are the SpellMaker,
ItemMaker, and PotionMaker utilities.  These Makers allow the player to create
custom spells, items, and potions, using preset materials.  Using the ItemMaker
can be as simple as dragging poison onto a sword blade, or as complex as cooking
up a good meal.  The number of ingredients available for these three utilities
is staggering; there must be hundreds, if not thousands, of possible potions,
spells, and items - further increasing the value of this already huge game.

        Daggerfall certainly sets some lofty goals, but with the experience of
its award-winning predecessor Arena behind it, it may just fulfill all those am-
bitions.  If it does, you can be sure that Daggerfall is going to be a strong
contender for the biggest and best CRPG _ever_.


THE ELDER SCROLLS: DAGGERFALL - PRESS RELEASE
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Sorcerers, seductresses, powerful spellmakers and a menagerie of
pernicious beats will be unleashed as Bethesda introduces its
newest role-playing game, THE ELDER SCROLLS: DAGGERFALL.

Incorporating Bethesda's new full, 3-D X(n)gine(Tm), THE ELDER
SCROLLS: DAGGERFALL promises to redefine the role-playing genre.
Special new features allow players to explore a fully
topographical landscape, create their own characters and interact
realistically with other characters, both in dialogue and action.
For example, if a player's character assists another in some way,
that deed will be remembered later on - even in later games
in the series.

With DAGGERFALL players can explore intricately designed caves,
castles dwellings, highlands and lowlands - and can even travel
underwater or to alternate dimensions. DAGGERFALL can be played
either as a stand-alone product or as a sequel to THE ELDER
SCROLLS: ARENA, wherein players have the ability to "import"
their ARENA character into DAGGERFALL, as well as create potions,
and magic items as an extension of ARENA'S SpellMaker.

"What is wonderful about ARENA and DAGGERFALL is that you can be
and do whatever you want with virtually no limitations," said
Bethesda President Chris Weaver. "Aside from all the
sophisticated technology operating in the background we think
that freedom is one of the most important features of the ELDER
SCROLLS series. The vast detail of the computer world we have
created and the freedom to explore and live an unhindered life
has hit home with numbers groups of "non-standard" role players.
A case in point is the thousands of ARENA users over age 55. We
are very gratified by such cross-over demographics."

In TES: DAGGERFALL Bethesda is also introducing a unique feature
called "ChildGuard", which is a version control function that
allows parents or adults to choose the level of violence,
language and sexual content they will allow children to
experience in the game. Once set, the child is unable to override
the parent's choices, although the parent can change the settings
using a password feature. "We created "ChildGuard" as a
responsible means of allowing the maximum number of people to
enjoy our products in the most appropriate way," said Chris
Weaver, Bethesda's President. "Parents should have the right to
control what their children experience, yet adults should not be
artificially constrained by children's standards. "ChildGuard"
provides that freedom of control."

A relative newcomer to the role-playing arena, Bethesda has taken
the genre by storm. Introduced just last year, THE ELDER SCROLLS:
ARENA quickly gained industry kudos, leading to "Role Playing
Game of the Year" award from COMPUTER GAMING WORLD, COMPUTER GAME
REVIEW, and COMPUTER PLAYER. ARENA was also  recently named the
"Best Adventure Game of the Year" by GAMES MAGAZINE. Praised as
the most realistic and captivating role-playing game on the
market, ARENA elevated the category of fantasy role-playing to a
new level. With the success of ARENA, there has been
extraordinary anticipations for the release of DAGGERFALL.

SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

486/33 MHz IBM PC or compatible running DOS 5.0+
8MB RAM
2x CD-ROM Drive
VGA graphics card
Supports: Aria, Ensoniq, Roland, SoundBlaster, and UltraSound
Joystick or Microsoft compatible mouse.


THE ELDER SCROLLS: DAGGERFALL - OTHER SOURCES
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        Bethesda has a BBS up and running at [phone], on which the screen
shots included, plus more, can be found.  The press release above can also be
downloaded directly from this BBS.  There is also a playable demo of Daggerfall,
which is about 10 megabytes compressed, available in two separate files on the
BBS.  In addition to Daggerfall support, the BBS also has a lot of files in sup-
port of the game's predecessor, Arena.

        There is a passing mention of The Elder Scrolls: Daggerfall in the pre-
miere issue of Computer Game Weekly.  There is a paragraph providing a brief de-
scription of Daggerfall inside the "Games of 1995" article.

        Bethesda can be contacted directly, by voice, at [phone], or by
fax at [phone].  But if you want more info on this hot game, I would rec-
ommend that you download the demo if you have a 14400 bps modem or faster.  It's
well worth the long distance charges.

-=≡<CGW3>≡=-