[Inspector Lagomorf]

Bring back American McGee.

[Mr. Tibbs]

Shacknwews Interview with Romero.

Quote

"I haven’t seen a game in the past decade that played like the early shooters with fast movement, rocket jumping, gibs flying everywhere, intriguing puzzles and imbued with a dark comedic attitude," Carmack told us when asked why he chose now to unveil the project. "It seems that the classic FPS design is something that people want to play again. Perhaps it’s now a cycle, and it’s time for that kind of gameplay to emerge again."

[PikaCommando]

Romero said on the stream that there's about 20 people working on it.

[Mr. Tibbs]

More details from the stream:

Quote

Incorporates level design glitches into story, monsters and gameplay (wall-running)
There will be strafing, strafe-jumping, strafe-running, circle-strafing and all kinds of strafing
Strong air control
"There will be most definitely XTREME gibbage." "More value to gibbage than in other game."
No gameplay because they are in an early stage. "Don't worry there will be gameplay." :/
Mouse/keyboard focus
Destructible walls
Steam / GOG
Level system? They will play around with it.
Open design, multiple paths, secret areas.
Holographic chainsaw.
Speed: high - Romero feels even Quake was slowish. He likes speed.
Ferrari stretch goal not included.
Impossible geometry will "definitely be there". You can go outside the simulation, seeing procedurally generated stuff that looks like simulation gone bad.
No QTEs
Level design: not an open world game, but they are not tiny little levels - you can move quickly, and have the room to do it. The scale is the number one thing to get right. You have to calibrate your whole game around the movement speed / jump length. Complex but basically abstract level design, reuse of space, fun to explore.
Superfly: not in the game. Dopefish: lives. Cyberdemon: They don't own it.
Planned release: December 2018.
Health-packs, no health-regen.
Weapons, weapon mods and alt fire modes galore.
Intentionally high moddability.
The "glitch" enemies are procedurally generated, and take many possible shapes. "It is bad news when they show up".
Want to make sure things look gud, but what matters is the ability to move really fast through the game, and have very high FPS.
Monsters can fight each other. Lots of monsters per level. How many? "Remember classic games? That many."
Teleportals and telefrags: "They are awesome, and I love them, and they have to be in there."
Checkpoint-based saves.
Seems to be universal ammo ("bits"), which you can get by "destroying everything". Bits can be used on weapon mods. If it feels bad, it will be tweaked.
And impressions:
Still too vague, but slightly better. Some more promising gameplay ideas.
"Holograms" sounds like it has potential, but it can also be used to rationalise any bullshit.
Background once more feels like "coolest thing a 15 years old John Romero could imagine", which is par for course.
The 'boxel" and the environmental control still seems gravity gun kinda gimmicky - I don't know what its place will be in a really fast-paced FPS.
Doesn't seem like a Daikatana-style ego-driven meltdown this time.

Levels include “ruined Victorian mansions…Wild West ghost towns…treacherous pirate galleons” and more, and will be spread across a ten hour campaign and six multiplayer maps.

Develop interview.

Edit: I don't think this is going to make its goal. There have only been a handful of Kickstarter's that have raised less than half their goal on day one and managed to get fully funded. Starting the campaign with only a few concept pieces and no gameplay, not even a prototype, wasn't a good move, especially with the high $29 base cost for the game.

[HulkNukem]

Funnily enough, I was planning to have specific special enemies in my shooter that may or may not ever appear in levels, ones that are hostile to all other enemies and players and existed just to 'scout' the area for their race, and I've started creating Victorian style and Western levels mixed with sci-fi techbase. Odd coincidence

[leilei]

Getting a Mass Effect/Hard Reset/Bombshell/MattHazard generic shooter vibe from this. Makes me wonder if it was worth getting the reclusive adrian carmack back in the saddle again to make a game starring notCommanderShepard

We'll see, can't say i'm hyped for it though. Romero has this old habit of overselling concepts to a higher ambition (way before Daikatana) so it's all grain of salt until release to me. SomeDEgameREdesignersKScan'tMAeverRTchange.

[Lunick]

On one hand, I'm glad he chose Kickstarter instead of some other irrelevant funding site.

On the other...

[MetHy]

Randy Pitchford on blackroom.

https://youtu.be/MSX8pWqRABY

"John's mind is why the genre is what it is today"

I'm sorry but this is totally off the point. More accurate would be: John's mind is why the genre was what it was yesterday and is why he wants that back today.

[Richard Shead]

MetHy, on 26 April 2016 - 12:03 PM, said:

"John's mind is why the genre is what it is today"

Somehow, I'm not at all surprised that Randy meant that as a compliment...

[PsychoGoatee]

I backed this, I'd rather have them out there working on this than not. Good or bad, that's a diceroll, but I'm optimistic. And having music by Dokken's George Lynch, that is rockin'. Rockin' like Dokken.

[NightFright]

I backed it yesterday as well. They are already at 116k USD right now. Not bad considering they still have 30 days left. Would really like to see this happen. Even if the idea with different (time) zones sounds vaguely familiar from Daikatana, the concept in general is appealing. Right now, I am picturing it as some kinda "Singularity meets Quake meets VR", and the mix may work out - combining classic gameplay with up-to-date scenarios (considering the upcoming Oculus Rift/VR movement).

A lot can happen in two years however, and I doubt they are able to finish it till end of 2018. Anyway, it seems Romero got at least a bit more modest now and doesn't claim it's going to be the best game ever created. I agree with him that the FPS genre needs new impulses, even if that means to actually go retro (at least gameplay-wise) since most titles these days have forgotten what turned titles like Doom, Quake, Duke3D, Unreal, Half-Life etc into classics. Casualization and linearity are the biggest problems. We have many games these days which look great (e.g. Far Cry 4 which I am finally playing right now), but they play the same all the time, usually with lame stories, lack of variety regarding level design (it's great to check out a setting e.g. in the Himalaya, but after a few hours you get used to it) and other flaws.

Of course there is no guarantee Blackroom is going to fix these problems. But at least it may be an attempt to do so.

[Kristian Joensen]

Mr. Tibbs, on 25 April 2016 - 12:20 PM, said:

More details from the stream:



Levels include “ruined Victorian mansions…Wild West ghost towns…treacherous pirate galleons” and more, and will be spread across a ten hour campaign and six multiplayer maps.

Develop interview.

Edit: I don't think this is going to make its goal. There have only been a handful of Kickstarter's that have raised less than half their goal on day one and managed to get fully funded. Starting the campaign with only a few concept pieces and no gameplay, not even a prototype, wasn't a good move, especially with the high $29 base cost for the game.

Got any statistics to back that up or is that just your impression of crowdfunding campaigns that most that make it, make more than half their goal on day one? They already passed 1/7 of their funding goal in less than 1/30 of the campaign length.

[Micky C]

Yeah but it's common sense that the backing would drop off exponentially over time, except perhaps at the end where people try to push it to the finish line.

Most of the keener backers (who pay the larger amounts) would have contributed over the first day or two considering this was advertised before it opened up, and is a relatively high profile project with Romero getting interviews with various websites.

[Kristian Joensen]

Sure, it is well known that contributions aren't evenly distributed throughout a campaign, but the notion that campaigns that don't reach the half point on the first day are doomed seems implausible to me.

[MetHy]

Based on Iga getting 5,5millions with Bloodstained when asking "only" for 0,5 million, I'm sure Romero and Blackroom will get at the very least a million.

This is part of the reasons why I don't back projects like this. What if, like Iga, he gets 10 times more than he requests? He probably doesn't want to hire 200 people, so I don't see what he'll do with all that money nor do I see how it improves the project.

I have little clue about modern video game making costs, but past a certain point above the request, I have doubts on the necessity to keep giving more.

I'd give if in 20 days it hasn't reached goal. But I'm sure he'll already have a million by then at the very least.

[HulkNukem]

MetHy, on 27 April 2016 - 07:19 AM, said:

Based on Iga getting 5,5millions with Bloodstained when asking "only" for 0,5 million, I'm sure Romero and Blackroom will get at the very least a million.

This is part of the reasons why I don't back projects like this. What if, like Iga, he gets 10 times more than he requests? He probably doesn't want to hire 200 people, so I don't see what he'll do with all that money nor do I see how it improves the project.

The Double Fine adventure is funnily the first and best example of what happens.
The scope of the project becomes much bigger, too big in fact, the game is then broken into two parts, the first part is sold to help pay for the second part.

[Mr. Tibbs]

Kristian Joensen, on 27 April 2016 - 06:31 AM, said:

Got any statistics to back that up or is that just your impression of crowdfunding campaigns that most that make it, make more than half their goal on day one? They already passed 1/7 of their funding goal in less than 1/30 of the campaign length.

Check out Kicktraq, it breaks down how projects are funded across their campaigns. While there are a handful that maintain steady pledges (Divinity OS, Torment), if you look at a bunch of campaigns you'll notice there's a pattern where the first and last days end up being the biggest earners.

Romero's shooter would be funded if it maintained the momentum of its first day when it had all the media attention and a big social media push, but the precedent suggests Blackroom's going to slow to a crawl until the last days. Most KS campaigns sag in the middle unless they've already made the goal, which is when the community and backers focus on unlocking enticing stretch goals. It could be an anomaly like Strafe which received the bulk of its funding in the last few days, but that's rare.

Reaching a 7th of the goal is not impressive, even with only a couple of days down. Barring divine intervention or the best PR/demo in the world, it will be lucky to make to 250k before the final push. Kicktraq says that it's trending towards 186% of it's goal. Watch that number drop over the next few days when the project only picks up only a couple of grand a day.

Edit: Here's a quick comparison to three other high profile Kickstarters that "struggled" to achieve their funding goal. These are close calls with less then 110% funding.

[MrBlackCat]

I am glad they are PC primary with console as secondary as only a possibility... from a design standpoint. I would only back a console version however, as I don't have or intend to get a modern gaming PC.

MrBlackCat

[Carl Winslow]

HulkNukem, on 27 April 2016 - 09:08 AM, said:

The Double Fine adventure is funnily the first and best example of what happens.
The scope of the project becomes much bigger, too big in fact, the game is then broken into two parts, the first part is sold to help pay for the second part.

Yeah but
Tim Schafer.

Let's face it, Iga's probably several times better at managing a budget than any of these other dorks, and he's an actual serious developer.

[HulkNukem]

Yeah, I don't see this Kickstarter passing the minimum. Romero says he will still find a way to create the project, though that could mean either a smaller project or a longer development cycle (not like December 2018 will be the real date anyways, expect delays)
There really should've been some gameplay videos, even just screenshots. Concept Art isn't enough, nor the Doom maps.
Hopefully they can get something together before the end? There's still 28 days

[Lunick]

Funding Canceled

Funding for this project was canceled by the project creator 10 minutes ago.

R.I.P.

https://www.kickstar...ero-and-carmack

Quote

You asked for it, and you’re getting it: a gameplay demo of BLACKROOM.

The team is at work on a demo which demonstrates the kind of gameplay, look and innovative, cool features that make BLACKROOM truly unique — the things we’ve waited years to put into an FPS and which make us incredibly excited about this game.

There’s a hitch here, a hitch that’s making us do something that’s right for the game, the team, and the community: we’re pressing “PAUSE” on the fundraising campaign for BLACKROOM to complete this gameplay demo. Simply put, this will take more time than the Kickstarter has left, so we’ve decided to suspend the campaign and launch a new one when the gameplay demo is ready. We believe, however, it is the right choice. We know you do, too. Thanks to your feedback, we know we should have included it at launch.

To all of our backers: your support has been incredible and valuable. We will, of course, honor backer achievements in the next campaign (and an extra something for those of you who continue to support us in the next campaign).

While we're working on the first gameplay demo, we welcome you to stay in touch with us at nightworkgames.com and @nightworkgames. Sign up for our newsletter for regular updates. You’re also welcome to email us at info@nightworkgames.com.

[Cage]

I was thinking that Romero learned his lessons over time and I really wanted the guy to have another chance at a high profile first person shooter. Now this seems like a typical young-Romero style bad planning and premature ejaculation announcement.

Having a gameplay demo for the campaign is a good idea, but they really didn't think of that sooner? Not only they lose any momentum gathered, it's going to turn off a lot of people - "Oh hey Romero acting up again", "Are you going to cancel this kickstarter too?", "Probably wasn't worth it anyway" etc.

I really want this to happen. Some people say the premise is lazy, bo so is Doom's and I think it's actually pretty clever about the possibilites of surprises and curveballs with a setting where everything can happen. With fun gameplay and good levels it would be at least decent. I hope the consequences of this decision won't kill the project and he gets to make himself great again.

[MetHy]

Looks like they, too, felt like the fundraiser wasn't going to hit the demand.
So they're waiting to release a demo before resuming it in the hope that will convince the indecisive ones.

That demo better be good.

[HulkNukem]

Well, the good news is we will get a playable version of the game way before release, which we may or may not have ever got before
Here's hoping for something truly awesome to come from this

[Kathy]

Why Romero didn't learn from mistakes his wife(Brathwaite) made is a mystery.

[MusicallyInspired]

Regarding Kickstarters in general, I think the initial crowd funding wave was a perfect storm that is unrepeatable. If you missed the train 4 years ago there's very little chance that you're going to succeed with it today. I haven't backed anything since that first wave and I'm still waiting for completion on every single one of them, let alone rewards (the only exception being Broken Age, which is complete, but the rewards still haven't been completed). The magic has worn off. People have discovered that their wildest dreams don't come true just because your dream team is working on something you've always wanted them to. Some have been pleased. Probably most have been at least a little let down, which stifles any excitement about backing future campaigns.

That's all beside the point of Romero's reputation and history of mistakes. I wish him luck, but unfortunately it's not as lucrative as it used to be.

[Fox]

I wouldn't say Kickstarter is not getting as much crowd funding, rather that it appeared to be too easy to get funding that too many tried to get on the boat.

[HulkNukem]

MusicallyInspired, on 29 April 2016 - 08:57 AM, said:

Regarding Kickstarters in general, I think the initial crowd funding wave was a perfect storm that is unrepeatable. If you missed the train 4 years ago there's very little chance that you're going to succeed with it today. I haven't backed anything since that first wave and I'm still waiting for completion on every single one of them, let alone rewards (the only exception being Broken Age, which is complete, but the rewards still haven't been completed). The magic has worn off. People have discovered that their wildest dreams don't come true just because your dream team is working on something you've always wanted them to. Some have been pleased. Probably most have been at least a little let down, which stifles any excitement about backing future campaigns.

That's all beside the point of Romero's reputation and history of mistakes. I wish him luck, but unfortunately it's not as lucrative as it used to be.

You have to be able to prove yourself when trying to fund a game just starting development, it is way too hit or miss when going off just concept art and name recognition, especially when that name is sadly tainted by a 15+ year old mistake in near everyone's eyes.
What I see as a viable option for kickstarter, and something I was thinking about doing myself depending on how the future goes, is if you have the base game created and nearing completion, put a kickstarter for more features or new episodes you want to create.
"Here, this game right now is ~80% complete and will be releasing within the following time frame, regardless of the kickstarter's success or not. We have X amount of levels created, X amount of guns and enemies, but we want to make new content for it, and this is how much we are asking for in comparison to how much the game has cost so far for similar features." Then start listing specifics of what you want to implement.
Trying to fund entire games before starting work on them at this point is a real shot in the dark because of all the horror stories.

[Mr. Tibbs]

Sensible move. Get out early, fix your pitch, then come back strong. Yet it baffles me they launched the campaign with what they had. Despite being industry veterans, they completely missed the mark for what was needed for the pitch, which is surprising considering how effective the teaser was.

Also, I don't think many young people know who they are and Romero has a pretty spotty record post Id. People remember him as much for Doom and Quake as they do for Ion Storm, Daikatana and 'making us his bitch'. Kickstarter's "anybody can get hundreds of thousands of dollars" boom was back in 2012-2013. The reason games like Bloodstained and Shenmue got lots of money was because the market for revivals of classic Japanese console gaming properties is (or was) large and relatively untapped. Western shooter fans are a more hard-to-please bunch. Kickstarter moves by sentiment and emotion not reason. The audience needs to feel the developers enthusiasm. Should have acknowledged his mistakes, talked about the current shooter market, and shown off some freaky monster and environment design art from Adrian Carmack.

I've heard that Otherside Entertainment, along with other Kickstarter veterans, had no idea Romero was about to launch his campaign. The little group of them that talk and share never heard from him. They've reached out to him with some pointers for his next campaign.

[Duke of Hazzard]

This seems a lot like a reunion from a 70s rock band to create songs which are basically the same old stuff but inferior to the original because back in the 70s they had the wow factor and everything was new, whereas today everything they did in the past has either been done to death or superseded by better/more contextual things, and the frontman's voice is damaged beyond repair, the guitarist can no longer play his riffs with the same spirit, the community atmosphere is completely different...

The game he wants to create already exists, and he himself was among the staff who created it, 24 years ago. It's still going strong and needs no rehashing. Why does he feel the need to make another Doom?

Also, I'm pretty sure they launched the campaign now because it's close to BethesDoom's release.

I'm sorry for the harsh tone, as I really like Romero, but whereas Doom was revolutionary and hence became a staple in gaming, this seem to be mere pandering to the old school folks. It's quite the opposite of Doom, actually, since it doesn't revolutionize anything (and that's why I'm critical of BethesDoom, too).