Worlds of Magic 1.0 released

[Huw the Poo]

My mistake, I missed that.

I'll be sure to post updates as the game gets patched, with my own thoughts.

[Huw the Poo]

Worlds of magic is 40% off on Steam this week.

[JasonPratt]

My mistake, I missed that.

I'll be sure to post updates as the game gets patched, with my own thoughts.

Please do! (Sale noted, but still passing for a while.)

[FarAway Sooner]

I find, with games that have this much potential, if they don't bring it to life for me, they just piss me off.  I'll also hold off, although if this one gets to a good place, I'm sure to pick it up!

[kassdhal]

Been looking at this one since release and couldn't pass the average reviews despite the draw from the Master of Magic past. Is it worth picking up now and risk never playing again or waiting for more patching to be able to enjoy it for long?

[Huw the Poo]

Is it worth picking up now and risk never playing again or waiting for more patching to be able to enjoy it for long?

It's absolutely playable now; you can play a game from start to finish.  As I've said upthread, it's really just a question of how much polish you want; there are some UI issues which make the game less enjoyable to play than it could be.  I myself have a high tolerance for polish issues though, and I'm happy to play it in its current form.  Nevertheless, the developers are clearly committed and the game still gets patched frequently.

My honest opinion:

• If this is your kind of game and you don't need AAA production values, get it while it's on sale
• If you have any doubts about the lack of polish, hold off for more patches but definitely keep your eye on it

Personally I don't regret buying it at full price (now that I can finally play it); replay value is pretty high and I think I'll be playing it for a long time to come.

[Greybriar]

Here's the latest from the Wastelands Interactive forums about the DRM-Free version of Worlds of Magic:

1. The current cash flow is allowing us to continue development. (That's why new Steam versions keep coming out.)

2. You are VERY likely to see the DRM free version eventually. The real issue is the number of bugs we've run into and the time it takes to fix them. The Steam launch didn't go nearly as well as we had hoped (as many of our fans had warned us it wouldn't) and we don't want to make the same mistake with the GoG launch. I personally hate the fact that the delay has been so long, but the price for releasing things too early is just too high. To use a rather standard industry reply: "It will be ready when it's ready." (And that's what we should have been saying from the very beginning...)

It's still aggravating to be a Kickstarter backer and not being able to play the game I backed.

[bobarossa]

That quote about being VERY likely to see a DRM version eventually is really upsetting to me.  I Kickstarted with the understanding there would be a DRM-free version and they haven't delivered.  I would have thought a DRM-free version would have been easier to produce than a Steam one but I guess they needed the Early Access money since they kept adding features and graphics that I could have lived without.  Now we pay the price of their inability to deliver what they promised because of feature creep.

[Wolfe1759]

I can't figure out why they are delaying the GOG release - the damage has already been done, do they really think anyone is going to think "oh look it's been released on GOG it must be the perfect now" 

From my experience Wasteland games always have loads of potential (as do all games at the ideas stage) and always fall way short of meeting it.

[Bison]

From my experience Wasteland games always have loads of potential (as do all games at the ideas stage) and always fall way short of meeting it.

This.

[Arctic Blast]

I can't figure out why they are delaying the GOG release - the damage has already been done, do they really think anyone is going to think "oh look it's been released on GOG it must be the perfect now" 

I think it's more from an ease of updating standpoint. If they're still stomping bugs and releases new patches, a streamlined Steam upgrade system is going to be much easier. GOG has Galaxy, but it's still Beta and not in widespread use yet. So if regular updates are releasing for the game, how many people are going to be happy to be stuck downloading new versions once a week?

[Greybriar]

Worlds of magic is 25% off ($29.99) at the Humble Store for the next 09:13:10.

Steam key.

[Greybriar]

In case anyone is interested, I just posted what follows on the Wastelands Interactive Worlds of Magic forum:

It has been five months since my previous post in this thread. Since then all I have seen is more empty promises from Wastelands Interactive. Not only am I getting impatient, but I am also a little fed up with the way things have not been progressing.

I backed the original Kickstarter for Worlds of Magic on 28 April 2013. That was two and a half years ago! I also backed the second Kickstarter. The game was supposed to be DRM-Free and the Kickstarter did not mention anything about Steam. Then we backers were told: "You can also give us a hand and vote for the game to help Worlds of Magic to get on Steam."

Now we, the backers who wanted a DRM-Free version, can't even play the game unless it's on Steam. Talk about broken promises.

The DRM-Free backers were promised Beta Access and only later were offered a Steam beta key in exchange for the DRM-Free version we put our money up for. And I'm not even going to mention the physical rewards the Kickstarter backers were promised and which have not been received.

This has turned into an ugly situation. At the very least, I think all DRM-Free backers should be offered a Steam key NOW as well as their DRM-Free version when the developers finally decide the DRM-Free version is ready for release.

[Nefaro]

I can't figure out why they are delaying the GOG release - the damage has already been done, do they really think anyone is going to think "oh look it's been released on GOG it must be the perfect now" 

I think it's more from an ease of updating standpoint. If they're still stomping bugs and releases new patches, a streamlined Steam upgrade system is going to be much easier. GOG has Galaxy, but it's still Beta and not in widespread use yet. So if regular updates are releasing for the game, how many people are going to be happy to be stuck downloading new versions once a week?

This.

Steam has enabled developers to update their games as often as they want.  This may be good, because hotfixes can get implemented very quickly, but it also causes issues with update frequency.  We used to get one big compilation of updates every few months, but now it's every day or three with many of them for those hosted on Steam. 

When I see such frequent updates for something on Steam, it's pretty clear that we're the ones testing them.  They also regularly screw up Save Games.  And, as alluded to above, it causes updates at other retailer venues need to be constantly downloaded or be on a completely different patch version until a compilation is made. 

It may sound nuts when you hear someone complain about getting too many small patches too quickly, but I think it has caused problems with some teams constantly updating.  This may or may not be the case with the WoM guys, but I've definitely seen many games which are updated every few days on Steam and I tend to just stop playing and switch to something else while the version is changing so quickly.  It lasts for long stretches with some.

You guys know exactly what I'm talking about when you mention, "I'm waiting until the patch-nado is done before I buy/play".  ;)  A common side effect the Steam client has caused on the pc gaming market , which I don't think many saw coming years ago.   :))


That said, at least a few of you have seen how outspoken I can be about DRM.  Especially about anyone who increases the amount of DRM on a product you've already purchased, which infuriated me the first time I experienced it.  Hell, I still feel rather hostile about my one experience from years ago every time I think about it.

[Anguille]

In case anyone is interested, I just posted what follows on the Wastelands Interactive Worlds of Magic forum:

It has been five months since my previous post in this thread. Since then all I have seen is more empty promises from Wastelands Interactive. Not only am I getting impatient, but I am also a little fed up with the way things have not been progressing.

I backed the original Kickstarter for Worlds of Magic on 28 April 2013. That was two and a half years ago! I also backed the second Kickstarter. The game was supposed to be DRM-Free and the Kickstarter did not mention anything about Steam. Then we backers were told: "You can also give us a hand and vote for the game to help Worlds of Magic to get on Steam."

Now we, the backers who wanted a DRM-Free version, can't even play the game unless it's on Steam. Talk about broken promises.

The DRM-Free backers were promised Beta Access and only later were offered a Steam beta key in exchange for the DRM-Free version we put our money up for. And I'm not even going to mention the physical rewards the Kickstarter backers were promised and which have not been received.

This has turned into an ugly situation. At the very least, I think all DRM-Free backers should be offered a Steam key NOW as well as their DRM-Free version when the developers finally decide the DRM-Free version is ready for release.

At this point, i'd be happy with a steam edition...it's been soooo long.

Just realised i can't post in their forums anymore...not sure why.