Just wanted to give everyone a quick preview of what we are intending to create with our new game set in the world of PoxNora.
We are a very small team of indy developers working remotely through the pandemic in order to build our new game. The 3 core partners are the same 3 that created the original PoxNora in my garage 16-17 years ago. We also have 3-5 individual external artists from around the world helping us to execute the plan. It's beyond exciting that this process feels so similar to the way it did back when we first started developing Pox. I know I am enjoying this process immensely and thankful to be working with these guys again and to be expanding the world and characters of PoxNora with this project. Over the last 3 years we have written at least a 1/2 dozen design concepts, and even started prototyping multiple ideas. Over the last year we have settled on the Onslaught concept - one that gives us the freedom to self-publish or to expand the scope as we explore funding opportunities. I wanted to make sure the concept we started with was one we could accomplish 100% on our own if necessary.
I typically do not like to share until something is perfect. For this project though, I am really going to try to document our production process for all to see. Things will change, as they always do. Pivoting is a normal part of the process and I can tell you what we have right now has evolved continuously since day 1 and I love that part of the process. Every single person that works on the project brings a little bit of their own essence to the game, and to me that is what makes it great. We are not creating something because analytics tells us it will make $. We are making this because it's the kind of game I want to play with my friends and I am sure there are others that will feel the same way.
What kind of game is it?
We have had a fairly regular Wednesday night game group of 4-6 people that have been playing games together since the old Octopi garage days, starting with World of Warcraft. We have been playing fairly regularly for the last 15-16 years and has been a staple for me - so much so that my family knows not to schedule anything on Wednesday nights. We play various games, discuss design and breakdown the things they got right and things we would improve on. We are always on the look-out for fun, cooperative games that we can play together, games that have some kind of persistence that will bring us back every week for more.
The experience with my game group is why Onslaught is focused on Cooperative gameplay. Let's work together to build something greater than we could as individuals. Something we could play for months at a time, but not a grind MMO that fills your quest-log with mundane chores to complete. We also want game sessions to last about 30 minutes. That way you can get together and play more often without a huge time-sink.
Myth 2 Soulblighter by Bungie has always been one of my all-time favorite titles and the World Campaign story follows a similar model. The entire world of PoxNora will be available to players and you will play as many of the various characters and races from the original game as you progress through the story. The original PoxNora will be felt more than just familiarity with the characters and settings. Heroes will be able to summon Champions, Spells and Weapons as they did in the original game, although the battles in Onslaught will be real-time and Champions will be AI-controlled. Yes, there will be a massive meta-game that will impact the individual battles and strategies you deploy.
World Campaign Map
The game starts 500 years after the last events in PoxNora. The world is entirely dominated by the Wraith factions.
The campaign can be played by 1-5 players as a cooperative action-adventure game. The world map includes over 100 territories, including 24 faction capital cities. The Protectorate have lost everything, and the game begins with the players selecting from an assortment of Heroes in order to find and reclaim the lost Ironfist Stronghold.
The players will be given a series of quests that will guide them through the process of steadily reclaiming territories until the 3 Dwarven clans have regained their Strongholds and have restored the Ironfist Mountains region to its rightful owners.
The players will need to lay siege to enemy fortresses to reclaim territories, while building up the defenses of their own Stronghold so as not to lose it to the enemy. Expect a constant push and pull of world campaign progress as territories are won and lost. Not only will the players need to strategically build defenses for each controlled territory, on a macro level they will need to acquire wealth by establishing trade routes, developing commerce, harvesting natural resources and engaging in diplomacy.
Each player will have the ability to play an assortment of Heroes in order to advance the campaign and complete their quests. Each Hero will have the ability to gain up to 30 levels and collect unique armor and weapon sets as they reclaim lost territories.
Onslaught will be released in 4 parts. Each release will include 2 regions of the world, the first set being Ironfist Stronghold and the Forsaken Wastes. Each region will contain 3 allied factions each with their own Hero and unique collection of Champions, Weapons, Spells, Traps and Outposts. The initial set will include 5 playable Heroes from the Ironfist Mountains region.
After each release, two new regions of the world will be unlocked and the storyline and quests will guide the players to their next objective, and ultimately restoring balance back to a land ravaged by war. The second set will include K’thir Forest and the Underdepths regions, followed by Savage Tundra/Sundered Lands and Forglar Swamp/Shattered Peaks.
Territory Map
Each territory on the world map will have its own unique in-game map as well, with a specific biome based on the region it is in. When players travel to a new territory, they will need to complete a specific objective in order to claim it, or to remain in control if it was already owned. The objective will depend on the territories status; who controls the territory, whether it is a capital city or if it is part of a quest.
If it is a capital city, there will be a Stronghold, and possibly a Titan. If the player is the owner, they will need to acquire resources (gold and Nora), build up their defenses, set traps and repel an enemy siege. If an enemy faction is the owner, the players need to lay siege and overtake the Stronghold. Some quests will have players searching for artifacts, while others will require players to escort refugees to their new home.
Once the players complete the world campaign and restore the borders of PoxNora to their rightful state, the Drums of War mode will unlock. In the Drums of War, a player chooses ANY of the 24 factions and begins a 200 + hr campaign to conquer the entire world. We will have a real-time global world map that will reflect the results of ALL player controlled territories per faction, which will be updated dynamically and reset after each 3 month season. Perhaps we have a contest to see which group of players can be the first to control the entire world. I wonder which faction will be first?