QuoteMy comment is that I don't think T1R would not please someone searching for a story game either. It aims for a middle ground.

this.

QuoteAlso, sorta related, I didn't like RTS games until I played Company of Heroes.

shit, this too!

I never liked any RTS, but Company of Heroes got me hooked. Its focus on tactics actually made it more interesting for me than the genre´s old formula of "collect; build; swarm; repeat".

Quote from: silva;512107I never liked any RTS, but Company of Heroes got me hooked. Its focus on tactics actually made it more interesting for me than the genre´s old formula of "collect; build; swarm; repeat".

And even more confusing is Dawn of War II.  It adds in RPG-like progression for your heroes on top of CoH's RTS/Tactics blend.

Is it for RTS players?  Is it for tactics fans?  Is it for RPG fans?  Or do people just like good games?

Quote from: silva;512107this.


shit, this too!

I never liked any RTS, but Company of Heroes got me hooked. Its focus on tactics actually made it more interesting for me than the genre´s old formula of "collect; build; swarm; repeat".

My fucking computer is too old for even CoH. Fucking Tolkien, it's all his fault.

I was looking forward to this game, but I think I fell for the hype. This game takes itself really seriously.

The game adds complexity where it is unnecessary and unwanted. The combat system is a multi-layered, dice rolling mini-game that does nothing to create interesting combats. The skill system is a democracy that involves metagame discussion. The trait system, while it could be a useful roleplaying tool, for those that need it, also involves, nay, demands metagame discussion.

The journey system is also a dice rolling mini game where the players make lots of repetitive dice rolls for nothing to happen.

TOR demands dice rolls where it shouldn't and RP where it shouldn't.

The only thing I got from this game was the facepalmed epiphany that Middle Earth is a setting, not a system and I can probably hack Basic Fantasy to get a more pacey and satisfying game. Considering all the glowing reviews that this game has received, I question whether any of the reviewers have actually played it.

I'm selling it. If anyone wants to buy it, it's a great game and I truly recommend it.

RTSes are too much like shooters to me. Give me turn - based any time.

Quote from: Orpheo;523784Considering all the glowing reviews that this game has received, I question whether any of the reviewers have actually played it.

Inicidentally I thought about this earlier today glossing through an undifferentiated mess of William "Enworld-Obryn" O'Connor's series of 5-star reviews of 4E D&D products on Amazon.

The quality of RPG reviewing is incredibly bad across the board - uninformative and uninformed, undiscerning, and a lot more un-'s. The writers' lack of sincerity is the most appaling characteristic of it, though (e.g. Obryn deleted his 90% of his 2008/2009 reviews so he could -reuse his favourite tagline "4E has hit its stride with this product" for post-Essentials). Rpg-Net is the opposite of useless, and Enworld has now allowed this fiasco to become their front page reviews.

I wouldn't even factor in 'lack of having played product' too highly - with RPG experience comes the capacity to see a stinker when you look at one.

Quote from: Windjammer;523787Enworld has now allowed this fiasco to become their front page reviews.

Heh.

That "review" reads like something generated by a computer, than a human being.

Sorta like reading the sports and entertainment sections of the local daily newspaper these days.  They read like a "template" was filled in.

(The only sections which resemble a "human being" writing it these days, are typically the newspaper's editor section and articles in the op-ed section).

I'm just now getting around to reading my copy, which I bought a couple of months ago. It certainly is a pretty boxed set with high production values.

While I would have preferred a single release for the core mechanics rather than multiple boxes or books, I'm fairly impressed with the set so far.

We'll see how it holds up in actual play once I digest the material. So far so good.

Quote from: Orpheo;523784Considering all the glowing reviews that this game has received, I question whether any of the reviewers have actually played it.

As a matter of interest, how much actual play have you had with TOR?

Quote from: Skywalker;523955As a matter of interest, how much actual play have you had with TOR?

Enough to understand that I'm no longer giving it my time. In my group we have a number of games we'd like to play and one 3.5 hour session per week;  if a game doesn't cut it, it gets short shrift.

I've already had someone try to tell me that I haven't played it enough to know my own mind. Believe me I was hyped up, enthusiastic about it and the cheerleader for it in my group, I'm just glad that no other players in my group dropped £40 on it and that the only other player that bought it got his second hand off ebay for half that.

When I started having my doubts about it my first thoughts were on how I could houserule it. It sure is pretty, but this game has too many things wrong with it on too many levels, ranging from the writing and layout of the books, the singular style of play it tries to shoehorn you into, the multiple layered, dice-tricksy non-mechanics to the clunky actual play.

Quote from: Orpheo;523784I was looking forward to this game, but I think I fell for the hype. This game takes itself really seriously.

The game adds complexity where it is unnecessary and unwanted. The combat system is a multi-layered, dice rolling mini-game that does nothing to create interesting combats. The skill system is a democracy that involves metagame discussion. The trait system, while it could be a useful roleplaying tool, for those that need it, also involves, nay, demands metagame discussion.

The journey system is also a dice rolling mini game where the players make lots of repetitive dice rolls for nothing to happen.

TOR demands dice rolls where it shouldn't and RP where it shouldn't.

The only thing I got from this game was the facepalmed epiphany that Middle Earth is a setting, not a system and I can probably hack Basic Fantasy to get a more pacey and satisfying game. Considering all the glowing reviews that this game has received, I question whether any of the reviewers have actually played it.

I'm selling it. If anyone wants to buy it, it's a great game and I truly recommend it.

Throw in a copy of, ooooh, Pendragon, and you've got a great game about multi-generational character development, adventure in an unfolding setting, and that's running on a custom rules system that supports and enables it's themes without obstructing play unnecessarily. And you could even use the T1R dice for it's damage rolls.

Quote from: Orpheo;524160I've already had someone try to tell me that I haven't played it enough to know my own mind.

I didn't say that I was just wondering what you own position was given you were making that criticism of others. Also, your observations don't match my own actual play experiences, so I was wondering if this was the reason for the disconnect.

If you have played it and don't like it, then more power to you. No RPG is for everyone.

Big news on the TOR front, from C7's website. They have dropped the three core set approach to avoid duplication and are instead adopting a more traditional release structure. Also, looks like the drought of releases will finally end.

QuoteWe've been blown away by the fantastic reception to the game, culminating in the Origin Award nomination for the best RPG of 2011. Thanks for your support; it means a huge amount to us. If you haven't seen it already, check out Words of the Wise, the free PDF adventure we released as a thank-you to everyone playing the game.

The design team has been hard at work on the supplements, as well as developing our plans for the game. We originally envisaged the game as a series of core sets interspersed with smaller supplemental releases, but while we were preparing material for the second core set, we realised that we would be repeating more information than we had expected. That didn't sit right with us – both Cubicle 7 and Sophisticated Games strongly believe in producing quality games that give gamers value for money. The last thing we wanted was to leave people thinking that they had to buy the same information again just to get the new content. We also realised that moving away from the core set structure would give us a greater degree of freedom with our releases, and that we would be able to cover more areas of Middle-earth and playable cultures sooner.

So, we decided to keep the The One Ring: Adventures over the Edge of the Wild slip case as the core set for the game, and release supplemental material in sourcebook-sized chunks.The current 2012 schedule is:

Tales from Wilderland - Adventure anthology playable as a campaign - May/June*

The One Ring Dice Set - Seven dice in hard plastic box - May/June*

Loremaster's Screen and Laketown Sourcebook - Heavy duty screen, and information about the busiest city in the North, including a new playable culture: the Men of the Lake - July/August*

The Darkening of Mirkwood - epic campaign sourcebook and adventures spanning over thirty years - August

Rivendell (title TBC) - core supplement introducing 'unique' cultures: Rangers of the North and Rivendell Elves. Includes material on The Last Homely House, the surrounding areas, magical artefacts, and more - Autumn

Shipping can sometimes be subject to delays causing the two-month release windows.We'll keep you up-to-date on the schedule as we confirm more titles. The books will be available for pre-order as soon as they are approved and go to print.

We are delighted to announce that Tales from Wilderland has just been approved, and the pre-order is now live at http://shop.cubicle7store.com/epages/es113...roducts/CB71003.

Our pre-orders also include the PDF of the book, which will be sent out as soon as it is ready in a week or so.

The dice sets are also now available for pre-order, and will being shipping in 4-6 weeks. It turns out that shipping dice sets is much more expensive than the equivalent weight in books – wrestling with this is part of the reason that the dice haven't been available sooner. The result is that it costs about the same to send three sets as one, so you'll find it more cost-effective to order three and split them with your group – take a look at the options:

1 set: http://shop.cubicle7store.com/epages/es113347.sf/en_GB/?ObjectPath=/Shops/es113347_shop/Products/CB71002a

3 sets: http://shop.cubicle7store.com/epages/es113...oducts/CB71002b

Thanks again for your enthusiasm and support, we'll be back with another update next month.

Francesco Nepitello, Robert Hyde and Dominic McDowall-Thomas

>new releases
>C7

pick one

Quote from: Skywalker;524246I didn't say that I was just wondering what you own position was given you were making that criticism of others.

All I was saying is that I get the impression that the reviewers are gushing.