Cliffhanger – MMO Fallout

Early Access: Shadowrun Online

Following a successful Kickstarter campaign, I finally had the chance to sit down with the early access version of Shadowrun Online. If you missed the campaign or didn’t want to get involved for one reason or another, you can grab early access at Steam for $30 at the following link. Make no mistake, this is a very early work in progress. There are two pre-made characters to use and a very short four mission campaign that will take less than an hour to complete, assuming you don’t die and have to restart any levels.

There are two versions of Shadowrun Online that will eventually be available, a campaign mode and free to play mode. The former, available now in early access, grants everything that the game has to offer with no cash shop or the related bits and bobs of free to play. What you do pay for are optional expansions that Cliffhanger Productions plans on releasing multiple times per year, granted they have the time and resources. The free to play version is just that, no client price but with the added cash shop featuring accelerators and various other items.

At this juncture, Shadowrun Online is basically an endurance run through four levels. The lack of inventory and healing powers makes it impossible to recover health, although one of the characters has a power that grants shields to his allies and himself, but it requires a three turn cooldown. The mechanics of the game, right now, are pretty simple and should be immediately familiar if you’ve played any similar titles. You move, get in cover, and choose from a small list of abilities to hurl at your opponents.

There isn’t much to say about Shadowrun Online at the moment. I like the graphics, the game runs pretty smoothly, and what is present so far is a great indicator of where the game is headed. I can’t wait to see what else the developers have in store, and look forward to more Early Access articles on this game.

Jagged Alliance Online Now On Steam

As previously announced, Jagged Alliance Online is now available for download and play on Steam. The free to play MMO was originally launched on browsers via Gamigo’s game portal, and is expanding its visibility to the Steam community. The game weighs in at a rather light two gigabytes of storage space and recommends a 2.4ghz processor and at least four gigabytes of ram. As with the browser version, Jagged Alliance Online is always online and naturally requires a constant internet connection.

While the original game is free, Steam is offering 10% off until June 12th on two DLC packs. Each pack costs $29.99 ($26.99 on sale) and contains 80 new contracts, extra rewards, achievements, prestige contracts, an exclusive mercenary and $150,000 in cash. Check it out at the link below.

(Source: Steam)

Shadowrun Online's Story System Is…Interesting?

Shadowrun Online passed its Kickstarter Goal of half a million dollars way back in August 2012, and while the game won’t be hitting its original May 2013 anticipated launch, the team over at Cliffhanger Productions is working hard and keeping the community informed. In an update released today, the team is blogging about how the story will work in Shadowrun Online.

The way the story will play out in Shadowrun Online is in phases, rather than the normal RPG storytelling mechanic of main quest and branching side-quests. Each player has their own story which forward the meta-plot for everyone. The example that they give is that players are tasked with taking down psychotic gangsters who are using a new drug. Once you personally take down enough of their hideouts, your personal plot advances and you move on to the next stage. Once enough players have raided these hideouts, the meta-plot will advance for all players and the global mission will be striking against the drug distributors. As players assist a group, that organization sees their influence rise, eventually leading to more missions given to other organizations to try and take them down.

Cliffhanger hopes that the dynamic systems in place will work fluidly and be fun to play for the community. One side effect of this process is that players need to be locked down to certain areas of the city that Shadowrun Online takes place in for the meta plot to make sense and work. So Cliffhanger is doing just that, even going as far as giving Shadowrun Online the subtitle: “Lockdown.”

(Source: Cliffhanger Productions)

Shadowrun Online’s Story System Is…Interesting?

(Source: Cliffhanger Productions)

Kickstarter: Shadowrun Online For Just $500,000

Hey bro, can you spot me some cash to fund Shadowrun Online? I only need ten grand for the top level Kickstarter perk. Shadowrun is a game all about gritty action and player factions warring it out over a persistent world. According to the description, players will be able to shape not just the world of Shadowrun inside of the MMO, but that decisions will also affect the future of the pen and paper game. It will be free to play (but not pay to win) and set on the Unity 3D engine similar to Cliffhanger Productions’ other MMO, Jagged Alliance Online.

Based on the pen and paper game of the same name, Shadowrun Online has taken to Kickstarter because publishers are notorious for not knowing their elbows from their, well you get the picture. Players are able to play for free, or opt into a premium subscription that offers perks including boosts in experience, rewards, and discounts at vendors.

There are 24 days left as of this publishing with about $400,000 left to go.

(Source: Kickstarter)