Hero Mages (by D20Studios)

[RossD20Studios]

Originally Posted by pjft

No Async (yet, at least).
Vs. Multiplayer only, I believe.

Quick questions:

In your interview for iFanzine when asked about a campaign mode, you mentioned you were planning a new single-player title with Hero Mages' mechanics, and a full-fledged campaign. Does it mean Hero Mages will likely not get a single-player campaign, or are they two separate things?

Also, I bought this game on Android some time ago, so I'm not planning on double-dipping for iOS at the moment When you mention that "Custom map editing is currently available only on web/browser version (Not among the features listed for iOS). This feature will be coming to iOS very soon. Pass & Play will also be included in future release", can I assume that when you refer to iOS, you're referring to the mobile versions - both of them? Just asking.

Cheers, and great job!

Paulo

This depends on how you interpret "full single player experience". As I originally designed the game for multiplayer skirmishes, I personally feel it would need some major mechanic additions necessary for a single player experience that would considerably alter the current skirmish play style. Just off the top of my head: exploration elements (fog of war, rooms, doors, chambers), monsters & random encounters (requiring significant amounts of new artwork/unit models), inventories/loot, and character leveling/customization. The shared-deck card recycling system would also have to be revised- perhaps characters would need their own decks or ability trees. You get the idea. If I'm going to build it, I want it to be an awesome, polished experience- not a quick update/afterthought that gets tacked on. This is why I'm thinking this might be a new title, separate from the current game.

What I might add to the currrent game are mini-scenarios that would continue some of the story elements presented in the tutorial campaign and perhaps offer some unique gameplay challenges. A mission or two added with each update could eventually build up to what some might consider a full single player campaign.

Pass & Play is planned as a free new feature available for all game versions (adding value to current purchases). Custom map editing/expansion characters will be added to mobile as well- but will probably be available first as In-App purchases for iOS, followed by Android and/or Player-Rewards.

Each marketplace requires you to use their specific billing API, which makes programming more challenging as it's a custom job for each one. Player-rewards will be a universal currency available to all platforms, but this will take much longer to develop.

[GeekyDad]

Originally Posted by Bool Zero

Last I checked, D&D (PnP tabletop) always has been turned based strategy, LOL! But my 30 something years of DM/GMing could be wrong!

Could be. We must be around the same age (I'm 40), and I always considered D&D to be roleplaying gameplay. Sure, there's strategy to be considered, but we never considered the genre turn-based strategy. Even the monster manuals and guides all say Roleplaying Game on them (or they used to).

[RossD20Studios]

Thanks everyone for all the kind emails and praise! So happy to hear that everyone is enjoying playing Hero Mages. I've already started looking into In-App purchase API and Push Notifications and am hoping I might be able to deliver existing expansion content possibly within the next couple weeks and async gameplay (perhaps) as early as sometime next month. Fingers crossed- there's still some unknown challenges to work through

Also, just wanted to suggest to please remember to rate & review Hero Mages in the Apple App Store to help get more players excited

[ressique]

Although the extended guards will be available via Iap in the future for less money, I have recently bought them to support this indie gem

One question: How do you get the Minotaur?

[pjft]

Originally Posted by RossD20Studios

This depends on how you interpret "full single player experience". As I originally designed the game for multiplayer skirmishes, I personally feel it would need some major mechanic additions necessary for a single player experience that would considerably alter the current skirmish play style. Just off the top of my head: exploration elements (fog of war, rooms, doors, chambers), monsters & random encounters (requiring significant amounts of new artwork/unit models), inventories/loot, and character leveling/customization. The shared-deck card recycling system would also have to be revised- perhaps characters would need their own decks or ability trees. You get the idea. If I'm going to build it, I want it to be an awesome, polished experience- not a quick update/afterthought that gets tacked on. This is why I'm thinking this might be a new title, separate from the current game.

What I might add to the currrent game are mini-scenarios that would continue some of the story elements presented in the tutorial campaign and perhaps offer some unique gameplay challenges. A mission or two added with each update could eventually build up to what some might consider a full single player campaign.

Pass & Play is planned as a free new feature available for all game versions (adding value to current purchases). Custom map editing/expansion characters will be added to mobile as well- but will probably be available first as In-App purchases for iOS, followed by Android and/or Player-Rewards.

Each marketplace requires you to use their specific billing API, which makes programming more challenging as it's a custom job for each one. Player-rewards will be a universal currency available to all platforms, but this will take much longer to develop.

Hi Ross,

Thanks for the thorough reply. I definitely get where you're coming from - and I appreciate the difficulties in integrating with platform-specific APIs.

In terms of single-player campaign, yes - I guess I was thinking of something like several mini-scenarios, with a story that connected them somehow, and a "campaign-like structure" with different types of missions related to the story. I believe you already have the different types of missions required for it, for the most part, but I agree that you might need to redesign some things, of course.

I was wondering if you wouldn't want to enable a possible "show enemies only when in field of vision" option at least to offline matches, since you already seem to have the field of vision set up?

Also, I'm not really that deep into the game yet, but do all characters move 5 squares? If so, have you considered having specific classes or characters moving a different number of squares?

Well, keep up the great work - I can't wait to play some more!

Cheers,

Paulo

[Pitta]

Originally Posted by RossD20Studios

What I might add to the currrent game are mini-scenarios that would continue some of the story elements presented in the tutorial campaign and perhaps offer some unique gameplay challenges. A mission or two added with each update could eventually build up to what some might consider a full single player campaign.

THIS, this and this!!!
That + async...I would buy it in a heartbeat and pester all my friends to do the same.
Mini ad hoc story based challenges that I could do in CO OP async with some friends....seems gaming Nirvana to me.

[RangerRob]

This game is really amazing to me so far in the potential of what it can be on the iPad. I really want to see the expansions and multiplayer (asynchronous) make it to the iPad, I'll buy them all, this game is a perfect implementation of a miniature / board game skirmish game.

[Grungebob]

Originally Posted by RossD20Studios

Thanks everyone for all the kind emails and praise! So happy to hear that everyone is enjoying playing Hero Mages. I've already started looking into In-App purchase API and Push Notifications and am hoping I might be able to deliver existing expansion content possibly within the next couple weeks and async gameplay (perhaps) as early as sometime next month. Fingers crossed- there's still some unknown challenges to work through

Also, just wanted to suggest to please remember to rate & review Hero Mages in the Apple App Store to help get more players excited

Purchased to support indie games market. Waiting anxiously for the async.

[oooooomonkey]

Originally Posted by RossD20Studios

Also, just wanted to suggest to please remember to rate & review Hero Mages in the Apple App Store to help get more players excited

I already Left a five star review on the uk iTunes store the other day.
Can't wait for the add-on content ill buy that straight away.
I think the idea of some more mini style missions like the tutorials sounds better than a full blown campaign as I can totally see your point about it being a quick skirmish type game and that's why I love it.

[twiccan]

I just want to say to anyone who might think that the skirmish modes in the game are limited, that the experience is alot like the classic game Chaos or the boardgame Wiz-War in that the main character and maps may be limited in variety(although way more variety than chaos and Wiz-War's map is always changing, something that would be awesome to see in this game, lol), but the variety and fun of the game is in all the spells that you can access. There are over 80 of them, and which ones come up and when they come up in a game really make each session unique.

As a huge Chaos fan, I love the option to just have the mages dueling it out. This was an insta-buy when I first saw it and I just happened to have bought an App Store card, so I was very happy.

Also, some people are bashing this game on boardgamegeek.com. They don't seem to get the concept and they are saying how the base game (the android version specifically) is not complete as is. I'm trying to educate them, though!