Geneforge 1: Mutagen Update #6

Work continues on the remaster of Spiderweb Software’s original Geneforge. Despite a brief break and some distractions, the game’s engine is now mostly finished and it’s currently on track to be released early next year. The latest update brings us up to speed, mentions the new creation and backer contributions, and shares some enemy designs. Here are the text parts:

We are entering the time of uninteresting Geneforge 1 - Mutagen updates. The engine is mostly done. Now we are grinding out sections, with 14 sections finished.

This is only a small improvement over last month. This is partly because we had to rework a bunch of iPad games to make Apple happy, and partly because we took an actual vacation. In the next month, there will be a lot of movement forward.

We are concentrating on keeping the game system as faithful to the original as possible, with the occasional rough edge rounded off. We are making sure, at least on easier difficulty levels, that it is really hard to make a character build which makes it painful to proceed. (Don’t worry. Hard difficulties will still be hard.)

Happily, the sections we’ve done have all been played with all three characters. Lots of bugs are being fixed, lots of rebalancing is happening, and the game is still fun. We’re still on track for a release early next year.

The Cockatrice!

Thanks to everyone who sent suggestions for the abilities for the new creation, the cockatrice. There were a lot of great ideas, and we picked some of the craziest ones.

It will be a unique creation different from anything in Geneforge, and we think people will find it to be pretty fun. Now it’s time to actually design it and get the art made. Thanks for the help, and we hope everyone who took part enjoyed it!

Backers Who Contribute To the Game

The quest and character and item designers have come up with a lot of terrific ideas. Most of them are from longtime fans of the Geneforge series, and they had great ideas for how to flesh out the world of Geneforge and fix plot holes from the first game.

I’ve put in a lot of time figuring out how to weave the new material in to make a richer, more complex world, and I’m super-happy with how it’s turning out. There will be a two new factions, many new quest lines, and lots of cool lore.

If your supporter level lets you contribute sometime to the game, and you haven’t, please contact me at geneforgegame[at]gmail.com.

Cool art keeps coming in, and I’ve attached more creation art below. See you next month!

- Jeff Vogel