SSR The System Shock demo is OUT!

[66ef04c3124c2Kolya]

I really don't think they'll change the engine just because a bunch of people say they should. That's just not how it works, unless you're a complete amateur, which we can probably rule out at this point.

[66ef04c31272afox]

For a game that is almost kickstarted already, it seems quite unplanned. Not just the engine question but a number of other aspects too. Ranging from petty details like the changing laptop to general game concept changes ("now a reboot") and a truck load of game altering mechanics that may or may not end up in the game, depending on the backers.

[66ef04c312c8aThiefsieFool]

For a game that is almost kickstarted already, it seems quite unplanned. Not just the engine question but a number of other aspects too. Ranging from petty details like the changing laptop to general game concept changes ("now a reboot") and a truck load of game altering mechanics that may or may not end up in the game, depending on the backers.

Remind you of Bioshock yet? That was supposed to be a proper and very close spiritual sequel to SS2 with a dark and serious theme, by the time the flip-flopping and sales optimization ended well...you know what we got.

[66ef04c312e39fox]

Yeah, I can see parallels but this is not a spiritual successor, it's supposed to be "System Shock". That makes it even more suspect, that so much is still changing around at this point. I fear this really could end up as a project that started with the intention to be very faithful to the original but at the last minute before the kickstarter went online, they decided that what they really want is basically do something original instead.

[66ef04c31303cJoin2]

I don't see this ending up like Bioshock in space. People have paid/invested in the game with the promise they're getting a System Shock-like experience, not some piece of garbage. Regardless of investors getting what was promised, I don't think it is NightDive's intention to dumb it down either. They seem as passionate about it as we are. 
Heck, they even subtly mocked Bioshock in their Kickstarter presentation video.

[66ef04c313262ZylonBane]

Consider for a moment the recursive insanity that their reason for changing the name to exactly the same name as the original is because they intend to make it different from the original. And the more funding they get, the more different it will be!

[66ef04c313619Hikari]

So apparently they're going to have a new demo out hopefully by monday

The Demo: Thanks to everyone who has downloaded and played our demo - also thanks to those of you who have been sending us crash/bug reports. We're planning an update early next week that will fix various issues and bugs you've encountered while adding in a few additional features for you to experiment with.

Here's hoping.

Oh! Dumb question. On the lift going down? Anyone know how to make it go back up? I want to see what happens when you shoot down all the cameras you can't reach. Likely nothing but still.

[66ef04c3137eaGawain]

Switch the button couple of times and the lift will raise. Button will disappear And if you walk to power station the game will then crash.

[66ef04c313b7eHikari]

Well that was fast. Emailed nightdive I'd actually gotten potato to work (as that felt noteworthy.) They responded.

Thanks for the feedback - we had very little time to optimize the demo for lower end machines before starting the Kickstarter so expect the performance to be a night and day difference. Usually we'd be able to disable certain performance heavy visual effects for lower spec hardware, but we just didn't have the time. We will be releasing a patch relatively soon that will fix some bugs and hopefully improve performance a bit.

Thanks for sending the link to the thread, our guys have been cautiously diving in from time to time to see what's brewing

Again, thanks for the feedback and support, it's greatly appreciated and I'm glad (even the performance was sub-optimal) that you were able to experience the demo. It's in a state that is no where near final but should give you a good idea of where we're headed with it.

[66ef04c313de8Bioshock]

There is literally nothing that could make the original SS better than this reboot.. and that's not an opinion its solid fact. If you really think the original SS is better than a remastered beauty then you really must have problems. I predicted all you basement dwellers would be angry at something new such as this from the start. The whole ORIGINAL team who is indeed working on the project is very proud of their work and should be rightfully so. They could just do nothing about system shock series and leave it to go stale. I bet you people would like that. You should keep in mind this is ONLY THE FUCKING DEMO!!!!


 A System Shock forum with the most un-loyal scummy people. Ridiculous.

[66ef04c313f92ThiefsieFool]

You don't have to hang around if you don't like it.

The whole ORIGINAL team

No.

[66ef04c3143e1Gawain]

There is literally nothing that could make the original SS better than this reboot.. and that's not an opinion its solid fact. If you really think the original SS is better than a remastered beauty then you really must have problems. I predicted all you basement dwellers would be angry at something new such as this from the start. The whole ORIGINAL team who is indeed working on the project is very proud of their work and should be rightfully so. They could just do nothing about system shock series and leave it to go stale. I bet you people would like that. You should keep in mind this is ONLY THE FUCKING DEMO!!!!


 A System Shock forum with the most un-loyal scummy people. Ridiculous.

Hahahha. I have better facts.

[66ef04c314b5cunn_atropos]

So how do you know that this reboot is gonna be better then the original when

THE FUCKING DEMO

  is all that exists...?

scummy people

How did you get the name of the garage cyperpunk band that Kolya, ZylonBane and me are planning?

[66ef04c314d7dGawain]

I always thought the idea of a demo is to sell the product. Usually that means the demo is more polished than the rest of the game. This is even true for SS1. The first level (Medical) is much more complex than any of the other levels. This is seen visually and even better when you look at the complexity of "trigger graphs". Trigger graphs are basically stuff (buttons, doors, lights) connected together to make things react to players input and presence.

Someone already commented about using the term demo. The term has changed a lot since the dawn of computer games. This is a small test to see if they can make a game that resembles system shock. I feel they have failed. I compare this to a lot of the student projects I see (and are somewhat involved in). And must say I have seen a lot better student projects..

I'm currently not convinced to support the kickstarter. I would like to have the collector box though...

[66ef04c314ed3Gawain]

I want to throw this in here. This video is making me more excited than this remake.

[66ef04c3152a0voodoo47]

A System Shock forum with the most un-loyal scummy people. Ridiculous.

yes, because analyzing and providing feedback on pretty much every bit of information available at the moment is what scummy people do. please go be dumb someplace else (not common for me to make such a suggestion, consider this an achievement).

[66ef04c3153d9ZylonBane]

Hopefully the updated demo will fix the spelling of the "flourescent" lights.

[66ef04c31558bJosiahJack]

Updated demo?  Who does that?

[66ef04c3156d3Join2]

Otherside Entertainment does that, among others. All early builds are open to the public, and in doing so act as free testing as well as a demonstration.

[66ef04c315964Synaesthesia]

> This is a small test to see if they can make a game that resembles system shock. I feel they have failed. I compare this to a lot of the student projects I see (and are somewhat involved in). And must say I have seen a lot better student projects..

This is an objectively ridiculous statement. The game feels like System Shock. It looks like System Shock. Point to some student projects that you find superior to this alpha demo. I'd like to see what you plan to stack up against something like this.

[66ef04c315b0bJoin2]

He did provide an example above, though I don't think it stacks up. It doesn't even have gameplay beyond walking sim basics, and the aesthetics are off for something meant to resemble Shock too.

Honestly if NightDive sort out the music that'd be enough to sway some of those that are dead against this remake. That's the biggest thing to me that doesn't feel right, even if it'd conflict with their horror approach. But that's a 1.7 mil stretch goal and probably won't be met.

The power of music in games is vastly underrated these days.

[66ef04c315c9bDjant]

I don't know, it seems a stretch to say that video only had "walking sim" basics. I saw puzzle based hacking, enemies, even hints of melee combat. That's far more than what a "walking sim" often offers.

But I do think that the aesthetic looks off for what's supposed to be a System Shock 2 remake. It also isn't helped by my belief that System Shock 2 doesn't really need a remake since a lot of its aspects have aged better than System Shock 1 in my opinion.

[66ef04c315f84DKDArtagnan]

The more I read around here, the more I have to stand firm regarding my "passive aggressive rambling".

A lot of you guys really are grumpy purists

Not that there's necessarily anything wrong with that. Certainly not more so than there's something wrong with being open to changes. It's just a matter of perspective and, I suppose, faith in their ability to do something interesting and worthwhile with a remake.

To me, as a proof of concept, I think this demo is very convincing. As a demo of the final game - which it obviously isn't - it's less convincing, but it would still have me excited, which I think is even more impressive considering the final game is still 18 months into the future.

I first played SS when I was 17 years old. I'm 39 years old now. Using quick and sloppy math - that means I've been waiting 22 years to get a fresh take on a beloved classic.

Maybe it's because I never really believed it would happen - and maybe I'm just having a really difficult time appreciating why a 1:1 remake with upgraded visuals is better than the potential for an expanded and improved version, which would make a new playthrough unpredictable and exciting.

As much as I enjoyed the demo - I could almost immediately feel that it was "too" close to the original, and that it held almost no surprises. Once I got past the fancy new look - I must be honest and say I just wasn't that excited about replaying the game, yet again, albeit with a fresh coat of paint.

I crave evolution - and exploration is only fun if you don't know what's coming. Well, that's how I feel about it.

[66ef04c3164fbAurora]

There is literally nothing that could make the original SS better than this reboot.. and that's not an opinion its solid fact. If you really think the original SS is better than a remastered beauty then you really must have problems. I predicted all you basement dwellers would be angry at something new such as this from the start. The whole ORIGINAL team who is indeed working on the project is very proud of their work and should be rightfully so. They could just do nothing about system shock series and leave it to go stale. I bet you people would like that. You should keep in mind this is ONLY THE FUCKING DEMO!!!!


 A System Shock forum with the most un-loyal scummy people. Ridiculous.

I hope you are aware how much of an idiot you make yourself look like by valuing (brand/company/franchise) 'loyalty' and thinking that's any kind of guarantee for a good game - and calling everyone who doesn't join the fank-wank worship a 'basement dweller'.

As for the original team, as far as I'm aware only the artist is there.