Posted January 11, 2024
Greetings, adventurers! The early-access development of Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord continues to move forward. We're proud to say the team's progress has been steady, and that we've done our best to be responsive to your feedback along the way. Our next major update is slated for March 2024, and here's what you can expect when we get there.
Full Character Animations
Given the limited graphics of the original Wizardry, this project gave us the golden opportunity to bring enemies like the Giant Toad, Vampire Lord, and Flack into 3D. Bringing those characters to life with high-quality animations have been a priority for the team since the start. We are happy to say we expect all 101 enemies to be fully animated and battle-ready with the March update!
Additional Music
We know you're probably ready for more variety in the game's soundtrack. We're planning to implement many new pieces of music in the next update, with all-new tracks composed by Winifred Philips. You may recognize from her work on franchises like God of War, Assassin's Creed, and Borderlands, and we are thrilled to have her talents as part of this project.
Sneakier Thieves & Ninjas
In the 16-bit Super Famicom (Super NES) version of Wizardry, Ninjas and Thieves were able to hide and perform ambush attacks during combat. We'll be bringing those actions into our version of PGMO, as well as an Old School option for those who prefer the original experience.
New Console Level Layouts
We will also be including an alternate set of level layouts for Floors 6, 7, and 8. When starting a game, players will be able to choose if they wish to use the original Apple II layouts or the new layouts that were first introduced in the NES version.
Visual Improvements
We're adding a new tile set to the dungeon, and we're making some improvements to the textures you've already seen. Plus, you'll see some other visual perks, like the addition of new “key” doors.
Bug Fixes, Design Tweaks, and Optimizations
We continue to track issues that players and our own dev team have identified. This always includes correcting things that negatively impact gameplay, but it also might be as simple as adjusting the glow or intensity of a visual effect. You may not always notice these tweaks, but we will deliver another batch of them soon.
Your feedback remains one of the most important elements of this process, though, so please continue to post your thoughts in the GOG forums with as much detail as you can muster — especially if you encounter a bug that we need to replicate. Thanks for your support, and look for these improvements in March!
- The Wizardry Team at Digital Eclipse
Full Character Animations
Given the limited graphics of the original Wizardry, this project gave us the golden opportunity to bring enemies like the Giant Toad, Vampire Lord, and Flack into 3D. Bringing those characters to life with high-quality animations have been a priority for the team since the start. We are happy to say we expect all 101 enemies to be fully animated and battle-ready with the March update!
Additional Music
We know you're probably ready for more variety in the game's soundtrack. We're planning to implement many new pieces of music in the next update, with all-new tracks composed by Winifred Philips. You may recognize from her work on franchises like God of War, Assassin's Creed, and Borderlands, and we are thrilled to have her talents as part of this project.
Sneakier Thieves & Ninjas
In the 16-bit Super Famicom (Super NES) version of Wizardry, Ninjas and Thieves were able to hide and perform ambush attacks during combat. We'll be bringing those actions into our version of PGMO, as well as an Old School option for those who prefer the original experience.
New Console Level Layouts
We will also be including an alternate set of level layouts for Floors 6, 7, and 8. When starting a game, players will be able to choose if they wish to use the original Apple II layouts or the new layouts that were first introduced in the NES version.
Visual Improvements
We're adding a new tile set to the dungeon, and we're making some improvements to the textures you've already seen. Plus, you'll see some other visual perks, like the addition of new “key” doors.
Bug Fixes, Design Tweaks, and Optimizations
We continue to track issues that players and our own dev team have identified. This always includes correcting things that negatively impact gameplay, but it also might be as simple as adjusting the glow or intensity of a visual effect. You may not always notice these tweaks, but we will deliver another batch of them soon.
Your feedback remains one of the most important elements of this process, though, so please continue to post your thoughts in the GOG forums with as much detail as you can muster — especially if you encounter a bug that we need to replicate. Thanks for your support, and look for these improvements in March!
- The Wizardry Team at Digital Eclipse
Post edited January 11, 2024 by DanAmrich
