Repeating the Mistakes of the Past

[Jan van Leyden]

You could make the case that it does. Given that a video game takes 2-3 years to develop, a short lived edition causes problems with developing video games. It's conceivable that some company could have started developing a game in 2011, and be releasing a 4th edition video game months after 5th edition releases. That could easily hurt revenue, it doesn't necessarily hurt revenue, but it could.

Me thinks that a video game publisher is interested in the brand, not the edition number. Given that the number of customers for a video game is much larger than that of the real thing, why should these masses care whether the video game uses current rules or not?

 

[Halivar]

Me thinks that a video game publisher is interested in the brand, not the edition number. Given that the number of customers for a video game is much larger than that of the real thing, why should these masses care whether the video game uses current rules or not?

Consider how many D&D video games were released after 3rd Edition that still used AD&D 2nd Edition rules, and they were absolute hits. So yeah, I think you are definitely correct, here.

 

[Scrivener of Doom]

Consider how many D&D video games were released after 3rd Edition that still used AD&D 2nd Edition rules, and they were absolute hits. So yeah, I think you are definitely correct, here.

Which games were those?

 

[Bluenose]

Which games were those?

Baldur's Gate, at least II (both Shadows of Amn and Throne of Bhaal). I'd have to look up the exact relase date of 3e and BG1 to be sure about those.

Edit: And parts of the Icewind Dale series too.

 

[Scrivener of Doom]

Baldur's Gate, at least II (both Shadows of Amn and Throne of Bhaal). I'd have to look up the exact relase date of 3e and BG1 to be sure about those.

Edit: And parts of the Icewind Dale series too.

BG I was before 3E but, now that you have posted the list of games, I think you're right about the others.

 

[Halivar]

Baldur's Gate, at least II (both Shadows of Amn and Throne of Bhaal). I'd have to look up the exact relase date of 3e and BG1 to be sure about those.

Edit: And parts of the Icewind Dale series too.

I believe the first 3E video game was Pool of Radiance, which was kind of a turkey compared to Baldur's Gate/Icewind Dale.

Icewind Dale II was supposed to be 3E, but they had to cut out a good bit of the rules to make it work with the Infinity engine.

 

[Jan van Leyden]

I believe the first 3E video game was Pool of Radiance, which was kind of a turkey compared to Baldur's Gate/Icewind Dale.

Icewind Dale II was supposed to be 3E, but they had to cut out a good bit of the rules to make it work with the Infinity engine.

Pool of Radiance sported a pretty dubious implementation of the 3e rules. And didn't have BGII or one of its add-ons some 3e elements already in? I dimly recall something like a barbarian class and maybe some un-2e multiclassing rules.

 

[DEFCON 1]

Pool of Radiance sported a pretty dubious implementation of the 3e rules. And didn't have BGII or one of its add-ons some 3e elements already in? I dimly recall something like a barbarian class and maybe some un-2e multiclassing rules.

BG2 added the barbarian, monk, and sorcerer classes to the game... which is the strongest 3Eisms they added.

And Haliver is correct... the lead designer of Icewind Dale 2 (Josh Sawyer) was charged with adapting the Infinity Engine to 3E (adding in things like feats), because by that point 3E had been out for two years. So while BG2 and BG: Throne of Bhaal had both been released in the 3E timeframe yet maintained 2E rules... they thought ID2 would do better if the ruleset was upgraded to match the system that most folks were playing at the time. Turns out it didn't necessarily add much to the game.

 

[Bluenose]

Pool of Radiance sported a pretty dubious implementation of the 3e rules. And didn't have BGII or one of its add-ons some 3e elements already in? I dimly recall something like a barbarian class and maybe some un-2e multiclassing rules.

There was a Sorceror class in BG-II, which was probably the most 3e element. I think the Barbarian was from a 2e Handbook rather than PHB, but it's certainly a 2e class. Multiclassing was pure 2e style, at least as I remember it, though there may have been some combinations that weren't allowed by default. And level limits didn't exist at all.

I'd argue that the only really successful 3e video game was Neverwinter Nights. Temple of Elemental Evil was probably the closest to actual 3e rules that any video game managed. Certainly more than Pool. Astonishingly buggy it was too, although what the modding community has done with it is remarkable.

 

[Halivar]

IMHO, the BEST video game implementation of 3.x rules was, oddly enough, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic.