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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

This section is designed to answer the most commonly asked questions regarding The Lost Prophecies: Shadows of Winter.
It will be continually updated as newer developments surface.

Please refer to the articles below:


What's this game all about?
First-Person Melee?
Persistent Companions?
What are The Lost Prophecies?
Is this a Role-Playing Game?
Is This a Single-Player or Multiplayer game?
How long is its projected playtime?
How/When will this game be available?
"Story-Centric?" Does that mean I have to read a bunch of boring stuff in this game?
What kind of violence/mature content are we to expect?
What can be expected for a conclusion?



What's this game all about?
TLP: Shadows of Winter is a fantasy first-person shooter/slasher. TLP: SoW is a story-centric adventure that takes place in a fantasy/medieval setting where swords & sorcery replace firearms and technology. This title involves a variety of ambitious changes to the playing mechanics of most FPS (first-person shooter) games including: persistent companions, a fully functional system for first-person melee & multiple routes of progression. We believe strongly in supplying a first-rate story filled with action and strategy to immerse our players into the world we have created.


First-Person Melee?
When the project was first announced to be constructed from a first-person shooter's engine, I was a bit apprehensive as to how melee could be handled in a fun and functional manner. Many suggestions were made to convert the perspective to a platform-style 3rd-person perspective (ala Heretic II) but after discussing my years of experience as a fencer (and horrible kendoka) an appealing system was instated to allow the first-person perspective to remain.
TLP:SoW's combat system relies upon a simple system of stances, strikes, parries, ripostes & counterstrikes. Despite a surface of simplicity (4 buttons total: PA, AA, Stance & Kick), an intricate level of complexity lies beneath it. Players frenetically rushing into close-quarters while feverishly tapping the attack buttons will find their character's life cut tragically short.
The "Parry" maneuver (not found on every weapon) will allow players to defend themselves from attacks and will momentarily stun the attacker when a blow impacts upon a successful parry. The only option a "stunned" opponent may execute is to parry during this very brief moment in time. The original person who has parried may then attack the stunned opponent but is now susceptible to the same laws of a parry as the attacker originally was.
A "Battle Sense" radar will appear in the player's HUD to display nearby enemies and their positional relation to Callum. The projected range of currently equipped weapons will also be displayed in this space to help eliminate any depth-perception loss associated with melee weapons in a first-person perspective.
Stances (also referred to as "Guards") may be obtained as the player progresses through the adventure and will greatly augment the functionality of Callum's arsenal. Certain stances will improve upon Callum's offensive capabilities while lessening his defensive options and others will produce the opposite effects. A skilled combatant will utilize the various stances to capitalize upon their strengths while dynamically reacting to situations that require a quick shift in strategies. It is not uncommon for a battle to see several stances used within a few short moments.

Persistent Companions?
A new feature in this title is the existence of persistent companions. There will be a variety of allies who will accompany Callum on his quest but a few will be required for successfully completing the game. These companions will need to be monitored and kept alive or Callum's quest will fail. Persistent companions will be labeled differently than their non-essential counterparts.


What are The Lost Prophecies?
The Lost Prophecies is a trilogy set within the backdrop of "The Eternal Conflict." This series of tales spans multiple generations across the medieval world of Munidea. The first installment is entitled "Shadows of Winter" and introduces us to the kingdom of Parmathia and the senseless wars that have cost its peoples dearly. Future installments pursue the grand-plot spanning the trilogy.


Is this a Role-Playing Game?
Technically, all videogames are "Role-Playing Games" so, in essence: yes and no. TLP:SoW is an action-oriented adventure where success is governed by the skill of the player…not a set of statistics and "levels."
This game possesses elements of fantasy replete with swords, magic and medieval-armour but this does not signify a "Role-Playing Game" in the strictest sense of the word - there's no improved skills, no experience levels, no reams of dialogue that a player must read through in order to enjoy the game & "rat-hunting" is not essential for progression.


Is This a Single-Player or Multiplayer game?
We are currently focused on the production of the Single-Player experience and have future plans for a Multiplayer installment. At this time however, we feel that it would be overambitious to announce our intention of producing both Single-Player & Multiplayer products so, as of this writing, TLP:SoW is a Single-Player game (with plans for a future Multiplayer expansion).


How long is its projected playtime?
We're in too early of the stages of development to reliably define a set play-length but we are projecting the entire TLP:SoW experience to transcend HL2's playtime considerably.


How/When will this game be available?
We are too early in development to realistically announce a release date and, as soon as one is available, it will be announced on our main page.
Due to the magnitude of this project, we will be releasing TLP:SoW in four installments: Book I: Loss, Book II: Ardor, Book III: Legends & Book IV: Reprisal. This episodic release will afford us the necessary time to ensure that the product is released with an acceptable level of quality as well as within a realistic timeframe.
These releases must be played in succession and will be available for download on our site (with possible mirrors).


"Story-Centric?" Does that mean I have to read a bunch of boring stuff in this game?
Not at all. We believe strongly in allowing players to actually "play" the game instead of observe it. Characters will have dialogue to further the narrative but the design of this title will not force players to endure long, drawn-out cutscenes & countless lines of dialogue that seem to only serve as a means to delay players from their objectives.
Please note that this does not mean that TLP:SoW will have a shallow story or uninspiring characters. We believe that the player should be able to uncover as little or as much of the plot as they see fit.


What kind of violence/mature content are we to expect?
TLP: Shadows of Winter is intended for a mature audience and we will be issuing warnings all over our site to protect children from the unsuitable material contained within this product.

Short answer: Realistic Blood & Gore, Dismemberment, Mild Language, Adult Situations, Nudity, Violence Against - Women & Children (to a degree) and terrifying imagery depicting war.

Since we are not obligated to sacrifice our artistic integrity in an attempt to appeal to large demographics, we will be releasing our product with controversial scenarios intact.

Disclaimer: We do not condone the violence depicted in our product and are in no way trying to glorify it. In actuality, we are trying to show the horrific effects of how this level of violence will take a toll on all those involved (in a virtual setting).


What can be expected for a conclusion?
There are multiple conclusions to TLP: Shadows of Winter and this may help promote some level of re-playability as players seek to uncover the multiple finales.


 

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The Lost Prophecies is a registered trademark and Shadows of Winter is a trademark of Chris Fisk in the United States and/or other countries.
© 2001-2008 Chris Fisk. All Rights Reserved. All other trademarks or trade names are properties of their respective owners.