Grim Dawn Story?!

[heron]

So do we have a story yet or still too early in development?

[alexei]

From the FAQ page

Grim Dawn will be set in a unique fictional world that is loosely inspired by the Victorian Era but is not meant to actually take place on Earth, mythological or otherwise. A lot of effort has gone into the development of a deep story-world with a rich history, unique characters and intriguing subplots. The setting will be “thematically” darker in terms of mood and environment but, don't worry, unlike many games set in post-apocalyptic style worlds, Grim Dawn won't be a burnt out, gray wasteland.

So, yes there story and it should be awesome. But lets not let the spoil out.

[heron]

yes but it's still very subtle, maybe there's a blight? lol

[alexei]

blight? what do you mean? the disease? do it have anything with the story?

[TheRani]

yes but it's still very subtle, maybe there's a blight? lol

Nooo! Not the potatoes!

[Rhis]

From the about page:

Players will be thrust into the dark, war-torn world of Cairn where a once proud empire has been brought to ruin and the human race driven to the edge of extinction. Cairn has become ground zero of an eternal war between two otherworldly powers, one seeking to use human bodies as a resource, the other intent upon destroying the human race before that can happen. This cataclysmic war has not only decimated human civilization but is warping the very fabric of reality and, in its wake, giving life to new horrors.

For humankind it is the dawn of a grim new age where iron has replaced gold as currency and the importance of salt as a weapon makes it far too valuable to waste on food. Small enclaves of human survivors exist scattered throughout the world, holed up in hidden refuges. These humans have quietly watched the warring invaders destroy one another and have become wise to the strengths and vulnerabilities of their otherworldly foes. A few survivors have begun to exhibit strange new abilities after surviving possession or exposure to the warp. These unnatural powers are feared by some but give many new hope of launching a resistance to fight the "outsiders" and reclaim what's left of their world.

[k4llu5]

maybe there's a blight? lol

...yeah and possibly a Grey Warden will make a cameo...

[radio_babylon]

...yeah and possibly a Grey Warden will make a cameo...

god i hope not. just THINKING about dragon age makes me ...zzzZZZzzz... huhwhut? sorry i fell asleep... so like i was saying, drago...zzzZZZzzz

[yerkyerk]

I wonder more how this story will be implemented.
Through texts outside the game (either in a manual or on this site)? In-game encyclopedia? NPC's? In-game documents? A storyboard with concept art?

[carlosjuero]

The tidbits released so far regarding the background seem interesting, I have quite a bit of Faith in the developers - they sure as heck did a great job with Titan Quest background, and a completely unrestricted (as in no RL lore) canvas on which to paint will just be amazing.

[medierra]

I think our story is at least a slight twist on the standard cliche RPG plotlines but, of course, there will be plenty of similarities since certain plot devices just work really well to drive stories of character advancement, loot collection, and wanton killing. Many of these cliches stretch back hundreds of years to ancient story-telling. There is a reason why these cliches prevail and efforts at novelty often fail. I believe they exist because they appeal to fundamental drives in all of us. Until human beings change fundamentally, I think the same types of cliche stories will always appeal to people. I think it is great when you can put a new twist on them but I'd be worried for anyone messing too much with the age-old formulas.

That said, I believe the devil is in the details. A lot of the best stories, movies, and games are, when boiled down, completely built off different cliche plot-lines but they have unique and interesting details that make them see new and exciting. Stories that deviate too much from the archetypes often end up feeling fulfilling.

So, I wouldn't bust on people too much for being cliche, I'd bust on them for not dressing up that cliche into something interesting and fresh feeling.

[medierra]

I wonder more how this story will be implemented.
Through texts outside the game (either in a manual or on this site)? In-game encyclopedia? NPC's? In-game documents? A storyboard with concept art?

We're actually looking to convey a lot of details about events that lead up to the current conditions of the world in scraps of writing that you can find. One of the main sources of information that we have planned right now are pages from the "Journal of Constable Creed." Creed is a guy who worked as an imperial intelligence agent but ended up catching on to things he wasn't supposed to know. He quickly finds himself transferred out of the capital city with a non-negotiable "promotion" to constable of a quiet backwater town. While there, Creed starts to take notice of various "strange happenings" that are sort of precursors to the cataclysmic event which brings the world to its current state of being and clues to the insidious plot that brought it all about.

Your task in Grim Dawn is not to save the world though. There are powers in the world of Cairn far greater than any one hero and world can never be fully restored to the way it once was. Grim Dawn is about survival and adaptation to the grim new reality. Individual survival and the collective survival of what remains of humanity. Basically, we want to create a world where there is always something larger to take on and where you never quite feel invincible.

We're not even really that focused on a main story arc. We just want to create a frightening and mysterious world with a deep sense of history that is fun to quest in.

[alexei]

Survival and questing. Sounds like mmorpg :)

Story implementation using pages/book scattered through the world is rather interesting to me. Like how Shadowground is. And various kind of book can lead to richer world/lore, like how lore section in Dungeon Siege 2 and World of Warcraft. Anything is fine as long as it is interesting to follow.

[k4llu5]

I'm curious as to the end game story. Being we are gonna be fed (hopefully) expansions via DLC, will the main campaign be a total cliffhanger?

[zyklop]

I think our story is at least a slight twist on the standard cliche RPG plotlines but, of course, there will be plenty of similarities since certain plot devices just work really well to drive stories of character advancement, loot collection, and wanton killing. Many of these cliches stretch back hundreds of years to ancient story-telling. There is a reason why these cliches prevail and efforts at novelty often fail. I believe they exist because they appeal to fundamental drives in all of us. Until human beings change fundamentally, I think the same types of cliche stories will always appeal to people. I think it is great when you can put a new twist on them but I'd be worried for anyone messing too much with the age-old formulas.

Yep, the famous myth researcher Joseph Campbell described in his book "the hero with the 1000 faces" exactly the mechanisms behind all great stories. There are character archetypes in history of mankind, that return again and again over thousands of years in myths and legends from all nations. Even George Lucas used for his Star Wars epos basic structures, plots and character descriptions from Joseph Campbell.
You can find an interesting interview about this topic at:
http://www.veoh.com/browse/videos/category/faith_and_spirituality/watch/v17348445sRzEyGZM

[VeggieBoy]

I think our story is at least a slight twist on the standard cliche RPG plotlines but, of course, there will be plenty of similarities since certain plot devices just work really well to drive stories of character advancement, loot collection, and wanton killing. Many of these cliches stretch back hundreds of years to ancient story-telling. There is a reason why these cliches prevail and efforts at novelty often fail. I believe they exist because they appeal to fundamental drives in all of us. Until human beings change fundamentally, I think the same types of cliche stories will always appeal to people. I think it is great when you can put a new twist on them but I'd be worried for anyone messing too much with the age-old formulas.

I truly think Medierra is evil. :furious:

I don't know what it is, but you have a very, very charming way of speaking (err, posting text on forums). I've been reading through threads and I really want to make posts, but you pretty much hit a home run every time you make a post. Therefore I feel no need to make posts.

Its like, almost calming. You sound so smart. I think I'm in-love.

http://images.zaazu.com/img/drool-animated-animation-love-smiley-emoticon-000381-large.gif
*I in know way shall be accountable for this emoticon GIF as these forums do not have an adequate amount; i.e., love emoticons*

[Renevent]

Now that's just plain scary :eek:

[VeggieBoy]

Which part? :rolleyes: