What's that, Furcadia?

Been scrounging around for news on the latest update? Here’s a rundown of the newest features.

While you’re reading them, you could load this image to look at; it’s coming in the update too.

New avatars are including a Unicorn with wings. It was done by Tiggerbaby; (you’ll remember her work from the bears and the kitterwing.) It might have sparkles using the particle engine that DEP was talking about implementing a while back for certain kinds of animations, which would be cool.

There’s a Fox Ferian coming, which is where the update will get part of it’s name, probably. It’s going to be called the ‘foxen’, and it was done by Kaelin’yFiae.

Got some furlings coming out, (done by Talzhemir) in the form of a male and female kit. These won’t be allowed in FurN, and there’s a possibility that they won’t be allowed in Hawthorn either.

The valentine’s day sale avatar will be a chinchilla. If you’ve hung out with Talzhemir, you’ve seen these avatars before. They’re pretty cute.

Portrait art was done mostly by Talzhemir.

Penguin for Life and Kiwi for Life desctags should be out with this update as well.

For those of you, (like me,) hoping to have a ‘test’ feature for dreams… it might be coming soon. (Might be.) DEP says it is a legitimate concern and they’d like to help out.

New DS is probably going to be relegated to the Group Packages only, (Which might be as low as $3 or $5 a month for the cheapest non-free package.) PhoenixSpeak probably won’t be getting an upgrade immediately either. Strings are being looked at for additions in the future, however, for both DS and PS.

Most developers shouldn’t have to worry about this update; aside from the new FOX format, (Furcadia Object Extended) and the new dreamweaving options, everything should work fine as is, according to DEP. Proxies like Furnarchy, (or other very complex proxies) might have issues with the new way objects and floors are being done, but it should be an easy fix.

The move looks like it’s slated for the end of January; hopefully within the next week or so.

Sneak peak at the chinchilla avatar; this won’t be how they look final-draft, I’m sure.

So, that completes the update info, except for those of you who are registered. If you log in, you’ll be able to see the one last bit of really cool information that might be going in on this update. (There’s no guarantee, though.)

[Are_PayPal_LoginPlease]Keep it on the Down low, but there might just be live dream editing coming in with the update. Might. There’s no real confirmation of it yet, and as last I heard it was only very, very roughly done, but it might manage to sneak into this update![/Are_PayPal_LoginPlease]

A little background info on the poll:

In Artist’s Alley, (a dream ran by Talzhemir) you can find some people to make stuff for your dreams, (From ports to code, they do it all.)

The thing is, if you say a URL, you’ll get ejected. The reason for this is to keep outlandish Spamvertisers®  from running through the dream, linking to their stuff.

This creates a problem with people who would like to share their work to people who ask; they’re forced to whisper their links to clients. Not a lot of trouble, but trouble all the same.

So the poll is to find out if people think the extra precautions are necessary; leave your thoughts for Talzhemir here if you have any on the subject.

I wanted to share with everyone a new tool that Talzhemir has been working on for Roleplayers. It’s called Oracle. It isn’t meant to revolutionize or change the way you approach roleplaying; there’s something in there for everyone.
However, it is meant to help facilitate roleplay seamlessly into a group of players. Behind the cut below there is a lot of information, (the entire class Talzhemir gives out) on how to use Oracle. Some of it won’t make a lot of sense; it’s best to catch her on Furcadia when she’s about to give a class so you can get whatever information you need form her directly.

The oracle project started earlier this year in March. Talzhemir was working on the first draft of “Furre!” and was nearly completed and ready to publish. It has all the usual accouterments that one would expect of a paper-and-pencil RPG: Armor, Hit Points, weapon types and special abilities.

While showing some roleplayers everything she’d come up with, Talzhemir came across an interesting problem:

Talzhemir:
I was showing some RPers the game mechanics, and the reaction was, “That’s nice; somebody will probably like it, but we’ve got much more important problems, Talz!” More important than whether or not that sword or that spell kills you…??? I took a few steps back and started to question the entire RPG paradigm that Gary Gygax & Co. spawned out of the historical wargaming miniatures hobby: an obsession with hitpoints and armor class and weapon size and special abilities that every major computerized multiplayer online game still follows. And it dawned on me that none of them really felt like being somebody else. They feel like puppeteering a robot paper-doll in an enormous boardless boardgame. You feed it, you put a bandaid on its knee when it gets hurt, you dress it up, and you pick it up by the neck and shake it to play nice with the other orcs and elves. It’s not you.

She went on to talk about how the Arbiter is an analogous persona inside the system that works similar to a GM, in the fact that they help settle disputes. They’re different, however, insofar as they don’t have to spend hours crafting out an adventure that the players are going to go through. That kind of GM is getting pretty rare, in her opinion.
Instead, the Arbiter is able to play in the game with the other players. The only time they use their ‘power’ is when there’s a question that needs to be answered. That way, there is no real power for them to abuse. Situations such as “if a woman is pregnant” are the types that Arbiter’s are meant to help with.

The entire interview is posted behind the cut if you’re interested in reading it, along with a copy of one of Talzhemir’s classes.

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Are you ready for it? It’s pretty big. Deliciously dastardly, and awfully scrumptious.

Ready? Then read on.

I’m going to start this off by saying that this is my own personal opinion, and that it is not supported, asked for, or even endorsed by Dragon’s Eye Productions.
I fully expect Emerald Flame to hire Ninja Furre’s to come kill me in my sleep tonight for posting this.
It seems to me that a lot of things have been happening lately on Furcadia that have people all in a tizzy over what’s going on.
The general consensus amongst older players is that Furcadia is changing away from something that they loved and turning in to something they will hate, forever.
Apparently, these epic changes are so deep and run so hot that if they do come to pass the foundation of Furcadia will forever be altered, casting every veteran from their perch and send them reeling off into the eternal blackness of the Internet.

To them, I say: Get a grip.

Furcadia is changing. A lot of what is going on that is changing is good. Phoenix Speak, new Dragonspeak lines, The ability to have 24bit ports, (and as a result, PCX’s), Bears, new digos, and such are all excellent things for Furcadia to come out with.
One thing people seem to forget is that DEP is a company. They have every right to think about the bottom line before they think about anything else that is going on. (Incidentally, that is the stance they should take, as a business, and nobody should begrudge them for doing so at any point in time.)
The real fact of the matter is that people are resistant to change. For years, when something new is added to Furcadia, someone, inevitably, shouts that Furcadia is going to be over run very soon by capitalistic ideals that will ruin the game, spamming everyone with constant advertisements, and bring about the end of Furcadia that everyone knew.
Well, they get it right in part. Furcadia will never be the same that it was when you first started. The changes and evolution of the game are needed. If the game remained the same forever, it would eventually stagnate and die, leaving the game without a source of income, thereby making the game vanish.
If truth be told, a lot of people feel ‘outraged’ when they come across something that seems like a lie. I’m one of them. When I find a piece of information that I think is a lie. In fact, it really starts to get my feathers ruffled.
But I don’t go out of my way to post them here. There are about a thousand different things that I’ve heard that could send me into a ranting rage that makes me want to do nothing more than pull down Furcadia’s makers by their ears and rub their faces in what I’ve heard.
But I don’t. I don’t even try.
I do some research. I back up my findings, or I let loose the wild, fanciful protests. What I do find that I dislike, I tuck aside into a back pocket of my mind with the following statement: While it sucks, I’m not running the company, and if they decide that it is the way they want to do business, that’s up to them. I can always leave if I want to.
And I wish other people would have that attitude, too. A lot of what DEP does is good for the community, and it is overlooked by almost everyone in an attempt to run-to-ground a group of people who produce a game.
The thing is, we’re customers, and we’re not allowed to dictate company policy to them. Those of us with some kind of experience with running businesses understand that it is quite hard to create and manage a company.
Another thing that people need to do is understand that DEP does a hell of a lot more than any other company, insofar as talking to players.
It is no secret that What’s That, Furcadia? is not supported by DEP. It is no secret that DEP would like to be able to tell me to stuff it when I ask them for information about various different things.
However, most of the time DEP in general has been willing to come forward, on the record, and state facts for me to replicate inside What’s That, Furcadia? so that the players of Furcadia can have a clear cut source of news, presumably that doesn’t come directly from the mouths of DEP staff members.
Felorin and sanctimonious have both answered some tough questions for me about Furcadia in general, and how they operate.
Rumors fly around faster than mashed potatoes in a food fight when they’re about Furcadia.
DEP is not trying to cover up anything. If they’re doing something, it’s letting the community know more about their game and hidden processes than any other gaming company would.
There is no super-conspiracy that DEP is the mastermind behind. They’re trying to make a living creating a game that offers a lot of tools to players who, for the most part, seem ungrateful.
To be perfectly honest, the people who bitch about not getting enough information from DEP remind me of spoiled children who need a good spanking. You’re not owed anything by DEP, and while you might like more information, you certainly don’t deserve it.
So, if you’re reading through the rumors that say Talzhemir is a guy, or reading up about how Felorin and Emerald Flame are busy rolling on piles of money while laughing at players, think again. Don’t let your imagination run away with you. There is a simple, logical answer to almost everything that comes up.

This morning, starting at just before six-am FST, Talzhemir and I started discussing what was going to be coming out in the nearest update. Since it is a primarily graphic-based update, the talk turned to portraits. Thinking it might be a kick to give a teaser to the Furcadia populace, an idea was formed.

This little teaser is part of the conversation between Talzhemir and Myself in regards to the new portrait artwork making its way into the game along with the coolest new features that were mentioned in previous updates to What’s that, Furcadia? earlier this morning. If you’d like to see what all was said, take a peek inside. If you’d rather be surprised completely, check yourself at the door. 😉

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