Geneforge (video game)

Players create a character and travel around Sucia Isle, a location Barred to the members of the player character's sect. While searching for a way off the island, the game's ultimate goal, Geneforge is played in 45° axonometric perspective. Movement through the environs is real-time, but switches to turn-based combat in the playing field. The game world is divided up into 77 areas accessible through a world map. The first two areas serve as the tutorial, introducing players to navigation, controls and shaping creations. The game has an on-screen automap, which begins each area completely darkened, and is revealed as the player explores. When the player's party performs tasks or defeats enemies, they receive experience, leading to increased levels and additional skill points. The player character's skill points can be used to increase their statistics or to improve their aptitude in one of the fifteen available skills. Canisters which increase skills or add new abilities are scattered throughout the game. Before starting the game, players choose from three basic character classes, each of which has a particular playing style. Guardians are fighters who excel in standard combat skills, especially hand-to-hand fighting. They are capable of shaping creations, but have little affinity for magic. Agents excel in spell casting and are capable of hand-to-hand combat, but have poor shaping skills. The Shaper is a summoner, capable of creating living creatures by using their own life essence. Shapers rely on their creations for protection. Every character class is referred to as "Shaper" during the game. Most objectives must be completed via combat or diplomacy, but players can also use subterfuge to pass obstacles. All three character classes can use different methods, depending on which skills they are adept in. Some areas are difficult to pass, and some tasks are difficult to complete, unless the player character is a certain class. Essence is used for both creating creatures and casting spells; the number, type and strength of creations is limited by the player's essence capacity. For instance, if a character with 70 maximum essence summons a creature which costs 20 essence, their maximum essence is reduced to 50 until the creation is destroyed, either through combat or being absorbed by the Shaper. A total of 18 different creations are featured in the game, with larger and stronger creatures costing more essence to create. The types and strengths of creations can be altered depending on the player's combat style. Creations accompanying the player receive a percentage of the experience points from completing quests or defeating foes, levelling up and getting skill points in the same manner as the player character. These skill points can be spent to improve creations' statistics, but every statistic increase costs more essence and reduces the amount of essence available to summon other creations or cast spells. Essence and health are regained from Shaper-designed pools or by entering a friendly town. ==Plot==

The player begins as an initiate of a powerful sect of magicians, the Shapers. Members of the sect create living beings from the magical essence within themselves. Apprentices are sent to academies to learn the art of shaping and the player's character has been accepted to do so. Exploration of the docks reveals a strange canister filled with swirling liquid. Thinking the canister contains healing or energizing properties, the Shaper breaks the seal and absorbs the contents. The contents absorb into the Shaper's body instead, strengthening and changing it. The changes are visibly apparent because the player character's skin smoothens and glows slightly. The canisters also affect the user's mental state, causing a more violent and arrogant temperament. Serviles remain on the island, having been abandoned when the island was Barred. They are intelligent creations of Shapers, designed to serve them without question or hesitation. These Serviles have had no contact with Shapers for two centuries, and have separated into three groups with differing philosophies regarding their creators. The Awakened believe that they should be treated as equals. The Takers have rejected Shapers completely and view the sect as oppressors to be fought. After encountering the three servile groups, the player begins to learn of a group of foreigners known as Sholai, explorers who have been shipwrecked on the island. This is the cause of the island's Barred status, the device was deemed too dangerous in the wrong hands. Trajkov and his followers have allied themselves with the Takers, absorbing the contents of canisters and attempting to claim Shaper powers as their own. The group have been unable to activate the Geneforge itself due to a Shaper being needed to activate the device. causing Trajkov to attempt to kidnap the player as a replacement. During these events, some Sholai have escaped from their increasingly violent and unpredictable leader. The player is free to join any one of the servile groups and share common goals, or remain unaligned. Geneforge can be completed without joining any group. Trajkov can be killed through combat or tricked into killing himself by using the Geneforge. He can also be assisted in activating the device if the player steals the shaper gloves from Goettsch. Goettsch offers the player fake shaper gauntlets, which do not protect Trajkov from the Geneforge's energy should he be convinced they are genuine shaping gloves. The player can complete the game by using the last boat on Sucia Island. The small vessel is moored in a guarded dock on the far side of the island. Finishing the game unlocks one of more than a dozen endings, dependent on the player's actions. ==Development==

Work on Geneforge began during the development of Avernum 2. Initially little information was revealed. In an interview published by RPGDot, Vogel compared the movement system to Fallout and revealed that a new game engine was being implemented. The project had initially been intended as pure science fiction, but this was soon abandoned in favor of a mixed fantasy and science fiction setting. In an interview published on website RPG Codex, Vogel stated this was due to difficulties maintaining game balance with futuristic weaponry which "should be devastating". He added: "I found it to be too difficult to model the weapons in a way that simultaneously felt sensible and maintained balance". Geneforge stemmed from the idea of creating a horde of creatures and the ability to care for those creatures or send them to their deaths. The choice was to be made by the player. From this point, Vogel considered who would be able to gain such powers, how they would control them and how these creatures would be treated. The game was developed with the intention of giving players choices; which factions to side with, how non-Shaper human outsiders are treated and whether to pursue goals through combat or diplomacy. Unlike most role-playing games, Geneforge was designed so that it would be possible to complete the game without using violence. Vogel cited ''Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn, Planescape: Torment, Deus Ex and EverQuest'' as influences. The game marked a departure from the Avernum series and its predecessor the Exile series. Vogel expressed a need to work on other projects: "Every few years, I need to do something cool and weird. It keeps me interested". He also added that the differences in Geneforge meant the game might struggle to find an audience, but the sales exceeded his expectations. ==Reception==

Geneforge received positive reviews, with the story and lack of bugs being praised in particular. GameSpy's Carla Harker described the graphics as "...dated by about seven years" and the game as a "technological pariah", despite calling it one of the best role-playing games released in the past year. ==References==