Arcane Wonders Forum

Mage Wars => General Discussion => Topic started by: kayofkayos on January 02, 2019, 04:17:54 AM

Title: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: kayofkayos on January 02, 2019, 04:17:54 AM
First of all, happy new year to all.

As the title says, what do we know?
We know the Monk and Necromancer are coming to Academy this spring, but other than that? Not much.

Personly I just hope for a LGV2 for arena, with the rest of the unreleased promos. And it would be the easiest to do for AW anyway, low cost high reward, kind of release. It would also please the Arena exclusive players, who have been feeling a bit neglected, since Academy took over.

And maybe an expansion with the Elementalist and the Monk coming for Arena, down the line, IF they decide to keep on expanding that is.

Anybody with some insider knowledge on the subject?
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: TucsonDoug on January 02, 2019, 11:50:23 AM
Elementalist vs monk for arena would be cool I think. Don't know if it will happen though.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: Arkdeniz on January 02, 2019, 02:47:48 PM
As I've said before, it would be the easiest thing to just put together the Arena stats cards for Elementalist and Monk and ship those two cards as bonuses in another product.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: Brian VanAlstyne on January 02, 2019, 04:10:09 PM
Elementalist and Monk as is, no matter what their stat cards give them unless its 180 point spellbooks and 70 health, would not be playable in a competitive meta as they don't have the card base to be a full mage. I'd still love for them to be created just to have but unless AW wakes up and realizes Mage Wars will die without full expansions, I hold no hope for them to do anything.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: kayofkayos on January 03, 2019, 04:52:36 AM
I agree with DevilsVendetta. For Monk and Elementalist to be playable, AW has to design the spells so it is suited for arena.
But is it so far fetched?
I have only been playing for less than half a year, but honestly, is it already my favorite game. I would hate to watch in die just as I have gotten in to it.

But it seems hard to get a hold of information regarding this game.
So it would be interesting to hear an official statement of what AWs future plans are with Arena.
-Are they interested in making the game complete at all?
-Will there be 2 of each mages?
-Will the remaining promos be released?
-Will there be terrain conjurations for all classes?
-Will the rights for Arena be sold, if AW have lost interest in the game?

It would take 6 releases to make the game complete.
1 LGv2
1 Monk vs Elementalist
4 tome spell expansions so there will be 2 mages of each.
Terrain conjurations could be included in all of the above.

I don't care if it would take a decade.

But at the end of the day, it is all about supply and demand, I guess... So the chances for all of those releases to happen are probably non existing.
Still my favorite game though. I'm gonna keep playing the hell out of it, complete or not.

Sorry for the ramble guys.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: Grimstringer on January 03, 2019, 09:24:25 AM
i think just a promo release  and a  mage vs mage would be great  no need for more variant mages, they arent that crucial

to make it only 2 releases :D 


we all know it wont happen though : _)
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: ThisIsDeutch on January 05, 2019, 11:39:09 AM
Well, we've had the art for Alternative Forcemaster vs Wizard mages available for years now: safe to say that if Arena will ever receive a mage expansion again, it will have to be with the art that was shown to us years ago...

Maybe we get a Lost Grimoire 2? Personally I think that Arena is dead, but it is possible that Arcane Wonders releases one final set before closing it off.

I don't understand why people are talking about Monk vs Elementalist as if it will be the new release for Arena we've all been waiting for. They're couldn't care less about bringing Academy sets to Arena: the last few years have been proof of that.

2019 will bring us nothing. Mage Wars Arena is dead- Arcane Wonders killed it themselves
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: Arkdeniz on January 05, 2019, 06:59:10 PM
Not dead so long as we keep playing it.

No new releases does not equal a dead game. There has not been an expansion to chess for 1000 years...
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: zot on January 05, 2019, 10:12:54 PM
agreed completely. keep the faith, and keep playing.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: ThisIsDeutch on January 05, 2019, 11:03:07 PM
There has not been an expansion to chess for 1000 years...

After hundreds of year chess still has value; Mage Wars Arena will lose its lustre after max 10 years from now

keep the faith

Oh boy....
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: wtcannonjr on January 06, 2019, 03:16:38 PM
Not dead so long as we keep playing it.

No new releases does not equal a dead game. There has not been an expansion to chess for 1000 years...
I agree with your first point.

As far as chess goes here are some 'expansions' for consideration. :)

A list of chess 'expansions'
https://www.boardgamegeek.com/geeksearch.php?action=search&objecttype=boardgame&q=chess&B1=Go

Two versions that looked interesting to me.

Glyph Chess (plays 2 or 3 players)
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1478866864/glyph-chess-the-magic-board-game?ref=discovery
I've kickstarted this game because a good 3-player games are hard to find.

Chessplus (a new version from an Australian company that allows a player to combine pieces and use the movement of either piece. Very clever.)
https://chessplus.com/

 
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: isel on January 28, 2019, 08:20:10 AM
for me , this game now with the current politics, it´s seem a waste of money, i enjoy every battle, but i don´t buy anything before paladin, because i only play one game every 3 months although i have a whatssap group with people that only collect groups, im the only one than ask each week for an opponent, i hope the rights of this game were sold to another Company that fights more for it, because it´s sad not enjoy a expansión for arena anymore or to see expansión that have both (a arena and an academy versión of the same mage), i believe it´s not hard to design a new mage, for example a new wizard, that could use all old wizard spells, but different powers, now it makes me sad and angry seeing all my grimories without use. Which is the point of a designer/creator to give bith to a fantastic game, seeing that people ask more of the same game (more money for me) and do nothing?

Maybe in the next future i sold all and only playing online.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: DaveW on January 30, 2019, 10:49:52 AM
Not dead so long as we keep playing it.

No new releases does not equal a dead game. There has not been an expansion to chess for 1000 years...
I agree with your first point.

As far as chess goes here are some 'expansions' for consideration. :)

A list of chess 'expansions'
https://www.boardgamegeek.com/geeksearch.php?action=search&objecttype=boardgame&q=chess&B1=Go

Two versions that looked interesting to me.

Glyph Chess (plays 2 or 3 players)
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1478866864/glyph-chess-the-magic-board-game?ref=discovery
I've kickstarted this game because a good 3-player games are hard to find.

Chessplus (a new version from an Australian company that allows a player to combine pieces and use the movement of either piece. Very clever.)
https://chessplus.com/

Don't forget Fisherrandom... I loved playing that variation when it was more popular.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: Parliament on January 30, 2019, 03:04:44 PM
Just saw Arcane Wonders tweeting about the Necromancer Academy Expansion. Check it out if you haven’t yet. After reading the tweet I checked Min Market and they have pre-orders for Monk and Necromancer. I’m very much looking forward to them and wanted to share the news.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: isel on January 31, 2019, 01:27:00 AM
yeah, i see them, but only interested in new arena mages, no one play academy in my country.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: Kelanen on January 31, 2019, 04:31:34 AM
As I've said before, it would be the easiest thing to just put together the Arena stats cards for Elementalist and Monk and ship those two cards as bonuses in another product.
Elementalist and Monk as is, no matter what their stat cards give them unless its 180 point spellbooks and 70 health, would not be playable in a competitive meta as they don't have the card base to be a full mage.
Monk would need a lot more support for sure. Elementalist, I think could be as simple as just printing an Arena stat card, using much the same abilities as Academy. It wouldn't be the best mage, but it would hardly be the worst either.

yeah, i see them, but only interested in new arena mages, no one play academy in my country.
Necromancer is very weak for Arena, and Monk is useless.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: iNano78 on January 31, 2019, 08:11:21 AM
Necromancer is very weak for Arena, and Monk is useless.

Existing Arena Necromancer is great. Are you saying there are no useful cards (from an Arena perspective) in the Academy Necromancer expansion? And same for Monk? Or are you saying that if you took the Academy mage cards for these mages and just upped the life, channeling and spell book points, they'd be inferior to virtually every existing Arena mage?
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: Kelanen on January 31, 2019, 11:32:27 AM
Existing Arena Necromancer is great.
Agreed, Arena Necromancer is very much top tier.   Around the top of that tier even.
Are you saying there are no useful cards (from an Arena perspective) in the Academy Necromancer expansion? And same for Monk?
The former, although Necromancer has some mediocre, but not great cards, whilst Monk is a complete non-purchase for Arena.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: iNano78 on January 31, 2019, 01:49:19 PM
Existing Arena Necromancer is great.
Agreed, Arena Necromancer is very much top tier.   Around the top of that tier even.
Are you saying there are no useful cards (from an Arena perspective) in the Academy Necromancer expansion? And same for Monk?
The former, although Necromancer has some mediocre, but not great cards, whilst Monk is a complete non-purchase for Arena.

Hmmm, in that case, I wonder if dismal sales of Academy Monk (compared to other Academy expansions) will signal to Arcane Wonders that the only reason Academy expansions sell is because Arena players buy it to satiate their desire for more Arena-compatible cards... or if they'll take the lack of Monk sales to mean Academy is dead and they should give up on Mage Wars completely...
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: Kelanen on February 01, 2019, 08:49:23 AM
No insider knowledge, but I predict that the giving up on it decision was taken long ago. These releases are just using up playtesting and artwork already generated. You might see an LG2, just to print the rest of the promos already out there, and maybe mage cards for Elemntalist and Monk.

I'm very sceptical that there will be another Mage Wars release after that though. AW generates more profit for less effort in traditional boardgames, and it's a business after all.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: ThisIsDeutch on February 05, 2019, 05:45:59 PM
These releases are just using up playtesting and artwork already generated.

So then by that logic, we should be getting the Alt Forcemaster vs Wizard expansion artwork we were shown years ago. But of course nothing will come of it, because Arcane Wonders is done with Mage Wars Arena.

AW generates more proft fir less effort in traditional boardgames, and it's a business after all.

I was really disappointed in their earlier games like Speechless, which were just poorly thought out. Onimata and Sherriff of Nottingham have been quite interesting and fun to play, and so if they continue in that path with the occasional hiccup of bland games, then they will do fine in the long run.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: wtcannonjr on February 17, 2019, 10:02:52 AM
I just saw this announcement on BGG for the upcoming release of Academy Necromancer. See the second bullet point and the link to a BGG game page for the expansion.

https://www.boardgamegeek.com/blogpost/86610/new-game-round-mechs-circuses-fireworks-and-magnet
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: kayofkayos on February 20, 2019, 04:28:21 AM
From Mage Wars' facebook:

"We love the enthusiasm our Arena fans have, and have a lot of things planned for the future. However, our company policy is to not announce projects until they are set in our schedule.

In the past we announced items still in concept / design ideas, far before they were ready for public. We will not do the same. We hope you'll all follow along as news about the upcoming launches is shared."
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: Karadox on February 20, 2019, 05:33:05 AM
More From Mage Wars' facebook:

"Arcane Wonders Jakub, we are not announcing products until they are on our schedule. Previously we received a lot of negative feedback because we mentioned ideas/concepts.

We now have a company-wide policy to not announce new products until they are on the schedule to be released. At this time we have no Arena products on our schedule."


Was there really such a negative feedback?

I think worse than a few negative feedbacks, is that people think that arena is dead?

I can only speak for myself but it would be much better to know what is planned and could come.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: Kelanen on February 20, 2019, 07:22:32 AM
Was there really such a negative feedback?

To be fair to AW, yes there was because they'd announce a product for 'end of the year', and it wouldn't appear for another couple of years. In fact some products announced 5 years ago still haven't materialised, and likely never will (eg: Archmage).

I agree with them, they should only announce a product when it has a fairly firm market date. If it slips a couple of months no-one will complain, but in the past they seemed to announce ideas, rather than products, and they slipped by years, or even never materialised.

That said, I think this policy is being used as a smokescreen here. They could certainly announce that they will/won't be creating more Arena specific products or not. Then again again - my belief is that they won't make more, and commercially it's better for them to say nothing, than say that. So read into the lack of announcements what you will...
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: Karadox on February 20, 2019, 08:08:40 AM
I am still waiting but one thing is clear for me, if there should be no more relases for Mage Wars Arena I would denidiver never again buy another product from AW.  As a consumer I do not want to be fooled.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: ThisIsDeutch on February 20, 2019, 04:02:29 PM
From Mage Wars' facebook:

"We love the enthusiasm our Arena fans have, and have a lot of things planned for the future. However, our company policy is to not announce projects until they are set in our schedule.


This is what they've been saying for years- I don't understand why this is news to anyone here


In the past we announced items still in concept / design ideas, far before they were ready for public. We will not do the same. We hope you'll all follow along as news about the upcoming launches is shared."

Pardon my language, but this is a crock load of shit. They will never release the sets they promised years ago, because they don't have the resources to do it. Getting a refined Conquest of Kilimanjaro, or the Alternate Forcemaster vs Witch expansion for that matter, is a pipe dream. Arena will feed "words" to gullible Arena players, just so that their playerbase doesn't dump the company in a frenzy.

Was there really such a negative feedback?

To be fair to AW, yes there was because they'd announce a product for 'end of the year', and it wouldn't appear for another couple of years. In fact some products announced 5 years ago still haven't materialised, and likely never will (eg: Archmage).



It's not the consumer's fault that Arcane Wonders didn't know how to plan its releases. If you say that your product will be made at the end of the year, but you deliver it a few years later, it means that you have 0 organization nor planning. Either that, or they had no idea what they were doing, just hoping to build hype around their product.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: Kelanen on February 20, 2019, 05:58:57 PM
It's not the consumer's fault that Arcane Wonders didn't know how to plan its releases. If you say that your product will be made at the end of the year, but you deliver it a few years later, it means that you have 0 organization nor planning. Either that, or they had no idea what they were doing, just hoping to build hype around their product.

Totally agreed. I was just responding to a question, confirming that yes they did get a lot of negative feedback for this before. Because they screwed up a lot. And frankly they've got a lot worse, not better over the last 5-6 years...
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: Arkdeniz on February 20, 2019, 06:01:47 PM
Well, as far as I am concerned the game is not dead yet. I am in fact teaching it to another new player today.

Maybe he'll like it, maybe he won't, but we have to keep working to build the base.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: ThisIsDeutch on February 21, 2019, 04:24:17 PM
Maybe he'll like it, maybe he won't, but we have to keep working to build the base.

I know that I am a depressing fool who never shuts up about how Mage Wars is losing steam, but we've been saying for years how great it would be to get new people to play the game, but this never happens: a lot of board gamers don't hang on to 1 game like this community does, and so we are stuck with the same community members we've had for years now; these are the only people willing to organize tournaments and events concerning Mage Wars Arena.

Mage Wars Arena development is dead, and so there isn't anything that is encouraging players to keep a long term interest in this game. It doesn't matter how many "optimizations" or "spell books" that you can create with the cards we already have, what matters is that the developers release content that changes the formula of gameplay and makes it interesting again. Since that is never going to happen (let's be honest, Academy is not a substitute for Arena gameplay), the only remaining members of the community are those care about this game ,who are loyal to the game and can't stand to see it die off the way it is now.

In 5 years time, this forum will be gone and the community will be divided into a couple of groups of 5-10 people each spread around North America and Europe. There is no future for Mage Wars.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: wtcannonjr on February 22, 2019, 07:26:28 AM
In 5 years time, this forum will be gone and the community will be divided into a couple of groups of 5-10 people each spread around North America and Europe. There is no future for Mage Wars.
Well Mage Wars always has a place in my game room. In fact I have an entire bookcase dedicated to it.

I plan to be at the World Boardgaming Championships again this year at the end of July running a tournament for Mage Wars Arena. The open gaming library has a copy of the game and I always find new players learning it at the convention every year.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: ThisIsDeutch on February 22, 2019, 08:37:24 AM
In 5 years time, this forum will be gone and the community will be divided into a couple of groups of 5-10 people each spread around North America and Europe. There is no future for Mage Wars.
I plan to be at the World Boardgaming Championships again this year at the end of July running a tournament for Mage Wars Arena. The open gaming library has a copy of the game and I always find new players learning it at the convention every year.

The point of the conversation is to think of Mage Wars in the long-run: if only a handful of people learn to play the game at conventions, but don't touch it again in the future, then the idea of attracting new players isn't working. Let's get more people into playing this game for the next years to come, instead of people who play Mage Wars once or twice before forgetting the game even exists.

They also took out the Dice Tower Essential line from this forum- if you look at the stats thread I started before 2019 rolled in, you will notice that there has progressively been less and less activity on this website. This forum is dead, other then the usual 5 people who comment, or the card thread that pops up every couple of weeks; if this forum is a representation of the community at large then Mage Wars has no chance of surviving within 5 years time
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: BigNic on December 05, 2019, 10:57:19 AM
Hello everybody,
Are they any official news about new expansion? Or some statements from the big boss about the future?
I am very happy with the game and all the material we have. For me its fine when the game is finished.
Its just curiosity.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: zot on December 05, 2019, 12:22:43 PM
nothing official as yet.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: ThisIsDeutch on December 05, 2019, 03:27:07 PM
nothing official as yet.

I don't mean to be rude, but at some point people in this community are going to have to stop saying this kind of nonsense. 10 years from now we're to get the same question over and over again, if some people don't stand up and admit that Mage Wars development is dead; it needs to be said instead of ignored year after year.

I understand that as someone who holds a yearly tournament, you are quite fond of Mage Wars and want to see the community grow. That's fine, but just because the game is dead doesn't mean the community around it can't grow (even if we're to be honest, this community is never going to be at the level it was 5 years ago).


Are they any official news about new expansion? Or some statements from the big boss about the future?


Mage Wars Arena is finished: there is no expansion to be released in the future. No Lost Grimoire 2, no Alt. Forcemaster vs. Witch, no Archmage for Domination, nothing. Arcane Wonders doesn't want to say it, because they know that the majority of their fanbase plays Mage Wars, and with an announcement of completion most players would move on to greener pastures.

They like to say on their Facebook page: "We are not announcing new content at this time, because we received complaints....", but it's the same repetitive nonsense that they've been saying for the last 3-4 years. Mage Wars Arena is done, and I doubt that Arcane Wonders will ever be saying it. Some people just have to accept it and stop ignoring the fact that the company doesn't care about Mage Wars anymore, pure and simple.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: zot on December 05, 2019, 04:56:05 PM
or it could be that I may know things I cannot talk about too. not saying this is or is not the case, just that there is nothing official as yet.

Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: ThisIsDeutch on December 05, 2019, 06:08:18 PM
or it could be that I may know things I cannot talk about too. not saying this is or is not the case, just that there is nothing official as yet.

So you’re telling me that Mage Wars, a board game turning 8 years old in 2020 and with a fanbase that’s diminishing every year, will somehow be receiving another expansion?

With utmost respect to your position, there are other playtesters like you who have been saying the exact opposite, saying that Arcane Wonders is done with Mage Wars. And considering that they’ve got a Kickstarter coming up in January, I consider Arcane Wonders to be done with Mage Wars and moving on to a more profitable and lucrative part of the bord gaming industry.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: Enti on December 05, 2019, 06:44:21 PM
So you’re telling me that Mage Wars, a board game turning 8 years old in 2020 and with a fanbase that’s diminishing every year, will somehow be receiving another expansion?

Meh, there are enough examples of games that are "old" and haven't had an expansion in years or even decades that are still played today or even have made a comeback.

The first game that comes to mind is Age of Empires II ... I played that as a child, then the game's community shrunk from year to year until suddenly (probably in big part to t90) it experienced a renascence and is nowadays more popular than it ever was. Even though there is far far more competition in that gaming-sector than 20 years ago when it was released.

So it might be that the game is stagnating from the publishers viewpoint and they are not changing anything else and are not adding more. You know what? That's how dota2 and lol was made. Fans (!!!) changed and tweaked the game a bit and look how many hundreds of thousands of players play those two games nowadays. And who is responsible for it? A very small group of fans who used mods to change the game.
And guess what, the same is possible with Mage Wars, in theory everyone can invent new cards and we can play with them online. Furthermore, if someone in the community ever develops a better "system" to play it, for example that it works like Magic the Gathering and you can play it over stream.. who is to say that this never happens?

It boils down to:
Don't explain to us how dead the game is and please don't try to kill the fun for the rest of us that still plays the game.


It's totally fine if you lose your interest in the game because you want to play a game that constantly gets new cards. I get it, that certainly has its own appeal and there are enough trading card games which are offering exactly that.
Personally I am happy with the insane amount of cards we already got (far more than any MtG player has access to who plays 'standard' or 'limited') at the moment and I like to play the game even if there will never be a single added card.

Imagine people complaining that chess needs some more figures to make it more varied.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: ThisIsDeutch on December 05, 2019, 07:44:42 PM
So you’re telling me that Mage Wars, a board game turning 8 years old in 2020 and with a fanbase that’s diminishing every year, will somehow be receiving another expansion?

Meh, there are enough examples of games that are "old" and haven't had an expansion in years or even decades that are still played today or even have made a comeback.

The first game that comes to mind is Age of Empires II ... I played that as a child, then the game's community shrunk from year to year until suddenly (probably in big part to t90) it experienced a renascence and is nowadays more popular than it ever was. Even though there is far far more competition in that gaming-sector than 20 years ago when it was released.


God, the memories of being picked up by my grandparents early on Friday while in elementary school, and playing Age of Empires II on their computer in the basement pulling all-nighters just brings me back. It was such a phenomenal game, and even today stands the test of time as one of the best video games ever made.

But in the end, it's not a good comparison: Age of Empires had a couple thousand players during it's peak, and according to Steam charts, the modern all-time peak is of 26 767 players. However, Mage Wars had a few hundred players at its peak, but the community is now basically small pockets of 5-10 players spread across the United States. And so there may be some who will hold emotions of nostalgia in regards to Mage Wars a decade from now, but it won't be enough to provide the wild comeback that will re-start the brand. Who knows if Arcane Wonders will still be around by then


And guess what, the same is possible with Mage Wars, in theory everyone can invent new cards and we can play with them online. Furthermore, if someone in the community ever develops a better "system" to play it, for example that it works like Magic the Gathering and you can play it over stream.. who is to say that this never happens?


You're right- community management can help revitalize the game and gain the interest of the odd board gamer or two. But considering how there are so little amount of people left in the community, what makes you think that most of the old players would want to come back just because of a few custom made cards?


It boils down to:
Don't explain to us how dead the game is and please don't try to kill the fun for the rest of us that still plays the game.


It's totally fine if you lose your interest in the game because you want to play a game that constantly gets new cards. I get it, that certainly has its own appeal and there are enough trading card games which are offering exactly that.


Imagine people complaining that chess needs some more figures to make it more varied.

First, this forum needs to stop bringing in Magic the Gathering when it comes to threads which talk about criticism of Mage Wars. Not only did I never suggest that I play MtG (I've never even held a MtG card in my hand my entire life), a collectible card game like that doesn't interest me and I've instead been playing games like Nemesis and Heroscape. So no need to assume my gaming habits based on the fact that I've played Mage Wars and am part of this forum.

Second, I don't comment here often, because quite frankly I played Mage Wars once since Paladin Vs. Siren came out, and haven't played since. But I do still lurk (thanks to procrastination stemming from writing CEGEP essays), and whenever someone brings up the question of this game's survival and the inevitable "they haven't announced anything, so we're still in luck !" pops up, I have to remind people that it's not all flowers and butterflies.

Third, you cannot compare chess to Mage Wars. One is nearly an icon of western culture, the other is a game that was popular in a small niche community for about 2 years before it lost relevance and is now a shadow of its former self.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: zot on December 05, 2019, 08:14:17 PM
wow man. who crapped in your cheerios? some of us like to be positive about life in general. and more so about this game. not sure why you feel you Have to put down any suggestion that something Could happen by those of us here who do want to look at the half full glass and hope for the best.

two products were released for this game this year.

and note that not all playtesters have the same knowledge to work from regarding process and plans.

to repeat: nothing official as yet either way.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: Enti on December 05, 2019, 09:10:56 PM
But in the end, it's not a good comparison: Age of Empires had a couple thousand players during it's peak, and according to Steam charts, the modern all-time peak is of 26 767 players. However, Mage Wars had a few hundred players at its peak, but the community is now basically small pockets of 5-10 players spread across the United States.

It is a good comparison because it exemplarily shows you that a game that was by all accounts dead made a comeback without the developer doing anything to promote it. On the contrary, Microsoft devoloped Age of Empires 3 and Age of Mythology and other Publishers threw dozens of similar games onto the market, making it that much harder for AoE2 to make a comeback.

And that is after all your exact and only point:
MW is dead and any talk about a possible positive future triggers you into oblivion because according to you there is none.


Your numbers are meaningless anyway because comparing absolute numbers from a board-game with a computer-game has zero significance.


You're right- community management can help revitalize the game and gain the interest of the odd board gamer or two. But considering how there are so little amount of people left in the community, what makes you think that most of the old players would want to come back just because of a few custom made cards?
 

I think an active community is the first and most important step to revitalize a game once its developer isn't investing any more time and money into the game. I agree with you that it's questionable if that really is making a difference, but one enthusiastic fan can make the difference:
Imagine a better platform is available and someone is investing the effort required to streamline MW for easier online access.
At the moment you need to download a program 99,9% of all gamers have never even heard of and then you have to download a map-pack and make an account and then on top many offline-players don't like the handling of OCTGN, they don't have the patience to learn how to chance phases and do stuff properly. And then half the players experience awful lags and sometimes the whole program freezes. In this time and age people are used to ... a better gameplay experience.


As I said before, imagine Mage Wars suddenly becomes available on Steam... I am sure even you agree that this would increase the popularity of the game a hundredfold, a thousandfold, a ten-thousandfold?

My point is, I guess, that I don't like how much satisfaction you get from bashing the (remaining) fans. If they still want to hope who are you to tell them that they "have to accept" anything?





and whenever someone brings up the question of this game's survival and the inevitable "they haven't announced anything, so we're still in luck !" pops up, I have to remind people that it's not all flowers and butterflies.

Ah, you "have the remind people" ... well ... how unfortunate for you that your nature forces you to regularly ruin someone's day. Heavy burden to bear I assume...



Third, you cannot compare chess to Mage Wars. One is nearly an icon of western culture, the other is a game that was popular in a small niche community for about 2 years before it lost relevance and is now a shadow of its former self.

I didn't compare Chess to Mage Wars, I showcased with an example that you don't necessarily need new content for a board-game to thrive. After all you were the one who made the argument that MW is dead because there hasn't be an expansion in a whole year.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: Brian VanAlstyne on December 06, 2019, 09:05:26 PM
Yes, product was released in 2019...Product that was finished in 2017. Their own website about Mage Wars hasn't been updated in YEARS. Stop with the bs excuse that they made a mistake back in 2015/2016 about talking about all their plans and not coming through on them when they said they would. They got in bed with Dice Tower. Dice Tower games make them more money. It's that damn simple. Mage Wars is dead until I hear it from someone actually working for the company and not their online yes men.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: Enti on December 08, 2019, 02:30:21 AM
I think I have an easy solution. Instead of saying "MW is dead" that obviously triggers everyone who is still actively playing MW, just re-phrase your statement to "Arcane Wonders currently has no plans to generate additional MW-related content."

Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: zot on December 09, 2019, 05:55:48 PM
which may or may be accurate.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: DaveW on December 10, 2019, 04:34:59 PM
zot, you should have been a lawyer
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: ThisIsDeutch on December 12, 2019, 10:52:29 AM
Understandable: if you don’t want me saying it that’s fine. When the inevitable thread of “It’s 2020- is there news?” pops up in January or February, I’ll let the state of the game speak for itself. I will not, however, say that “Arcane Wonders has nothing to share at this time” because the truth is that you’re buying into the same stupid lie that Arcane Wonders says to people on their Facebook page.

I expect that this discussion will be brought up again within a few years time, but to be quite frank with you I don’t think that Arcane Wonders is willing to keep their forums up that long: this is basically a Mage Wars only forum, and if their Kickstarter projects are successful I guess that would delete this forum and start a new one that implicates their Kickstarter projects instead.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: DaveW on December 13, 2019, 06:40:07 PM
Meanwhile, I'm trying new spells and build ideas and Mages I never played much before... and having a ball.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: Enti on December 14, 2019, 06:08:23 PM
Sorry but that's impossible since Mage Wars is dead! Stop lying!
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: Brian VanAlstyne on December 14, 2019, 09:41:05 PM
If you want clarification, Mage Wars as supported by Arcane Wonders is dead. The game can still be played, enjoyed, and even advanced via fan involvement, but until the company does something to prove otherwise, people need to stop hoping for growth of the game on a corporate level.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: DaveW on December 15, 2019, 06:47:43 AM
Sorry but that's impossible since Mage Wars is dead! Stop lying!

My statement was quite true. I am enjoying the game as is... why do you doubt me? I don't especially care if I never buy anything else from AW ever again... I have all I need now.

Edit: I do not appreciate being called a liar.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: ThisIsDeutch on December 15, 2019, 09:45:14 AM
Sorry but that's impossible since Mage Wars is dead! Stop lying!

Either you are simply willfully ignoring what has been discussed, or you simply do not understand. Either way, DevilsVendetta makes the point quite clearly. (*On Reddicediaries' note, I understand that you were being sarcastic)

Just because Arcane Wonders is no longer making Mage Wars content, doesn't mean Dave or anyone else in this community can't browse over cards and think of strategies. If it is the little flame that keeps the group of 10-15 people alive and active in this community, then let the little flame continue to burn- no reason to extinguish it.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: Reddicediaries on December 15, 2019, 01:02:17 PM
Sorry but that's impossible since Mage Wars is dead! Stop lying!

My statement was quite true. I am enjoying the game as is... why do you doubt me? I don't especially care if I never buy anything else from AW ever again... I have all I need now.

Edit: I do not appreciate being called a liar.

Enti is being sarcastic.
Title: Re: It is 2019 - What do we know?
Post by: DaveW on December 15, 2019, 10:18:58 PM
Oh.