Geneforge 2
Encyclopedia
Geneforge 2 is the second video game in the Geneforge series of role-playing games
created by Spiderweb Software
. It was released as demoware for the Macintosh
on July 24, 2003, and Windows
on December 31.
Players create a character from one of three character classes and explore the game's 84 locations, deciding whether to ally themselves with one of the four factions or remain neutral. The game's plot concerns an apprentice Shaper and an Agent (whose name is Shanti), both members of a secretive sect of wizards who can create life by using their own life energy. They are sent on a mission to investigate a failing Shaper colony called Drypeak. When they arrive not all is well, the player becomes drawn into a four-way war which has been hidden from the outside world.
The game's development was made more simple by the use of the same game engine
to that of its predecessor, though extra dialogue was involved due to the presence of four factions rather than the three in Geneforge
. Video game journalists awarded both positive and average review scores, they were impressed by Geneforge 2' s plot and replayability but criticized the game's graphics and ambient sound effects.
is an apprentice Shaper, a feared and secretive group who can create life. Players create a character from one of three character classes and explore the area surrounding Drypeak, a failing Shaper colony, solving quests and gaining experience. Each of the three character classes has a particular playing style and can approach tasks in different ways. 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 are the game's version of rogues
, and excel in spell casting and are capable of hand-to-hand combat. The Shaper is a summoner, capable of creating living creatures by using their own life essence. Shapers rely on their creations for protection. Players can also convince certain non-player characters to join them.
The game is played in 45° axonometric
perspective, movement through the game's environs is real-time, combat is turn-based. The game world is divided into 84 areas accessible through a world map. Clearing areas by defeating guardians or successfully traversing the terrain allows players to bypass those areas via the world map, reducing travelling time. The game uses an auto-map, each area is completely darkened and is revealed as the player explores, similar to the fog of war
used in real-time strategy games. As the player completes tasks and 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 ability in skills such as leadership and mechanics. Canisters which increase skills or add new abilities are scattered throughout the game. Geneforge 2 offers a number of changes and additions over its predecessor. Three new creations are available to players: massive Drakons; telepathic Gazers
; and acidic, decaying Rotghroths. Several new spells
are available, such as Kill and Aura of Flames. The skill "Anatomy
", which allowed the player to cause extra damage in melee combat, is replaced with "Parry
", which has a chance of blocking incoming attacks. Also the spell "Dominate" which allows the player to take control of one of the enemies is replaced with "Wrack". The game engine itself, however, is essentially unchanged from the original Geneforge.
After exploring a number of the game's locations, the apprentice gains access to a guarded tunnel and is astonished to discover what lies on the other side. Whereas the valley where Drypeak is located is a dustbowl devoid of vegetation, the lands on the other side of the tunnel are lush and green, meaning highly illegal shaping is taking place in secret. Serviles, the Shapers' slaves created from life essence, show abnormal intelligence and self-awareness. While still reeling from the revelation of what lies beyond Drypeak, the Shaper apprentice discovers that Shanti has disappeared during one of her escapes from her armed escorts, her necklace lay broken on the grass outside the tunnel. At this point, approximately a quarter of the way through the game, the player's choices expand considerably.
When confronted with the apprentice's findings, Zakary confesses to being part of a plot to conceal illegal experiments from the Shaper Council. Both he and Barzahl were sent to Sucia Island, the location where the original Geneforge game is set, where Barred Shaper technology had allowed Shapers to manipulate life in countless ways. Instead of destroying the Geneforge, the pair agreed to spirit away the technology and experiment in private. Several of the intelligent serviles who lived on Sucia were brought along, a number of Shapers also followed Barzahl. Zakary remained in Drypeak to provide a front for the experimentation and rogue serviles which lay beyond the tunnel. Barzahl moved further into the valleys to build settlements and run experiments. Repeated use of the canisters can render the user cold, detached and possibly mad. When Zakary saw this happening to Barzahl the pair argued, Zakary regretted his part in the deceit. This occurred a year before the arrival of Shanti and the apprentice, Zakary had lost contact with Barzahl since the argument. Zakary pledges his loyalty to the Shaper Council once more and asks for help from the apprentice in dealing with what lies beyond the guarded cave.
Using the Geneforge to empower himself and his followers, the Barzites, Barzahl intends to bestow god-like abilities on himself and his followers within the city of Rising. Barzahl cut off contact with Drypeak, preparing to repel the inevitable assault of the Shaper Council, who they wish to remain independent from. The Takers, a faction of intelligent serviles who had originated on Sucia Island, were given powers by Barzahl because they worked for him. In turn the Takers created powerful dragon-like beasts called drakons, taught the drakons how to create life themselves, and betrayed Barzahl. The Takers stand for the total destruction of the Shaper Council. The Awakened, the other servile faction in Geneforge 2, believe that Shapers should treat them as equals. They had been working with the Barzites, but the Awakened's leader Learned Pinner rejected the Barzites' view that serviles need to be controlled. Trade and communications between Zakary's now Shaper Council loyalist Drypeak and the other three factions have ceased, replaced with spies and subterfuge. The player is free to decide which faction they wish to join, if any, and to explore the game world, reacting to the characters and situations they encounter.
' s reviewer stated that "graphics aside, Geneforge 2 is a terrific game" for players new to the RPG genre. The reviewer of Computer Games Magazine
praised the Spiderweb Software's titles and said that Geneforge 2 "is probably the best twenty-five bucks an RPG fiend can spend." CNET
's staff member was more critical, describing the game as "complex enough to keep you interested, but not quite good enough to enjoy." Indie gaming website Game Tunnel's Gianfranco Berardi praised Geneforge 2 as "an RPG of amazing quality." Inside Mac Games' Ken Newquist stated the game is "a real find" for players who have been disappointed by lack of gameplay in expensive mainstream titles.
The game's graphics and sound effects received a largely negative response, Matt Peckham of GameSpy
described them as "yesteryear" and "minimalist" respectively. Ken Newquist called the graphics "far from spectacular" and stated they were worse than older titles such as Baldur's Gate. He also highlighted that enchanted items look identical to their mundane counterparts and that highly evolved creatures are identical to their standard brethren. Newquist also disliked the ambient sounds, which make up the game's soundtrack, calling them "numerous, but repetitive". Gianfranco Berardi was more positive. He stated that "the graphics aren't exactly top-notch", but noted variation between different areas. He also said "the sound effects and ambience simply added to the involving storyline." CNET's editor described the sound effects as "merely adequate" and the graphics "less so".
Gianfranco Berardi praised the plot, stating that it "isn't just good background noise like in most games." He added that he found the plot involving, and that it can cause the player to stop and think about their actions. Matt Peckham described the plot as "fantastic and original", and praised the game's replayability. Ken Newquist compared the game's setting to the pen and paper role-playing game Gamma World
, and stated "players get a huge world to explore and—thanks to the intricacies of the game's plot—re-explore."
Role-playing game (video games)
Role-playing video games are a video game genre with origins in pen-and-paper role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons, using much of the same terminology, settings and game mechanics. The player in RPGs controls one character, or several adventuring party members, fulfilling one or many quests...
created by Spiderweb Software
Spiderweb Software
Spiderweb Software is a small indie video game developer founded in 1994 by Jeff Vogel in Seattle, Washington. Its primary focus is on creating demoware games for the Apple Macintosh and Microsoft Windows operating systems. The company is unusual in that it first develops games for Macintosh...
. It was released as demoware for the Macintosh
Macintosh
The Macintosh , or Mac, is a series of several lines of personal computers designed, developed, and marketed by Apple Inc. The first Macintosh was introduced by Apple's then-chairman Steve Jobs on January 24, 1984; it was the first commercially successful personal computer to feature a mouse and a...
on July 24, 2003, and Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
on December 31.
Players create a character from one of three character classes and explore the game's 84 locations, deciding whether to ally themselves with one of the four factions or remain neutral. The game's plot concerns an apprentice Shaper and an Agent (whose name is Shanti), both members of a secretive sect of wizards who can create life by using their own life energy. They are sent on a mission to investigate a failing Shaper colony called Drypeak. When they arrive not all is well, the player becomes drawn into a four-way war which has been hidden from the outside world.
The game's development was made more simple by the use of the same game engine
Game engine
A game engine is a system designed for the creation and development of video games. There are many game engines that are designed to work on video game consoles and personal computers...
to that of its predecessor, though extra dialogue was involved due to the presence of four factions rather than the three in Geneforge
Geneforge
Geneforge is the first video game in the Geneforge series of role-playing games created by Spiderweb Software. It was released as demoware for the Macintosh on December 12, 2001 and Windows on March 19, 2002....
. Video game journalists awarded both positive and average review scores, they were impressed by Geneforge 2
Gameplay
Geneforge 2 is a role-playing game where the player's choice of answers during conversations with non-player characters affects how the player is regarded amongst the game's four factions. The player characterPlayer character
A player character or playable character is a character in a video game or role playing game who is controlled or controllable by a player, and is typically a protagonist of the story told in the course of the game. A player character is a persona of the player who controls it. Player characters...
is an apprentice Shaper, a feared and secretive group who can create life. Players create a character from one of three character classes and explore the area surrounding Drypeak, a failing Shaper colony, solving quests and gaining experience. Each of the three character classes has a particular playing style and can approach tasks in different ways. 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 are the game's version of rogues
Thief (character class)
The Thief or Rogue is a character class in many role-playing games, including Dungeons & Dragons, Final Fantasy, World of Warcraft and many MMORPGs. Thieves are usually stealthy and dextrous characters able to disarm traps, pick locks, and perform backstabs from hiding...
, and excel in spell casting and are capable of hand-to-hand combat. The Shaper is a summoner, capable of creating living creatures by using their own life essence. Shapers rely on their creations for protection. Players can also convince certain non-player characters to join them.
The game is played in 45° axonometric
Axonometric projection
Axonometric projection is a type of parallel projection, more specifically a type of orthographic projection, used to create a pictorial drawing of an object, where the object is rotated along one or more of its axes relative to the plane of projection....
perspective, movement through the game's environs is real-time, combat is turn-based. The game world is divided into 84 areas accessible through a world map. Clearing areas by defeating guardians or successfully traversing the terrain allows players to bypass those areas via the world map, reducing travelling time. The game uses an auto-map, each area is completely darkened and is revealed as the player explores, similar to the fog of war
Fog of war
The fog of war is a term used to describe the uncertainty in situation awareness experienced by participants in military operations. The term seeks to capture the uncertainty regarding own capability, adversary capability, and adversary intent during an engagement, operation, or campaign...
used in real-time strategy games. As the player completes tasks and 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 ability in skills such as leadership and mechanics. Canisters which increase skills or add new abilities are scattered throughout the game. Geneforge 2 offers a number of changes and additions over its predecessor. Three new creations are available to players: massive Drakons; telepathic Gazers
Beholder
The beholder is a fictional monster in the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. It resembles a floating orb of flesh with a large mouth, single central eye, and lots of smaller eyestalks on top with deadly magical powers....
; and acidic, decaying Rotghroths. Several new spells
Magic (gaming)
Some role-playing games or game systems can include a set of rules that are used to portray magic in the paranormal sense. These rules simulate the effects that magic would have within the game context, according to how the game designer intended the magic to be portrayed...
are available, such as Kill and Aura of Flames. The skill "Anatomy
Anatomy
Anatomy is a branch of biology and medicine that is the consideration of the structure of living things. It is a general term that includes human anatomy, animal anatomy , and plant anatomy...
", which allowed the player to cause extra damage in melee combat, is replaced with "Parry
Parry (fencing)
A parry is a fencing bladework manoeuvre intended to deflect or block an incoming attack.-Execution:To execute a parry, fencers strike the opponent's foible, or the area near the tip of the blade, with their forte, or the part of the blade near the handle of the sword...
", which has a chance of blocking incoming attacks. Also the spell "Dominate" which allows the player to take control of one of the enemies is replaced with "Wrack". The game engine itself, however, is essentially unchanged from the original Geneforge.
Plot
An apprentice Shaper is sent on a training mission with a Shaper Agent named Shanti by the Shaper Council. The pair are tasked with assessing the failed Shaper colony Drypeak and making contact with the pair of Shapers, Barzahl and Zakary, who were dispatched years ago to revitalize the colony. The gates of Drypeak are found unmanned, much to Shanti's disgust, the Agent and her charge are also attacked by rogue Shaper creations. When the pair gain access to the colony, they find a dishevelled Zakary who informs them that both he and Barzahl were unsuccessful in revitalizing the colony, which remains a barren desert. He also states that Barzahl has died. Zakary and the population of Drypeak behave suspiciously. Shanti is shadowed by an armed guard against her will. She instructs the apprentice, who is not guarded, to explore Drypeak and beyond in order to discover the truth behind the colony and Barzahl's disappearance.After exploring a number of the game's locations, the apprentice gains access to a guarded tunnel and is astonished to discover what lies on the other side. Whereas the valley where Drypeak is located is a dustbowl devoid of vegetation, the lands on the other side of the tunnel are lush and green, meaning highly illegal shaping is taking place in secret. Serviles, the Shapers' slaves created from life essence, show abnormal intelligence and self-awareness. While still reeling from the revelation of what lies beyond Drypeak, the Shaper apprentice discovers that Shanti has disappeared during one of her escapes from her armed escorts, her necklace lay broken on the grass outside the tunnel. At this point, approximately a quarter of the way through the game, the player's choices expand considerably.
When confronted with the apprentice's findings, Zakary confesses to being part of a plot to conceal illegal experiments from the Shaper Council. Both he and Barzahl were sent to Sucia Island, the location where the original Geneforge game is set, where Barred Shaper technology had allowed Shapers to manipulate life in countless ways. Instead of destroying the Geneforge, the pair agreed to spirit away the technology and experiment in private. Several of the intelligent serviles who lived on Sucia were brought along, a number of Shapers also followed Barzahl. Zakary remained in Drypeak to provide a front for the experimentation and rogue serviles which lay beyond the tunnel. Barzahl moved further into the valleys to build settlements and run experiments. Repeated use of the canisters can render the user cold, detached and possibly mad. When Zakary saw this happening to Barzahl the pair argued, Zakary regretted his part in the deceit. This occurred a year before the arrival of Shanti and the apprentice, Zakary had lost contact with Barzahl since the argument. Zakary pledges his loyalty to the Shaper Council once more and asks for help from the apprentice in dealing with what lies beyond the guarded cave.
Using the Geneforge to empower himself and his followers, the Barzites, Barzahl intends to bestow god-like abilities on himself and his followers within the city of Rising. Barzahl cut off contact with Drypeak, preparing to repel the inevitable assault of the Shaper Council, who they wish to remain independent from. The Takers, a faction of intelligent serviles who had originated on Sucia Island, were given powers by Barzahl because they worked for him. In turn the Takers created powerful dragon-like beasts called drakons, taught the drakons how to create life themselves, and betrayed Barzahl. The Takers stand for the total destruction of the Shaper Council. The Awakened, the other servile faction in Geneforge 2, believe that Shapers should treat them as equals. They had been working with the Barzites, but the Awakened's leader Learned Pinner rejected the Barzites' view that serviles need to be controlled. Trade and communications between Zakary's now Shaper Council loyalist Drypeak and the other three factions have ceased, replaced with spies and subterfuge. The player is free to decide which faction they wish to join, if any, and to explore the game world, reacting to the characters and situations they encounter.
Development
Geneforge 2 was developed in tandem with another Spiderweb Software title, Blades of Avernum. Developer Jeff Vogel described the game's production as "very relaxing", since the game engine was already completed from the previous game he was familiar with it and therefore could devote his time to creating the game itself. Due to the different reactions the player receives from the factions, depending on their actions and conversation choices, it required days to complete a single town. This was further increased from the original game, due to there being four factions instead of three. In an interview held during the development of Geneforge 2 Vogel stated "I'm really excited about the Geneforge series. And we're already thinking about Geneforge 3." A 20 area demo version was released, allowing players access to towns, mines and woodlands.Reception
Geneforge 2 received both positive and average review scores. Video game magazine PC GamerPC Gamer
PC Gamer is a magazine founded in Britain in 1993 devoted to PC gaming and published monthly by Future Publishing. The magazine has several regional editions, with the UK and US editions becoming the best selling PC games magazines in their respective countries...
Computer Games Magazine
Computer Games Magazine was a computer gaming print magazine. It was formerly Computer Games Strategy Plus, and before that, Strategy Plus, which had been founded as Games International in the UK in 1988. While its initial focus was on strategy games, it covered a wide range of game genres...
praised the Spiderweb Software's titles and said that Geneforge 2 "is probably the best twenty-five bucks an RPG fiend can spend." CNET
CNET
CNET is a tech media website that publishes news articles, blogs, and podcasts on technology and consumer electronics. Originally founded in 1994 by Halsey Minor and Shelby Bonnie, it was the flagship brand of CNET Networks and became a brand of CBS Interactive through CNET Networks' acquisition...
's staff member was more critical, describing the game as "complex enough to keep you interested, but not quite good enough to enjoy." Indie gaming website Game Tunnel's Gianfranco Berardi praised Geneforge 2 as "an RPG of amazing quality." Inside Mac Games' Ken Newquist stated the game is "a real find" for players who have been disappointed by lack of gameplay in expensive mainstream titles.
The game's graphics and sound effects received a largely negative response, Matt Peckham of GameSpy
GameSpy
GameSpy Industries, Inc., known simply as GameSpy, is a division of IGN Entertainment, which operates a network of game websites and provides online video game-related services and software. GameSpy dates back to the 1996 release of an internet Quake server search program named QSpy. The current...
described them as "yesteryear" and "minimalist" respectively. Ken Newquist called the graphics "far from spectacular" and stated they were worse than older titles such as Baldur's Gate. He also highlighted that enchanted items look identical to their mundane counterparts and that highly evolved creatures are identical to their standard brethren. Newquist also disliked the ambient sounds, which make up the game's soundtrack, calling them "numerous, but repetitive". Gianfranco Berardi was more positive. He stated that "the graphics aren't exactly top-notch", but noted variation between different areas. He also said "the sound effects and ambience simply added to the involving storyline." CNET's editor described the sound effects as "merely adequate" and the graphics "less so".
Gianfranco Berardi praised the plot, stating that it "isn't just good background noise like in most games." He added that he found the plot involving, and that it can cause the player to stop and think about their actions. Matt Peckham described the plot as "fantastic and original", and praised the game's replayability. Ken Newquist compared the game's setting to the pen and paper role-playing game Gamma World
Gamma World
Gamma World is a science fantasy role-playing game, originally designed by James M. Ward and Gary Jaquet, and first published by TSR in 1978. It borrowed heavily from James M. Ward's earlier product, Metamorphosis Alpha.-Setting:...
, and stated "players get a huge world to explore and—thanks to the intricacies of the game's plot—re-explore."