Hello Adventurers!
Yesterday, our CEO Chris headed over to r/Games for an Ask Me Anything on Legacy: Steel & Sorcery. While we couldn't post every single questions and answers, we have picked some of the key questions and answers for you, so you can gain a little more insight into the game and what to expect. If you want to read all the questions and answers, with some about the studio and wider franchise, be sure to head on over to the Subreddit.
As a reminder, for all things Legacy related – join our Discord!
Q: How will the game ensure new players aren’t overwhelmed by veterans in PvP, and what’s the balance between skill and gear?
- The game includes hidden paths and traversal mechanics to help players avoid ganking, similar to Tarkov’s "rat" playstyle. Progression is more horizontal, focusing on perks rather than raw power to prevent veteran players from stomping newcomers.
- A new tutorial map, Goldbrook, will let players learn the game before entering PvP. The goal is for gear to matter around 60/40 or 70/30 compared to player skill.
Q: What’s the most surprising piece of feedback from playtests that led to a change in the game?
- The biggest surprise was the overwhelming demand for more PvE content, likely due to the studio’s WoW background.
- While PvE was always planned, the early demand led to prioritizing a tutorial map, onboarding systems, and a questline to help new players—something most hardcore PvP games don’t typically launch with.
Q: Any updates on a console release for Legacy?
- The plan is to bring Legacy to consoles around its gold master release or shortly after, with a target of early next year, depending on how Early Access performs. The team is also considering which console would be the best fit for launch.
Q: Any thoughts on an "Art of Legacy" book to showcase the game's visuals and lore?
- We will check with the team, but we're sure they'd love the idea and will pass along the suggestion.
Q: What lessons from working on World of Warcraft have you applied to Legacy: Steel & Sorcery? Also, what are your thoughts on the current state of WoW?
- We learned that real player choice in talent systems is often an illusion, as players will always pick the mathematically best option. In Legacy, we've applied this by making gear perks optimal based on conditions rather than just playstyle preference.
- As for WoW, we still consider it a masterpiece and love that Blizzard has added Classic, Hardcore, and Season of Discovery to give players more options while staying true to the original vision.
Q: How does marketing budget allocation differ between AAA and indie studios, and how much has your studio spent on marketing?
- We classify ourselves as more of an AA studio, with a budget between $10M and $20M—far below the ~$200M typical for AAA. Marketing budgets are often equal to or half of a game's development cost, but for our Early Access launch, we're spending under $100K. The industry is shifting in how marketing works, and while streamers are often targeted, data suggests that just making a great game is the best approach for indie and AA titles.
Q: How does loot/gear progression work, and can average players get legendaries or uniques? Will low-geared players be wiped by experienced players in legendary gear?
- Players progress through gear tiers from "Junk" to "Legendary" items, which can be found through RNG or crafted by leveling up vendors and unlocking recipes. New players can obtain legendaries, but gear can be lost upon death. We aim to keep the power differential between low and high-geared players at around 50%, ensuring it's not too extreme, unlike some other PvP RPGs where it's much higher. The game features two maps at EA launch, with more coming soon to expand loot and progression.
Q: Can you share details about the upcoming Wizard and Paladin classes and their resource systems?
- The Wizard will focus on elemental interactions, such as combining Frost and Fire to create Fog, and will have a unique resource system tied to collecting spell scrolls found in the world. They will have the highest number of spells, and exploring the world for new spells will be key. The Paladin is still in paper design, but will have the ability to "Sense Injustice" in the world, identifying assassins and allowing them to seek vengeance. The Paladin will also be able to buff other players, a feature not yet available in the game.
Q: As a former backer of Crowfall, what is your game attempting to do differently?
- We are focusing on the core experience and combat fundamentals first, taking a Crawl/Walk/Run approach rather than trying to do everything at once like Crowfall. While Crowfall had great ideas, its ambition to build an MMO with complex systems and content overwhelmed the project. We’re opting to build over time, focusing on solid foundations before expanding.
Q: PvPvE / Extraction / RPG / with MMO elements. Can you explain how these elements reconcile in your game?
- The game blends Extraction with MMO-like features such as open-world areas, rich crafting, progression, and character customization. While it's focused on PvPvE, there are systems like quests and character creation common in MMOs. We aim to add more MMO features over time, including more PvE experiences and deeper character customization. The blend of "get in, get loot, and leave" with ongoing progression makes it unique. However, I don’t like genres or tags as they don’t fully capture what the game is trying to do.
Q: Is this game zone-based or more like The Division with open world public event areas? How does the gameplay structure work?
- The game features large, sandbox-like zones within session-based maps. It's not a linear level; players can explore and loot freely within the zone. While we do want to eventually explore the idea of moving between zones, the current focus is on massive, single-session maps. Implementing seamless zone transitions is challenging, especially with Unreal, but it's something we might consider later.
Q: Is there a connection between the original name "Project Honor" and the mechanic of executing players, or what was the inspiration for the original name?
- The name "Project Honor" came from an early idea I had around honor-based mechanics, though it wasn't directly tied to executions. The idea was more about giving players the choice in whether to kill others, similar to world PvP zones in MMOs. The game's name evolved to "Legacy," but the concept of honor remains in how players can choose whether to kill or let others live. As for the execution mechanic, it reflects a culture of "honor" and "dishonor" in combat, with plans to let players customize execution animations in the future.