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Das Tal

Kickstarter

Das Tal is a sandbox MMORPG meets Arena PvP title (for Windows, MAC and Linux).

Press release:
Fairytale Distillery is a small independent game development team based out of Munich, Germany, who are working on their flagship title: Das Tal. They have set about breaking down what they see as issues in the MMORPG genre, and are aiming to create a fast-paced arena style game that will redefine what an open-world game can be. Their mission: Making PvP MMOs accessible again for the growing group of adult gamers facing real-life time constraints.

Munich, Germany – May 12th 2015 – A small development team from Germany has decided to juggle the defining features of an MMORPG, and has even thrown in some PvP arena style elements. The result is a game that offers fast-paced and team oriented combat, in an open-world environment.

But Fairytale Distillery’s goal from the outset is not to simply merge two genres. Through playing many MMO games themselves, they have identified common design techniques that they see as taking away a lot of potential from games. Das Tal has been designed with these problems kept at arm’s length, and will have a number of unique features as alternatives.

Step 1: Time-Boxing Game Worlds
Probably the most interesting of these features is ‘time-boxing’, which causes all game worlds to end after a pre-determined amount of time. This immediately removes the need for ‘end game’ content to keep players interested. Instead Das Tal creates a game world that players log into because they enjoy the activities on offer from day one.

Step 2: Removing Grind
The next step to creating a more enjoyable day-to-day experience in an MMO is to remove the pointless grind that has become a trademark of the genre. After all, this treadmill of a system is only really there to keep players busy while the next expansion is created. Das Tal instead focusses on dynamic world events, battles for resources and the race to construct a base of operations – activities players can enjoy from the moment they log into the game. There is no need to grind out experience on rats, mine nodes for hours or repeat the same daily quests over and over.

Skill-based Combat System
Das Tal quite openly points to PvP as its primary focus, and obviously wants to make sure the PvP is done well. A modern combat system, where all abilities are free-aimed, and full friendly fire, ensure that the skill of the players is the most important factor when it comes to fighting. Offering a range of PvP activities also means that there are options for all types of players, from those who enjoy smaller 1 vs 1 engagements, up to those who want to tear down the walls of their enemy’s settlement.

Hundreds of Unique Worlds
The time-boxing feature mentioned earlier, combined with the fact that each game world is quite small in size compared to a traditional MMO (200 player online simultaneously), make it possible to have a large number of game worlds running at once. Fairytale Distillery wants to make use of that fact, by semi-randomly generating the geography of each world, and allowing players to vote on the rules that will govern their server. This ultimately creates a totally unique experience in each game world.

Kickstarter Launch
Das Tal has found the perfect opportunity recently in the launch of Kickstarter Germany. The crowdfunding platform has sought out local projects to promote during its expansion, and Fairytale Distillery have been working with Kickstarter representatives over the last couple of months. Das Tal’s Kickstarter campaign, which went live today, is one of the very first to launch on the new German site and already picked up a Staff Pick.

The Kickstarter page hosts the most comprehensive breakdown of the game’s features and goals to date, so if Das Tal sounds interesting, you can read more there. Backers of the project will also gain access to rewards that will not be available to those purchasing the game at release, such as taunt animations and weapon skins.

ABOUT DAS TAL
Das Tal is best described as “Sandbox MMORPG meets Arena PvP” or “the world’s first Open World Battle Arena “. The game throws its players into a dark fantasy prison world with Open PvP, Full Loot, Resource Warfare & Sieges. Das Tal is currently available in Alpha for Windows, Mac and Linux. It is a buy-to play game. There is no mandatory subscription. The development team has been working on Das Tal for over two years now – the original concept can be traced back to late 2004.

ABOUT FAIRYTALE DISTILLERY
Founder and Game Designer Alexander Zacherl had ideas of Das Tal bouncing around in his mind when he finally stopped playing Shadowbane in 2004. In 2009, he founded his first games studio, where he learned a great deal about the joys and challenges of making games. Alex met Sebastian Dorda, fellow founder of Fairytale Distillery, at a games conference in 2010. In the Spring of 2013 they decided to start putting together the pieces that would eventually become Das Tal. New team members have been picked up along the way, and the team has over two years of production behind them.

FACTS & NUMBERS
Genre: Open World Battle Arena
Related to:: Crowfall, Ultima Online, Darkfall, Bloodline Champions, Guild Wars
Release Date: planned for mid-2016
Platforms: Windows, Mac, Linux
Price: €50 / $50

Robin “V-Act” Ek
The Gaming Ground
Twitter: @TheGamingGround