Berserk Games announced on April 18th the release of their
Tabletop Simulator on Steam Early Access (Beta v.10) after an incredibly successful
Kickstarter campaign (received over 11 times the requested goal). It is now available for PC, Mac, and Linux. Tabletop Simulator can be purchased on
Steam for
$14.99, $11.99 with the launch discount of 20% that runs until April 29th. You can also purchase a DRM-free copy
here.
Check out this trailer to get an idea of what the game is all about:
As the developer states, "Tabletop Simulator is the only simulator where you can let your aggression out by flipping the table! There are no rules to follow: just you, a physics sandbox, and your friends. Make your own games and play how YOU want! Unlimited gaming possibilities!"
The feature that is being driven forward is the fact
you can flip the table and simply just rampage the game board when you desire. However, there is no need to be afraid of online trolls that will ruin your experience every time because this can be turned off. Essentially, if you are not playing with close friends or mature adults you have the option to host games without that option. This mechanic is an amazing visual representation of the freedom this sandbox game is offering players. This game is an online sandbox playground that allows you to play what you want how you want.
There are
15 game modes already included in the game, including chess, poker, checkers, dominoes, mahjong, etc. The developer has promised more features and mods in the upcoming future; however, the game already allows you to
create your own game modes and share them through the Steam Workshop. This means you can look around for games you want to play, or make your own by scanning sets of cards free of charge. In fact, there are already playable versions of UNO, Magic: The Gathering, and Munchkin. Currently there are lots of tabletop games already in the repertoire. Furthermore, the game has Oculus Rift and CastAR support, which is a plus.
The feature/mode that caught my attention was the
RPG kit that has 30 animated figurines, dungeons tile-sets, and even character sheets. The developers promise to keep expanding it, but I am sure they will offer the option of creating your own 3D models for figurines and such. Although this is still a lot of work it might be a lot of fun making 3D models for some newbies and there should be a way to share those in the Workshop. This is incredible exciting for me because it will allow me to create my dungeons and maps in a digital setting that every player can see and interact with. It will not necessarily cut my preparation time in half, but I think it might make it more efficient and, definitely, prettier (my drawings suck). I also do not have to worry about my maps getting wet or stained. Furthermore, I have had many groups dismantled because of friends moving out of state. This is very frustrating because I spent months playing with them and the displacement always destroys the campaign dynamic, specially when the DM moves. Tabletop simulator offers the option of creating a D&D session across the internet, without having to deal with crappy webcams, bad angles, audio problems, and intermittent internet connection.
I will say however that Tabletop Simulator is not perfected yet. There are some things that need to be improved (specifically regarding the RPG kit). Things like grouping items, such as the tiles so the map does not break apart when players move figurines around. However, these fixes are minor and manageable. I have very high hopes for this game, and I cannot wait to contact my friends in other states to see if we can get our campaign peeps together on this again. But in order for this potential to be completely realized some work still needs to be put into the game, and it looks to me like the developers are fully committed to delivering on their promise. I guess we will see.
Berserk Games is a brand new (founded in January 2014) independent developer studio composed of experienced modders who wanted to make new and exciting experiences. They are gamers first that had a dream to make something of their own. You might know them from their mod work on Chivalry: Medieval Warfare; Mana Warfare a wizard expansion.
Sources
Berserk Games Webpage
Tabletop Simulator Facebook
Berserk Games Tumblr
Berserk Games YouTube
