Older Project Updates

The look and feel of the entire BrowserQuests™ website has changed, going from a "light" (white background) theme to a "dark" (black background) theme. This was a massive change for the system, as it required virtually every element on every page to be reviewed, modified and updated in some way. We believe the new theme is MUCH more appropriate for a world-class online RPG and we hope our players, authors and site visitors will feel the same way!

Even more importantly, the entire player page (where the RPG itself is interacted with and played) has gone through a substantial redesign as well. Taking advantage of the new site design, the player page has been simplified, integrating the area map and encounter character image together, reducing the amount of prose displayed at any one time and increasing the size of the individual party hero panels. These new changes should increase the game pace a little and make the RPG more enjoyable to play.

Now that the game and overall site have been completely redesigned and the dark theme installed, development of module #5 ("Lost Tears for Blu") can resume (the module is about 75% written and should be completed shortly). Hence, module #5 should be released sometime in December, along with a variety of minor system updates and improvements.

The next module of the ongoing "The Sorrow of Sisla" BrowserQuests™ campaign has arrived! Entitled "Dark Injustice," it picks-up immediately after the events of the third module "Visions of Apocalypse" where the adventuring party must visit the capital city of Nace and discover the strange things happening there. For those who have already finished module #3, just log in--the game will automatically advance the player's party to the first encounter of module #4.

As with previous new content, module #4 adds several hours of playtime to the default campaign, introducing new characters, monsters, locations, items and even an entirely new humanoid species. Along with all the time and effort spent developing the module, a wide diversity of engine enhancements and improvements have been made as well, including a new game mechanic by which past player decisions can directly affect the storyline and future resolutions (so choose carefully!).

In addition to the new module, the BrowserQuests™ website has significantly enhanced its banner ad mechanisms, providing new page-based ads at the top of its many pages as well as modifying the smaller, more personal ads embedded within the player interface itself. Through these efforts, the platform can now begin to generate a small income, money to be used to support the game server and, eventually, generate even more new content. If you're a potential marketer, advertiser or just want to support the platform, please review our dedicated marketers page at https://www.browserquests.com/Contacts/Call-for-Marketers.

Finally, the lone developer of BrowserQuests™ (Scott Huelsman) was interviewed online back in May regarding the platform--the entire interview can be found at https://newrpg.com/interviews/scott-browserquests/. Learn the history of the game, how and why the RPG was designed and developed and what makes BrowserQuests™ unique on the Internet!

The GM now talks! Leveraging the built-in text-to-speech synthesis embedded in all modern browsers, the player interface now automatically narrates the GM's prose, providing an additional audio component to the overall gaming experience. This new functionality is enabled by default but a simple button (alongside the music button in the upper left corner of the presentation) can turn the narration off if desired as well. Note that the new feature works best in either Chrome or Edge on the desktop.

While the new feature is pretty cool, it's far from perfect--the inherent text-to-speech functionality does sound fairly human (as opposed to a monotone robot) but it's not nearly as natural-sounding as a real human. Hence, the speech synthesizer often mispronounces words (especially character or location names) and tends to emphasize the wrong syllables, so the voice doesn't always sound natural. Some will truly enjoy the new functionality, but others may find it silly or even annoying and will want to disable it. Note that blind players who already use special software to provide an audio component to everything found within the browser will likely want to turn the new narration functionality off as well, since it ONLY narrates the GM's prose, nothing more.

Log into BrowserQuests,™ give the new narration feature a try and let us know what you think! We are currently looking into the feasibility of actually narrating the GM prose manually as well, but that would be a lot more work so we're curious to know whether the text-to-speech approach is sufficient for most players.

Our first new campaign module in almost a year, we're very happy to announce that module #3 - "Visions of Apocalypse" - is now available for play! If you have played through "The Sorrow of Sisla" campaign's first two modules, there's nothing special you need to begin the third; just log in and the game should pick up right where module #2 left off.

Module #3 adds several new hours of playtime to the ongoing BrowserQuests™ experience, continuing the original campaign and introducing all new characters, monsters, locations, items, etc. A tremendous amount of time, effort and imagination has gone into making the third module a reality, with so many modest improvements to the overall platform that the first two modules have been tweaked and improved to utilize all the goodness as well.

While there have been no "breaking" changes to the game (everything should still work regardless of a player's progress through the original campaign so far), there are a few enhancements to be mindful of. First, players must now select ammunition types when equipping their heroes in order to utilize ranged weapons. Second, the third module introduces monsters that can ONLY be damaged by magical weapons, so players will need to equip their heroes accordingly. Third, as clerics and magic-users gain new levels, players must not forget to assign new spells to them (via the MANAGE SPELLS button).

Finally, the banner ad mechanism displayed in the bottom center of each page has been enhanced to not only show an advertiser name and logo but a brief description as well. These ads are the only means for the BrowserQuests™ platform to support itself financially, and so players are encouraged to click on those ad links to learn more. Indeed, players who run their own RPG-oriented businesses or organizations are encouraged to consider buying their own ads for the platform as well--see our new Call for Marketers page for complete details!

Over the past 6-7 weeks, we've spent most of our time developing second level cleric and magic-user spells, so that the game can support third, fourth and fifth level heroes (the first three campaign modules were written for first and second level heroes only). Not only are spells like Hold Person, Knock, Mirror Image and Spiritual Hammer now available within the BrowserQuests™ platform, but associated potions, scrolls, rings and wands have been developed and added to the RPG as well. Note that a few spells were somewhat changed to make them more appropriate to the BrowserQuests™ system (the first level cleric spell "Purify Food and Water" was changed to "Summon Food and Water" and the second level cleric spell "Silence 15' Radius" was changed to "Silence Spellcaster" for example). 

Subsequently, the overall RPG engine has been significantly changed and improved to accommodate these second level spells and effects. For example, it's possible now to introduce additional spell-based combatants into an encounter, such as a spiritual hammer or phantasmal force (with the player able to select a different target for the effect each round). Some smaller but important UI/design changes were also implemented, such as adding a new "REVIEW AREA AGAIN" button so players can re-read the current encounter description. Hero status effects are also displayed now within each hero panel on the main screen (green if the effect is a positive one and pink if it's a negative one), while a separate panel immediately below the gamemaster prose has been added for secondary comments as well (such as letting the player know that a particular hero is dying from hunger or thirst). So, lots of platform updates and changes over the past two months!

Indeed, we've basically spent most of 2020 making a myriad number of changes to the system, so now it's time to return to the story! Accordingly, we plan to begin work on Module #4 "Racial Justice" and try to have that developed and ready for play sometime in March of 2021. In the meantime, please continue to play the game, report feedback and let us know what you think (the best comments of which we'll put on our new "Fan-based Help & Feedback" page that summarizes all the comments and advice we're receiving). Thanks for all the continued support everyone!

NOTE - MOVE TO PROD

Now that all basic platform features and functionality are in place, the entire BrowserQuests™ system has been moved back to its "root" domain at https://browserquests.com, where it will remain indefinitely. However, the original beta version (still located at https://beta.browserquests.com) remains, to be used for testing purposes only. So, if you've bookmarked the original beta site, please update that bookmark to the new (final) domain!

Since the release of our beta version in August, we've had about 100 new players try the game, several of whom were kind enough to provide feedback through our online questionnaire, Discord channel and even just direct email. Based on that feedback, we've revised the game's UI (user interface) in the hopes of providing an easier, more streamlined and entertaining experience!

To summarize, we've moved the various response buttons and dropdowns below the primary GM prose (so it's all presented in a single panel now), we've moved and reduced the size of the party roster, we've simplified the game map panel and we moved and reduced the size of the six environmental icons that once dominated the interface (moving those to the bottom of the panel containing the map). Again, our hope is to simplify the experience and make the game more fun and intuitive to play.

In addition to our UI changes recently, we've put some thought into the general direction of BrowserQuests™ and how we intend to further develop and improve the platform over time (see our new "Platform Status" page for all the details). We've also developed a new Facebook page dedicated to the game, so please "like" us and follow us there when you can. We've also had several potential authors contact us about developing their own quests, modules and even potential campaigns within the system. Finally, work has begun on the fourth module to the original "Sorrow of Sisla" campaign, something we're hoping to release in early 2021. Don't forget to subscribe to our ongoing newsletter to stay up to date on all that we're doing!

Our initial BETA version of BrowserQuests™ is now LIVE and available at http://beta.browserquests.com. While the beta version looks almost identical to the current BrowserQuests™ website, it is in fact a completely separate instance and hence will require a new registration (so players will need to go through the registration process again). Note that sometime this fall we do plan to migrate the beta version over to the original browserquests.com domain, at which point all registrations with the original site will be lost.

A diversity of new features have been incorporated into the beta version of the site! First and foremost, it has been re-engineered to now allow vetted authors a chance to create their own quests, modules and even entire campaigns (see our initial Authors page for complete details) and we've added a new Fantasy World element to our ruleset regarding the world of Sisalus. The player experience has also been significantly upgraded, including the ability for players to create their own custom characters from scratch (versus merely choosing one of eight pre-developed heroes). Along with a general simplification of the game's user interface, dozens upon dozens of minor fixes have also been made to the underlying engine as well.

Both of the initial modules "Coming of Age" and "To Watch It All Burn" have been migrated to the beta version of the system, the first module itself partially rewritten so that new players begin at the Tabin Merchant to equip themselves (rather than at the Sislan Temple). Hence, if you've already played through both modules, the beginning of the beta version will feel different but the vast majority of both modules remains the same.

Enjoy the beta version and let us know what you think on our Discord Server!

Firstly, a few new user design modifications have been implemented into the BrowserQuests™ platform. These updates include a new presentation for all party heroes (showcasing their graphic avatars better) and a more efficient menu option details selection process (if you click CAST SPELL for example, the game automatically selects the first available spellcaster, limiting the amount of clicking that needs to be done). A few other subtle changes have been incorporated into the player interface as well.

The big news, however, is that after nearly four years of initial development, playtesting, feedback and iterative updates, the BrowserQuests™ platform is gearing-up to finally transition from its original alpha status to a full-beta status! This means new functionality for the platform and new opportunities for all who wish to become involved.

To summarize the transition, the following goals have been set for the beta release of BrowserQuests:™

• Opening of the authoring component of the platform (so approved authors can create their own quests)
• Introduction of "campaigns" to the platform (allowing alternative storylines for author-based quests)
• Ability for new players to create a custom character from scratch (and select an available campaign)
• Addition of more races and classes (including all spells and effects through third level)
• Integration of random encounters
• Diversity of smaller additions/updates that were never implemented within the alpha version

Getting started on the authoring component, an introductory "Authors Overview" page has been added to the website that provides more information about how to become a BrowserQuests™ author and what it will take to start building quests and entire campaigns. Naturally, reach out to us if you're interested in becoming an author!

Finally, to support this alpha to beta transition and help ensure that the lines of communication stay open, a new BrowserQuests™ Discord Server has been set up and is now available to anyone who wishes to use it. Use the server to say hello, indicate your interests, report any bugs or make suggestions on how to improve the platform. Everyone is welcome--just be polite, respectful and have fun with the new server!

As promised, the second BrowserQuests™ module "To Watch It All Burn" has been rebuilt from the game's original content (first provided back in late 2016) and is now available for play! 

With your new hero Arianna at your side, depart Tabin for the Pirapan capital city of Kathaleen four days away, discover why the undead are attacking the city and help put a stop to the vicious assaults! With over three times the content of the initial "Coming of Age" module, experience a bigger and bolder adventure written exclusively for the BrowserQuests™ text RPG engine!

For players who have yet to finish the first module ("Coming of Age") this second module will become available as soon as the first module is completed. For those who have already completed the first module (and are likely standing at the Tabin City Limits on the far eastern end of Tabin), a new exit has been provided so that play can continue to the second module.

The second module is a LONG one, roughly three times as involved as "Coming of Age" and so will take several hours to complete. It's also more complicated than the original module, so while it's been extensively play-tested, it's possible there are still a few edge-case bugs in the module. So, if something strange happens or the interface suddenly freezes-up, just refresh the page and the game should automatically start working again. 

Thanks to everyone who has tried BrowserQuests™ to date, and especially those who completed the first module and provided some well-appreciated feedback! 

In development for over three months, a brand new origin-story module "Coming of Age" has been uploaded to the BrowserQuests™ server and is now ready for play! Because the story takes place BEFORE the original story developed back in 2016--and to integrate a wide variety of new updates and features into the game engine as well--the entire server has also been reset; previous players can still log in as before, but all past play is gone in favor of the new module and new experience.

The "Coming of Age" module introduces players to the Sisalus fantasy world and primary Mairigan continent where all game play takes place. After deciding on an initial player class, race and gender, players find themselves within the Village of Tabin Sislan Church, summoned there to accept a new quest and begin their career as an adventurer. The module is heavy on storytelling and light on combat, as it's intended to provide a general introduction to the overall BrowserQuests™ experience and how a text-based game can still be a lot of fun.

Again, the intent with the game is to provide the feel of a single player having a conversation with a separate gamemaster (GM). So, rather than build yet another graphics-based, action RPG (as there are already hundreds of them out there), a "conversational" RPG was developed instead, one that plays out like a standard tabletop, paper-and-pencil experience with a player interacting with a GM. Note that the BrowserQuests™ engine is completely web-based, meaning that future content--potentially developed by new authors wishing to take advantage of the system and develop their own modules and quests--can do so simply through their browser (more about the authoring capabilities of the system soon).

Next up will be the rebuilding of the original content (a total of four quests, to be repackaged as a single module entitled "To Watch It All Burn"). That work has already started and the goal will be to have it in place by the end of May. For now, create a new character, embark on some new quests, learn about the history and culture of Mairiga, and help your home village of Tabin in its time of need!

Over three months in development, a brand new "Coming of Age" BrowserQuests™ module is coming, scheduled for official release on March 15, 2020. The new module consists of two new quests--both of which take place within the player character's home village of Tabin--and is the first new collection of quests added to the BrowserQuests™ system in over three years.

The module begins with a simple tutorial (which can be skipped if desired), then introduces the player as a new adventurer within the village of Tabin, where the player hero accepts an initial quest to investigate why the recent shipments of a needed antidote have suddenly stopped arriving over the past few days. After some initial adventuring within Tabin, the player (along with a new hero companion) then set off for the caves just north of Tabin to determine what has happened--and reckon with a deadly surprise! Meant to introduce the fantasy world of Sisalus as well as the BrowserQuests™ system and how it's played, the pair of new quests should take about two hours to complete.

To develop the module, a wide variety of system-breaking updates and improvements had to be made. Therefore, the four original quests developed for the BrowserQuests™ system back in late 2016 will temporarily be taken down so that they can be updated and improved as well. Hence, once the new module is uploaded, existing players will no longer be able to continue with their current quests. Instead, they will need to reset the game (via the MANAGE PARTY command) to play through the new content. The original four quests will then be reworked and reactivated as soon as possible (hopefully by the end of April).

Introducing party management to BrowserQuests!™ Until now, when new players would begin the game they would be randomly assigned a hero, and once additional heroes were recruited into the adventuring party they were there for good--there was no way to "un-hire" them so a different hero could be recruited instead.

Now, new players are allowed to select which hero they wish to play, choosing from all the recruitable NPCs available within the BrowserQuests™ database (eight currently but many more are planned). New players initially see the entire list (in groups of four) but can narrow their search by class, race and gender. Each hero's name, portrait, class, race, gender, attributes (strength, wisdom, intelligence, dexterity, constitution and charisma) and brief biography are provided, allowing the player to be selective regarding which hero to play. Note that players are not allowed to create custom heroes from scratch, as each is already provided with a personality that is not meant to be random.

Once the player begins to recruit heroes into his adventuring party (by visiting special guild-based locations within a city), those heroes can now be removed from the party if desired as well (to potentially make room for different heroes in the future). As BrowserQuests™ is just getting started, there will be no initial need to remove heroes just yet but the functionality now exists.

Additionally, players can now reset the entire game if desired! Near the bottom of the MANAGE PARTY modal window is a "Reset Party" button. When that is clicked (along with a subsequent "Are you sure?" button to prevent players from accidentally deleting their entire party), the entire game is reset; all heroes are removed, inventory is reset and play reverts back to the very first encounter within the game. Hence, if you've tried BrowserQuests before and want to start all over, a mechanism now exists to do that!

After nearly two months of re-design and development, an all-new user interface has been implemented into the BrowserQuests™ system! Gone is the extremely clunky and time-consuming grouping of command menus that once was displayed below the GameMaster (GM) prose. Instead, an easier-to-use collection of command-based buttons and dropdowns now appears within a right column of the interface, options that are typically context-dependent and simplified so that most responses to the game require just a single click or dropdown selection (more involved options--such as casting a spell on a particular target--utilize a quick modal window instead). The new approach is much faster and more intuitive and should significantly enhance the overall player experience!

Two other major improvements have been implemented as well. First, the party mapping system has been removed from the central tabbed area (where it was hidden) and is now displayed within its own left column directly on the game's central interface. This allows the player to visually identify where the party is located at all times without having to click a tab to find out. Second, the entire interface has been rebuilt to make the game much more mobile-friendly; while the desktop presentation is still the best option, the game can now reasonably be played on a tablet and even a newer phone (in landscape mode).

So, if you had recently tried the BrowserQuests™ game and were originally disappointed with its visual interface and clunky menu system, give it another try and see what you think!

After receiving a variety of comments and feedback regarding the alpha release of BrowserQuests back in June, one critical issue has been identified--the way commands are presented and utilized within the system must be improved! Indeed, the clunky and time-consuming way that the command system works seems to really compromise a positive player experience with the game and is therefore the very next mechanism to be addressed and improved.

Currently, the player is provided with at least two separate dropdown menus to interact with the virtual gamemaster (GM). The first dropdown identifies WHO will be involved with the command (defaulting to the entire party) while the second dropdown identifies the ACTION that should take place (such as using a particular hero's ability). Often, a third dropdown is required to identify the action's TARGET (such as which ability to use), and, in some cases, a fourth dropdown is used to further identify a command FOCUS. Each time a dropdown is selected, the game server must identify all appropriate options for the next dropdown and display those options accordingly; it works, but the process is slow and tedious.

Additionally, most actions provided through the dropdown interface are not context-sensitive--actions appear even if they have no relevance to the situation at hand. For example, the player can elect to speak to someone when entering a new encounter area even if there's nobody there to speak to. Providing actions that are highly relevant to the situation at hand should simplify the process and help narrow-down what a player can do. So, the game's command system will soon receive a bit of an overhaul and hopefully become an easier mechanism to work with!

Additional post-alpha improvements will focus on the game's interface. For example, all of the hero panels will be shortened vertically so they can all fit on the left side of the screen, the GM prose section text will be increased and the right panel will become the sole domain of the improved command system. Work to introduce these initial alpha improvements has already begun and should be in place by the end of 2019.

While this incredibly ambitious project started back in 2014 and an initial collection of quests released in late 2016, the project was put on a hiatus for a few years for a variety of reasons personal to the author. The project was resuscitated in the spring of 2019, however (it's entire player UI significantly altered and improved) and in mid-June an announcement was made on the BasicFantasy.org site announcing an alpha version re-release. A follow-up announcement was then made in early August letting potential users know that a new Survey Monkey questionnaire had been developed to help capture player feedback from the game as well.

Additional postings to resources such as the Facebook group Role-Playing Games was also done in early August, prompting several users to try the game. One user in particular had this to say about BrowserQuests:™

"Hey man, I just started and am only 10 mins into it.. Just wanna say I'm absolutely loving it. I've grown up with RPG games on consoles and PC, and it's my favorite genre - because of this, I've been wanting to get into tabletop/D&D type imagination games and this is a wonderful introduction to get me used to the elements. I've been looking for something exactly like this and am LOVING it. It's intuitive, the music and art is very nice, and I can see the scenes in my head. Can't wait to try more of it, great work. Please continue this project!!"

So, the slow but steady reaching-out to all potential BrowserQuests™ gamers begins! Return to our new blog often to follow our progress with the game and contact us if you have any questions, comments or advice for us!