The Cortex Is Live

"Firefly Online" in the Homestretch?

By Jen Carman on November 13, 2014 at 9:35pm

There’s a Firefly RPG in the works. Initial release had been set for Summer 2014, but when the developers at QMx Interactive nabbed the rights for the original actors’ voice acting… Well, gosh, it just had to be pushed back a bit. The new release date is tentatively set for 2015, but there is quite a bit of news coming through on both the official "Firefly Online" website, the "Firefly Online" Facebook Page, and their Twitter feed about new locations being developed and even a short gameplay trailer showcasing the exploration of a derelict ship.

The game features you as the captain of your very own ship on your way out to hire a crew, find a job, and keep flying. Along with being an RPG, there are aspects that make it sound like a culmination of a handful of game types. Obviously, the “jobs” you complete are “quests” and reward you with experience, platinum, and maybe even new gear for you and your crew or upgrades for your ship. If you don’t want to tempt the powers-that-be in the ‘Verse, then you can transport goods from the inner planets to the outer rim, legitimate or otherwise, you can cruise the Big Black looking for derelicts to salvage, or you can collect parts to craft goods that you can put up for sale or trade like in most MMORPGs. But then when all the mischief and chores are finished, you can manage your crew’s mood by making dinner and playing card games. The description of this that I found sounded suspiciously Sims-like which I personally am not opposed to. If nothing else, I suppose it would break up the quest grind that some MMORPGs can become. Register with The Cortex, now and get the Kepler Light-Bulk Transport bonus ship ready for when the game launches.

For me, I love the show so much, it doesn’t really matter what the game is “supposed” to be. I’m probably going to play it, at least a little, no matter what.

And no power in the ‘Verse can stop me.

PS: If you are interested in the prospect of this RPG or you are at least a fan of the all-too-short-lived show, there is also "Firefly: The Game" which is the table top version of what it seems that the video game wants to be. The base game is very much gather crew and equipment, find jobs, desperately try to keep flying. I have played it quite a few times, and my biggest critiques for it was that a lot of the time there is basically no interaction between the players, the one Reaver Ship figure is just simply not threatening, and unless things really fall into place, the game takes hours ... like… six of them. As soon as I decided that I should come up with my own scenarios that could solve these problems and was feeling really clever, GaleForceNine released expansions. The first large expansion, "Pirates and Bounty Hunters," introduces player interaction and it is exactly what the title insinuates. As the pirate player your objective is to steal anything from anyone. The second large expansion, "Blue Sun", gives you, among other things, two more Reaver ships, new sectors called "Reaver Space," and new rules for their abilities to respond to the players’ movement, which is actually terrifying, because unless your ship is equipped to pull a Crazy Ivan, your crew will die. In short, the base game had its kinks, but the expansions seem to have worked them out. Give it a try to fill in the "Firefly" void between now and the "Firefly Online" release.

Go be big damn heroes.