I dont see any problem with what you described here. On the contrary, all locations sound more fun to play exactly because of the more "wacko" vibe.

If any of them were more realistic - and all looked like each other - whats the fun ?

They are (if I'm getting the concept right) building something akin to the classic top-down or isometric RPG/strategy games, like their already released Something Steam Pirates...that kind of design should work great of both tablets and PC.

Yeah, that's the impression I get. I have Crimson Steam Pirates on the iPad and it's a great game. Very well designed and good looking; it gives me high hopes for Shadowrun Returns.

Demonseed, do Steam Crimson Pirates have interesting gameplay aside from missions/battles ? How is its "rpg" side ?

By all we hear til now, this Shadowrun is looking more as a "Tactics" type of game with some RPG elements thrown in than the contrary.

Crimson Steam Pirates isn't really an RPG. I would definitely say it's more of a tactical game. Whether that means Shadowrun Returns will work the same way, I don't know. But from what little detail Harebrained Schemes has given so far, it does sound like Shadowrun Returns will have tactical gameplay with RPG elements (like character development, legwork, and building your team).

Which I'm totally okay with. A lot of 2D RPGs are tactics games and that doesn't make them worse games.

Well, apart from Berlin, it isn't the wackiness I'm concerned with, but how the locations fit together canon-wise. Most places got descriptions way past 2050. I assume, the two different settings of Shadowrun Returns would be connected, so you could not do 2050 Seattle and 2070 Hong Kong for example. Still it's unclear how much they will stick to established canon anyway. Maybe they really only go for the flair and some of the big plot elements.

I don't know about that. Metahuman player characters would have huge disadvantages and nothing that compensates for that.

Well I would sure like to see what a modern elven city looks like. The old Cromwell-is-Big-Brother London setting would also be nice. But if you want to do something for diversity in video games make an RPG set in an African city (and by Africa I don't mean Egypt).

Crimson Steam Pirates gave me the impression that it could maybe look like a nicer version of Dreamweb (some screenshots). But since Jordan mentioned X-COM, the game should have an isometric perspective and not the top-down view of Crimson (I have only seen the videos).

Having played the game, can you shed light on what they might mean by "contextual gameplay"? I figure radial menus with different content depending on where you click, or does CSP have something else than that?

You pretty much have it there, at least for Crimson Steam Pirates. Each vehicle in it has a radial menu attached to its movement action and the options in that radial menu depend on the situation.

CSP menu items changed depending on your ship and crew, I would imagine that a runner group would get similar options. CSP was more of a fun steampunk tactical turn-based game. So I expect that Shadowrun would get a deeper treatment. Also, it's not going to be a couple dollar iTunes app, it really is geared for PC. Though I'd love an iPad version.

I'd rather play turn-based for an RPG because it gives you more of the feel of an RPG. Real-time RPGs are more like speed chess, interesting and amazing to watch, but not the original.

I'd like to see Denver as a second city for consideration. London might be good, but the high security might not make it everyone's favorite. The Tirs have the same issue. If you play them close to their 2050 origins, you end up with very difficult cities to run in. Though, Chicago might be interesting. I hate bugs though. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

I vote for Stockholm as the second city, because I can X3

Nah, i vote for the SOX.
It would pacify both germans and frenchies fans.
And it'd be a REALLY different setting from just another sprawl . .

Vegas, Philly, or Bust. Choose a location based on awesomeness, and not to placate the Euros.

Sox IS awesome . .
It's basically our own little corner of the Fallout Universe right there . .

As a longtime fan of the FO universe (I'm even in the FO bible), I couldn't disagree more. If I want FO, I'll play FO. I want SR, and few locations scream fun in the SR world like Vegas and Philly.

It's a post apocalyptical nuclear wasteland where formerly 2 great nations had cities . .
There are mutants there. Glowpunks. Smugglers. Raiders. Robots. Enclaves and Bunkers . .
That's close enough to Fallout for me . .

Makes me homesick... Save for the "Two Great Nations" part...

I say Chicago...but thats just cause i want to blow up some bugs

You misunderstand, I apologize. It's not that I dont think the area is FO-esque, it's that if I want Fallout, I'll go play it. I'm funding shadowrun, and expect to play as much.

meh personally I love to see them be bold, make the 2nd city one never detailed in novels or lore books, we already have Seattle to stroke the fans, why not inject some new iconic characters, locals and stories.

Well, one great nation and one that tried to surrender to lance armstrong *snickers*

Ah. OK.
I just can't wrap my head around that i guess . .
I mean . . i love shadowrun . . oh, by the way canray, i got to play last saturday! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/nyahnyah.gif) ^^
And i love Fallout. Yes, even Tactics was kinda good too for me . .
So the mix between the two of them strikes me as a big kind of YES PLEASE JUST DO IT ALREADY DAMN IT!
Imagine what would have happened if Big D woke up and the first thing he roared was:"Why the hell am i all glowy this time?"

I am still jonesing for a Fallout Tactics Mod that makes it into shadowrun ._.

Edited first post to include this:
http://ruinedkingdoms.com/shadowrun/

If you recognized the names and faces behind the project this wouldn't be a question. Read through the credits in the Shadowrun 1st, 2nd, and 3rd editions and you'll see a bunch of names behind Shadowrun returns.

I'm a bit dissapointed that they chose to go 2D when they could use Neverwinter Nights 2 engine or similar ones not to mention multiplayer over the web so you could create adventures and perhaps even have a GM.

Oh well. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wobble.gif)

Let's not kid ourselves, nothing less than a fully immersive VR game ran by multiple genius-level AI will satisfy us. So 2D, 3D, doesn't matter much as long as it got style.

Heh..yeah, but ya know Mir, someone would still find something to complain about, even as they are playing the shit out of it. There is always someone who is going to say "Gawd! this game is so cheap and dumb!" as they spend 4 hours a day on it..... ::cough cough:: WoW ::cough cough:: (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)