Here you will find the latest news in the world of Raymond E. Feist. It maybe the title of the next book, a new release or even a new project, but it could also be an update on an existing project. What ever it is though, we hope to present it to you as soon as we are aware of it. If you know something we don't, that relates to Raymond E. Feist, and believe it should be here, then please contact us.
Thu Nov 12th, 1998
It looks as if the Atlas of Midkemia, a project which Ray and Steve A. have been talking about for a long time, is finally a reality. Here's what Ray said:
No, it's going to be titled Krondor: Tear of the Gods.
This is the 'Krondor' series, as far as my publishers are concerned, even though it's the Riftwar Legacy, as far as I'm concerned.
Seriously, there's a very active attempt at branding Krondor at this time, due to the game and books, and some other projects about which I can not talk.
But here's one that I can talk about:
We're going to do an Atlas of Midkemia, starting with the area around the Bitter Sea. Steve Abrams and I will start working on it RSN and it will be finished in the next year or so.
We'll keep you abreast of what it is where doing, SO DON'T ASK! <g>
That first bit refers to the working title for the third Riftwar Legacy novel, which will be based on the story of Return to Krondor. If the Atlas is due out in a year, that would coincide with the delayed release date of Krondor: The Assassins that Ray mentioned yesterday.
Wed Nov 11th, 1998
Australian RtK Preview CD and New Empire Trilogy Site
Ray posted this about the availability of the RtK preview CD in Australian copies of Krondor the Betrayal:
Just found out that about 6,000 discs of the BaK game w/ RtK slideshow were shipped to Oz to be included with Krondor the Betrayal by HarperCollins. They will, however, be exclusive to Angus and Robertsons stores.
In my last news item of the day, an interesting new site on the net focuses on Mara of the Acoma, from the Empire Trilogy. The site has some good information on the three books that most other Feist sites ignore.
Wed Nov 11th, 1998
Name Change
The news does not stop. Ray posted to the list that the second book in the Riftwar Legacy will be titled 'Krondor: The Assassins.' Also:
A July release is probably optomistic, and there's some other considerations (about which I can not talk at present) which may make it preferable to reschedule later in the year.
My hunch is that a Krondor television show might begin production, and the book's release would co-incide with the premier. However, that is strictly speculation with only meager factual backing.
Wed Nov 11th, 1998
'The Wood Boy' Review to be Posted Soon
I finally checked out a copy of Legends, and will post a review of 'The Wood Boy' in a day or so.
Wed Nov 11th, 1998
New Preview and Updated Links
GamePen recently posted apreview of RtK, written by Chris Bailey (Mental4 of Ultima@Scorched for all of you Ultima Online players). Also, Desslock's RPG News moved to Gamespot recently, and their E3 preview of RtK is gone. I updated the URL of the other preview and their interview with Sinjin.
Wed Nov 11th, 1998
RPG Article
An article about the ingredients of a good RPG, 'The Quill Scroll: The Constitution of Role Playing ,' has been posted to the Adrenaline Vault. It does not mention RtK, but RPG fans might want to take a look.
Wed Nov 11th, 1998
New RtK Preview
The Vault Network posted a new preview of RtK yesterday, based on some hands-on work with a beta build.
In (Ray's) Krondorian setting, a strong storyline and characters, a state of the art engine, etc., the major elements are in place to make Return to Krondor a worthy sequel and an excellent game in its own right. However, as in the game's alchemy system, the skill with which those elements are combined will ultimately determine the quality and the success or failure of the final product. Return to Krondor is not yet finished brewing, but from what I have seen, that product could turn out to be very potent indeed.
Wed Nov 11th, 1998
Return to Krondor goes gold!
This is a day to remember the sacrifices of all those who fought for freedom and democracy. They valued their nation over their selves, and achieved the highest level of honor. They are real heroes. Now for the big news... Return to Krondor went gold! Ray's words:
Return to Krondor went Golden at 4 am EST this morning. It is currently on a plane for Seattle, to begin production. Look for it in the stores in roughly two weeks. My personal congratulations went to Pyrotechnix, Sinjin Bain and his crew of maniacs for a job well done.
I want to second that notion. Sinjin and PyroTechnix worked through a great deal of problems during RtK's development to bring us what looks to be the best RPG in a long time. Many projects don't survive a change of companies, financial turmoil (both at 7th Level and at Cendent), and everything else that happened in the last few years. RtK has been a long time coming, but I think it will be worth the wait. Kudos to everyone involved.
Tue Nov 10th, 1998
Upcoming Return to Krondor Contest
Ray posted this about an upcoming RtK contest:
Here's an early alert for those of you who want an autographed book. When Sierra releases RtK, they're going to run a contest (DON'T ASK ME FOR DETAILS, 'CAUSE I DON'T HAVE ANY!), and 100 winners will receive an autographed copy of Krondor the Betrayal. When I have more details, I'll post them. Otherwise, check the Sierra board.
Mon Nov 9th, 1998
What Time is it... in Rillanon?
Those with a penchant for the... odd... should check out Rip's site, where the date and time at the Royal Rillanon Observatory can be found.
Sun Nov 8th, 1998
What's going on?
Here is something curious: on the map that was included in a recent PC Gamer and is on the Sierra website (and what I assume will be used throughout the game), neither Sarth nor Land's End, the two closest big towns to Krondor, are shown. If the game is supposed to take place in and around Krondor, this makes one wonder just how close to Krondor the party stays. Certainly, traveling in the region would lead to one of these two places... However, Sinjin's post on the RtK Dev Board says this:
The major areas of the world you will visit; the city of Krondor (including the sewers), the wilderness travelling, Haldon Head, the Black Pearl Temple are as detailed as we could make them within the context of a shippable game.
Sun Nov 8th, 1998
New Previews and Message Board
Added two new links to RtK previews at Computer Games Online and GGC. Also, several mailorder sites are accepting pre-orders for both RtK and the Strategy Guide. Finally, there is a Development Board for RtK up at the Vault Network. Both Sinjin and Ray post there (but haven't said anything about it previously). I just glanced through some of the recent posts, and this popped out at me: RtK will ship with two CD's. What does that mean? There must not be a lot of video footage (the game engine must be used for many of the cut scenes). Also, this post from Sinjin, although three weeks old, details the current status of the game very well.
Sun Nov 8th, 1998
Webring Problems
The Raymond E. Feist Webring is experiencing some difficulties, so please have patience. Also, I downloaded the beta of Internet Explorer 5.0, and it works great. If you like to stay on the edge of technology, check it out.
Sat Nov 7th, 1998
Return to Krondor Update
Sorry for the lack of news this week. Ray posted this to the list recently:
Well, I just finished my (who knows how many times) playing of the beta. We're currently working on 1.02 beta, and should be in production next week. My impression is that it's going to be a fun game to play. Lots of interesting stuff. Certainly the best looking RPG I've seen. I expect you'll see it in the stores around Thanksgiving. And, no, I haven't found out yet when it's reaching Australia.
It is very hard to believe that after all these years, RtK will finally be out soon. Does anyone else remember the old 'Midkemian Monthly' newsletter from 7th Level's site on AOL, shortly after the game was announced? How about the ideas for the game in the interviews in the back of Prima's BaK strategy guide (from before the license went to 7th Level)?
Tue Nov 3rd, 1998
Return to Krondor Release Date
Word from Sierra is that RtK's release date is holding steady at November 25, possibly earlier. Also, the site passed 19,000 hits today. That's not a whole lot for a year and a half, but the traffic has really picked up recently. Thanks for all your support, and keep coming back!
