We have recently met an Italian project called Role Master, an online 3D game table. Intrigued by what is proposed, we got in touch with the development team and tried to understand something more. In this article I will collect what has emerged so far.
What Role Master Proposes
Role Master is a software (in Italian and English) for roleplaying, designed for both online and face-to-face sessions. It contains everything you need to bring maps to a screen, whether they are to be explored or experienced in a fight. Characters, environment, dynamic elements. All this can be used to play comfortably online, also including a dice rolling system, character sheets and integrated chat (written and voice); the convenience of having a support like this however also makes it something very useful tp represent the map when you are in the room with the other players. To reinforce this promise we have 2D and 3D environments, volumetric lights, fog of war, music, grids of various shapes and sizes, and even the possibility to look at the scene in first person. Not bad!
Content creation can take place thanks to the editor, in such a way as to recreate exactly what is needed (or through a random generation system); its use allows you to approach various types of settings, from fantasy to futuristic. Alternatively, Role Master will also contain an internal store in which it will be possible to purchase products created by other people (as single products or according to a subscription formula). These will not be limited to maps, but also other content, such as music, miniatures, scenarios and complete campaigns. In this way, artists and authors will also be rewarded for their work. Also very appreciable is the fact that they must be purchased only by the master, rather than by all the players.
How to Follow the Project
At the moment Role Master is in alpha stage and is not yet available to be tested. The best way to stay informed about its development is to follow the official developer channels. In addition to the classic Facebook, Instagram and official website, we also recommend that you take a look at their YouTube channel. You will find some video presentation of the product and a cute animated mini-series, also linked to the use of this software. At the moment this is the best way to see for yourself what awaits us.
The developers then informed us that a Kickstarter campaign will start in the coming months to finance the project. In this way the software obviously will be accessible to the public, initially with the beta phase for those who will support their work; finally it will come to the final version. At the moment there are no prices yet, so for the economic side we will wait for the launch of the fundraising campaign (and we will talk about it again on that occasion).
Now we just have to wait and see how it will evolve!