Some games just have the low-level mobs run away. Sometimes there's an option to fight them anyway if for some reason you really want the 1xp you'd get.

Having them run away can also be annoying. Particularly when you get into a fight, set up your commands (or just start auto-battling them), only for them to run away, depriving you of the XP and gold/item rewards that you would have earned.

Also, unless the game has a mechanic where XP is scaled based on level differences, the XP will be more than 1 (assuming the enemy isn't something like a Dragon Quest regular slime), and small amounts can add up, especially if a character is close to a level up. (This is also assuming, of course, that XP values are at typical RPG scale, not large-number incremental game scale, an idea that could actually work.)

On the other hand, abilities like the Dragon Quest Repel (Holy Protection) spell appear in some games, and using them simply prevents the encounter from happening in the first place.

I mean, they run away before the fight, so you don't have to bother with them at all. Since you'd get little XP or rewards anyway. It's just a tedious chore, so fortunately some games recognize that and bypass the whole thing.

In most of the RPGs I play, enemies don't actually exist, as enemies, until the fight has already started.

When that isn't the case, it can be annoying chasing down weak enemies when you *do* want to fight them, like when the enemy has a crafting item drop or blue magic spell that level-appropriate enemies do not have.

Incidentally, I'm also of the opinion that games that implement positioning shouldn't implement fear effects; they're not fun to be on the receiving end of, and they're annoying to use on enemies since you end up having to chase the enemy down eventually.

Tried the demo. Getting xcom flashbacks with all those 85% hit chance dodges and misses.
Sneaking felt useless as I was sent into combat before even seeing the enemy. Over 40 points in sneaking should be good for a starter, right? Nope. Well, i went in blind, so I have no sense of the numbers anyway.
My first combat was with the lizards in the cave. I lost of course. 3vs2 and they dealt more damage than my character or their companion. I presume tactics are the play, using the terrain against their size and numbers or something. Regardless, seems like a save-scum thing to me.

I like the genre though, so i'll probably buy it eventually, on a sale.

I would like to, but where's the Linux version which the game card promises? Looks like neglecting the Linux version this time already starts before the game even is released.

Ooh! This is the one from the team that made AtomRPG! I saw SplatterCat played the demo and it looked good.

You, sir, will go straight to the wishlist.

Some people just seem to hate turn based games. Then, active pause is a middle ground, so that the player repeatedly corrects the mess that usually happens during combat.
When your party is overpowered in comparison to the opponents, real time requires less input or effort from the player. That is about it. Also, some players prefer it. Plus, when Baldur's Gate came around, it looked dynamic and cinematic and refreshing and gave an illusion of freedom.

Nowadays, I cannot endure RT games without active pause. So, well done, developers. This game in particular looks worth checking.

Turn-based battle systems can be designed to require extremely small amounts of input in this situation.

For example, Stranger of Sword City:
* Press one button, and everybody is doing the same thing they did last round. Cursor is now on "Fast Apply".
* Press another button to confirm "Fast Apply", and in less than a second the entire battle round is over.
* Repeat until the enemies die, you die, or you realize this battle isn't as easy as you thought it would be and need to manually enter commands.

Very nice, also to have official confirmation for Swordhaven's future release on GOG.

Thank you for the information. I'm looking forward to try out the Linux demo. :)

I like that. Anything that developers do to respect the player's time is welcome.

Looks good! I been trying the demo, it's fun and a really well optimized game (something really rare in this times) wishlisted and looking forward!

Fun + optimized? Nice to hear. Last demo of another rpg I tried in GOG lacked so much in the latter department that I never found out about the former. I will give this one a chance, then.