Hello!

Do you remember GOG's motto: "No DRM, no online required"?
Well, I do.
And now I'm feeling a little bit betrayed with this game's ad.
Let's see the game's description on STEAM:

Absolver is an online multiplayer combat game where players are placed behind the mask of a Prospect under control of the Guides, the new rulers of the fallen Adal Empire, who will determine your worth in joining their elite corps of Absolvers.

Yet on GOG description there is NO indication that it is ONLINE ONLY game.
I just want potential buyers to understand what they are buying in reality.
If STEAM's description is not correct and this game can be played offline - please, let me know & I'll take my harsh words back.

I would like to know this too. I was amazed by the trailer, because I'm a lover for barehand combat, but in the end there was the "online" thing which put me off.

Now I do wonder if this game does have a truly offline experience or not.

EDIT: Well, i found this on the steam discussion page:

https://steamcommunity.com/app/473690/discussions/0/1369506834140969457/

Now if only it was possible to know how much differs the offline mode from the online one...

I can't believe it. Another game with no LAN that requires GOG Galaxy. This is not good.

If a game has multiplayer, it MUST support LAN. I don't want to use any external program to play locally.

They already did it with Necropolis (ditching multiplayer altogether) and with Deserts of Kharak. Really really stupid

And I found this:

Push Square: First of all, can you give us an overview of Absolver? What kind of game is it, and what was the original vision behind it?
Pierre de Margerie: Absolver is an online action game with two pillars: melee combat and player relationships.
...
Can Absolver be played offline? Can players choose to explore the world alone if they want?
Absolver can be played offline, for the players who are mostly interested in discovering the game world and learning about the story. However, the core experience is really based on multiplayer, whether it's the combat or the social components, so we recommend playing online!

Source: http://www.pushsquare.com/news/2017/02/interview_trading_blows_with_upcoming_ps4_fighter_absolver

I posted this in the news thread, but I thought people might find it useful here as well:

"I've done some searching and from what I can tell from interviews and player experiences the multiplayer set-up is similar to that of Dark Souls. Singleplayer and multiplayer take place in the same 'world' so you can go through the game offline if you want, but when you're online you can encounter other players and doing so is encouraged.

Interview: http://www.pushsquare.com/news/2017/02/interview_trading_blows_with_upcoming_ps4_fighter_absolver And some steam threads:
http://steamcommunity.com/app/473690/discussions/0/364043054108397095/
http://steamcommunity.com/app/473690/discussions/0/2217311444344384937/

Mouse and keyboard controls are also supported and there'll be customizable keybindings."

You'd probably want to wait until release to be sure, but it does look like it'll have full offline.

@Yunipuma and @Fortuk

Well at least it SEEMS that if it's dark souls like, the offline play should offer the same experience as the online counterpart. I'm really interested in the fighting system but I'm really doubtful about the online feature. I just hope it will not be a letdown...

I'm aching for a good brawler, so I hope so as well. :) And I want to play it offline so I'd like to see more assurances on that before I give it a go.

EXACTLY THE SAME. The martial art styles are a things I can't really pass on, i hope for the best :) .

I don't think it is. Many new games support LAN, and hey, I want to play multiplayer offline.

And often, these games use LAN through GOG Galaxy or steam virtual networks, but they don't access it if you are offline.
With external utilities you can trick them to make them think your LAN is steam's virtual network, and they work perfectly.

So the infrastructure is there, but it's not selectable for some weird reason.

I'm probably the most anti-DRM / Always Online / Online Only person around.

..but by the looks of it Absolver get's what people like me want - and also want their game to exist beyond the server life.

"Offline Single-Player Experience Available: Journey on an adventure that will take you from Prospect to Absolver in an exciting campaign, available both online and offline. The single-player mode pits you, and you alone, against lost Prospects and legendary warriors in the ruins of the Adal empire - complete with all content, free of interactions and encounters with other players. "

I mean - that there says to me - that these guys just get it.

So credit where it's due - I pre-ordered on that paragraph alone.

After digging through way too many streams by people with annoying voices and habits...

The game is fully playable offline. I guess we have the console players to thank for that, as online play on console requires Playstation plus access, which is not a given thing. The devs already confirmed that part during one of Devolver's livestreams.

Beating up NPCs is actually a core mechanic as well, since players start with a default set of moves based on their style, and while you can learn different moves from other players, they'll have to pick them up somewhere first. So getting punched in the face by an NPC with an unknown move is the first step to acquiring ways to beat the others.

And finally, producing a niché title and making it multiplayer only is a surefire ride to oblivion. Once the novely wears off, the playerbase drops, and that has killed quite a few other games. You'll need to at least provide bot support to keep your game playable and ensure sales beyond the first few weeks, unless your product is going viral (which is the exception, not the rule these days).
The way Absolver is designed, you get the core experience (punching faceless strangers) even when offline, with the online component providing some form of competitive endgame, as well as coop with friends. Pretty nifty design, in my opinion.

The aesthetics and the generally positive impressions from the beta test help as well. I'm really looking forward to this one.

This is getting interesting at this point. I LOVE bare hand combat, so i'm very interested in this game.
The only thing that remains to know is how much the offline content has to offer. In the end this is an indie game so I'm not sure about the longevity of it.

Another thing that was stopping me from buying games traight up from GOG is the support, I'm tired and sick about games not receiving updates or the same content as the steam counterpart, but since this game should have crossplay available with steam, that shouldn't be an issue, I hope.

I might even dare to preorder this title here, (furi is a nice bonus), as long we'll get to know how much big is the offline content.

Well, judging the amount of single player content is...difficult.

The actual campaign length (i.e., beating up all the bosses and becoming an absolver) is about 7 hours at a leisurely pace.

The entirety of the available moves can be obtained in about 12 hours, if you hurry, are good at the game and know where to find what and how to bait the NPC into using it against you.

However, this is a crossbreed between a beat'em up and an ARPG, with a dash of Dark Souls for good measure. A beat'em up takes about 30-70 minutes to complete (i.E., beating up all the other characters and the bosses), if you're good at the game. Most ARPGs are also short, and draw their longevity from grind and loot mechanics.

Back when I was younger and far less bitter and cynical, I've poured dozens of hours into various beat'em ups, just faffing around and wailing on the AI. I've never played competitively, I just enjoyed the gameplay. As such, think it's hard to judge the "length" of such games, as they are rarely played for the story.

Same for the ARPG part. Items (costume/armor parts and probably also weapon types) in Absolver are random drops from enemies and loot piles. Someone might be willing to grind countless hours solo to get that "perfect look" or perfect level of balance between protection and weight. I sure as hell wasted hundreds of hours on Diablo and its countless brethren and sequels, so I do understand the appeal.

The core of the game and the crux of the gameplay for Absolver is the fighting mechanics. If those are good (and the beta participants were quite happy with them, it seems), they will encourage beating up NPCs just for the joy of punching them in the face. IIRC they also scale up to a certain degree, so it's unlikely that a solo player would run out of challenging enemies.

And then there's the online part. Which has no chat function (only emotes, and none of those included the one-finger-salute or similar gestures), and besides inserting players randomly into the game world, also has clearly labeled PVP and COOP modes. This should keep the toxicity down to a tolerable level, and of course one needs to remember that the only way to acquire new moves is to get hit by them, but win the actual fight. So, it's best to look at this like it's some old kung-fu movie, where the protagonists need to establish whose style is superior through trial by combat. Nothing personal, just checking to see if the other guy has some new cool moves.

So, in a nutshell: 7 hours to "complete" the game, while one might spend FAR more time playing it, depending on how enjoyable the core fighting mechanics are.

Thanks for this bunch of informations, very appreciated and useful.

Mmmh...7 hours seems a little too low for the price they are asking for.

I agree with you on the collecting gear part though: I like the fashion aspect and I'd probably hunt for gears that suits my taste; also collecting the various movesets will take quite a while for sure.

I do wonder if there is a new game plus, in order to start from scratch the story while keeping everything obtained gear/moves; I'd love to see that.

I'm still very tempted to pick up this.