Posted March 06, 2024
I enjoy exploration heavy games so this one was right into my alley and I enjoyed wandering around the three acts a lot. But there are few issues that makes this game less than enjoyable in places.
First of all this NEEDS normal save / load system, if not for anything else than to let me stop playing the game and than return to it and continue from the exact point I left. Shutting down the game whisks you into a city which can mean 10 minutes of getting back on track even if you found the shortcuts. Also since items you have to carry through the map in hand (like the barrels) are REALLY prone to getting lost, saving right before is kinda must.
Connected to the save problem are the monster spawns. They are mess. It kinda works the frist time you go through the location, spawning monsters in location where you will have to go through etc. But once you return to the location with shortcuts open you can go very different way and those spawn triggers just makes everything worse. You go through a shortcut to one specific place where you know you skipped something through a completely empty corridor and once you pass the trigger a corridor you just passed gets populated by enemies that start attacking you from the back. spawn triggers that work for the way back like around the bog mansion are also kinda mute since you can just exit to menu and skip them... well unless you carry the barrel post campaign and you don't expect four giants to spawn in front of you. Make those spawn event specific or spawnable only once for the first walkthrough. This makes any return to the location just painfull experience.
Third let me decide when to leave the Act. I happen to get into boss area in Act I when I still had things to do around. Your cutscene even said that the Priest left by boat! Just park a boat to the dock and put the NPC with simple combo box with Leave Cruxfirth Yes / No options there.
Post Campaign is pretty broken - The miniboss in Act I didn't spawn in post game, I am getting respawned in ACT III, the ring I got from ACT I in post game is pretty much useless in post game etc... Worst thing is, there is no need for it if you don't force player to leave acts when killing the bosses.
Inventory system and weapons selection as it is now is just worthless hassle. If you had any mechanic where you have to chose what weapon to take, what to keep in your inventory for a next journey etc... it would justify the inventory. Right now the inventory can't even be filled! Your weapon bar can be filled way too easilly on the other way but the game is just ballanced for usage of more than the 4 weapons you can fit the bar. You have staff and book as a base, you would be stupid not to use Cuff arrow and healing. Than a melee weapon to conserve ammo and one weapon to shoot. You have one useless slot left. But you can also pause the game anytime and switch the weapons in your inventory completely safely. Just let me bind all the weapons to some slot and use them easilly as I need to. I can still do exactly that only with extra steps that don't bring anything else of value to the game. And connected to this, you can't see ammo for other weapons than those you have equipped.
Last thing, the story is... nonexistant. Or to be precise it all feels like a random sidequest without an ending.
If you are planning a DLC, please consider those problems. Asside from bugs with spawning and carry quests, I think Save/Load and streamlined inventory are a must to make this game be actually enjoyable for another playthrough.
First of all this NEEDS normal save / load system, if not for anything else than to let me stop playing the game and than return to it and continue from the exact point I left. Shutting down the game whisks you into a city which can mean 10 minutes of getting back on track even if you found the shortcuts. Also since items you have to carry through the map in hand (like the barrels) are REALLY prone to getting lost, saving right before is kinda must.
Connected to the save problem are the monster spawns. They are mess. It kinda works the frist time you go through the location, spawning monsters in location where you will have to go through etc. But once you return to the location with shortcuts open you can go very different way and those spawn triggers just makes everything worse. You go through a shortcut to one specific place where you know you skipped something through a completely empty corridor and once you pass the trigger a corridor you just passed gets populated by enemies that start attacking you from the back. spawn triggers that work for the way back like around the bog mansion are also kinda mute since you can just exit to menu and skip them... well unless you carry the barrel post campaign and you don't expect four giants to spawn in front of you. Make those spawn event specific or spawnable only once for the first walkthrough. This makes any return to the location just painfull experience.
Third let me decide when to leave the Act. I happen to get into boss area in Act I when I still had things to do around. Your cutscene even said that the Priest left by boat! Just park a boat to the dock and put the NPC with simple combo box with Leave Cruxfirth Yes / No options there.
Post Campaign is pretty broken - The miniboss in Act I didn't spawn in post game, I am getting respawned in ACT III, the ring I got from ACT I in post game is pretty much useless in post game etc... Worst thing is, there is no need for it if you don't force player to leave acts when killing the bosses.
Inventory system and weapons selection as it is now is just worthless hassle. If you had any mechanic where you have to chose what weapon to take, what to keep in your inventory for a next journey etc... it would justify the inventory. Right now the inventory can't even be filled! Your weapon bar can be filled way too easilly on the other way but the game is just ballanced for usage of more than the 4 weapons you can fit the bar. You have staff and book as a base, you would be stupid not to use Cuff arrow and healing. Than a melee weapon to conserve ammo and one weapon to shoot. You have one useless slot left. But you can also pause the game anytime and switch the weapons in your inventory completely safely. Just let me bind all the weapons to some slot and use them easilly as I need to. I can still do exactly that only with extra steps that don't bring anything else of value to the game. And connected to this, you can't see ammo for other weapons than those you have equipped.
Last thing, the story is... nonexistant. Or to be precise it all feels like a random sidequest without an ending.
If you are planning a DLC, please consider those problems. Asside from bugs with spawning and carry quests, I think Save/Load and streamlined inventory are a must to make this game be actually enjoyable for another playthrough.