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SILVIERA'S REVIEW REQUESTS
Posts
Silviera
2891
Silviera
View playlists
CloseI am taking all requests for reviews, it does not matter what you have used to make the game or whether it is a complete game or demo. It does not matter if you are the creator of this game or just a fan who believes it deserves a bit of attention. I've looked around and noticed several people are already doing this, but I figure it can't hurt to have another person available to take on requests.
I have taken on this mission for two reasons. The first is that I'm currently in development of my own game, and I am a strong believer in the idea that even if a game is horrible almost all of them have at least one redeeming quality. I plan to use this information to improve my own development (don't worry, I'm not looking to steal game systems wholesale or anything of that nature).
The second reason is that while I was sorting through the game archives of this site, I noticed a great deal of games, even completed ones, that had no review at all. If someone is going to sit down and take the time to create a game from start to finish, the least I can do is spend a little time providing feedback.
I must warn you in advance that I am a very harsh reviewer with high standards. If you're looking to bump up your score, I do not suggest requesting my input unless you are supremely confident in the quality if your game. I will provide an honest and objective review, to the best of my abilities. I will mention any part of your game that I enjoyed, and I will pick apart in detail every aspect I believe needs improvement. If I have reviewed your game at some point and you have updated it, you may request that I review it a second time in order to revise my rating.
I will attempt to finish all requests within a few days from when they are posted, but if your game is exceedingly long or I have a lot on my plate then you can expect some delays.
Upcoming Reviews:
Lucadia
Omnisia
Ascendence (after the next version is released)
I have taken on this mission for two reasons. The first is that I'm currently in development of my own game, and I am a strong believer in the idea that even if a game is horrible almost all of them have at least one redeeming quality. I plan to use this information to improve my own development (don't worry, I'm not looking to steal game systems wholesale or anything of that nature).
The second reason is that while I was sorting through the game archives of this site, I noticed a great deal of games, even completed ones, that had no review at all. If someone is going to sit down and take the time to create a game from start to finish, the least I can do is spend a little time providing feedback.
I must warn you in advance that I am a very harsh reviewer with high standards. If you're looking to bump up your score, I do not suggest requesting my input unless you are supremely confident in the quality if your game. I will provide an honest and objective review, to the best of my abilities. I will mention any part of your game that I enjoyed, and I will pick apart in detail every aspect I believe needs improvement. If I have reviewed your game at some point and you have updated it, you may request that I review it a second time in order to revise my rating.
I will attempt to finish all requests within a few days from when they are posted, but if your game is exceedingly long or I have a lot on my plate then you can expect some delays.
Upcoming Reviews:
Lucadia
Omnisia
Ascendence (after the next version is released)
I'm rather embarrassed by the lack of comments I've received since I put up the new demo of Speak no Evil. I guess my reputation precedes me.
I am, however, supremely confident... in my gameplay, at least.
I am, however, supremely confident... in my gameplay, at least.
Mr.Nemo
1295
Everyone here is craving for a review of their games heh.
Most prominently, I'd like to see another review on my own, very short game Dungeon Quest; it takes about 5 minutes to run through but was designed to have somekind of replay value.
If you fear not horribly unbalanced battles and have the guts to try another way to get anywhere past any of the two starting areas in Solar Tear (or even as far as the sewers), you're more than welcome to try it on :)
Most prominently, I'd like to see another review on my own, very short game Dungeon Quest; it takes about 5 minutes to run through but was designed to have somekind of replay value.
If you fear not horribly unbalanced battles and have the guts to try another way to get anywhere past any of the two starting areas in Solar Tear (or even as far as the sewers), you're more than welcome to try it on :)
Drakonais
2787
You are awesome in my book to dealing out reviews, I'm putting up a new demo version of Tiamat Sacrament ( http://rpgmaker.net/games/1295/ ) with new fixes suggested by previous reviewers. By the time you get through Chaos' and Nemo's games, I'm sure DragonZip.zip will be download-approved and good to go.
@Chaos, new avatar is bomb, Magus was best villain/character.
@Chaos, new avatar is bomb, Magus was best villain/character.
All right, Silviera. Here's my test for you.
I have to warn you; every time I make this request in a review thread, it dies shortly after and sinks into oblivion. If you survive this request, you may well survive anything that comes your way.
Will you play and review one of my Pokemon Hunter games? It doesn't make much of a difference which one you play, as they're all pretty much the same thing. The third one doesn't have any reviews yet, and it's distant enough from the first two that you could start there without any plot detail problems. I'm confident in the quality (read: solidity) of my games, but I know they have some problems above the technical level. Whichever you choose to play, please try to at least beat the first dungeon before giving your review. You can find all of them by clicking my username.
Good luck to you, sir. This request is the iceberg and you are the Titanic. Are you a bad enough dude to save the Titanic?!
I have to warn you; every time I make this request in a review thread, it dies shortly after and sinks into oblivion. If you survive this request, you may well survive anything that comes your way.
Will you play and review one of my Pokemon Hunter games? It doesn't make much of a difference which one you play, as they're all pretty much the same thing. The third one doesn't have any reviews yet, and it's distant enough from the first two that you could start there without any plot detail problems. I'm confident in the quality (read: solidity) of my games, but I know they have some problems above the technical level. Whichever you choose to play, please try to at least beat the first dungeon before giving your review. You can find all of them by clicking my username.
Good luck to you, sir. This request is the iceberg and you are the Titanic. Are you a bad enough dude to save the Titanic?!
Silviera
2891
Game: Speak No Evil
Battle System- 4/5
I am extremely impressed with how battles play out in this game, and thankfully there isn't a whole lot to the game besides this. Maps are absolutely covered in monsters, and most of the time you'll be actively avoiding combat as much as possible rather than trying to fight. When combat does rear its ugly head strategy is the name of the game. Every enemy has a clearly defined weakness, in fact they take 500% damage when struck with it which tends to kill them on the spot. Enemies often come in huge swarms, and since the game uses one of the most fast ATB battle systems I have ever seen you'll have to react quickly or you'll be dead in moments. You'll be seeing a lot of the same monster type, and their weaknesses stay consistent so after a while you'll immediately know how to deal with each enemy. Enemies level up as you progress, and learn new skills making them extremely dangerous if you let them live long enough to act. Although it tends to re-use a lot of the same monsters, it keeps throwing new types in with each area in order to keep you guessing.
Most standard RPG conventions have been completely done away with, and it only serves to enhance the battle system. Items have been thrown out entirely, and almost all of the gear you acquire is designed with a singular purpose rather than just mindlessly upgrading as you progress. Some gear raises a specific stat a modest amount, others provide much needed resistance to attacks or immunity to status effects, and other provide unique effects such as allowing a character to always act first or resist critical hits.
The only part of combat I didn't enjoy came in the form of boss battles. Most of the innovation was thrown out the window in favor of seeing who could dish out the most damage while keeping themselves alive. I also found that when a boss was nearly dead it was capable of killing my party members with a single well placed attack. I imagine this kind of problem would not have come up if I had spent more time grinding, but in this game that seems counterproductive. Although these bosses are fast paced and do require you to act quickly or be killed, they are just not as interesting as the normal combat sequences.
Storyline- 3/5
There's not a whole lot to the storyline here. The main character begins the game by running out on his angry mother, and runs off to his girlfriend's house. A few moments later they hear a noise outside and peer out the window only to see a gigantic army of the damned. A few break down the door and suddenly our heroes develop special powers to deal with them. Unfortunately despite killing a few the swarm is so gigantic their only hope is to run like hell. You spend the rest of the game fleeing from these monsters while recruiting other survivors. It did seem like the plot may have been leading up to something, but thus far it never really goes anywhere beyond the initial premise.
Characters- 1/5
This aspect of the game is disappointingly weak. The main character is soon afflicted with a condition that removes his ability to speak (hence the game title), but unfortunately prior to this event he had so few lines that his personality was not developed at all, it didn't really feel as though there was much point to stealing this character's voice. His girlfriend seems to be lacking in personality, and also doesn't speak much. Most of the lines are given by two supporting characters who will join up shortly into the game. The two of them are quickly involved in some dramatic scenes, but since you barely know these people any emotional impact is completely absent in what could otherwise be moving situations. Thankfully since the game is light on dialogue, you won't be spending a lot of time dwelling on this aspect of the game.
Level Design- 3/5
Every map in this game is designed with one purpose in mind, giving you a place to run through. The game begins with wide open spaces that allow you to easily escape from the swarms of monsters, but as the game progresses you'll quickly be thrust into small buildings with much less room to maneuver. Treasures are littered around, all of them equally as dangerous as they are beneficial. You'll occasionally have to hunt down a key in order to pass through a door, but that's about as complicated as things get.
Graphics- 3/5
Everything appears to have been drawn with MS Paint. Although the game isn't pretty to look at, every object is recognizable and there's a consistency to the graphical style that I appreciated. There's a couple nice touches as the characters become animated during certain scenes.
Music/Sound- 4/5
A couple of the songs seem to have been ripped from various other games, though for the most part I didn't recognize a thing. Nearly every song is intended to create a sense of urgency, and they accomplish this goal well.
Random stuff I liked-
Battle animations are incredibly short, and since you'll often be fighting large groups of enemies with the same speed value it creates an interesting effect with characters being struck rapidly in succession. It really makes you feel as though you're being swarmed by a squad of vicious demons.
Between missions your party returns to a home base, which allows you to wander around and speak to your party before moving on. Since I hated all the characters it wasn't as enjoyable as I'd have liked, but still, the concept itself is a fine addition.
Save points are absolutely everywhere, which I found comforting in a game with frequent and painful deaths.
Random stuff I hated-
At one point I opened a treasure box and my entire party was poisoned. Much to my dismay, I was unable to use my status cure from the menu, I had to wait until a battle began before I could start recovering one party member at a time.
Near the end of the demo I became locked in a room with a save point, just prior to a boss battle. I didn't really see this coming and had saved my game in a rather difficult position. Although I was able to defeat the boss with a little luck, I didn't see any good reason to lock the door behind me which would allow me to exit and do a bit of grinding if absolutely necessary.
Final Thoughts-
An incredibly fast paced adventure with a solid battle system. Although it does have plenty of flaws, it focuses on its strong point which makes for a very enjoyable experience. If you're a fan of fast paced action and difficult combat, this game is definitely worth a download.
Overall Rating 4/5
A couple of extra notes for the developer. On the map Hotel Floor 2 there is a locked door which gives no indication that it is locked when examined. I noticed you used a sound effect indicating locked doors later in the game, so I imagine this can be fixed with a quick copy/paste.
The skill Arc Cleave is described as dealing physical damage to all enemies. However it's actually set to no damage type, which causes it to deal damage to enemies it shouldn't and be entirely ineffective on the things it's supposed to destroy.
--------
As for the rest of you, I don't think I'll be busy for the next few days so I will get started on the rest of these reviews.
Battle System- 4/5
I am extremely impressed with how battles play out in this game, and thankfully there isn't a whole lot to the game besides this. Maps are absolutely covered in monsters, and most of the time you'll be actively avoiding combat as much as possible rather than trying to fight. When combat does rear its ugly head strategy is the name of the game. Every enemy has a clearly defined weakness, in fact they take 500% damage when struck with it which tends to kill them on the spot. Enemies often come in huge swarms, and since the game uses one of the most fast ATB battle systems I have ever seen you'll have to react quickly or you'll be dead in moments. You'll be seeing a lot of the same monster type, and their weaknesses stay consistent so after a while you'll immediately know how to deal with each enemy. Enemies level up as you progress, and learn new skills making them extremely dangerous if you let them live long enough to act. Although it tends to re-use a lot of the same monsters, it keeps throwing new types in with each area in order to keep you guessing.
Most standard RPG conventions have been completely done away with, and it only serves to enhance the battle system. Items have been thrown out entirely, and almost all of the gear you acquire is designed with a singular purpose rather than just mindlessly upgrading as you progress. Some gear raises a specific stat a modest amount, others provide much needed resistance to attacks or immunity to status effects, and other provide unique effects such as allowing a character to always act first or resist critical hits.
The only part of combat I didn't enjoy came in the form of boss battles. Most of the innovation was thrown out the window in favor of seeing who could dish out the most damage while keeping themselves alive. I also found that when a boss was nearly dead it was capable of killing my party members with a single well placed attack. I imagine this kind of problem would not have come up if I had spent more time grinding, but in this game that seems counterproductive. Although these bosses are fast paced and do require you to act quickly or be killed, they are just not as interesting as the normal combat sequences.
Storyline- 3/5
There's not a whole lot to the storyline here. The main character begins the game by running out on his angry mother, and runs off to his girlfriend's house. A few moments later they hear a noise outside and peer out the window only to see a gigantic army of the damned. A few break down the door and suddenly our heroes develop special powers to deal with them. Unfortunately despite killing a few the swarm is so gigantic their only hope is to run like hell. You spend the rest of the game fleeing from these monsters while recruiting other survivors. It did seem like the plot may have been leading up to something, but thus far it never really goes anywhere beyond the initial premise.
Characters- 1/5
This aspect of the game is disappointingly weak. The main character is soon afflicted with a condition that removes his ability to speak (hence the game title), but unfortunately prior to this event he had so few lines that his personality was not developed at all, it didn't really feel as though there was much point to stealing this character's voice. His girlfriend seems to be lacking in personality, and also doesn't speak much. Most of the lines are given by two supporting characters who will join up shortly into the game. The two of them are quickly involved in some dramatic scenes, but since you barely know these people any emotional impact is completely absent in what could otherwise be moving situations. Thankfully since the game is light on dialogue, you won't be spending a lot of time dwelling on this aspect of the game.
Level Design- 3/5
Every map in this game is designed with one purpose in mind, giving you a place to run through. The game begins with wide open spaces that allow you to easily escape from the swarms of monsters, but as the game progresses you'll quickly be thrust into small buildings with much less room to maneuver. Treasures are littered around, all of them equally as dangerous as they are beneficial. You'll occasionally have to hunt down a key in order to pass through a door, but that's about as complicated as things get.
Graphics- 3/5
Everything appears to have been drawn with MS Paint. Although the game isn't pretty to look at, every object is recognizable and there's a consistency to the graphical style that I appreciated. There's a couple nice touches as the characters become animated during certain scenes.
Music/Sound- 4/5
A couple of the songs seem to have been ripped from various other games, though for the most part I didn't recognize a thing. Nearly every song is intended to create a sense of urgency, and they accomplish this goal well.
Random stuff I liked-
Battle animations are incredibly short, and since you'll often be fighting large groups of enemies with the same speed value it creates an interesting effect with characters being struck rapidly in succession. It really makes you feel as though you're being swarmed by a squad of vicious demons.
Between missions your party returns to a home base, which allows you to wander around and speak to your party before moving on. Since I hated all the characters it wasn't as enjoyable as I'd have liked, but still, the concept itself is a fine addition.
Save points are absolutely everywhere, which I found comforting in a game with frequent and painful deaths.
Random stuff I hated-
At one point I opened a treasure box and my entire party was poisoned. Much to my dismay, I was unable to use my status cure from the menu, I had to wait until a battle began before I could start recovering one party member at a time.
Near the end of the demo I became locked in a room with a save point, just prior to a boss battle. I didn't really see this coming and had saved my game in a rather difficult position. Although I was able to defeat the boss with a little luck, I didn't see any good reason to lock the door behind me which would allow me to exit and do a bit of grinding if absolutely necessary.
Final Thoughts-
An incredibly fast paced adventure with a solid battle system. Although it does have plenty of flaws, it focuses on its strong point which makes for a very enjoyable experience. If you're a fan of fast paced action and difficult combat, this game is definitely worth a download.
Overall Rating 4/5
A couple of extra notes for the developer. On the map Hotel Floor 2 there is a locked door which gives no indication that it is locked when examined. I noticed you used a sound effect indicating locked doors later in the game, so I imagine this can be fixed with a quick copy/paste.
The skill Arc Cleave is described as dealing physical damage to all enemies. However it's actually set to no damage type, which causes it to deal damage to enemies it shouldn't and be entirely ineffective on the things it's supposed to destroy.
--------
As for the rest of you, I don't think I'll be busy for the next few days so I will get started on the rest of these reviews.
That was incredibly fast.
Very flattering review, I must say. I also like how the scores exactly reflect the effort put into each section.
The music, however, is done by this guy.
Very flattering review, I must say. I also like how the scores exactly reflect the effort put into each section.
The music, however, is done by this guy.
Skie Fortress
2394
Well if you're offering, I wouldn't mind having your opinion on Sacred Earth: Bonds. :3
Silviera
2891
Game: Dungeon Quest
Battle System/Gameplay- 3/5
This game is designed to be a throwback to the days when videogames first exited the era of Ascii code graphics. To its credit, it imitates this style very well. Gameplay consists of wandering around dank dungeons filled with monsters and treasure chests. Combat is extremely simplistic, any time you choose to fight an enemy you will be given 3 commands. Fight, in which you physically attack the enemy with either a Sword or your bare hands (Swords break after each use), Magic which lets you blast an enemy to dust as long as you have a Scroll handy, and Run, which will of course allow you to flee. Scrolls seem to instantly win the battle against every enemy with a few exceptions, while Fight is a bit more risky since you may take a point of damage while defeating your enemy (especially if you're out of Swords). There's a bit of randomization both to the outcome of battles and to what you will encounter in the dungeon, so you'll require a mix of strategy and luck to actually complete the game. The last boss requires 5 hits to destroy, so you'll need to conserve your strength to have any shot at completing the game. Combat does get stale after a while, but really you're not meant to be playing this game long enough to where it reaches that point.
Storyline/Characters- 2/5
You are a champion sent forth to rescue the princess from an evil villain. That's really the only storyline you get, and about the only thing I can say is since the story is nonexistent it does not detract from the game experience in any way.
Level Design- 3/5
The levels are simple, which matches the simple gameplay quite well. Every room consists of one or multiple locked doors, a few enemies, some treasure chests, and maybe a random merchant. The first enemy you kill, or the first treasure chest you examine, always drops the key which lets you advance to the next room. There are multiple routes to reach your final objective, some of which are far more dangerous than others, which adds quite a bit to the replayability.
Graphics- 3/5
Everything is drawn to mimic the old school style of the gameplay, and it manages to capture that spirit perfectly. Unfortunately it is marred by a few problems that those games once shared. The first of which is the tilesets are so dark it's pretty hard to see anything. The second is that doors are the same color as the walls, which will occasionally have you squinting at the screen trying to find the exit.
Music/Sound- 3/5
The game contains only a single song, which fits well enough with the style the game is going for. Sound effects also match up consistently with the games of that era.
Random stuff I liked-
A couple of the endings are quite amusing, but I won't spoil anything.
Random stuff I hated-
The Run command was completely pointless. The only time you get into an encounter is when you initiate it yourself, and since combat always ends in a single round there's never any situation where you'll see things are going badly and attempt to flee. The only exception is against the final boss, where the run command does not work.
Final Thoughts-
Overall this is a very average game that accomplishes exactly what it has set out to do. I felt it could have become a much more enjoyable title with a bit of innovation, but I suppose that wasn't really the point here. If you're a fan of the old school and are looking for a little nostalgia this is worth the 5 minutes it takes to download and play through, and is probably worth opening up every once in a while when you're feeling bored. Everyone else, stay far away.
Overall Score 3/5
------
To Nemo- I'm not really sure what you meant by the Solar Tear area, but I tried to go through every route I could find.
As an added bonus, here are the scores from my playthroughs, in the order I experienced them.
Princess: 624
Dwarf : 895
Elf : 957
Knight : 1019
Battle System/Gameplay- 3/5
This game is designed to be a throwback to the days when videogames first exited the era of Ascii code graphics. To its credit, it imitates this style very well. Gameplay consists of wandering around dank dungeons filled with monsters and treasure chests. Combat is extremely simplistic, any time you choose to fight an enemy you will be given 3 commands. Fight, in which you physically attack the enemy with either a Sword or your bare hands (Swords break after each use), Magic which lets you blast an enemy to dust as long as you have a Scroll handy, and Run, which will of course allow you to flee. Scrolls seem to instantly win the battle against every enemy with a few exceptions, while Fight is a bit more risky since you may take a point of damage while defeating your enemy (especially if you're out of Swords). There's a bit of randomization both to the outcome of battles and to what you will encounter in the dungeon, so you'll require a mix of strategy and luck to actually complete the game. The last boss requires 5 hits to destroy, so you'll need to conserve your strength to have any shot at completing the game. Combat does get stale after a while, but really you're not meant to be playing this game long enough to where it reaches that point.
Storyline/Characters- 2/5
You are a champion sent forth to rescue the princess from an evil villain. That's really the only storyline you get, and about the only thing I can say is since the story is nonexistent it does not detract from the game experience in any way.
Level Design- 3/5
The levels are simple, which matches the simple gameplay quite well. Every room consists of one or multiple locked doors, a few enemies, some treasure chests, and maybe a random merchant. The first enemy you kill, or the first treasure chest you examine, always drops the key which lets you advance to the next room. There are multiple routes to reach your final objective, some of which are far more dangerous than others, which adds quite a bit to the replayability.
Graphics- 3/5
Everything is drawn to mimic the old school style of the gameplay, and it manages to capture that spirit perfectly. Unfortunately it is marred by a few problems that those games once shared. The first of which is the tilesets are so dark it's pretty hard to see anything. The second is that doors are the same color as the walls, which will occasionally have you squinting at the screen trying to find the exit.
Music/Sound- 3/5
The game contains only a single song, which fits well enough with the style the game is going for. Sound effects also match up consistently with the games of that era.
Random stuff I liked-
A couple of the endings are quite amusing, but I won't spoil anything.
Random stuff I hated-
The Run command was completely pointless. The only time you get into an encounter is when you initiate it yourself, and since combat always ends in a single round there's never any situation where you'll see things are going badly and attempt to flee. The only exception is against the final boss, where the run command does not work.
Final Thoughts-
Overall this is a very average game that accomplishes exactly what it has set out to do. I felt it could have become a much more enjoyable title with a bit of innovation, but I suppose that wasn't really the point here. If you're a fan of the old school and are looking for a little nostalgia this is worth the 5 minutes it takes to download and play through, and is probably worth opening up every once in a while when you're feeling bored. Everyone else, stay far away.
Overall Score 3/5
------
To Nemo- I'm not really sure what you meant by the Solar Tear area, but I tried to go through every route I could find.
As an added bonus, here are the scores from my playthroughs, in the order I experienced them.
Princess: 624
Dwarf : 895
Elf : 957
Knight : 1019
post=89466
To Nemo- I'm not really sure what you meant by the Solar Tear area, but I tried to go through every route I could find.
He was talking about Solar Tear, a different game that he has made.
Which, thanks to the English language, the title bugs me nearly to the point of downloading it to see if I can tell by which fits in best with the story, Solar (ter) or Solar (teer).
Silviera
2891
Whoops, i had no idea I was being asked to review two games. I'll get to Solar Tear after I've gone through a couple other of these reviews.
Honestly, I didn't think I'd be flooded with requests this rapidly, but I'll do my best to meet everyone's expectations.
Honestly, I didn't think I'd be flooded with requests this rapidly, but I'll do my best to meet everyone's expectations.
post=89469HA!
Honestly, I didn't think I'd be flooded with requests this rapidly, but I'll do my best to meet everyone's expectations.
You must be new around here.
EDIT:
We are like vultures circling the desert looking for scraps of feedback and picking the bones clean of any opportunity we find to get our games played
Nightblade
2723
You should go ahead and review Cyber Factor.
It would be a good idea to speak for yourself.
We are like vultures circling the desert looking for scraps of feedback and picking the bones clean of any opportunity we find to get our games played
It would be a good idea to speak for yourself.
Darken
3952
post=89473
You should go ahead and review Cyber Factor.
Fuck you I was going to mention that. ):
I wouldn't mind some more feedback on The Realms Shattered if you have the time. You seem to be getting through these pretty fast and doing a good job at reviewing too. ^.^
Silviera
2891
Game: The Tiamat Sacrament
Battle System- 3/5
You'll be spending a lot of time at this part of the game. Battles are fairly traditional with a few nice twists thrown in. The most important of which lies with the main character, who is a dragon, and has the ability to inhale magical runes and exhales to produce vicious attacks. Inhale a rune of fire, and you'll breathe a torrent of flame to roast your enemies, inhale a rune of water and you'll be able to call a healing rain down upon the party. This game mechanic serves a second function as well, as your main character will evolve into a more powerful type of dragon after he has consumed enough runes. The rune type you have absorbed most determines your dragon's next form and abilities. On top of all that, every time you evolve the number of runes you can inhale at a single time is increased, allowing you to combine runes for more powerful or interesting effects.
While I enjoyed all of this quite a bit, there is a fundamental problem to the battle system. Runes are annoying to acquire. You can only obtain them through the use of your second party member, who has next to no fighting ability and is mainly there to provide support. She begins the game with the ability to turn an enemy into a Rune, but only if they are at 5% max hp or lower. It is pretty damn hard to get an enemy to that life without killing them. You can upgrade her weapon to increase the effectiveness of this skill, but by the end of the demo I could still only capture enemies with 15% or lower of their life total. Since most enemies tended to die in two or three hits, even less if I was using skills, I constantly found myself missing opportunities to grab Runes even though I was actively seeking them out.
There are a few more twists thrown into the battle system as well. The dragon can learn extra abilities by equipping stones you'll acquire throughout your adventure. At the beginning of each battle he absorbs a bit of the stone's power, and after you've fought enough he'll be granted a new ability. Although these skills are useful they pale in comparison to inhaling Runes. Your supportive party member has the ability to Observe enemies, which will give the percentage of their hp remaining, and also allow her to copy their skills if she observes it used multiple times. The bosses are challenging, and will require you to be carrying a large stock of runes to have any chance at victory, which unfortunately turned out to be tedious to gather.
Storyline- 3/5
A standard take down the evil empire plot by collecting a series of items, though since it is told from the point of view of a dragon it tends to be more interesting than most other of its ilk. The author takes their time to develop dragons a bit further beyond their typical fantasy stereotypes, which is a nice touch I appreciated. The script has an old school fantasy vibe about it, which may appeal to some and not to others. Overall the story kept me curious about what was going to happen next, but I was never on the edge of my seat or anything.
Characters- 3/5
It is fun to play as a dragon. The main character is easily the most interesting of the cast, sort of mixing the innocence of being a newborn with the arrogance of being a powerful dragon. There are a couple nice touches in this category, such as the dragon's inability to use items because he can't open their contents with his claws. The rest of the cast was quite forgettable, including your other party member. As of the demo I didn't get to see much of the villains, other than a random subordinate of the emperor terrorizing the village folk and an evil duke who doesn't get much screen time.
Level Design- 4/5
Definitely a high point of the demo. You'll spend most of your time in dungeons full of interesting and occasionally unconventional puzzles. You'll spend a bit of time thinking, but there's enough hints strewn about that you shouldn't get lost anywhere. Most of the dungeons are short and rely on a single theme, and you'll be finished with them long before they overstay their welcome. Town design is rather lackluster, with buildings strewn about randomly separated by nothing more than a few trees.
Graphics- 2/5
A mix of RTP and various other graphics floating around on the web. Most things look decent enough, especially our draconic hero. Unfortunately since the graphics come from so many sources they often appear inconsistent, which was occasionally distracting. This is most noticeable in the enemy battlers.
Music/Sound- 2/5
Everything was ripped from other games as far as I could tell. Most of it seemed to be from Wild ARMs, Final Fantasy, and Breath of Fire. Having so much high profile music was a big turn off to me, in particular the music from Final Fantasy as it's almost universally recognizable.
Random stuff I liked-
Playing as a dragon. I think it deserves mentioning twice.
Random stuff I hated-
NPCs are set to always have their walking animation active, even when they're standing still behind a shop counter. This annoyed me in old games and it annoys me here.
Enemies tend to have high agility, often higher than your own party. Since this game uses an ATB system, it means you'll be spending entirely too much time staring at the screen while waiting to act.
Your second party member joins with absolutely no way to attack enemies. Since she's faster than the main character, you'll be spending a lot of time asking her to defend until you've copied your first attack skill.
Final Thoughts-
A solid adventure with a great deal of potential. It's worth trying out, and definitely worth keeping an eye on.
Overall Score 3/5
-------
Some extra notes for the developer-
I encountered a strange bug with the fortune teller. When I asked her about my evolution progress, she listed the number of runes I had inhaled as listed below.
5 Earth
2 Fire
14 Air
1 Water
She then proceeded to tell me I needed another -11 Runes to evolve. I ended up evolving after the next 3 I inhaled.
The torches in the ice cave don't actually light, even after you've solved the puzzle. You can still progress as though they were, but it would look a lot better if you added a flame.
A typo in the Borderlands, just in front of the raft maker's house. When you examine the goddess statue you get the line "(It is a statue of goddess.)"
Another typo just after defeating the bandits in the Borderlands, Az'eur begins a line by saying "I'm not I'm suited..."
I noted in the review that I thought Runes were too difficult to acquire. Since they are both fundamental to character growth and to defeating the game's bosses, more than anything else I'd like to see them be easier to obtain. I suggest doubling the capture rate of each weapon, since even at 30% you still need to be actively trying to capture Runes in order to acquire them. Aside from that I wouldn't mind seeing an alternate method to obtain them, possibly even selling them in shops. You can make them expensive if you have to, but it's nice for the player to have more than one way to obtain such a central gameplay device.
-----------------
Now it's time for me to save the Titanic.
Battle System- 3/5
You'll be spending a lot of time at this part of the game. Battles are fairly traditional with a few nice twists thrown in. The most important of which lies with the main character, who is a dragon, and has the ability to inhale magical runes and exhales to produce vicious attacks. Inhale a rune of fire, and you'll breathe a torrent of flame to roast your enemies, inhale a rune of water and you'll be able to call a healing rain down upon the party. This game mechanic serves a second function as well, as your main character will evolve into a more powerful type of dragon after he has consumed enough runes. The rune type you have absorbed most determines your dragon's next form and abilities. On top of all that, every time you evolve the number of runes you can inhale at a single time is increased, allowing you to combine runes for more powerful or interesting effects.
While I enjoyed all of this quite a bit, there is a fundamental problem to the battle system. Runes are annoying to acquire. You can only obtain them through the use of your second party member, who has next to no fighting ability and is mainly there to provide support. She begins the game with the ability to turn an enemy into a Rune, but only if they are at 5% max hp or lower. It is pretty damn hard to get an enemy to that life without killing them. You can upgrade her weapon to increase the effectiveness of this skill, but by the end of the demo I could still only capture enemies with 15% or lower of their life total. Since most enemies tended to die in two or three hits, even less if I was using skills, I constantly found myself missing opportunities to grab Runes even though I was actively seeking them out.
There are a few more twists thrown into the battle system as well. The dragon can learn extra abilities by equipping stones you'll acquire throughout your adventure. At the beginning of each battle he absorbs a bit of the stone's power, and after you've fought enough he'll be granted a new ability. Although these skills are useful they pale in comparison to inhaling Runes. Your supportive party member has the ability to Observe enemies, which will give the percentage of their hp remaining, and also allow her to copy their skills if she observes it used multiple times. The bosses are challenging, and will require you to be carrying a large stock of runes to have any chance at victory, which unfortunately turned out to be tedious to gather.
Storyline- 3/5
A standard take down the evil empire plot by collecting a series of items, though since it is told from the point of view of a dragon it tends to be more interesting than most other of its ilk. The author takes their time to develop dragons a bit further beyond their typical fantasy stereotypes, which is a nice touch I appreciated. The script has an old school fantasy vibe about it, which may appeal to some and not to others. Overall the story kept me curious about what was going to happen next, but I was never on the edge of my seat or anything.
Characters- 3/5
It is fun to play as a dragon. The main character is easily the most interesting of the cast, sort of mixing the innocence of being a newborn with the arrogance of being a powerful dragon. There are a couple nice touches in this category, such as the dragon's inability to use items because he can't open their contents with his claws. The rest of the cast was quite forgettable, including your other party member. As of the demo I didn't get to see much of the villains, other than a random subordinate of the emperor terrorizing the village folk and an evil duke who doesn't get much screen time.
Level Design- 4/5
Definitely a high point of the demo. You'll spend most of your time in dungeons full of interesting and occasionally unconventional puzzles. You'll spend a bit of time thinking, but there's enough hints strewn about that you shouldn't get lost anywhere. Most of the dungeons are short and rely on a single theme, and you'll be finished with them long before they overstay their welcome. Town design is rather lackluster, with buildings strewn about randomly separated by nothing more than a few trees.
Graphics- 2/5
A mix of RTP and various other graphics floating around on the web. Most things look decent enough, especially our draconic hero. Unfortunately since the graphics come from so many sources they often appear inconsistent, which was occasionally distracting. This is most noticeable in the enemy battlers.
Music/Sound- 2/5
Everything was ripped from other games as far as I could tell. Most of it seemed to be from Wild ARMs, Final Fantasy, and Breath of Fire. Having so much high profile music was a big turn off to me, in particular the music from Final Fantasy as it's almost universally recognizable.
Random stuff I liked-
Playing as a dragon. I think it deserves mentioning twice.
Random stuff I hated-
NPCs are set to always have their walking animation active, even when they're standing still behind a shop counter. This annoyed me in old games and it annoys me here.
Enemies tend to have high agility, often higher than your own party. Since this game uses an ATB system, it means you'll be spending entirely too much time staring at the screen while waiting to act.
Your second party member joins with absolutely no way to attack enemies. Since she's faster than the main character, you'll be spending a lot of time asking her to defend until you've copied your first attack skill.
Final Thoughts-
A solid adventure with a great deal of potential. It's worth trying out, and definitely worth keeping an eye on.
Overall Score 3/5
-------
Some extra notes for the developer-
I encountered a strange bug with the fortune teller. When I asked her about my evolution progress, she listed the number of runes I had inhaled as listed below.
5 Earth
2 Fire
14 Air
1 Water
She then proceeded to tell me I needed another -11 Runes to evolve. I ended up evolving after the next 3 I inhaled.
The torches in the ice cave don't actually light, even after you've solved the puzzle. You can still progress as though they were, but it would look a lot better if you added a flame.
A typo in the Borderlands, just in front of the raft maker's house. When you examine the goddess statue you get the line "(It is a statue of goddess.)"
Another typo just after defeating the bandits in the Borderlands, Az'eur begins a line by saying "I'm not I'm suited..."
I noted in the review that I thought Runes were too difficult to acquire. Since they are both fundamental to character growth and to defeating the game's bosses, more than anything else I'd like to see them be easier to obtain. I suggest doubling the capture rate of each weapon, since even at 30% you still need to be actively trying to capture Runes in order to acquire them. Aside from that I wouldn't mind seeing an alternate method to obtain them, possibly even selling them in shops. You can make them expensive if you have to, but it's nice for the player to have more than one way to obtain such a central gameplay device.
-----------------
Now it's time for me to save the Titanic.
post=89473
You should go ahead and review Cyber Factor.
We are like vultures circling the desert looking for scraps of feedback and picking the bones clean of any opportunity we find to get our games played
It would be a good idea to speak for yourself.
Have you not seen every review thread ever?
Drakonais
2787
Great review, thanks so much Silviera. Love the bug report at the end, I'm fixing those right away. Already figured out the torch problem, I accidentially deleted graphics that had been there in previous releases.
