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Roaming the lands

  • rabitZ
  • 07/15/2012 09:38 PM
  • 1374 views
Vagabond is a game in progress by Zeuzio.
It tells the story of a hero who befriends a magical creature and embarks on a quest through the lands of Granti.
So, let's see how I did with this game.

Graphics/Mapping: 3/5
The great majority of the graphics are RMVXA RTP.
I don't have a problem with that, being that the mapping is quite well done.
Not as good as I think that it can be (but I'm really perfectionist and picky, so don't take that as implications that it's bad), but there are no glaring errors or huge/empty/extra-square areas anywhere.
If one can get used to the chibi style of VX and VXA sprites, the RTP resources are actually nice and sometimes even beatiful (the monster battlers come to mind).
So... nothing spectacular in the graphics department, but good enough nevertheless.

Music: 3.5/5
I am not yet familiar enough with VXA to recognize its RTP songs, so I don't know if zeuzio used RTP songs in this game, but I will say that the music fits very well through the game.
Most of the tunes are not very upbeat (with exception of the battle theme), so you get a very "pleasant" and "tranquil" (?) dungeon crawling experience.
I admit I only pay attention to music in RPG Maker when it annoys me, but hey, we all have our faults, right? :p

Gameplay: 3.5/5
Time to talk about my playing experience.
Thankfully, there are no random battles in this game. You see all enemies roaming the dungeons and wildernesses, so you can try and avoid them or charge headon seeking to destroy as many of them as you can.
Now, interestingly, defeated monster don't respawn.
Thus, this adventure feels more like a "conservation of resources" type of deal. Grinding is effectively eliminated from the game. In fact, vanquishing enemy parties does not reward you with experience, merely gold and items.
You can't "level up" by defeating enemies, you do so at points in the story.
So, how do you increase your stats? You do so via a "Synth" option in the menu.
"Synth" allows you to buy Stat "Stones", that increase your HP, MP, ATK, DEF, etc. Be warned, they are very expensive.

The other main aspect of the game is your "pet": a friendly and magical creature that you befriend at the start of your journey.
Your pet starts out as a lowly slime, but you will have the chance to guide its progression to stronger forms.

In the beginning, there are hardly any shops, and items are scarce, which means you will have to think carefully (and save often, something that fortunately you're allowed to do at any time) to avoid dying miserably.

Story: 3/5
The story seems rather light, but it is there nonetheless.
You, a wanderer, get lost in one of the forests of Granti, where you befriend a slime, find out about a great threat and the existence of the seven sages of Granti, whom you must find, in order to gain their powers and fulfill your destiny.

Pretty standard, but I won't spoil it for you. So... go play this game if you want to find out more!

Conclusion
This is a nice game. I like the feeling of progression, defeating the enemies and scouring the maps. I admit that a little more lore and purpose to our quest would have been nice, but who is to say that those things won't come in the final release?
Good job Zeuzio! Keep it up.

Final Score: 3/5 (not an average)

Posts

Pages: 1
Thanks rabitz. ^_^

You indeed will see more lore and many other things of interest in the final release, heheh.
Pages: 1