This topic was started by Rahmorak on 01/05/2012, 13:31:37
Post by Rahmorak on 01/05/2012, 13:31:37
Hi all,
Having just finished the game a few days ago I thought I would give some feedback on one of my favourite games of the last decade :)
OK I imagine I am not alone in here with being a wizened veteran (i.e. old) player. 40, wife and 2 kids... I grew up with the likes of Pong, Elite, Manic Miner, Lords of Midnight etc etc. (I am getting all teary just thinking about it ;)). However the games that really stood out for me (in no particular order) are:
- Might and Magic. I LOVED this series... shame it is now just a TBS shell of its former self.
- Wizardry VII. I didn't play the earlier ones but I fell in love with this game and would love to see a new game in a similar style (not so keen on Wizardry Renaissance which I tried yesterday but possibly because of the UI after being spoiled with silversword). Wizardry 8 was good but I never finished it even though I got very close to the end as it just didn't have quite the same feel.
- Dungeon Master, Bloodwych (You could even play this co-op!!!)
- SSI Gold box games, Eye of the Beholder. Great fun!
- Fallout 1&2. Need I say more?
- Phantasie. Loved this.
- Rana-rama, Moria and many, many more. In recent times Deus Ex, FFVII and the Mass Effect trilogy have captured my heart, but it is a rare breed in the modern genre, Oblivion/Morrowing etc.don't really do it for me.
But the grand-daddy of them all for me was probably ...
- The Bards Tale series. THE games I most remember, along with MM6/Wiz7. I used to sit playing this with ASIA singing away on Vinyl, and embarassingly I admit to phoning the EA support line once or twice. The recent 'remake' is not at all my thing so when I saw Silversword in the App store I grabbed it and started playing.
I was very sceptical. Games generally don't live up to the nostalgia but what the heck, I loaded it up and ...
... lost countless hours, wife and kids neglected, sleep deprivation followed. Brains stumped at times, maps noted at each step. Frustration followed by triumph. A few looks to the forums if I got truly stumped. The kids looking at me, rolling their eyes and saying "Dad you are playing Silversword arent you?!"
And I am sad to have finished it. I want more. Thanks Mario, for such a wonderful game and I wish it would make you lots of money. Unfortunately not many will be able to look past the old-school mechanics and see the amazing gameplay that lies underneath.
So, what did it do well and what would I change if I could?
For info My end party was: 36 Warrior, 30ish Hunter, 37ish Bard, 13/13/13/13/1 AM, 13/20/13/13/1 AM, 13/13/13/13/13 AM.
Things that were great:
Magic system. I loved the epic scale of some of the spells, nothign is more satisying that blowing up a 100 bloodthirsty, malicious denizens with a single spell.
Puzzles. One or 2 had me stumped, but I like that. I am just glad the forums were there where people cleverer than I were willing to help out.
the 'feel' of the game. This game reminded me why I loved those old-school games, games I thought wouldn't stand the test of time but with a sligh revamp you have proven they can.
Auto-map. I admit to spending hours as a teenager happily mapping the devious dungeons of old. But... I really don't have the time or the patience/desire to do so now, and if the packaged BT1&2 had an auto-map I would probably buy the newer BT on iOS just to replay them.
iOS. Most games involve me sitting in my Study playing on the PC (not really into console games other than Final Fantasy) so having a game that I can play while sat next to my wife on the sofa was wonderful. Even if I never heard when she was talking to me.
Story. OK, maybe not a bestseller but fun and engaging all the same.
re-spawnable 'grind' fights, e.g. the Bandits cave. Most of us will remember the 4*99 barbarians fondly. :)
Some class feedback:
Rogues. Useful at the start game but as I wanted a spare slot for summoned monsters I ditched the rogue as the Stealth mechanic while faithful to the original just feels a bit clunky.
Paladins. Handy in the early game but could do with more situational spells/better dmg?
Monk. I loved the monk but his health was just a bit too low, so I ended up ditching him for a hunter.
Bard. I added a bard about half-way through the game. Useful with decent horns and his songs although really came into his own with the Dragonbone bow.
Hunter. Good class once the crits start rolling.
Warrior. Good class.
Casters. Each caster class had unique spells that were worthwhile making a 13+ in each class desirable. Very well done although as someone else mentioned the XP gain for 14+ should probably be changed so you can get the class to a higher/more powerful feeling level. (e.g. regladless of class maybe 200-400xp/level)
In general my gripe would be that the caster AC & Health generally ended up better or comparable to the melee guys. I realise this is in part due to min-maxing but you could probably do with assuming all classes would be rolling for decent stats and balance accordingly. I would like to see Melee health/AC approx 20-30% better given similar XP.
AC-wise as casters can focus on Dex it may be worth changing it to -1 AC every 2 points or so for casters or make IQ much more desirable, e.g. each point after 24 gives x/sec regen. Maybe also cap the Const bonus for casters at 20.
I was happy enough that Casters are a lot more powerful than fighters at the end game but still felt it was worth having the fighters around, especially with the crit ability and the cost of spells.
Things that could do with being tweaked, IMO of course:
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When new areas open up. Could probably do with a message for dummies like me along the lines of 'an area you previously couldn't get to has now been opened up'
I hadn't realised the core stats and the way the stats would impact when I created my chars, as such I created several chars with a very low tertiary stat thinking it wouldnt be an issue, e.g. a Warrior with 9 IQ. Although I bought the compendium later on some extra info could be included in the base manual.
Shatter Walls. I gave up trying to use this as it is so rare to find a wall it will work on (I only really used it in the burial ground to avoid the first fight as I was a bit low level)
Sorcerers sight etc. doesn't work with a lot of the fake walls, e.g. the ridge/inferno.
Occassional crashes. Sometimes I would spend 30mins to an hour re-rolling something, getting a "YES!" then having it crash and having to redo it, I also stopped looking at the manual without saving first as that would sometimes cause a crash. Unfortunately as a coder I know these issues can be tricky to fix
My biggest issues however are:
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The XP curve from monsters. Between Annsharbour and Inferno the difficulty of the opponents ramps up a large amount, with Sodars Wrath or Hesitation being pretty much essential at the end game and spell points burning up fast. But the XP gain is quite 'flat'. I ended up leaving Inferno to grind up XP in Annsharbour because it was much faster/easier and often gave a lot more, heck in some fights I got almost as much XP in annsharbour as the very last fight with Maruziel.
I never played when the 'exploits' were available to farm summoned monsters, e.g. The mutants. As such I really missed a later fight comparable to the Bandit cave or the classic 99*4 barbarians. In the end I left 2 of my Archmages at level 1 while I took my 3rd in a duet with my bard carrying the dragonbone bow into Annsharbour. I then just fought in the houses until my AM hit 13.
IMO the later mobs need to award more XP and/or there be more 'grindable' encounters. Throughout the whole of Inferno I only gained 340k XP or thereabouts. However considering those are my biggest issue it is obviously a job well done. :)
Anyway... if anyone read all that I am impressed. :) I just want to say a BIG thank you once again to Mario (and the people who worked on the game with him) for such a wonderful experience.
Regards,
Craig
Post by icetear on 01/05/2012, 13:45:53
Hello Craig,
of course I read every post on this forum, especially those with such a great and valuable feedback!
Thank you very much!
To be honest, this game just sells good enough to fund my wedding *g* But there will be at least one expansion, which is already on the horizon, with new maps, stories, quests and creatures. Don't throw your save game away.
I will not go into detail, but you will see some of the things you mentioned being improved in future updates.
I just hired someone who will click through all maps and make most of the walls subject to "Shatter Walls" ;-)
It's great to see that I am not the only one who missed the old Bard's Tale flavour on his mobile device.
Best wishes from Germany
Mario
Post by Rahmorak on 01/05/2012, 14:25:40
Thanks for the kind reply Mario, and I hope you have a wonderful wedding!!!
re. Expansion. Aye that is great news thanks. I will definitely be keeping my save handy, IIRC you are aiming for around August so it looks like gw2/diablo 3 in my future to keep me ticking over. I look forward to seeing you get Silversword2 off the ground as well, although I preferred wiz7 to 8 the ruleset just rocks so much that I will definitely be in the Q to buy! :)
re. Shatter Walls. Good news, although I feel for the poor soul whose task that is! ;)
Thanks again for such a wonderful game and all the best for the future.
Craig
