Recent reviews by ZettaCrash

So, typically, I'm not much of a review writer. However, imagine my surprise when Sony actually reverted back their decision to force PSN accounts. Crazy right?

I'm a bit of a cynic and when I heard this whole issue, I already kinda resigned it down like "Well, damn, now Sony is about to double down and just cover their ears until this whole situation blows over."

But it didn't, they listened, and Arrowhead managed to work some deal out with them.

So the MVPs are you guys and AH. You even got me to come out and write a review. Good work everyone!

Alright so I haven't played too in-depth and I will get to that point in a moment, so this is really a review on the underlying mechanics and overall feel of the game. I will begin by simply saying that this game truly has the potential to become one of the best games of all time. The graphics are well designed, the voice acting is shockingly good for a game I've never heard of until a Darkest Dungeon coupon prompted me, and overall establishes an incredibly solid setting.

PROS:
+ Visually appealing. A stylized look to most things and yet, everything has a clear design and clarity to it. That tree is a tree, tracks in the mud, etc. Everything looks correct within it's artistic boundaries.
+ The Audio is pretty well done. Hitting things and getting fat hits FEEL like fat hits making combat definitely feel visceral.
+ Gear is pretty spot-on and reminds me a great deal of D&D/Age appropriate gear. There is enough slots for potential future builds to be diverse while also showing off the armor, which all generally look and feel nice.
+ The story thus far seems well written and has a definitive goal.
+ Skill tree seems good enough to make one feel like they are getting better at wielding the selected weapon. Perhaps far into the future, we can diversify further but for now it suits.
+ For people like me, the robust healing system is rather nice. You do not "just" drink a health pot. You need to splint limbs, apply bandages, and use salves to fully get the most out of healing. It is in-depth enough without becoming completely lost in it's own mechanics.
+ Magic is quite amazing and actually impactful. You do not have to go full spellcaster to feel the awe of magic and there are many flavors.

As for the other side..

CONS:
- Survival mechanics are hard on the player. Not that it is hard to kill wolves and sell pelts to stock up, mind, but for the overall journey. Food takes space. You get hungry often. If I am to plan a trip to the nearby tower and back, I have to keep in mind how much food I will need to make the journey. This would be elementary if food stacked, but sadly, it does not. I would imagine for an even further journey, I will have to pack more food, which means less loot and less space overall which is a lead in for the next con.

- NOT SAVING NOR TIME FRIENDLY. You see, in order to save the game, you need to rest at an inn. 10 gold a night or 210 gold for 2 weeks if you plan to stay a while. This is well and find except you're not normally just hanging out near town. If you decided to take a day's journey out to somewhere, you need to make that journey back to save at the inn. No other options. I can understand the plight of not letting the player save often so that death is more meaningful, but it reaches to a point where it gets more obstructive than meaningful gameplay. A simple solution to this would to have suspension saves, where if you quit it makes a save, and upon returning deletes that save to continue the flow of the game. Not perfect, but a start.

- Combat in general is brutal. Don't get me wrong, I love the combat, but early on every encounter tends to leave your character tired out and low on HP, needing to rest. This is fine and while it forces you to think about your fights, it can get cumbersome especially early on when money isn't plentiful. A errant strong hit on your character could also cause bleeding or damage which eats through your precious bandages as if food wasn't already achieving that.

- Leveling up is rather unsatisfying. Even after gaining 2 or 3 levels from the beginning, I hardly felt much different aside from hitting a little bit harder. This is the primary way you gain skills which is the real meat of the level up. Honestly speaking, something as so simple as more "celebration" on a level up would make the small gains feel greater compared to how the game just hands you your level up with a dismissive wave.

- Lastly, and this is a rather large one for me, is NO CUSTOM CHARACTERS. This is nearly a dealbreaker for me in a game such as this. For a game to talk in a manner of building your character and essentially bonding with them which would make death all the more painful.. Is missing. There are currently only 4 characters in the game and they come pre-baked with stats and specialties, with your options being: Male Dwarf with 1-handed weapon and shield, Female human who uses Swords, Maces, Greatswords, and shields, Male human who uses daggers, swords, axes, and ranged weapons, and Human female who uses magic, staffs, and daggers. This truly hurts me and only having access to 4 archtypes that can only level up within their confines defeats any feeling of "This is mine." Yes, I could eventually learn pyromancy on the dwarf or have a dwarf with a greatsword but that takes time, levels, and altering of the current "recipe" of each pre-baked character.

Do I recommend this game still? Yeah, I do. The potential it has is still extremely high and with input, the game can go from being "Alright" to something exceptional and I do have faith that it can do so. Having come this far in the right direction, a few more input can definitely push the game entirely forward.