Quick Opinion - Eisenhorn: XENOS; Reigns; Inside; Mandagon

Because you read it before I decided to do it again. This is a post in which I will write short reviews of the games mentioned in the title. The point of this is to tell you about more games in shorter time, because I do not have the time to write about all of them or some of them are too short and there is not much to say about. Writing for a game in this format does not mean the game is bad or I did not like it. SPOILER: One of these games even may be in the TOP REVIEWED GAMES for this year so yeah... Let us begin:

Eisenhorn: XENOS

DISCLAIMER: THIS IS MY OPINION ABOUT THE PC VERSION

As you may already guessed the first title is set in the grimdark universe of Warhammer 40 000. Unlike most 40k games here you are not commanding a great army or squad of marines but instead you take on the role of Gregor Eisinhorn. Young Inquisitor at the time of the game Eisenhorn finds himself  knee deep in a conspiracy which endangers the Emperium so as every loyal subject of the Emperor he jumps head first into it trying to get to its roots and punish all the heretics who stand there. 

The world of Warhammer is rich and vast setting in which you have a lot of freedom but you should also be careful as it has very zealous community and if you screw up your game you will be destroyed by them. Sadly the case with Eisenhorn is exactly this. The game has only one strong side and it’s the story but that is probably because the game is made following the newly published book having the same title. But even this is hardly doing any good to the game as it is literally on rails and you have no saying in what is happening. Everything else is basic and hardly capable of grabbing your interest for long. The battle system is taken from the Arkham games but you barely will do anything else than chop people with your sword and roll aside from time to time. For a game set in universe where everything is massive and glorious Eisenhorn looks a bit dull as when it is ported to PC someone has forgotten to upgrade its graphics. It looks aged, like it’s made in 2005. The voice-acting is generic, animations are low quality, the battle and stealth systems are generic and basic at best. It is just another bad port sadly...as it could have been amazing game. Better go and read the book.

Official Site

Steam

Reigns

I have not reviewed mobile games in really long time, but this is mainly because I have not found anything really worth mentioning( Yeah, yeah there was Clash Royal but I did not managed to get into it for some reason). Until recently when Reigns came out. It easily was crowned as a hit and conquered everyone who played it. The simple and clean design combined with the hidden depth of the game easily made it a must try if you are wondering what new to get on your phone for those long trips to work.
In Reigns you are a king who wants to rule for as long as he can. To achieve this you should carefully balance between the four forces - nobles(money), church, army and the people. Any of this may lead to your end or you yourself may find it...in the dungeon for example. As the King you will have to cope with all kind of questions and requests from your subjects, advisors and enemies. You will go on crusades, meet the Devil, marry, have affairs, wage war...and everything else you can think of. All that you will do only by swiping left or right when presented with a choice. But when you die this is not the end. If you have ruled well you will leave something for the Kings after you, with time you will also meet new characters which will unlock new cards and make even harder for you to survive for long. In this game...your decisions really matter.

Official site

Steam

Google Play

iTunes Store

Inside

Have you played Limbo? Did you like it? But didn't you feel there is something missing, that it still can be better? If the answer to all those questions is "yes" then this is the game for you.

Inside is the straight upgrade of Limbo. In every aspect. It looks better, the story is better, it is more creepy, more intriguing, better atmosphere. It is the next logical step in the genre, after Limbo.

If somehow you have missed all the noise around Inside and you have not played Limbo (where do you live?!) then let me explain. Inside is atmospheric adventure game where you are boy who witnesses strange experiments with animals and human bodies. Why you are there, what experiments, who, how you got there - all those are questions to which you will find answers while progressing through the game, but you should be observent as the story is passively told to you in the background while you are solving jump and logical puzzles.

But this game is not for the faint of heart as you will often get shot down, eaten by dogs, electrocuted to death or fall to your end. Death is waiting behind every corner.

Very creepy and grim game, but excellently done!

Official site

Steam

Mandagon

And last for a finish I want to present you this little platformer called Mandagon. It’s a little adventure of a little stone totem. Inspired by Tibetan theology and philosophy the game tries to show you what means to make a true sacrifice. In it you are in Limbo (or Barbo if you prefer the Tibetan term) but to learn what and why brought you there you will have to ascend the mountain. Mandagon is small but surprisingly atmospheric game with some interesting philosophical ideas. A little adventure made with a lot of love by the small studio Blind Sky. I recommend it to you as it is short, but amazing!

Official site

Steam


That's it! Four games and my quick opinion about them. Sorry for the short post but time is something I did not have in last few days. Should return to normal reviews for the next time. 

Quick Opinion - Stardew Valley, Rusty Lake Hotel, Secrets of Grindea, Dungealot Shattered Lands

Quick Opinion is something new that I came up with recently. The idea of these posts will be to tell you my thoughts on several smaller titles for which I cannot write a whole review either because the games are too small or simply because I don't have the time. This will not be a regular thing, but instead when small games gather up I will combine them in this Quick Opinion posts.

Stardew Valley

Stardew Valley as its creators describes it "open-ended country-life RPG." The story goes that you inherit a farm and the land with it. The land hasn't beed used for a long time and it is now your task to return it to its former glory. A lot of people say that Stardew Valley reminds them of Harvest Moon, game which I haven't played but if you have this is what to expect. To me Stardew Valley is a Facebook game without any of its negatives. No energy, no restriction, no paywalls - just the pure fun of farming, fishing, digging ore and talking to the people from the nearby town. If you like farming simulators and don't mind the retro graphics I think you will find your peace of haven in Satrdew Valley.

Official Site

Steam

Rusty Lake Hotel

I will be honest - I heard about Rusty Lake Hotel on a podcast that I follow and after short research I decided that it might be good. I got it and beaten it in like an hour. It’s a very short game yes, but is it worth it? It is if you like grim, morbid games, Grand Budapest hotel and point and click adventures. Your task is simple - secure dinner for the guests of the hotel, one that is worth dying for. Of course you will need to find the ingredients first...and I will let you find how on your own. I will only say that finding the ingredients is what makes this game grim and morbid...

There are also a lot of puzzles in the game and there lays the problem. Many of those puzzles are very unclear, vague and a lot of times I ended frustrated wondering what I have to do. There of course is the possibility that I was not bright enough for those, may be the smart people like you out there will like those puzzles and even find them easy, who knows? A quirky game...I'm a bit hesitant to recommend it because of its puzzles, but at the same time quite interesting with its atmosphere and artstyle. Your pick - I liked it.

Official site

Secrets of Grindea

Classical old-school, SNES RPG. So old-school that it doesn't even has mouse controls in the menus. In the game you are a young Collector (something like a Hunter from HunterXHunter if you have watched it) and you take your first steps in the vast and dangerous world. The story as always starts pretty innocent but quickly the plot thickens and soon you find yourself on the track of grand mystery. While investigating you will fight your way through various dungeons, stand against nasty bosses and find artefacts of great power...some of them living. There is a ton of collectibles and the secret to gather them is to grind a lot (you see what I did there?). May be the biggest pros of the game is its co-op mode as it a lot more fun with 3 more people not to mention quicker. Not exactly my kind of game, but if you miss your childhood definitely a game for you. Oh, the game is still in early access I almost forgot...

Official site

Get early access

Dungelot: Shattered Lands

It seems that this first edition of Quick Opinion will go under the mark of classically themed games. The last one is in very niche genre but also very big favourite of mine - roguelike. I doubt that you don't know what it is, but just to be safe - roguelikes are games usually turn-based dungeon crawls which extremely hard try to kill you. For this roguelikes heavily rely of RNG and dice-rolling mechanics. Well, Dungelot is all this but well mixed with good dose of humour and a lot easier progression curve than most roguelikes with unlockable classes and such. The game has a crafting system, a good amount of items, boosts and even a small "rest area" in which dungeon where you can rest, recover a little and continue with slightly better chances. If you are like me into the genre I think you will enjoy it.

Official site
Steam
Google Store
iTunes Store

Crashlands - Return of the survival

I think I have never mentioned it before but I used to be into Minecraft a lot! I loved it! Later Terraria came by and liked this one even more, I even still play it from time to time. Since then I have tried a few games of this type more famous of which are Don't Starve by Klei and Starbound by Chucklefish. But why I'm telling you this? Isn't this whole genre thing of the past with the market being overflown with such games? Well, I don't know honestly, but I'm mentioning these games because today I'm about to tell you more about one new game which fits perfectly among the mentioned above. This is Crashlands by Butterscotch Shenanigans. I still have not beaten it, so this is just first impressions after around ten hours of gameplay.

Fluxed with Hewgodooko and Juice

In Crashlands you take on the role of Flux who together with his robot friend Juicebox are working for intergalactic delivery company and are in the middle of important delivery when their ship is destroyed by the alien Hewgodooko. Flux and Juicebox manage to save the cargo before crashing on unexplored planet but now they are stuck there and their boss won't be happy if they are late with the delivery.

From here the story continues with you helping a lot of locals who have different problems some related and some not with your quest which is only to get the parts needed for you to build a device with which to call for help.

Roaming Woanope

From all of the mentioned in the beginning games Crashlands reminds me mostly of  Don't Starve, but with the strong equipment crafting element of Terraria. Similar to those two you will go into the wild to gather materials, craft tools and weapons also you will learn more and more about the strange world in which you have dropped. Butterscotch have managed to create vast, colorful world for you to explore. World filled with bizarre but unfriendly wild animals as well as strange nature worshiping locals. The art style of Crashlands is one thing that sets it aside from Don't Starve and Terraria. I mean both of those games look very well in their respective art styles, but neither is so bright and in both there is feeling of loneliness, even in Terraria where NPCs will come join you through the game. Here you're accompanied by Juicebox everywhere, talking with him all the time exchanging jokes, receiving advises. Also the locals will speak with you and give you quests. The game sets a totally different mood while you play it. Its more...lively! Mentioning the quests...

The biggest thing that separates Crashlands from the others are the quests. In the game as I already mentioned you will get quests and they are from what I have seen so far(around 10 hours into the game) the main progress mechanism of the game. You are free to explore the world without doing your quests but there are recipes which you won't be able to find. Interesting thing is the elaborate fighting system. Here unlike Don't Starve and Terraria or even Minecraft you won't be able to kill anything if you just stand there and mash the attack button. Every enemy that you meet will telegraph his attack in a way similar to the monsters in Wild Star for example and if you don't dodge you will be quickly stomped, bitten, electrocuted or poisoned to death. The fun starts when you aggro more than one enemy and your whole screen becomes ridden with attack patterns...

The crafting system is the same as the one in the two others - you gather materials, use the appropriate crafting station and voila you have a new item. Here you will also find the same random chance to craft different rarity of items as in Terraria. But unlike there here you get better and better when you craft one and the same item again and again.

I have not finished the game, but from what I heard it is pretty long so be prepared for some serious roaming, crafting and fighting - a charmingly bizarre world is waiting for you. But don't worry Juicebox will be there with you, not to mention that you can even tame pets who will fight for you. 

Conclusion

Crashlands is great addition to the genre even if you think that there are too many games like it. The game is colorful, lively and challenging, introducing some new and clever mechanics. With one of these it solves the biggest problem people usually have with the genre - they cannot find what to do. In Crashlands there are quests...and humor, a lot of it, not always good quality but in big quantities. Crashlands is great for those who enjoy the genre and are not tired of it and it is also great intro game with quests to help you progress when you are tired of farming ores or slaughtering nasty bugs. Crashlands - definitely charming.

Where to find it:

Official site

On Steam

iTunes Store

Google Store

Butterscotch shenanigans

Knight of Pen & Paper II - The Pen and Paper simulator is back!

Around two years ago Behold Studious released something that I enjoyed immensely! It was fun, it was challenging, and it had retro feeling appropriate for a D&D simulator. And it was also filled with references to a lot of other things, like games, shows and books.

Now the game is back, this time released by Paradox Interactive, the second part is a fact! And I'm here to tell you more about it.

But let's start with some information what Knights of Pen & Paper is for those of you who have never heard of it. After all I'm here to tell you what are the improvements compared to the first part.

Knights of Pen & Paper is a pen and paper games single-player simulator. And it includes everything that you might need - a sturdy table, roleplaying party (which you build), clever DM, rolling dice and a ton of adventures. Now the fact that your party is sitting on the table does not mean they're not moving. Oh, no, they're roleplaying traveling to all kind of places - swamps, castles, forests and what not....and the table is travelling with them. All those travels are of course for only two reasons - doing quests and getting loot!

The World

You're in the world of Peperos and you're chasing after the evil 2nd edition Paper Knight who is converting different parts of the world to 2nd edition causing chaos and sorrow in his wake. There is not much story really. You start in the Spawn Point Village and by following the main quest you're traveling to different strange places like The Brass Tower and...The Wall...yes, it’s made of ice. Most of your destinations are just places where you go to do your quests, but there are also few villages and towns. 

The travelling is done in the same way as in Knights of Pen & Paper +1 edition. You pay small sum of gold and you roll 1d20 if you get above certain number your travel is safe. If not you're ambushed and you fight monsters from the area where you're ambushed. You can travel from one area to the next or you can travel from one end of the map to the other. 

There are few new additions to the world. First is the Search option. Each area you visit you search for clues, when you gather the necessary amount you're rewarded with items. How you search? Well each of your party rolls a 1d20. Each party roll costs 5 gold.  

The second new things are the Dungeon raids. Some quests now are completed in Dungeons. Once you enter you cannot rest to restore your characters. You also can't Search in Dungeons. You can leave at any time but then you lose your progress in the Dungeon. The Dungeons are separated into rooms. The rooms might be empty, have enemies waiting for you or traps ready to trigger when you enter. There might be good things also like magical springs, treasure chests; captives which if you free will help you and many more.

The third new thing that Paradox has added is conditions to battles. Sometimes you will fight in the "dark" where enemies will have higher initiative, other times all the greenery around you will inspire your healers and they will cure your wounds like there is no tomorrow.

And the fourth new thing is that now there is a chance to get lost while you travel. If this happens you should pass few dice rolls. If you fail different bad things happen to you.

The Party, The DM and The Quests

As in the previous part here again you build your party of heroes by adding new ones to the starting two. As in the previous part here again the characters are strange combination of modern...hobbies, classic races and classes. For example you can be a rocker elf archer or cheerleader dwarf mage. Every "hobby" and race has one unique passive and each class has four skills which you can level up. You can have maximum of five people in your party, but you can exchange characters by leaving some in the Tavern and recruiting new ones. By completing quest and exploring the world you can unlock more races and classes, like the Exchange Student or the Ninja.

The DM is your God, you should listen to him, never think bad of him and trust him with your character's life. Now seriously by clicking on the DM you will access area options. Also he will talk with your party and nearby enemies all the time. Your characters will also speak with enemy creatures all the time offering them not to fight or threatening them or just total nonsense. All three of the one I mentioned will from time to time break the fourth wall. In other words he is one rather good DM who has accidentally angered the wrong character.

The Quests follow the formula from the +1 edition. There are again side and main quests. They also have kept the really cool system for killing monsters quests where you can choose the number of the enemies to face. This allowing you to take it easy or to really test your skills and party. 

Gold, Energy System and Buying Power

Knight of Pen & Paper as most mobile games have some kind of energy system and in this case is Gold. For every travel or Search you will need gold. But while travels are necessary and there is no way around them, Searching for items is not and not doing it will not harm your experience. But even if you do it and you're extremely unlucky with little grind you will be able to gather enough gold to keep doing quests without spending real money. So to the question "Is there Energy System in the game?" the answer is "Yes, but it's extremely fair."

Now for the buying power issue that mobile games have. You can buy decorations for your gaming room and they give good bonuses, but again if you don't buy them you will still be able to beat the game with ease. Not to mention that Knights of Pen and Paper is single player game so even if you buy every single item in the game with real money, that will change only how you experience the game.

References and Eastern Eggs

As I already mentioned there are a lot of references in Knight of Pen & Paper II. And if you have read my review of Book ofUnwritten Tails 2 you will know that I really like games that do this. But let me give you few examples so you get a better idea. 

Unlike the previous part here you will find a lot more references to D&D and problems between the different editions. But you will also see some more easily recognizable. For example The Wall, a diamond pickaxe from another famous game, one of the little ponies and even someone who really looks like Jamie Hyneman from Mythbusters. Those are few of the ones that I caught, but there are a lot more for you to find yourself. Now unlike Book of Unwritten Tails for example here even if you don't get the references you will still have a lot of fun playing the game.

Conclusion

Knights of Pen & Paper II is not really a second part, but more like an improved version of the first edition. Paradox have kept all the good parts like the humour, the references, pixel graphic, traveling table and the turn-based battles. After that they have added few at first glance little things that actually add a good amount to the game, like the Dungeons and chance to get lost. 
If you have liked Knight of Pen & Paper +1 edition then there is no reason to wait and not play this part. And if you have never heard of it before, but it sounds interesting to you then go for it! The fact that there is previous game should not worry you, because the two have no connection with each other. 

You don't want to play it on a mobile device? Then you will have to wait until 30th of November as it is still not available for PC.

Links:

Official site

iOS Store

Google Play

Knights of Pen & Paper II - Pen and paper симулатора е отново тук!

Преди около две години Behold Studios пуснаха на пазара нещо, което много ми допадна и много се забавлявах с него. В него имаше хумор, имаше предизвикателство и имаше ретро усещането подхождащо на D&D симулатор. Също така беше и пълно с препратки към всякакви неща, като игри, книги и различни филми и предавания.

Сега играта е отново тук, този път благодарение на Paradox Interactive, втората част на Knights of Pen & Paper е реалност!

Но нека кажем нещо за тези от вас, които не са чували за играта до сега. Knights of Pen and Paper е "pen and paper" симулатор за един, който включва всичко което може да ви потрябва - здрава маса, група от играчи(които вие си избирате), умен DM, хвърляне на зарове и тон приключения. Сега, факта, че всички седят около една маса не трябва да ви заблуждава. О, не, те си представят, че пътуват до всякакви чудати места, като гори, крепости и блата...и да, масата идва с тях. За всички тези пътувания разбира се има само две причини - съкровища и куестове!

Светът

Вие сте в света на Пеперос и преследвате злия 2-ро издание Хартиен Рицар, който конвертира света във Второ издание и сее хаос и мъка навсякъде откъдето мине. Истината е, че няма много история в играта. Започвате в Spawn Point Village и следвате Основният си куест, който ще ви заведе до всякакви чудати места, като например Месинговата кула или Валът...който е от лед, да. Повечето места, които ще посещавате ще ви служат само за да изпълнявате куестовете си там, но също така има и няколко града и села, които ще ви дават някои интересни възможности, като безопасна почивка, таверна, място където да си правите предмети, както и магазин.

Пътуването между различни точки по картата става по същият начин, както и в Knights of Pen and Paper +1 edition. Плащате малка сума злато и хвърляте 1d20. Ако хвърлите над определено число, то пътуването ви е безопасно, ако ли не, то вие сте нападнати от засада и трябва да се защитавате.

Но както познати неща, така във тази втора част ще видите и няколко нови добавки. Първата от които е опцията да претърсвате местата, където се намирате. При всяко претърсване ще имате шанс да намерите "улика" и когато съберете определен брой улики, то ще намирате различни предмети..

Всяко групово хвърляне струва 5 злато, всеки от героите ви хвърля по 1d20.

Втората нова добавка, която доста разнообразява играта са Подземията. Някои куестове вече ще бъдат изпълнявани в Подземия(или Тъмници, абе Dungeons). Всяко Подземие се състои от множество стаи, в които ще намирате различни неща...или пък нищо. В някои от тях ще ви очакват битки, докато в други ще има опасни капани. Ако имате късмет в някои стаи ще намерите също и магически извори, съкровища или пък пленници, които ако освободите ще ви помогнат с нещо. Подземията се различават от останалите места, които ще посещавате с това, че много от опциите, където имате другаде, тук ги няма. Единственото, което можете да правите е да продължите напред или да излезете. Ако излезете, то губите прогреса си в Подземието.

Третото нещо, с което Paradox са разнообразили играта са "състояния" по време на битките. Тези ефекти винаги влияят върху всички от една от двете страни. Например, ако стаята е прекалено тъмна, то противниците ви, ще имат повече инициатива. Или пък, ако се биете навън, насред тучни поляни, това може да вдъхнови Лечителите ви и те да лекуват сякаш е краят на света.

И четвъртата добавка, която ми направи впечатление е това, че сега има шанс да се загубите по време на пътуванията си. Ако това се случи, то ще ви се наложи да хвърлите няколко пъти успешно заровете си, за да се измъкнете. Ако не успеете най-различни неприятни неща ще сполетят групата ви.

Групата, Dungeon Master-а и Куестовете

Както и в предишната част и тук отново ще имате възможност сами да си изградите групата, като добавяте нови играчи към стартовите двама(които отново вие си избирате какви да бъдат). Както и в предишната част и тук героите ви са странна смесица от модерни "хобита" и класически приключенски класове и раси. Например героят ви може да е рокер елф, който е стрелец или пък мажоретка, която е джудже магьосник. Всяко "хоби" и раса си имат по едно уникално пасивно умение, а всеки клас си има четири активни умения, които вие ще развивате, както намерите за добре. В групата си не можете да имате повече от петима души, но можете да оставяте, тези които не искате повече, в Таверната и да ги заменяте с нови. Като изпълнявате различни куестове и изследвате света, то вие ще отключвате също така и нови класове и раси. Като например Чуждестранния студент и Нинджата.

Dungeon Master-а е вашият Бог, вие трябва да го слушате, никога да не мислите лошо за него и никога да не му противоречите!...Добре де, преувеличих малко. Като кликнете на него, той ще ви предоставя различни опции, в зависимост от мястото където се намирате в момента. Но също така от време на време ще разговаря с героите ви или с враговете ви. Като последните две групи постоянно ще влизат в диалози и помежду си. Всички споменати до тук от време на време, без задръжки ще преминават 4тата стена. Или с други думи DM е един сравнително добър DM, който просто е ядосал грешният герой.

За куестовете няма какво толкова да кажа, те са същите като в предишната част. Отново два вида - основни и странични. За щастие и тук са запазили много интересната система, която ви позволява преди бой понякога да си изберете броя на враговете. Което ви дава възможност да го давате по-леко, ако сте неуверени или пък да се хвърлите с главата напред и да видите колко сте добри вие и групата ви от "приключенци".

Злато, Енергийна система и "Купуване на сила"

Knights of Pen & Paper, както и повечето мобилни игри има някакъв вид "енергийна система" и в този случай това е злато. За всяко пътуване или Търсене вие ще плащате злато. Но докато пътуването е неизбежно, то Търсенето е напълно по желание и ако не го правите, то това по никакъв начин няма да направи играта ви по-трудна. Но дори и да сте решили да претърсите всяко място, където сте били и да имате изключително лош късмет в Търсенето, изхарчвайки повечето си пари, то с малко бой лесно и бързо ще съберете достатъчно, без да давате истински пари, за да продължите Куестовете си и евентуално по-късно да се върнете и да довършите Търсенията си. Така че на въпроса "Има ли "енергийна система" в играта? отговора е "Да, има, но тя е много честна и не ви принуждава да давате пари за да играете спокойно".

Сега за "купуването на сила". Можете да си купите най-различни декорации за игралната си стая и сред тях има такива, които дават доста добри бонуси, но играта не е невъзможна за играене без тях. Да не говорим, че Knights of Pen and Paper е изцяло игра за един човек и дори и да си купите всеки предмет в играта с истински пари, то това ще промени единствено вашето изживяване. А и ако го направите, кой знае, може да видим и трета част.

Препратки към други места и истории

Както вече споменах и тук има много препратки и ако сте чели ревюто ми на Book of Unwritten Tails 2, то вероятно си спомняте, че това доста ми допада. Но нека ви дам няколко примера, за да добиете по-добра представа.

За разлика от предишната част, то тук ще откриете много повече препратки към D&D и проблемите, които има между различните издания на играта. Но също така има и други по-лесни за улавяне, като например Валът, диамантена кирка от една друга доста известна игра, както и едно NPC, което поразително прилича на Джейми Хайнеман от Ловци на Митове. Това са само няколко от тези, които успях да намеря, но има и много други, които ще оставя сами да откриете.

Понеже вече споменах Book of Unwritter Tails, отново ще я използвам за сравнение. В Knights of Pen and Paper II(а и в първата част), за разлика от Book of Unwritten Tails, дори и да не разберете напълно препратките или да не ги усетите, то това по никакъв начин няма да има ефект върху количеството забавление, което играта ще ви донесе.

Заключение

  Knights of Pen & Paper II не е толкова продължение, колкото подобрена версия на първото издание. Paradox са запазили всички добре работещи механики от първата част, като пикселизираната графика, хумора, пътуващата маса и походовите битки. Но в същото време са внесли и някои доста добре пасващи допълнения, като Подземията и възможността да се изгубите по време на пътуванията си.

Ако сте харесали +1 edition, то няма никаква причина да се чудите за тази част ами направо я почвайте. А ако не сте играли никога предишната част, но това което прочетохте до сега ви е заинтересувало, то скачайте направо във втората част, без да се колебаете. Както казах това е по-скоро подобрение на първата част, отколкото продължение и между двете игри няма никаква връзка, така че не изпускате нищо.

А в случай, че не искате да играете на мобилно устройство, то за жалост ще се наложи да изчакате до 30ти ноември, когато играта излиза за компютър. 

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Witcher The Adventure Game - The digital version EN

In 1986 Andrzej Sapkowsky wrote  "Wiedźmin" ("The Witcher") and with it he created what became a favourite to many Universe.  In 2007 CD Projekt adopted this Universe and created the first PC Witcher game. In 2014 CD Projekt together with Fantasy Flight released something that probably a lot of people wanted - a board game based on The Witcher.
In the game you take the role of one beloved character and roam the lands completing quests and defeating monsters. The game is for 2 to 4 players and designed by Ignacy Trzewiczek.

NOTE: I'll tell you about the digital port of the board game, because I have not played the hard copy yet. Also because of this there will not be a comment on components quality.

Swords, Magic, Comrades and Gold

Here unlike the PC Games you will be able to choose between few characters like Geralt, Triss Merigold the sorceress, Dandelion the bard and Yarpen Zigrin the dwarven warrior.
Every character has special abilities and is better at something then the others. The quests for each of those characters are centred on their abilities. For example Geralt is the best fighter and he will handle monsters easily, Dandelion is best at collecting gold and Yarpen is decent warrior and able to collect gold better than Triss and Geralt, but also probably the best at getting clues thanks to his band of dwarves.

Quests and Proofs

 After you choose your characters, players will have to decide on how many Main Quests will be completed before the end of the game. When this is done each player will have to choose his first Main and Side quests. Usually the Side and the Main quests are thematically connected, but there is no real story telling while gathering leads and getting closer to your goal.
To complete a quest you will need to gather a certain amount of Proofs and get to a certain location. Completing Side and Main Quests give you VP and at the end of the game the player with most VP wins the game.

To collect Proofs you will have to roam around the cities bearing in mind that different cities give you one of the three kinds of leads - red, blue or purple. When you collect certain amount of leads they transform into Proofs. The amount of leads you will need depends on your character. For example Geralt will turn red leads into Proofs quicker than blue ones and Dandelion will turn purple into Proof quicker than red.

Other way to collect leads is to resolve different kinds of cards like Investigation and Good Fortune cards.

Every Main Quest have consequences and they are resolved immediately after completing the quest.

If the game is played for more than one Main Quest( 3(5) maximum which caps the game at around two hours.) then the player who completed his Main Quest is given again two Quest cards to choose his next Quests.

Development, Battles, Monsters and Foul Fates

Now the world of The Witcher is dangerous one so I hope you didn't expected that you will just take a walk around, do some side seeing and win the game. No, this won't happen.
At the end of each of his turns, every player will resolve obstacles in the area. Those can be two kinds - Monster Encounters and Foul Fates. Both of those can be located in the same area, but when resolving obstacles the player can choose which of the two he wants to encounter.

Monsters can be three kinds - bronze, silver and gold. The bronze are the easiest and characters suffer less if defeated and the gold ones are the strongest with heaviest consequences.
When the obstacle is a Monster a battle starts. Every Monster has sword and shield value which is their defence and attack values. The player who is fighting the monster will roll the battle dice and his hero die trying to match or exceed the defence value of the monster by rolling swords and defeat it or if not at least match or exceed its attack value by rolling shields and therefore defend against it. Bur bear in mind that when you start fighting against silver and gold monsters there will be some that will require to both defeat them AND defend against their attack if you want to not suffer any negative effects from the encounter.
The negative effects include wounds that prevent you from using actions, loosing gold, victory points or placing Foul Fate tokens on your actions.

Big help in battles will be the Development cards which you can acquire by using the Develop action on your turn. Some Development cards need to be charged before used and that is done by Brewing (if you play Geralt), by Preparing (Triss) or with the help of your dwarves (Yarpen).
Most Development cards will allow you to manipulate the dice rolls which will proof really helpful for you so don't overlook them.

Foul Fates on other hand are a lot more straightforward. When you're resolving Foul Fate as an Obstacle at the end of your turn you will draw a Foul Fate card and resolve it after which discard it unless it is not stated otherwise.

Some effects will force you to put Foul Fate tokens on some of your actions and if you perform those actions you will also draw Foul Fate cards and resolve them.

Digital port

Now as I said this review is relevant only to the digital port of the Witcher The Adventure game, so I decided also to talk about some things that are relevant only for the port.
First of those things is the AI and while it is nice that it is there the AI is rather incompetent and after few games against it you will feel like playing alone.
Second thing are the battles. When you fight versus the monsters you see just the card of you enemy and when you click dice are rolled and then resolved and while this is enough if you play a real life board game it really feels wasted that the game is ported to digital if they have not used the opportunity to turn the battles and the game itself into something more spectacular (see Armello for example). But on other hand this turn the digital version into faithful copy of a board game which is ok I guess.

The only real benefit of the digital port is the music which is really thematic and well composed.

Conclusion

I'm big fan of the Witcher and I was really excited when I heard that there will be a board game and maybe that's why I was disappointed when I played it. Witcher The Adventure Game is a mid-level board game for people who are looking for something more than a party or a filler game, but that is not the problem. The problem is that the game feels like a re-skinned and re-themed Talisman with few things added and changed here and there. You just roam the map, do quests, fight some monsters and gather points, rarely interacting with the other players, because you don't really have to. To you they're nothing more than few more strangers that you may meet in the cities, which is strange considering that in the story all four of them are friends and know each other well.

 For a themed game the theme is light and weak. Truly the characters are from the Witcher Universe together with the names of the cities and monsters, but Witcher is this dark, beautiful world of magic, monsters and intrigues and none of those is really well represented in this board game. The game could have been called The Knight and with few visual corrections here and there give absolutely the same feeling when played.

I don't recommend it to any fans of The Witcher, but still if you want to try it bellow you will find some places where you can find it.

Links:

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Steam

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Google Play

iTunes Store

Witcher The Adventure Game - дигитална версия BG

  

През 1986 Андрей Сапковски написва "Wiedźmin" ("Вещерът") и с това слага началото на един свят, който скоро ще си спечели много почитатели.  През 2007 година CD Projekt взимат този свят и създават първата компютърна игра от поредицата The Witcher. През 2014 CD Projekt заедно с Fantasy Flight публикуваха нещо, за което вероятно много хора чакаха – настолна игра The Witcher.
В нея вие поемате ролята на един от обичаните си герои започвате своето приключение, в което ще побеждавате чудовища и ще изпълнявате куестове. Играта за 2 до 4 играчи е и дело на дизайнера Игнаси Цревицек.

ЗАБЕЛЕЖКА: Това е ревю на дигиталната версия на Witcher The Adventure Game и се отнася само за нея. Поради тази причина няма да има и никакъв коментар върху качеството на компонентите.

Мечове, Магии, Другари и Злато

В тази игра, за разлика от компютърната, вие ще имате възможността да си изберете един от четиримата герои, които са Гералт, Трис Мериголд Магьосница, Данделион Барда и Ярпен Зигрин Джуджето войн.
Всеки от тези герои има специално умение и е по-добър от другите в нещо. Куестовете, които ще могат да изпълняват героите са съобразени с тези им умения. Например Гералт е най-добрия войн, докато Данделион е най-добрия в събирането на пари, а Ярпен е приличен боец и може да събира пари по-лесно от Гералт и Трис, но е най-добър в събирането на следи благодарение на групата си от джуджета.

Куестове и Доказателства

След като всички си изберат герои, играчите трябва да решат колко Главни Куеста ще трябва да изпълнят преди да свърши играта. Когато това е свършено всеки ще трябва да си избере първите си Главни и Странични куестове. Обикновено Страничните и Главните куестове ще се тематично свързани, но в играта няма да видите никакво развитие на техните истории, докато се приближавате към крайната си цел.
За да изпълните  куест, то ще е нужно да съберете определен брой Доказателства и да достигнете определен град. Изпълняването на куестове ви дава точки и който има най-много точки след като всички Главни куестове са изпълнени е победител.

За да събирате Доказателства ще трябва да обикаляте градовете по картата, които ще ви дават една от трите вида Следи – червена, синя и лилава.
Когато съберете нужния брой Следи, то те ще се превръщат в Доказателства. Всеки герой събира определен цвят Доказателства с различна скорост. Например Гералт превръща червени Следи най-бързо в Доказателства, докато това би му отнело много време, ако събира сини Следи.

Други начини да събирате Следи е като разрешавате различни карти като Разследващи и Добър Късмет.
Всеки Главен куест си има последствие, което влиза в сила веднага след като куеста бъде изпълнен.
Ако играта се играе за повече от един Главен куест(максимално могат да са 3(5), което прави играта около 2 часа дълга), то на всеки играч, който изпълни куеста си му се дават две нови Куест карти, от които да избере следващите си Куестове.

Развитие, Битки, Чудовища и Лоши Съдби

Света на Вещерът е опасен и надявам се не сте си мислили, че просто ще се разходите, ще разгледате забележителностите и ще спечелите играта. Нее, това няма да стане.
На краят на всеки свой ход, всеки играч ще разрешава препятствия, които са в същата местност като него. Препятствията могат да бъдат два вида – Чудовища или Лоши Съдби. И двете могат да се намират в една и съща местност, но ако е така, то играча си избира едно от тях.
Чудовищата могат да бъдат три вида – бронзови, сребърни и златни, като бронзовите са най-слабите и играчите ще си изпатят най-малко, ако загубят битка срещу тях, а златните са най-силните и носят най-големи последствия, ако се окажете по-слаби от тях.

Когато се изправите срещу Чудовище, то започва битка. Всяко чудовище има атака и защита, която вие трябва да надвишите, ако искате да го победите или ако искате да се защитите от него. Ако искате да го победите, то трябва да хвърлите толкова или повече мечове, отколкото защита има то, а ако искате да се защитите да хвърлите повече или толкова щитове, колкото атака има то. Имайте предвид, че когато започнат да се появяват сребърни и златни чудовища сред тях ще има такива, срещу които ще трябва да се защитите и да победите, ако искате да не пострадате.
Негативните ефекти, когато загубите включват получаване на рани, които блокират някой от действията ви, загуба на злато, точки или поставяне на токъни Лоша Съдба върху действията ви.

От голяма полза ще ви бъдат картите Развитие, които ще взимате, когато използвате действието Развитие. Някои от тях ще трябва да бъдат заредени предварително, като това може да стане, ако приготвяте отвари(когато играете Гералт), когато се Подготвяте(ако сте Трис) и с помощта на джуджетата си(ако сте Ярпен).
Повечето карти от този вид ще ви позволяват да манипулирате резултата от хвърлените зарове, което ще ви бъде от голяма полза, така че не ги пренебрегвайте.

От друга страна Лошите Съдби са много по-просто действащи. Когато Препятствието с което се сблъскате на края на хода си е Лоша Съдба, то вие си теглите една карта Лоша Съдба и изпълнявате това, което пише на нея, след което я махате, освен ако не пише друго на нея.
Някои ефекти в играта ще ви карат да слагате токъни Лоша Съдба на някои от действията си и ако направите действие върху което има такъв токън, то ще трябва да си изтеглите отново карта.

Дигитална версия

Както казах, това е ревю на дигиталната версия на настолната игра Witcher The Adventure Game и за това сега ще ви кажа за някои неща, които ги има само в тази версия.

Първото е ИИ-то на играта. Хубаво е, че го има, но е много слаб играч и след няколко игри срещу него ще имате чувството, че играете сами.

Второто нещо са битките. Когато се биете срещу чудовища вие виждате само тяхната карта и когато кликнете с мишката хвърляте зарове, след което според техния резултат разрешавате изхода от битката. Това би било достатъчно, ако говорехме за недигиталната версия на играта, но в този случай изглежда малко като пропиляване на ресурси, да не се използват възможностите, които дигиталната версия дава и да се направи играта малко по-интересна и малко по-раздвижена(вижте например Армело). От друга страна оставяйки играта в този вид определено допринася за чувството, че играете истинска настолна игра, което ок.

Единствения истински принос на дигиталното копие е музиката, която тематична и добре композирана.

Заключение

Аз съм голям фен на Вещера и бях развълнуван, когато чух, че ще излиза настолна игра в същата Вселена. Може би това е и една от причините да съм разочарован от играта, след като я пробвах. Witcher The Adventure Game е средно ниво настолна игра, за тези хора, които вече търсят нещо повече от парти или филър игри. Но не това е проблема, проблемът е, че играта е просто един променен графично и тематично Талисман с някои малки промени тук и там. Вие просто обикаляте по картата, биете чудовища, изпълнявате куестове и не влизате в почти никакви взаимоотношения с другите играчи, защото няма нужда да го правите. За вас те са просто някакви страници, които срещате от време на време в градовете. Което е странно, имайки предвид, че историята всички тези герои много добре се познават и са приятели.
За тематична игра, тематиката в тази е много лека и слаба. Вярно, героите са от света на Вещера, както и имената на градовете и чудовищата, но Вещера е мрачен, красив свят изпълнен магия, чудовища и интриги, все неща, които са много слабо засегнати в настолната игра. Можеше да я кръстят Рицарят и с няколко визуални корекции тук-там играчите щяха да получават същото усещане, когато я играят.
Не я препоръчвам на никой от феновете на Вещера, но ако все пак искате да я пробвате, по-долу ще откриете линкове към места, където може да я откриете.

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