I really wanted to enjoy this one, but there are a lot of odd decisions. Pronouns and character genders seem to be frequently mismatched, my fame never really seemed to increase when I accomplished tasks that helped people out, and I think I failed every single stat check in the last 1/3 of the game - I understand that it’d be no fun to have a game that’s a cakewalk, but throw a guy a bone every once in a while!
Also it feels a little cruel to follow up a section where you lose half your coins fighting a ogre with an outrageously expensive shop. But perhaps that’s just me being nitpicky.
I mean, coding errors are coding errors. These games are never perfect when they come out. Coding is tough, and the reality is that some people are better at it than others. The questions of stat management and immersion feel like valid concerns that I’m sure the author will think about, but it feels a little unfair to hold coding issues over the author’s head. This may very well have been their first game.
I mean, in theory, thats what the beta testing is for. Some errors generally slip through the cracks but so far there seems to be a greater than normal number of simple coding bugs.
Sure, some coding errors are inevitable, even in the work of experienced IF authors and/or those working under the direction of expert editors. But when just about everyone who comments on a game is reporting the same extremely basic errors, and not just one or two cases of incorrect pronoun but a character’s gender flipping back and forth repeatedly, that’s a problem. That makes me wonder if the author ever bothered to playtest his own game.
And when you’re putting something out into the world and asking people to buy it, they have the right to expect a certain standard of quality.
That’s certainly true. I’m not saying addressing the issues is wrong in any way, but I just wanted to avoid saying things like, “game is unplayable,” which I believe I saw earlier, unless I am mistaken. I have been playing the game on and off since release, and noted the gender swap issue on day one. The thing is, it was patched not even 15 minutes later and I haven’t had a problem with it since. I’m not saying every issue is resolved, but there is clearly an effort being made.
I would also like to point out that there have been releases in the past that have had significantly more and worse bugs than this. Not saying one excuses the other, but I feel some perspective may be necessary.
I’ve seen a few, but none that impeded progress or hindered the experience in any real way. Idk, maybe I just got lucky. Makes me a little biased, I guess.
I can’t comment on the amount of beta testing, obviously.
Not talking about just coding errors. The tone of the story and the mish mash of fantasy and present is jarring and is telling that not even the author decided to substitute or change these passages before releasing
Well sure. If you scroll up you’ll see that I’ve had quite a few comments about that exact thing, myself. I was mostly referring to coding errors in this instance.
I’m aware. Over the course of nearly a dozen years as a CoG/HG fan, I have played many of them.
This is the only one that’s had a Steam release, though. I could be wrong, but that may be why so many people are so vocal in their disappointment. A Steam release is like a seal of approval, a guarantee of quality. When I buy a HG release on Steam, I expect something on par with the quality of other games I’ve bought on Steam, not just something a step up from The Sons of the Cherry.
Mmm, that’s a good point. I never thought about that. It seems to me that many more games are getting steam releases these days, so I just figured it was a sign that times are changing. That is true that said option used to only be available to the big releases (from what I could tell, at least), so I suppose it makes sense that we’ve come to expect a certain level of quality from a steam title.
Apologies for veering slightly off-topic, but I heard Cog gives free editing to Steam release games, is this no longer true? Or was it never a thing? (Based on the errors in this game it feels like it surely can’t have been fully edited?)
They pay for copyediting for Steam releases, not full editing. Basically, the spelling and grammar get polished up, but they don’t offer advice on content or coding.
I actually wasn’t terribly surprised when this game turned out to have content and coding issues, considering that the credited copyeditor is Alan Smithee.
Aghhhhhhh! I love it but at the same time, I’m in want for more.
I understand that every choice has an action, but God damn it, I want a happy ending… aiyah. The endings were good, even the Guardian one, you give up your freedom to protect your world, you expect to be alone, yet…there will was someone always hoping for you to come back. I still love this game.
How can i report errors/possible bugs? one pretty glaring one late in the game put me right off it.
also in addition to the above (too spoilery for me to want to hint at just anywhere) there was a possible stat hiccup…? even focusing on one stat/path, none of the three groups at the end would take me, and trying to join highest-first to lowest had my lowst stat-associated group be the one to let me pity-join…?
What are the choices to make to get the armenos sword ? I always try to be righful and honest during my playthroughs but i am never able to lift the sword.
It doesn’t quite work like Excalibur. The story surrounding the sword is that it only shows up to the chosen one, but you find out later that several people who approached the mountain were tested. Actions during the game may go into it, but it appeared to be a straight strength check for me.
