IGMC 2015 Submission: Dungeon
Cloud Rating:
Dungeon's submission page leaves a lot to be desired for some. I was hoping for at least a title screen or ANYTHING, so that was a little disappointing. The brief description is a double edged sword. On one hand, it doesn't really clue you in at all about what the game is, no explanation of mechanics, and not much of a back story. But on the other, this creates allure. Like the way I looked at my grandma's blackberry cobbler when she was getting a little bit older and a little less sane. I loved her cobbler but every year at Christmas, I wasn't sure what new ingredient she'd decide to include with it. I just HAD to have some of it but I wasn't sure what to expect. JUST like that, Dungeon's description was enough to grab your attention and make you wonder but not give so much away that you already know what you're diving into.
As soon as the download finished and I opened the folder, I knew immediately this was an RPG Maker project. At this point, it could go either way. I've seen amazing RM games and I've seen some pretty lackluster RM games. So I cross my fingers, pray to the god of video games, and double click the mouse. Immediately I'm greeting with this:
Ok, pretty standard RM game title screen. At least it's not the default image background. Background music gives you a sense of thrill. A generic, but not horrible start. The game starts with the cliche text scroll. Again, generic but it didn't take too long to actually get in and start playing the game which I appreciated. You are given a choice of gender which didn't affect much of the gameplay as far as I could see. I suppose Bouden Cook (the creator) is a fan of egalitarianism. Not a bad thing, I suppose.
Standard RTP graphics (which I personally am a fan of). Not necessarily a bad thing, though the style is a bit overdone. Characters look like they've been created in a generator, which again isn't a bad thing especially given the time crunch.
I was a little upset with the fact that Sivia told me to get to know people but anytime I talked to anyone (other than shopkeepers who will talk to anyone with money), they all just ignored me like I didn't exist. :(
And in my 1 hour of play time, I never did find out what the cards were for that each shopkeeper gives you. I'm assuming some type of collectible?
My first play through didn't go so well, maybe it was I was excited to jump into the dungeons and didn't prepare with enough potions or I forgot to save before I went in (which is why I love games with an autosave feature... because I have the memory span of a fruit fly) but I got absolutely demolished by the first boss.
My second time around went a little better.
I found Enatha! Hey, I didn't know there was someone else exploring these dungeons too. Maybe we can team up... alright! Now that first boss guy doesn't stand a chance. And he didn't. But neither did I when I forgot to save before inspecting that crack in the back wall and fell into Goblin Cave with no warning whatsoever. :( I was out of potions and out of HP with no good save to revert to. That was entirely my fault, though. I'll take the blame for that one.
So it's on to play through number 3. I'll get it this time for sure! Aaaand the Ogre body slammed me like Incredible Hulk suplexing a baby panda bear. Again, this was probably my fault for not proper timing of potion chugging and lack of the right items. But even though I didn't stand a chance to get past the second floor of the dungeon before my 1 hour play time was up, it was still a blast. The battles are what did it for me. They were balanced nearly perfect with the player skills, level, and limited items. Each fight you had to stay completely aware of how hard those little slimes were smashing you with their... slimy... slime or whatever slimes hit you with. If you try to speed through it, as I did, you will get pwned (Thanks Pure Pwnage). And I like the choice of a class at the beginning of a game. Not really sure of the long-term consequences of the different classes as I didn't get too far into the game before my time was up.
The originality just isn't really there. I've seen games with the "finish this floor in order to reach the next" quite a few times. Diablo, Dungeon Siege, etc. And, unfortunately I didn't see a whole lot of creativity. There isn't any really clever use of the standard assets, no new mechanics, standard RPG town layout and premise. The card thing was a start to something creative but I never did see anything come to fruition with that, which very well may be after my 1 hour of gameplay however.
But the battles WERE very engaging and thought out and fun. I enjoyed swinging away at those stupid goblins and using Fury Slashes and just watching those slimes drop one by one. And I can definitely see some replayability as different classes.
So in conclusion, I'm giving Dungeon 2 clouds!
