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[ironcreed]

Played through the demo twice more tonight. Once on the 360 and once again on the PS3. This honestly is one of the most addictive and fun to play games I have played in quite awhile. It is like the more you play it, the more you can feel and see just how alive and immersive the world is.

On top of that, there is a fun as hell combat system in the very kind of RPG that I love to play. Whereas that is normally where they fall flat. In short, not only does it get a lot of the little things right, but it also nails the most important aspect that most open world role playing games fail to do without also stripping it of what actually makes it an RPG in the process.

Speaking of the open world, I am starting to appreciate this more focused structure design. While I still love the less orderly and wide-open (Bethesda) approach, I feel that this more focused direction has a sense of order to it that sort of directly encourages you to take it all in and puts a stronger overall emphasis on where you are at any given time. In which case, I honestly think this will cause people to savor each region all the more. Given the size of the game, it just makes more sense to me.

 

[Snapshot King]

I do not have a PS3. But where does someone who develops the game say that? In a FAQ or forum post? I don't base observations like that on a demo of software.

Developer? Nowhere, to my knowledge. I'm the one who's saying it, I can see it with my eyes, it's clear as day when they're side by side. Also, resolution isn't something that changes this far into development. Im not sure, but I imagine that's one of your nigh on initial decisions.

 

[SafeinSound]

So, I really did not follow this game at all until this thread. I've lightly skimmed over some of the posts in this thread. I actually downloaded the demo on Steam the day it came out, but really wasn't feeling it for PC and it didn't look/run all that great considering my computer has been acting up lately (think my gpu might be going).

Anyway, I downloaded the demo about a week ago, but also bought Skyrim about a week ago too, so I really haven't been interested in playing the demo up until tonight. All I have to say is, Wow. I don't think I'm even going to end up beating the demo, because I am so shocked at how good this demo/game is that I want that shock factor to keep coming after I make my purchase.

This game went from being no where on my radar to pretty much a day one buy right now.

Does anyone know if there is new game+ in the final build or if we'll be able to explore the world and so on after you beat it?


HYPED.

 

[Lonesome_Raod]

The demo has done wonders I believe. A few of my friends who weren't following this in the slightest are now on board for day 1 and my friend is having to buy two copies because his wife is also hooked

 

[SafeinSound]

Seriously. This is how you make a demo.

 

[ElyrionX]

Really really excited for this game and that rarely happens these days. To think this game wasn't even on my radar before the demo.

The combat of this game is what really draws me in. Lots of people around here compare it to God of War but to do that is an insult to Reckoning, IMO, because I think GoW has terribly shallow combat which I utterly detest. Reckoning's combat engine ain't no DMC or Ninja Gaiden but it has a deep ability and Fate system backing it up, providing for so many ways to customize your approach to battles. The fantastic loot system also adds another layer of depth to the combat as different weapons have different attributes, widening your customization options.

Very impressive, on the whole, and it certainly caught me off-guard. I hope this will be a massive success for the devs.

 

[Astra]

Whenever I have dreams about games they are like 100% random. A few nights ago I had a dream about Rygar. Fuck, I haven't played that game in at least a decade.

That sounds like me. Not long ago I had a dream about Wind Waker and the movie Gladiator. Not sure how the hell those two got into my dream, but it was me and a group of other gladiators fighting the Helmaroc King. Good times.

 

[Valnen]

Curt Schilling has his finger on the pulse of the industry. This right here proves he "gets it" and knows all the right moves to make this a success. I've never seen so many good ideas in one place.

I've known this about him for a long time, and have been looking forward to his first game for quite awhile. It's why I shake my head at the skeptics in this thread that praise a shit game like Skyrim but have reservations about this game.

 

[CecilRousso]

I've known this about him for a long time, and have been looking forward to his first game for quite awhile. It's why I shake my head at the skeptics in this thread that praise a shit game like Skyrim but have reservations about this game.

So you attack what you think is excessive criticism against this game, with excessive criticism against Skyrim? Nice.

 

[Atruvius]

Does anyone know if there is new game+ in the final build or if we'll be able to explore the world and so on after you beat it?


HYPED.

There are quests that appear only after finishing the main quest. That's what the devs said when asked about NG+.

 

[Daante]

Okay this game was completely under my radar until this thread showed up.

What are the odds that i will like this considering the facts that i played Wow for 5 years, and LOVED both Demons and Dark Souls? (at work so cant download the demo, yet)

 

[Astra]

Okay this game was completely under my radar until this thread showed up.

What are the odds that i will like this considering the facts that i played Wow for 5 years, and LOVED both Demons and Dark Souls? (at work so cant download the demo, yet)

I never played WoW, so I couldn't tell you, there. As for Souls, this game is nothing at all like those. Still, KoA is looking to be a fantastic experience. Definitely head over to the official site and forums and check out some of the media and such. Demo is pretty good, but it's an old build, and a little buggy. You're also limited to the very first area of the game, and doesn't really show a fraction of what the full game has to offer.

 

[acm2000]

man, this demo looks like a launch game, horrible art style, terrible basic modelling/texturing, and gameplay was generic as hell, at least it ran quite smoothly i guess

 

[PepsimanVsJoe]

Man I want this game so bad already. I actually had a dream about it XD

When I play a game too much I can't even sleep.
For example an online FPS, I close my eyes and see several guys running around with guns.
Gotta shoot those bastards dammit...

 

[Oblivionmancer]

I've played the demo twice, and found it pretty enjoyable, but I feel like the combat is in a weird limbo between rpg jank and legitimate action game standard. The way that well timed blocking or dodging is often made impossible by the way you are trapped in attack animations is kind of a turn off. I'd really like to be able to cancel into defensive maneuvers on command, and would happily turn the game up to hard on release if I could. As it is, it seems mostly like I just jam the x button and hope to stagger enemies until death, because if they attack and I haven't taken a defensive posture before they begin, specifically instead of attacking, I'm just going to have to take the hits.

Also, that fire spell that you lock on and then detonate, how the fuck does it work. It seems like it's completely at random when I'm actually able to detonate on the enemies I've tagged with it.

Still think I'll pick the game up at or near release, but the combat thus far seems more shallow than I was hoping for.

I'm not really getting the complaints on the art, it's pretty spare but I think it looks pretty good.

What does bother me is the situations when the game fails to properly telegraph the walls of its world; one stream I can swim through with no trouble, the next is an impassible barrier, with no obvious difference between the two, except maybe a six inch drop-off from the edge of the stream to the water. Really blatant invisible walls. I don't need to be able to derp my way up every mountain like in Skyrim, but a little consistency would be nice.

 

[Lonesome_Raod]

Of course the combat is going to feel a little lest than spectacular to begin with. I think it's fine but when you have barely unlocked any of the move and ability list it's hardly going to be fireworks and cartwheels is it.

 

[Finaika]

man, this demo looks like a launch game, horrible art style, terrible basic modelling/texturing, and gameplay was generic as hell, at least it ran quite smoothly i guess

How can the gameplay be generic?

 

[Lonesome_Raod]

Generic is just that word people throw around when they want to criticize a game but haven't the vocabulary to correctly get across what they want to say. It's overused and often incorrectly.

 

[Klyka]

I've played the demo twice, and found it pretty enjoyable, but I feel like the combat is in a weird limbo between rpg jank and legitimate action game standard. The way that well timed blocking or dodging is often made impossible by the way you are trapped in attack animations is kind of a turn off. I'd really like to be able to cancel into defensive maneuvers on command, and would happily turn the game up to hard on release if I could. As it is, it seems mostly like I just jam the x button and hope to stagger enemies until death, because if they attack and I haven't taken a defensive posture before they begin, specifically instead of attacking, I'm just going to have to take the hits.

Also, that fire spell that you lock on and then detonate, how the fuck does it work. It seems like it's completely at random when I'm actually able to detonate on the enemies I've tagged with it.

Still think I'll pick the game up at or near release, but the combat thus far seems more shallow than I was hoping for.

I'm not really getting the complaints on the art, it's pretty spare but I think it looks pretty good.

What does bother me is the situations when the game fails to properly telegraph the walls of its world; one stream I can swim through with no trouble, the next is an impassible barrier, with no obvious difference between the two, except maybe a six inch drop-off from the edge of the stream to the water. Really blatant invisible walls. I don't need to be able to derp my way up every mountain like in Skyrim, but a little consistency would be nice.

If you just press the button, you will shoot out the flame and attach it t up to 3 enemies.
Then, when you have enough mana (this is important) a prompt will show up in the bottom left asking you to hold down the ability button to detonate.

 

[NoirVisage]

Generic is just that word people throw around when they want to criticize a game but haven't the vocabulary to correctly get across what they want to say. It's overused and often incorrectly.

very well put, bravo.

 

[ZeMMiK]

demo gave me a good impression. likes the combatsystem.
Art style...mmmm, will give it a try but not on day 1.

 

[acm2000]

How can the gameplay be generic?

mash x to win?

 

[Aaron]

mash x to win?

What tutorial section of game isn't this?

 

[NoirVisage]

mash x to win?

thats not generic, thats braindead.

 

[BrettWeir]

mash x to win?

That's like saying "I played Street Fighter for the first time. I beat the CPU by just using the jab button. What a terrible game".

It's a demo, at the beginning level. There are combos there that involve more than just "mashing X". It will get more complex as you progress. This is apparent even at level 3 in the demo.

 

[Klyka]

I needed to press buttons to make things happen on the screen, what a generic mess.

 

[NEOPARADIGM]

I don't like how the left stick moves the camera. Controls like GTA IV.

 

[Naeblish]

I don't care what you guys say, if i press a button, something awesome happens!

 

[ParityBit]

I'm amazed at how quickly this thread turned from "OMG GAME SUCKS!" to "I am having dreams and preordered 5 copies!"

No I did not have a dream, but I did preorder the game and guide Perfect timing for releasing the game also! Superbowl and football finishes for the year, in the middle of dog days of Winter!

 

[Lonesome_Raod]

Nothing amazing about it. A great game with a passionate development team behind it deserves to do well

 

[Hambone]

When I first tried the demo on the Xbox360 I wasn't too impressed, I didn't really dislike it, the game just didn't click with me. The controls felt awkward, the camera too close, the "wow-ish" graphics, and that interface left me feeling rather meh.

I did like the combat, the character creator, the class skills , and the lore, so I decided to try the game out on Steam. My aging computer runs the game max settings no problems, and the on-the-fly switching between keyboard+mouse and Xbox controller is awesome. Played through the tutorial, and was a little more impressed this time as I guess the game just started clicking with me, but still undecided on my purchase.

Had a hankering to try the game again (went back to the 360), and play the open world part, but taking my time. This time I just went exploring, found nice treasure caches in hidden coves, listened more to the NPCs and the the story lines for the quests, and found the combat a lot more engaging (stealth build w\daggers and bow) when I actually read the skills descriptions. After this play through: hyped.

I'm leaning Steam for the nicer graphics, so I can connect my pc to my TV, and use my wireless 360 controller from my comfy couch.

 

[scy]

mash x to win?

I've come to the realization that comments like this are not a sleight against the game but just proof that people do stupid things. You choosing to dumb it down through the game is not very reflective of the actual game itself.

 

[Klyka]

Anyone want to speculate on lore/story?

Spoiler

So basically, I have this theory that your Fateless One is not really a mortal soul reborn, but is actually the soul of a god in a mortal body. That would explain why he has no fate and why he can unravel the threads of fate. The Fateweaver even says only the gods can do so (when he sees you in Reckoning mode).
Now, which god is he? I think he is a new god. Remember how the Tuatha apparently have a "new dark god" beneath their palace? Now what if in the world of Amalur, gods always come in two? In opposites? Fire and Water, Dark and Light, etc.. So the Tuatha somehow create this new god for themselves which ALSO creates you as his opposite. But the Well of Souls, for whatever reason, takes your godly energy and puts it into the body of some random dead mortal. Hence why you also have amnesia. Now, people in the world might recognize your body from the past, but inside you are a totally different being.

 

[Fine Ham Abounds]

Personally I like how this went from "whodawha, never heard of it, EA = fail" one month to a 23 page thread just for its demo the next.

 

[Lonesome_Raod]

On my latest run through the demo I found some pretty cool black/orange finesse armour. Looked pretty sweet.

 

[Sathsquatch]

I've come to the realization that comments like this are not a sleight against the game but just proof that people do stupid things. You choosing to dumb it down through the game is not very reflective of the actual game itself.

I don't even think that's true in many of the game's battles. I don't think you could beat a large group of kobolds or the second boss (in the house of ballads quest] by just mashing x.

Also, some people are complaining that you cannot cancel into your block. You can actual cancel some of the first attacks in your combo chain into defense. You cannot cancel you special abilities or the finishers in your combo into blocking. I think this is way better than letting you cancel every attack into blocking so that it makes you think about when you should attack. If performing an attack is going to leave you vulnerable to a counterattack, then you should wait for your opportunity or maneuver into a better position that will leave you less exposed.

People cannot complain that the game is too simple and complain that it punishes you for making mistakes (such as attacking when you are leaving yourself open to counter attacks). Those criticisms cannot both be true because forcing the player to take these kinds of factors into consideration is one of the things that gives this game depth.

 

[Baconsammy]

I've known this about him for a long time, and have been looking forward to his first game for quite awhile. It's why I shake my head at the skeptics in this thread that praise a shit game like Skyrim but have reservations about this game.

But some of us are capable of liking one game without automatically feeling like we have to hate another. I spent 100 hours in Skyrim and loved it for what it is. I hope I feel the same about Amalur after 100 hours.

 

[Atruvius]

Anyone want to speculate on lore/story?

Spoiler

So basically, I have this theory that your Fateless One is not really a mortal soul reborn, but is actually the soul of a god in a mortal body. That would explain why he has no fate and why he can unravel the threads of fate. The Fateweaver even says only the gods can do so (when he sees you in Reckoning mode).
Now, which god is he? I think he is a new god. Remember how the Tuatha apparently have a "new dark god" beneath their palace? Now what if in the world of Amalur, gods always come in two? In opposites? Fire and Water, Dark and Light, etc.. So the Tuatha somehow create this new god for themselves which ALSO creates you as his opposite. But the Well of Souls, for whatever reason, takes your godly energy and puts it into the body of some random dead mortal. Hence why you also have amnesia. Now, people in the world might recognize your body from the past, but inside you are a totally different being.

Fateless one was raised from the dead. When he died his fate ended too.

 

[Lonesome_Raod]

I don't get the button mashing complaints either. Even a wolf pack can tear you up pretty well if all you do is just hammer away at the attack button.

 

[BrettWeir]

How are you people finding blues/golds? I put all points into Detect Hidden, and still have the same result as if there were no points invested in the skill.....

 

[Baconsammy]

I don't get the button mashing complaints either. Even a wolf pack can tear you up pretty well if all you do is just hammer away at the attack button.

Yeah, go fight the Wild Thresh just pushing X. Enjoy resurrecting over and over.

 

[Dr. Kitty Muffins]

Ooof, superbowl is a badddd idea I think. I know they're trying to grab that Skyrim audience, but that is a ve-hery costly experiment. And as much as I love how Reckoning is turning out, I just don't think it will have as positive of an effect as they're hoping.

I dunno. Sometimes Super Bowl Ads fizzle but most of the time they lead to a hype train. Sometimes that train leads to disappointment and, in those cases, the ads were misleading or the product wasn't very good. Companies have been ruined that way. If they do an ad the right way, I think it will lead to a game that builds in sales for a few months unlike most games that decline after the 1st month. Looking back several months from now, we may be calling this game a blockbuster.

I trust the ads will show off the high level combat skills not seen in the demo.

 

[Maleficence]

I really want them to show off the camera improvements so I can decide if I will buy the game or not.

 

[scy]

I don't even think that's true in many of the game's battles. I don't think you could beat a large group of kobolds or the second boss (in the house of ballads quest] by just mashing x.

You can with a lot of potion use (both regular and regens). But, yeah, it doesn't seem like it's something I'd expect to be able to do throughout the entire game.

Also, some people are complaining that you cannot cancel into your block. You can actual cancel some of the first attacks in your combo chain into defense.

The way that they put it is that you can always cancel up the chain (regular -> specials -> spells) with block being a cancel option for the lower priority things (i.e., you can do it on regular attacks but not the final swing). The explanation was rather nice and it works really well as a general risk/reward combat system. And all the better that it seems every build has a block -> special ability so you're rewarded more for it.

People cannot complain that the game is too simple and complain that it punishes you for making mistakes (such as attacking when you are leaving yourself open to counter attacks). Those criticisms cannot both be true because forcing the player to take these kinds of factors into consideration is one of the things that gives this game depth.

Which is what I was getting at with the comment. A lot of "mash X to win!" is down to the player just forgoing the combat system or whatever mechanics are involved and choosing to do so. You can "mash X to win" in a lot of games and I'd fault the player for forgoing the system rather than faulting the mechanics. I'd love it if mashing X to win just wasn't flat out possible, sure, but I'm fine with just using the deeper system by my choice.

How are you people finding blues/golds? I put all points into Detect Hidden, and still have the same result as if there were no points invested in the skill.....

The House of Ballads quest is probably where. I got a set piece (Gold) on one of my runs through there. Knowing my laziness of searching things, Detect Hidden for treasure spotting will probably be a staple of my builds

 

[ii Stryker]

Haven't had a chance to delve into yesterdays live stream.

I'd really like to know how the saving and death mechanics work in the game and what the level cap is.

I've played the demo about a dozen times and I love what I've played. The demo barely scratches the surface the depth of the combat and lore KoA:R has to offer.

two weeks...get hype!

Who's doing the OT?

Detect Hidden for treasure spotting will probably be a staple of my builds

QFT

I can't see me playing the game without maxing out this skill first.

 

[Baconsammy]

Haven't had a chance to delve into yesterdays live stream.

I'd really like to know how the saving and death mechanics work in the game and what the level cap is.

I've played the demo about a dozen times and I love what I've played. The demo barely scratches the surface the depth of the combat and lore KoA:R has to offer.

two weeks...get hype!

Who's doing the OT?

Live stream flaked out and rather than fix it they shut it down. During the stream the guy died and the menu that popped up looked similar to other RPGs where you're given the choice to load an old save or an auto-save point.

Level cap is 40.

 

[Lonesome_Raod]

Death is met with a load last save option and level cap is 40 I believe.

 

[matmanx1]

man, this demo looks like a launch game, horrible art style, terrible basic modelling/texturing, and gameplay was generic as hell, at least it ran quite smoothly i guess

You are of course entitled to your opinion but I disagree with pretty much all of it. I think the simplistic more cartoony look is a very deliberate design choice. To me it looks similar to WoW without completely copying that aesthetic and in particular I think the monster design is inspired. There's a little bit of sillyness and something whimsical about the overall look but there's also a harder, bloodier edge that WoW can't get away with.

The combat starts simply but there's depth and breadth in the variety of options and the way you can mix and match styles and weapons. I think the God of War comparison is a favorable one but God of War never had crafting, talent trees or a system that allowed you to tailor your fighting style and abilities to your tastes.

I think it's accurate to say that KoA is derivative but as long as it's derived from good stock and improves on those things it was derived from (and so far it seems like it does) then being derivative is not a bad thing.

 

[ii Stryker]

Live stream flaked out and rather than fix it they shut it down. During the stream the guy died and the menu that popped up looked similar to other RPGs where you're given the choice to load an old save or an auto-save point.

Level cap is 40.

i noticed camp sites all over so I was wondering if there was a wait and/or sleep mechanic similar to Bethesda RPG's and if the auto save works in the same manner i.e auto save before or after every load screen.

Because of the better combat I actually cared more about NOT dying in KoAR then in a bethesda RPG.

 

[moop1167]

Where is the House of Ballads quest again? I'm sure it's been answered before. I explored as much as I could in 45 minutes and got to a couple places that were closed off for the demo, but didn't seem to get that particular quest.