[projectaon] Re: Joe Dever's Lone Wolf in Humble Bundle
- From: "Iain Smith" <dmarc-noreply@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> (Redacted sender "iainsmith@xxxxxxxxx" for DMARC)
- To: "projectaon@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <projectaon@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>, "jfs@xxxxxxxxxxxx" <jfs@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 11 Aug 2014 00:45:23 -0700
I think that the fact that you can't skip back to an earlier decision makes you
think more about the consequences. For example, releasing the prisoner from the
Sheriff's office results affects two encounters later: one with a negative
result, and another with a positive result.
As in the gamebooks, Healing is pretty much mandatory. The skill reduces the
chance of an encounter while resting, plus can be used in combat to refill your
health and endurance bars, at the cost of Kai power.
Typical combat for me was:
Hit with Somerswerd.
Hit with conventional weapons until your endurance is exhausted.
Use healing (refills endurance bar).
Resume hitting enemies until your "turn" ends.
Later in the game there are some really powerful monsters which can easily kill
you, even if fully prepared, so you'll find yourself making use of the "Restart
Combat" option quite a lot. Oh, and using "Sixth Sense" during combat allows
you to dodge enemy attacks for a short time (I only figured that out recently).
I also finished Acts 1 and 2. Act 3 isn't available on the Humble Bundle
version yet (the Google Play version added Act 3 last week), but should
hopefully be added soon.
Overall, it's a pretty good game. Not perfect, but far from the bland licence
cash-in it could have been.
Iain.
________________________________
From: Javier Fernández-Sanguino Peña <jfs@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: projectaon@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Monday, 11 August 2014, 1:08
Subject: [projectaon] Re: Joe Dever's Lone Wolf in Humble Bundle
On Wed, Aug 06, 2014 at 03:53:51PM +0200, Javier Fernandez-Sanguino wrote:
> It is a 500+ MB download, and I have just played it briefly, but looks
> awesome in my Android Tablet (Google Nexus 10). I don't like the combat
> mechanism, it deviates from the books quite a bit. However, maybe its more
> suitable to newer generations and I'm just too old school.
I've just finished the game (both Acts I and II), it took me close to 10
hours I believe.
I had fun playing the game but I have mixed feelings about it.
Here are some details:
- at the beginning of the game you select Kai disciplines, as with the LW
books. Kai disciplines are used sometimes throughout the story, but they
can be used in combat (all of them).
Interestingly the most times they seem to be used is right *before* a
combat to tip the balance in your favor (for example, to damage or stun
enemies)
- The character sheet also includes some RPG-like values: intelligence,
strength and dexterity, which affect your stats (Health, Endurance, Kai
Power)
- the game plays like a gamebook, the story is written on a side and you take
decissions which affect the story. You can go backwards in the book to
see all the story you have "written" but you cannot go "back in time" as
the savegame only keeps your stats in the last checkpoint.
- the game presents you a map and, in some cases, you use the map to decide
which route to take and what places to investigate.
- you start up with some items and find new items throughout the story.
Some items can be used (i.e. consumables like potions, food), some items
are weapons (including range weapons and their ammunition), some are
wearables (rings, necklaces..) that improve your stats, and some
others are "resources"
- you use resources to upgrade weapons and some items (such as the
backpack). Upgrades take place in "merchants" and an upgrade item is
improved vs. a non-upgraded (more damage points)
- the number of items you can carry is limited by the "slots" of your
backpack and other "bags" you find (each type of bag has a number of
slots you can use).
- all monster fights are in real time, with some time (measured in a bar
that empties) for your actions and some time for the monster's. In a
fight you can:
+ use a Kai discipline (each one has different effects)
+ use a ranged weapon
+ use the Sommerswerd (a "special" attack)
+ use a weapon-based effect (each weapons, and even shields have
different effects)
In order to "succeed" in fight actions you have to do some on screen
gestures (tapping, drawing a shape) in a limited time.
- there are three "power bars" mostly relevant in fights: health,
endurance, and Kai power. Using a weapon (save for ranged ones) uses up
endurance, and Kai disciplines and the Sommerwerd use up Kai power.
- The consumables (which the games lets you use up any time, even right
*before* a combat) let you replenish the health, endurance and Power.
- The more you use attacks and the Sommerswerd (in combat) the more
"experienced" you get with them. In some cases the effect of the attack
changes.
- Some items (weapons, armors) have a durability. If they get banged in
combat their durability decreases and the effect (protection, damage)
decreases too.
- There are some "merchants" you can find along the way that can repair
broken items and upgrade them (with resources). They also sell you
consumables and resources (they seem to have an unlimited supply, as long
as you have gold to buy!)
- The game includes a Grimoire that includes quest information, information
about locations and about relevant people.
- When you finish a "chapter" in an Act the character "levels up". To level
up the game reviews your decissions in the chapter (what options did you
chose to overcome the situations) and increases some of the base stats
(strength, intelligence and dexterity)
You can find a full review here:
http://www.hardcoredroid.com/joe-devers-lone-wolf-review/
and
http://www.pockettactics.com/reviews/review-joe-devers-lone-wolf/
There are also some videos up at Youtube shoing the gameplay, for example this
one:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tm4-57dtDJU
Now, for my impressions:
- the story is OK, but it lacks the depth I found in the Lone Wolf
gamebooks.
- There is *quite* a lot of combat. And the enemies are quite powerful
(as compare to you), you will find that, in normal difficulty, you have
to redo many times a combat in order to get the strategy "right"
and win.
Of the hours I have invested in the game most of them feel like they were
combat-related.
In addition, most of the game situations derive into combat (whatever
your previous actions or decissions). Granted, the story takes place in a
town (and later a forest) that is infected by Giaks, but, for me, it was
just too much combat and too little story.
- use of the Kai disciplines out of combat is sparse
- there are only a few decissions that affect the whole story
- you can wonder around the map (backtrace steps) and you will find
"wandering" monsters around that give you loot. You can upgrade
your weapons and armor, but it is quite difficult to do so (few money,
scarse resources). I'm not sure if the developer's intentions where
you going up and down (forwards/backwards) the road until you've fought
enough that you can "upgrade" items.
- graphics (in combat) are impressive: when a monster or Lone Wolf does
something this is played as a cinematic. However, after a while its
tiring and repetitive.
- combat is unbalanced (did I say there is a lot of combat?) sometimes the
monsters will attack you in your "turn" when you are making decissions.
Also, since the character moves the "hot spots" to select actions move
too (the sword hand for example). This is very annoying when you are
time-constrained since the program does not always catch your action.
The time-constrain also applies when a radial menu opens to select an
action. So you have to act *very* fast.
For the money it costs I think it is a good deal. It has some quirks, but it
is worth a try!
I just hope than in future Acts they reduce a little bit the combat and focus
more on the storytelling and the decissions.
Best regards
Javier
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