(Updated review after completing 'Cthulhu's Angels' mode)
Even if you can get past the slightly amateurish graphics (and I can), there are a couple of significant flaws with the game. Firstly, the dungeon design is annoying, being convoluted and labyrinthe for the sake of being convoluted and labyrinthe. Secondly, the humor is a bit hit and miss. There are some truly witty touches and some great little references and shoutouts to other media, but there's plenty of dross as well. The humor smacks a bit of throwing whatever at the wall and seeing what sticks - there's plenty to smile at on the wall, but a heap of stuff on the floor around it.
What elevates this game for me is the fact that the devs made a love letter to old-school RPGs but also included plenty of well-considered tweaks to the traditional formula to improve the core experience. The ability to save anywhere and control the random encounter rate after clearing a certain number of battles in a dungeon are welcome, but it's the combat mechanics that really shine. The fact that HP is always fully restored after every battle lightens the resource management aspect, freeing players from the 'disease' of hoarding MP exclusively for cure spells, and the fact that the enemies get stronger with each successive round in battle incentivizes assertive and efficient play in order to win as quickly as possible.
I know it's not for everyone, but anybody looking for an RPG made by RPG gamers for RPG gamers should definitely give this a spin. It's the best $1 game I've ever played, and Rl'yeh great fun. I'll see myself out.
Even if you can get past the slightly amateurish graphics (and I can), there are a couple of significant flaws with the game. Firstly, the dungeon design is annoying, being convoluted and labyrinthe for the sake of being convoluted and labyrinthe. Secondly, the humor is a bit hit and miss. There are some truly witty touches and some great little references and shoutouts to other media, but there's plenty of dross as well. The humor smacks a bit of throwing whatever at the wall and seeing what sticks - there's plenty to smile at on the wall, but a heap of stuff on the floor around it.
What elevates this game for me is the fact that the devs made a love letter to old-school RPGs but also included plenty of well-considered tweaks to the traditional formula to improve the core experience. The ability to save anywhere and control the random encounter rate after clearing a certain number of battles in a dungeon are welcome, but it's the combat mechanics that really shine. The fact that HP is always fully restored after every battle lightens the resource management aspect, freeing players from the 'disease' of hoarding MP exclusively for cure spells, and the fact that the enemies get stronger with each successive round in battle incentivizes assertive and efficient play in order to win as quickly as possible.
I know it's not for everyone, but anybody looking for an RPG made by RPG gamers for RPG gamers should definitely give this a spin. It's the best $1 game I've ever played, and Rl'yeh great fun. I'll see myself out.