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Replaying the game after 6 months...


butterbiscuit88

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...and it's just as good as I remember

 

I know I gushed over it when it first came out, but it's nice to replay it and because of how involved the story is, and all the different capers I missed (or paths I didn't play) the first time around, I still have lots of novelty in addition to replaying the main storyline. It's really fantastic.

 

That's all. I just wanted to let the team & developers know. :)

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  • 4 weeks later...

I have to agree- I have first played the game two months ago, then had a VERY slow progress with it because of other things.

So just some thoughts at this stage of my play through-

 

I have now finished three paths, getting four endings. But I still haven't been able to figure out how to make the most of the capers. I miss a lot of stat bonuses and consequently stat training tends to be slow. The three paths I played I averaged at 70 dream.

 

I went for romance paths to figure out how the game works because I figured I could focus just on the character path and main adventure. In fact I frequently have no time to complete all the side capers. If I do try to solve all the capers, I end up with more stress than stat bonuses since I hurry to get inspirations and raise stats a bit before I get on the capers. That's why I breathe with relief when the rest options are there, they ARE strategically useful to gather inspirations and succesfully get through the rest of the caper.

 

 

On the one hand I technically need capers (not just for the story) because as far as I've noticed they help to expand the main stats categories, allowing stat training to be much more efficient. Higher knowledge usually does make training stats in that category faster I think the best is 7 points per stat...i initially thought it was dependent on characterstics of the location I was currently at so I always wanted to make sure to train stats according to the location I was currently at, like say training awareness in India seems to make sense, just like training poker/ fisticuffs in New York or Australia or language in Egypt. But then I figured it depended more on the core stat. If I had knowledge equalling 40 I would earn more stat pointsthan at knowledge of 26.Too bad, though, the location doesn't seem to matter as much as the core stat, I think it would add to the fun if each location could train stats that couldn;t be trained elswhere, or couldn;t be trained as efficinelty elswhere as in that given location. I also noticed inspirations give more stats later in the game, but then again the difficulty of the capers also increases at the same time. I am strilly trying to figure out how to use all that to my advantage.

 

 

On the other hand, there is a lot more to do than just focus on training stats. And so I am left to wonder whether it's possible at all to complete ALL capers, maximise ALL stats and have a dream at 100. That's what I would want to go for in the final playthrough which will be the family dream. I will have to keep trying. Mind you, I'm still playing using the easy mode.

 

I do like the challenge of trying to achieve just that though, that's where the main advantage of the game mechanics lie, I am more convinced than ever that all this was very well thought-out, and it's really a big plus. It's very rewarding to explore all the options. The capers are mostly fun too and I hate missing out on them. I am making a list of stats required for each on a separate sheet usually, so I think once I have gathered all the info I need will eventually be able to achieve a playthrough as close to perfect as it can get. Really, this game is really absorbing because of this challenge, and I would like to see a similar level of challenge in the next game as well! Though I assume and hope you're going to invent a different game mechanics, something surprising! ;-)

 

As for the stories, I really have to say the game makes me laugh all the time! It's really funny, you take on a few adventure type genres in this game: the mystery/spy, the treasure hunt, the quest for artifactts a la Indiana Jones... the characters are well developed and they feel like characters and not cardboard cut outs.

 

Out of the stories I played through, I remain firm in my preference for Nigel path, since it plays the most like a believeable adventure, and yet still a spoof. Moreover Nigel is a really likeable type, with a a few complexes but generally dependable and likeable nature. The development on that path was really pleasant. I like the intellectual type who has a few suprises up their sleeve (to a semi-comical and semi-romantic effect!) for one thing and for another the issues Nigel has with himself actually hit close to home. He is a lovely character.

 

Sterling path is fun and gives more insights into Ruddy story. The character path that seems a bit overdone for me so far is Roland's. It starts off very well

with all the spying buisness and I gotta say Sadie has a lot of bravado to just waltz into an underground centre of thugs without knowing what that is haha, good one!

but turns to something a bit too bizarre later on, leading to a totally crazy conclusion, even if it's still a funny spoof at the end of the day ...but that's just it, I found it to be a little anti-climatic in the context of the reality of the game and so I felt it was a bit too discordant with the rest, if this makes sense. That and just

maybe artifact market and zombe and possesive spirits are a bit too much too handle for one poor spy.in the course of one year, even if he wasassisted by a beautiful spunky heiress-adventuress-freshman archeologist- trouble lover Sadie with a taste for the occult. He is entitled to early retirement with all that, I say heh.

. At the same time, however, much as it got a little too crazy, it still was funny. I really do like Sadie herself, she is very vivacious.

 

Really, this is proving to be one of the best game purchases I've ever made. The game is very original and fresh for its genre thanks to your skills in bringing it to life. Hours of fun with it. The reading doesn't get tedious at all and I love how many things there are to do. I have a tendency to dislike visual novel- stat raising games in general because they usually tend to get boring and tedious (because they tend to be limited in variety of things to do.) with this game things never get boring. This is a big game and it's totally fun.

 

Even between July 1 and July 14 at the end of the game I satill have things to do

after all Lana would be always happy to have more material to write about, right? ISadie and I wouldn't like to disappoint her. ;-)

 

 

So, to sum up: The setting is fresh, characters well developed and likeable, most of all there is a variety of things to do and a decent challenge to try to tackle. I also really like the random events, they add so much life to the game. I never laugh so much when playing a game, your writing is also very good, you just know how to write in a balanced way: you provide a good balance of the comical and the serious, what is a spoof is also serious, what is not always intended leads to a surprising effect. You add a little romance to it and you really have a full, sparkling and fun adventure. Thanks to this, the game is alive, sparkling and fun. The music also helps to preserve that impression.

 

Trully, I really, really like your style, Black Chicken Studios. I do look forward to the sequel.

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SD;

 

Thanks for great review, we appreciate all the feedback!

 

Just a quite note in regards to:

 

"if each location could train stats that couldn;t be trained elswhere, or couldn;t be trained as efficinelty elswhere"

 

...originally, this in fact the case, but it was changed during beta as it made it *too* difficult for the Players- they really had to be taking good notes and preparing for trips in order to succeed. :)

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