Bound By Flame - Review @ RPGamer

Couchpotato

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RPGamer posted a new review for Bound By Flame, and they call the game bad. If you want to know the score it was 2/5. Here is their reason for the low score.

It's with a bit of heavy heart that I write this Bound by Flame review. After seeing some encouraging progress made by Spiders in Mars: War Logs, hopes were high that the trend would continue and result in a game that, while unlikely to be spectacular, would at least provide a solid experience. Unfortunately, except for a bit of polish, things are stagnated at best, and coupled with a considerably less engaging story and world than the previous effort, it's hard to come away as anything but disappointed.
More information.
 
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It seems so strange to release a game like this. No doubt a lot of time and money was spent to get it to this point but it seems to be lacking important things. It's painfully obvious that things like combat are especially bad.

The amount of work they've done on it is huge relatively compared to how much more it would have taken to make it a good product. It's comparable to an automaker making a good car but completely neglecting to put wheels or suspension on it, instead of doing that last relatively small bit of work they just went "screw it, ship it anyway". It's bizarre.

I can't believe that the final product was up to standards, though if it was whoever envisioned it being the way it is should be replaced and they should move onto something they might be good at.
 
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I'm only at the very beginning. I like there art style. I do not like the intense contrast in sun and shadow. Sunlit ground can look blown-out white next to inky black shadow. I can see what they're going for, but its overdone to the point where you can't see much of anything in some places.
 
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I stopped after just 3 hours of game because I'm distracted by other stuff and didn't play anything for probably 10 days now. :(
Dunno about overall contrast, but for interesting spots (to loot, break or something) marked with eyehurting glittering dust are not the best solution. The color is too similar to background and other random effects, they should have used a different one.
 
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It seems so strange to release a game like this. No doubt a lot of time and money was spent to get it to this point but it seems to be lacking important things. It's painfully obvious that things like combat are especially bad.

The combat isn't bad. It's a bit hard to learn, but just that. Once you get used to it it's quite enjoyable. The game has its flaws but the combat isn't one of them.
Also the game doesn't deserve a 2/5, IMO.
 
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Unless a game is utter trash I can't take anyone's review seriously except possibly some people around here who have the same tastes in games as me. If you look at each of these "bad" reviews separately, each one is praising and damning different things. One reviewer hates the combat calling it "tedious" Another likes the combat but hates the story. Another claims highly polished and this reviewer said there is a lack of polish. Which is it? Really?

The knock on it to me is I don't really like the 3d effect in conjunction with cel shading. Other then that, I like it a lot. After all, Couch played it twice in a row.
 
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After all, Couch played it twice in a row.
Yes I did and I enjoyed playing it. ;)

Though I recommend waiting for a Steam Sale if you haven't bought it yet.
 
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One reviewer hates the combat calling it "tedious". Another likes the combat but hates the story. Another claims highly polished and this reviewer said there is a lack of polish.

Well, it seems that combat is harder than average ARPG nowadays which is usually unfavorable. Unless your game is Dark Souls of course…
But I didnt play it.


I wonder what do you think about gameplay style on this video. I mean those who play the game. Reviewer on this video also claims that combat system is bad. But his style is extremely static - he stays in block for a long time and lets enemies surround him. Its seems really lame so I wonder if your combat style is similar (probably not). Combat begins around 7:00:
http://games.tiscali.cz/tv/gamesplay-bound-by-flame-16186

Note - its not english video so most of you wont understand it, but maybe its better that way. They are not nice to the game.
 
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I didn't play the game long enough to say something definetly but I definetly did not play like that. Block+hit works when against just one opponent. Some are tricky so you'll want to run behind them and backstab instead of blocking.
When against two or more mobs forget bloody blocking - run around and use ranged weapon/spells! Also some mobs that appear unbelievably tough to kill will instadie if you lure them onto a trap you can set during a fight (example: ghosts). Those traps are "expensive" so you better not use them on puny skeletons.
In ranger stance that I didn't really use much, you can't block anyway. :)

The whole problem is that all those reviewers seem to think you should be able to kill something with just one sword hit. In Bound by Flame you can't do that. This game is not a usual MMO crap. You have to think and use different stuff to win.

Honestly I can't say anything about combat later in the game, but earlygame it's hard even on normal. You don't want a challenge? Don't buy this game.

Did I hear Dark Souls?
Whatever you think or are trying to say, in Bound by Flame you can't grind your way to success. Hopefully I'll soon get enough time to continue the game so I can write more (precise).
But the game, at least early, is much better than 2/5.
 
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I didn't play the game long enough to say something definetly but I definetly did not play like that. Block+hit works when against just one opponent. Some are tricky so you'll want to run behind them and backstab instead of blocking.
When against two or more mobs forget bloody blocking - run around and use ranged weapon/spells! Also some mobs that appear unbelievably tough to kill will instadie if you lure them onto a trap you can set during a fight (example: ghosts). Those traps are "expensive" so you better not use them on puny skeletons.
In ranger stance that I didn't really use much, you can't block anyway. :)

The whole problem is that all those reviewers seem to think you should be able to kill something with just one sword hit. In Bound by Flame you can't do that. This game is not a usual MMO crap. You have to think and use different stuff to win.

Honestly I can't say anything about combat later in the game, but earlygame it's hard even on normal. You don't want a challenge? Don't buy this game.

Did I hear Dark Souls?
Whatever you think or are trying to say, in Bound by Flame you can't grind your way to success. Hopefully I'll soon get enough time to continue the game so I can write more (precise).
But the game, at least early, is much better than 2/5.

Enemies in bound by flame respawn after 1 in game day, so you can grind endlessly and much more successfully grind in bound by flame because levels matter much more.

In dark souls, while you can grind souls to level you have a good chance of losing them which discourages grinding. Even if you do grind levels it's pretty much pointless as a level 1 guy could beat a level 100 guy so grinding is possible but grinding to success, not so much.

So sorry joxer, grinding in bound by flame is much easier and more effective than in dark souls, but I'm sure you already know that since you've played them both and aren't speaking from a position of ignorance.

I would agree with the reviewer that said the combat is tedious. They are not hard but they take forever. So you run around taking whacks and stabs at several enmities over and over.

I played both of orcs and men and mars war logs and enjoyed them. I'm hoping they release a patch to change the pacing and balance of combat.
 
I said I didn't play much and were writing about early game.
Dunno how to move time for a day to force respawns. If later the game works like that then it doesn't deserve 2/5. It deserves 1/5.

And I didn't nor will ever play Dark Souls. I've never heard it's not a grinder. As such I'm using it and will continue to use it as an example of a grinder.
 
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I said I didn't play much and were writing about early game.
Dunno how to move time for a day to force respawns. If later the game works like that then it doesn't deserve 2/5. It deserves 1/5.

And I didn't nor will ever play Dark Souls. I've never heard it's not a grinder. As such I'm using it and will continue to use it as an example of a grinder.

You can grind in dark souls , it's just not an effective way to play it. Skill level trumps character level so being a very high level offers very little benefit.

Why don't you use a game you actually played as an example of a grinder. Then you could be speaking from a position of knowledge. When you continually bash games you know nothing about you lose credibility, if you care.

I know you haven't and won't play dark souls. it's obvious every time you post about it.
 
Sakichop,joxer- you are both partially correct.

DS2 has started to bore me and I'll tell you why. Do you need to grind to level and kill stuff? Yes and no. You NEED to level certain stats to use specific gear and weapons. And yes, people will say "You can finish it at level 1" which is technically true, but completely implausible for a new or new-ish player. Even with super fighting skills, you can still get ambushed and mobbed and die, forcing you to replay the same areas multiple times. You CANNOT over level and start beating bosses or mini bosses easily. You can be killed by anything at any time.

What gets boring is that it's repetitive. You triumph through a level, beat the boss(es), only to move onto the next level… to do the EXACT same thing. Even more sso as you progress in level, because you become more specialized as you get higher in level. So I go from killing XXXs in a cave setting, to killing YYYs in a forest setting, to killing ZZZs in a castle setting with water, etc. It's a steady learning process more than a grind. You remember shortcuts, or where ambushes are, etc., and combined with brutal combat, you make your way through XXX setting, find the boss and kill it. Repeat.

Gets boring to me after 20+ hours or so.

Yes, there are NPCs, but mostly it's hit Talk over and over until they run out of dialog. You can buy stuff from them, or later you can summon them near boss fights.

Yes, awesome combat simulator. Yes, amazing varied move sets, huge array of different weapons, etc. Yes you can spec all different ways, look really weird, etc. But it's almost 100% a move through the maze, killing things until you kill a big thing, then repeat. It's almost MORE about memorizing the maze/path vs. having a hard time killing things.

I haven't done much PvP except for an odd invasion here or there. After 20+ hours in DS2, I have not been invaded by another human once, just the pre-programmed NPCs. I don't have much opinion on the PvP, but I'm getting bored with PvE to the point that I may never get there. I'm just past Sinner's Rise, BTW.

Yes there's good design, interesting (though frankly opaque) lore. I just wish it had more RP to go along with the repetitive killing.
 
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Sakichop,joxer- you are both partially correct.

DS2 has started to bore me and I'll tell you why. Do you need to grind to level and kill stuff? Yes and no. You NEED to level certain stats to use specific gear and weapons. And yes, people will say "You can finish it at level 1" which is technically true, but completely implausible for a new or new-ish player. Even with super fighting skills, you can still get ambushed and mobbed and die, forcing you to replay the same areas multiple times. You CANNOT over level and start beating bosses or mini bosses easily. You can be killed by anything at any time.

What gets boring is that it's repetitive. You triumph through a level, beat the boss(es), only to move onto the next level… to do the EXACT same thing. Even more sso as you progress in level, because you become more specialized as you get higher in level. So I go from killing XXXs in a cave setting, to killing YYYs in a forest setting, to killing ZZZs in a castle setting with water, etc. It's a steady learning process more than a grind. You remember shortcuts, or where ambushes are, etc., and combined with brutal combat, you make your way through XXX setting, find the boss and kill it. Repeat.

Gets boring to me after 20+ hours or so.

Yes, there are NPCs, but mostly it's hit Talk over and over until they run out of dialog. You can buy stuff from them, or later you can summon them near boss fights.

Yes, awesome combat simulator. Yes, amazing varied move sets, huge array of different weapons, etc. Yes you can spec all different ways, look really weird, etc. But it's almost 100% a move through the maze, killing things until you kill a big thing, then repeat. It's almost MORE about memorizing the maze/path vs. having a hard time killing things.

I haven't done much PvP except for an odd invasion here or there. After 20+ hours in DS2, I have not been invaded by another human once, just the pre-programmed NPCs. I don't have much opinion on the PvP, but I'm getting bored with PvE to the point that I may never get there. I'm just past Sinner's Rise, BTW.

Yes there's good design, interesting (though frankly opaque) lore. I just wish it had more RP to go along with the repetitive killing.

You're describing my experience with Demon's Souls pretty accurately :)

Some people seem to have a larger tolerance for endless combat with respawning mobs - and don't seem to require much in the way of a reward except a new series of mobs to combat.

The reason I like the action RPG genre, usually, is about a deep and interesting character system with a lot of ways to mix and match skills. Beyond that, the loot system and itemization has to be compelling and not predictable.

Finally, I'm the sort of person who needs some kind of story to drive me forward - and by story I don't mean bits and pieces of dialogue that vaguely fit together.

I don't need a GOOD story - just a story that's delivered well.

While I appreciate the depth of how attributes in the DS games tie into equipment performance - it's just not a very compelling character system. The whole souls XP system is predictable and generic, and it doesn't represent enough of a carrot for me to look forward to the next "level". Not enough toys.

While items have more of a personality in terms of weight, speed and so on - there's just not enough of them - and the crafting system of making weapons +1, +2 and so on is painfully primitive compared to a good loot system, like Diablo 2 - with runewords and what not. I assume it's still this way in DS2?

However, all of these things might be enough if the entire game wasn't so presumptious about how entertaining it is. Problem is that if I'm going to enjoy a limited gameplay horizon - you better not punish me for not being all that invested in your game. Not only is the formula limited and primitive - they also expect the player to care enough to invest himself to a much larger degree than the norm.

This would have been a perfect approach if the reward could match that - but it most certainly can't for me.

Anyway, it's nice to hear I'm not the only one on this board that's tired of this formula.
 
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