PQ:G released

I'm getting frustrated with the DS version ... constant load and save screens ... feels like I'm playing a PSP game!

Nothing like that with the PC version. The only thing I don't like is that the game (more likely, the game's copy porotection) takes complete control of the internet connection for a while. This might be tied to the installer problem, though.

dteowner said:

Nothing like that with the PC version. The only thing I don't like is that the game (more likely, the game's copy porotection) takes complete control of the internet connection for a while. This might be tied to the installer problem, though.

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Haven't found that with the Steam version ... it seems to act normally.

As for load & save, yeah, that is DS specific. And annoying as heck, after playing for a while last night. It is a game I feel like I constantly take two steps forward and three steps back in terms of my opinion ...

Based on the reviews that have gotten posted here, it seems lots of people aren't enjoying this one as much. I'm up to level 45 now, have most of the map opened up, drive a dreadnaught, have 700,000 credits in the bank, and I think I'm in the home stretch of the story.

Overall, I'm not sure this one will get as many replays as the first PQ, but I'm definitely getting my money's worth, IMO.

If anyone has noticed me being absent its largely because of this game.

I'm not sure why the reviews are largely unfavorable (technically average - gamespot review has the average user giving it a 5.5) but I agree with your assessment that I think people seem to think they could just jump into the game or something without the the learning curve necessary (I also think this is not many peoples kind of game (not hardcore) and its gotten a lot more attention after the first one).

The added luck is there and unpreventable if the puzzles were going to made something more complex than Bejeweled. The extra tokens on the playing board and the extra axis make this innevetible - I mean, there's more ways to make a match so more luck is going to happen.

The difference is that this is part of the strategy - por I should say its more important. You can control how much luck happens and its less a factor as you gain skills - or I should say you can control it better. Once you start getting weapons that cause your opponent to miss a turn you end up using more strategy.

What I'm finding is that my instincts are getting better like they do as you get better in chess: your ability to spot potential matches improves, how to play them and then you look for it to line up.

The RPG side of the game has really taken off at this point in the game for me and really outshines the predecessor. Firaxis really went to work on the factions and much of your play revolves around appeasing them and/or surviving when this becomes impossible in many cases for the sake of the story. And its not so linear - or doesn't feel like your getting lead by the nose even when you are.

I mentioned controlled luck earlier and imporved RPG elements. Firaxis has followed the "slow reveal" technique of good RPG design. When rumours become available the Role Adventure really takes off. Luck control becomes even more important with rumours as you try to prevent chance from happening - my guess is many of the early players of the game haven't gotten this far.

And I'm not level 45 yet, just 27.

Most people here seem to be playing Drakensang right now, I'm playing this. Magerette, is there anyone scheduled to do this review yet?

Lucky, I'll probably do one if txa1265 doesn't. I'm planning on getting the game any day now since I finally polished off Eschalon.

Did Infinitive Interactive merge with Firaxis when I wasn't looking? That's Sid Meieir's company isn't it?

yikes, I've played so much Civ that I've mixed the names up. sorry, my mistake.

That's okay--it's nice not to be the one who's forgotten something!

I'm kind of taking the reviews with a grain of salt. I trust you and dte a lot more than I trust the average game reviewer to share a common sense of what is fun to play. Game reviewers seem to be all frustrated and upset that they can't nail the strategy aspect of this game in ten minutes. I think the original Puzzle Quest was every bit as frustrating and unfair if you wanted to dwell on stuff like that--but that wasn't really what the game was about for me.

Have checked it out, but for some reason I cant summon up an interest within myself to play this game. It's the space thing I think.

Love puzzle quest, but this one just doesnt even remotely make me want to play it. Maybe that's a good thing... ='.'=

I kinda beat you to the punch, Lucky.

See here.

magerette said:

Lucky, I'll probably do one if txa1265 doesn't. I'm planning on getting the game any day now since I finally polished off Eschalon.

Did Infinitive Interactive merge with Firaxis when I wasn't looking? That's Sid Meieir's company isn't it?

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What did you think of Eschalon, Magerette? I'm just going to start playing it this weekend.

I do think it bears mentioning that the AI is somewhat retarded. (and somehow I made absolutely no mention of it in my mini-review) Moreso than in the first game. Even that comes back to "seeing the board", though. In the beginning, you just don't realize some of the good moves the AI will pass up, but you notice it more as you gain experience. It may be that the AI seems to like using items quite a bit. To get power for the items, the AI will pass up matching up bombs (the equivalent of skulls) to match colors. Maybe that's a viable strategy, but I sure didn't follow it. There's no real excuse for the AI to pass up lining up two +10's and a +5 in favor of pulling one of those +10's into line with a couple +1's, at least in my book.

I hope there's a patch on the way. Aside from fixing the installer's bad behavior, I'd hope they'd refine the balance a little. Increasing the mine regen from a 3 mine queue to a 10 mine queue would do wonders for shutting down the Beta Centauri ATM and it's excessive influence on factional politics. Tighten up the AI a little. Maybe attempt some sort of rebalance so that small ships are actually useful beyond the early game.

As it stands, I think Galactrix is nearly on par with the first PQ, which is fair praise. With a little more tuning, they could have a serious gem on their hands.

Necrosis said:

What did you think of Eschalon, Magerette? I'm just going to start playing it this weekend.

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I liked it a lot and had a lot of fun with it. I copied dte and did a little write up in our Last Game You Finished thread for your perusing enjoyment and because I like to hear myself talk.

@ dte--well the AI was pretty retarded in the original at times too--I still have yet to beat the @#!$ end boss. Judging by yours and Lucky's comments, I think I'll be able to get into this one even if it isn't quite the same flavor as the first PQ. Do you think it would be better to wait on a patch, or just suck it up?

It's very playable right out of the box. The misbehaving installer is a nuisance, but not something that keeps you from playing.

Well, I motored to the Big City today and snagged a copy at the local Gamestop for twenty bucks. As soon as I wean myself off a slight backsliding into my city building addiction, I'll be hooked up.

See ya in a week or so. I'd recommend playing about to level 10 and then do a single restart. Worked very well for me.

I'm really really hating the jumpgates, folks. I'm not ready to give up quite yet, but they are seriously not fun atm and there are way too many of them. The rest of the game seems enjoyable, but everytime I want to follow a quest, I have to spend twenty minutes trying to beat a rigged puzzle....on a $#@! timer. I can see why a lot of reviewers didn't see past this aspect.

I agree ... it actually is worse on the DS because of the slowness of loading ... on the PC it starts right away, but on the DS it takes long enough you can get distracted ...and those few seconds can hurt.

Leapgates were my least favorite of the "mini-games". A big part of the problem is that success is noticeably affected by the starting board. I was to the point where I could generally do any gate I wanted, but occasionally I'd still end up having to redo even "easy" gates because I'd lose so much time with the opening board.

A little advice I can offer which will help in the beginning and mid-game (but be less helpful when you tackle tough gates) is to make sure you don't admire your moves. Match a color. Rather than waiting to see how that affects the board, look over to the other side of the board for the next color. While the board goes thru the painfully slow process of clearing out your match, you'll have a second or two to look for your next move. If you wait to see what the resulting board looks like, that second or two is lost. Also, matching clocks is worth the effort.

Once you get to the really hard gates, you'll have to set up moves rather than take what the board gives you, but until then the above should help out some.

I did a boatload of asteroid mining. Aside from the financial (and political) gains, I thought it was excellent training for "seeing the board". Since there are only 3 "colors", it's a little easier to pick out your opportunities and start thinking a move or two ahead. The nice thing is that you always win. Even if you screw up royally, you still end up with a small amount of loot that you can sell for money and influence.

BTW--the good news is that once you open those gates, it's very rare for them to close up again. Eventually, your pain will pay off.

Believe me, I'm not admiring any of my moves being as how I am sitting there looking for them more than making them ..perhaps it's the learning curve as I still am feeling my way along when it comes to exactly how the tiles slide, which makes it hard to get too far ahead of the current play. I think what I find the most irritating is that android female voice counting down the time--(hey there's a freakin timer at the top of the screen, lady!) Then when you know you're not going to make it, you can't just exit the screen, you have to listen to that 5-4-3-2-1 countdown....*gnashes teeth* Also, the little quest dialogues seem much lamer in this one--I used to occasionally get quite the chuckle out of the original, but these are way beyond sophomoric, and even when you hit skip, it seems like you're clicking through endless screens to get to some action...which is usually that you have to go hack another leapgate.

So, I'm going to give it another few days and hope I pick up on the finer points. I'm hoping once I get into shipbuilding, weapons and mining and so forth I'll be able to tolerate the hacking part. We'll see how it goes.