Eschalon: Book 1 - Now Available

Just tried the demo. Uh.... wow.

It has a very high quality feel to it.
Music, Graphics, Menus, GUI, etc.... wow. Very, very nice.
Especially the music was great.

Very impressed so far.
 
Rina said:
Huh? I thought NWN2 had all the classes from NWN1.
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No it doesnt have them all like that one for the druids...shapechanger or something like that?

Seems like nitpicking to me but for some people it was *so* important.

Your comment remember this to me.

I agree with that other person sayig how important the gender can be when telling a story. For a rpg based in a medievalish world, I think how the game tend to treat its female characters is very important. It's one of the things «The Witcher» got really nice. It managed to create a somewhat believable world. The fact that it's based around a book and not the other way around(like Steven Erikson's books) really help. For science fiction stuff, that's another deal, but the history guy in me really has problem with a world vaguely based on the medieval time where women tend to walk around clad in chain mail and get frequently hired as city guard or whatever just for the sake of pleasing a few feminist extremists.
 
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I think the "j" thing is quite deliberate, just like The Witcher -- "j" for journal.

I'm curious where the stats go, as well. I'm trying to develop a fast character (ranger with some rogueish traits) so I've been dumping every attribute point into speed - not sure when to stop. I believe I should get an extra attacks over slower critters at some point but I'm not sure when.
 
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Dhruin said:
I think the "j" thing is quite deliberate, just like The Witcher -- "j" for journal.
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The reason I mentioned it as a discrepancy was because in both the manual and ingame help, it says the Quest Journal key is Q, not J.
 
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Gah! I can't believe you can't move using the numpad! A game like this really needs it (and not to forget that Nethergate/Avernum have it).

Still, though, the looks great - I too managed to break my only sword attempting to bash a certain cementary door (and then kept hitting it with fists to my untimely death ;) ).
 
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Another minor gripe: I'm playing a nefarious character, and can't get cured of a disease at the temple, and there doesn't seem to be any other method of getting rid of it. I understand that such character can't be healed through "altruistic acts" of healing, but I hardly think that paying a rather mercenary cleric for a service constitutes being the recipient of an altruistic act. If it were free, on the other hand, that would qualify.

I know, I know, it's a game balance thing. So how do I get rid of a disease through other means then? Haven't seen any cure disease potions, and it doesn't seem to be going away over time, it's been at least a couple of days.
 
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I have a question, and I am sorry if it's answered elsewhere.. But I ordered the game via paypal, and since it takes 5 days for it to clear my bank account, I am playing the demo for now.

Question is..

Can I continue my adventure from the demo into the full game once I get it?
 
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Yep. Just uninstall the demo (save games will not be deleted) and install the full version.
 
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Gallifrey said:
I don't know about all treasure, but some of the treasure chests and whatnot found in the wilderness are revealed based on your skill ability to find hidden things. So if you're skilled in that, you will find treasure deposits that others may never see.
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I don't remember what skills I have that would've enabled me to see those treasure chests... I'm pretty sure anybody can see them. They or its the chest to the NE that's guarde by three fungy slimes that squirt you acid or something...

Gallifrey said:
The intro is gorgeous, isn't it?
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It's wonderful. Seeing through the branches at night and the music.
It's really something!
 
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skavenhorde said:
Also one thing, the spot hidden talent is a must have in my opinion. It will spot traps on the floor for you. Haven't run across any hidden chests, yet.
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Yeah, I took spot hidden.
So that's maybe why I see the treasure chests lying in the forest waiting to be plundered...

OMFG!!!

Haven't had goosebumps like this to play a game in a long time.
Last time, I was 15. The game? SquareSoft's Final Fantasy!
That was in 1989!!!

Basilisk Soft : Better start on Book II now! Thanks! :biggrin:
 
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Gratz, on release Basilisk! :)
Looking forward to trying the demo.

It's not like anyone is forcing you to chose a female avatar in a game, if you want to play male fine, same as all other choices, that's what makes Roleplaying.
I dislike not having a choice to play as a female avatar in any game Gothic, Witcher or Two Worlds and so far the best reason has been the added cost of doing a female voice (suggested by Moriendor :) ).

I am sure all 3 mentioned above games and Eschalon were on a very tight budget, so it's really not the developers fault, in this/those cases Rina.

The biggest problem I can see is the constant harassment by males, which causes females like Rina to respond like this and is probably a result of massive male egoitis, females have to deal with in the games industry. :)
 
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Greyloch said:
Another minor gripe: I'm playing a nefarious character, and can't get cured of a disease at the temple, and there doesn't seem to be any other method of getting rid of it. I understand that such character can't be healed through "altruistic acts" of healing, but I hardly think that paying a rather mercenary cleric for a service constitutes being the recipient of an altruistic act. If it were free, on the other hand, that would qualify.

I know, I know, it's a game balance thing. So how do I get rid of a disease through other means then? Haven't seen any cure disease potions, and it doesn't seem to be going away over time, it's been at least a couple of days.
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The lady at the magic shop in the starting town sells cure disease potions. You may have to visit her more than once to get her to refresh her stock so that you can get them. They weren't there the first time I visited her.

I'm about 3 hours in, and let me just add my "wow" to the chorus. As mentioned, lots of "little touches" already that are just great. Love the use of hiding map objects based on your skill. Love the cartography. Love the creative use of environment to solve problems. Love that I can eventually sneak around fights if I want and still reap significant rewards. Love the writing. Love the real gameplay significance of darkness. And very polished, indie or not.

I'm not a big retro-gamer. I have the love for the old games, but often find it very difficult to go too far backwards when there's so much good stuff I haven't gotten to yet. However, with this one, I'm this || close to buying and derailing my other games for it. It's a satisfying kind of fun that just keeps me going. As a contrast, HG's kind of fun is woefully superficial in comparison.

P.S. Can we please move the gender politics discussion to its own thread?
 
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Rina said:
I think most stories can support themselves without having to stick to this gender or that, and when it comes to RPGs with any kind of character creation process -- arent they supposed to be extraordinarly flexible?

But you are raising a fair point with it being mostly a cosmetic thing. I'm not saying that I'm being entirely rational about it, but I'll try to explain how I feel. While I think that immersion is a dirty trend word, I find it difficult to immerse myself to a game with a male protagonist and I dont think that I could get attached to the character or feel anykind of connection to it. Perhaps it is poor imagination from my part.
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I could also bring up a few other indie RPGs that only let you play a female character (which I have enjoyed, BTW) - Aveyond, Cute Knight, and Morning's Wrath come to mind.

And then there's Final Fantasy X-2, which starts you out playing the "chick brigade."

Granted, none of these examples have a major up-front character generation system, which may violate your caveat there a little (though Cute Knight at least lets you name your character and choose her strength / weakness prior to starting the game).

And then there's several games which restrict a class to a particular gender... like, say, a little game called Diablo. Another story, I guess, but my highest level characters in Diablo 2 were still female...

It goes both ways.
 
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Downloading...

Let's let the gender politics die, folks. Rina has a position that's not likely to change, and we can be respectful. Moving on!
 
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Magic Vs Skills

Ive noticed that there is a lore-spell so its possibly useless to pick lore-skill for a mage. Has anyone noticed whether there is an open lock -spell too? Thats yet another common spell that makes lock pick skill useless in games like these.

EDIT:
Picking the lock requires a lock pick item to be in your inventory at the time that you click on the locked object. You can find lock picks scattered around the game world or you can purchase them from some merchants. Your success in picking locks depends greatly on your character’s Pick Locks Skill, as well as his Dexterity and Concentration attributes.
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According to manual you need a lockpick to open a locked object so I gues s there is no spell.
 
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its funny because I mentioned the fixed protagonist in our last thread on Eschalon.

What was the reasoning that is stated on the website for this? I was told here that it just worked better for the story and that the later books might change. Also, you might check out Seal of Evil for a fixed female protagonist. I don't believe you have a male option there but you certainly can choose your companions.

From a marketing point of you appealing to the female audience has proved a boon. Arma recently posted on Ms Pac Man for example which still outsells her forerunner. I'm certain DDR and the iMac had this strategy in mind as well.

however, this really isn't a big issue for me and I can forgive an indy developer for most choices they have to cut back on if the rest of the game is playable (I love UFO:ET but can't get past the graphics in Avernum). Its not like they have hordes of money to throw at a game.

So a question for you maybe then Rina is if book 2 or 3 has a strictly female protagonist or gives you more of a choice would you forgive the first one and buy it.
 
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chamr said:
The lady at the magic shop in the starting town sells cure disease potions. You may have to visit her more than once to get her to refresh her stock so that you can get them. They weren't there the first time I visited her.

I
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Thanks, I'll try back with her later, she didn't have any on my first couple of visits either.

And yes, I also vote to drop or move the gender politics discussion, things like that drive me away from message boards faster than anything else, honestly.

Overall, I am really liking the game, kudos to Basilisk Games for a remarkably stable release from what I can tell. I've been playing too many shooters and the like lately, it's nice to relax with a good turn-based RPG again.
 
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