RPGWatch Feature: Din's Curse Preview

Depths of Peril is both one of my favourite indie games and one of the best hack'n'slash action/RPGs I've played. Soldak's third game - Din's Curse - is just around the corner and I've been fiddling with the beta. Here's a snip from the preview:

I spent a fair bit of my time playing a Rogue and then a Conjurer – and the gameplay was quite different. As a Rogue, I used Sneak to move around and explore (finding the gates and stairs on each level is important) and pick off trailing mobs to thin the herd, all without being seen. As a Conjurer, I used a variety of interesting summons and necromantic abilities, such as changing into a Lich and raising skeletons. Finally, I mixed a Thief (one of the Rogue Specialities) and a Fire Mage (Wizard); this was all sorts of chaotic fun – sneak into the middle of a group of mobs and then unleash fiery Armageddon.

Read it all here.
More information.

Nice writeup. I'm looking forward to this.

One question I have: If the town gets destroyed and it's game over, do you lose your character? Or can you just start a new town with the same one?

Nope, your character is safe if the town is lost. Just try a little harder on the next town

There is a hardcore option though, if you're looking to play the game more like a traditional roguelike. One death and your character is gone, plus under this mode you don't have access to your shared stash.

As FloodSpectre said, the characters are persistent (even into multiplayer). I've started a couple of worlds and decided I didn't like that tileset or it was too quiet and restarted with a new world but kept the character.

Wonderful game! I'm amazed at how quickly the patches are flowing … I've ,missed a couple here or there.

Really nice preview Dhruin. This is probably my most anticipated RPG right now, but I don't have time to help with the beta so I am waiting for Din's to reach 1.0 before I buy.

Congrats to Mr. Peeler as well- this should be a great seller for him.

Ok now you have me interested damn you people.

Originally Posted by rune_74
Ok now you have me interested damn you people.

Yes damn. So many nice games, so much girlfriend time needed in the end so little time for the games

Looks promissing

Normally I don't like these hack-and-slash Diablo-esque games, but it's nice to see the developers try something a little different at least. This one does look somewhat interesting.

If its like a Roguelike, I might not have enough time to learn it well enough to actually have fun playing. At least that is my experience with the genre - you really need to invest time to "learn" these games before it becomes anything but frustrating.
Nethack is the only one I ever managed that - because i can play it on the iphone so I played it a lot on the train, on flights, etc.

This is a great game and well worth the 20$ investment for the beta.

It has a true roguelike feeling, as in rather hardcore and tough - but it's mixed with excellent character development mechanics and decent visuals all things considered.

Beyond that, it has some truly novel quest concepts - at least from my point of view, as I haven't really been deeply invested in roguelikes for many years - but they're new to me.

I have a few gripes, though, but it's still early. The loot doesn't seem interesting enough, and the bonuses are kinda boring. Beyond that, I worry that it's TOO samey in terms of constantly rescuing towns with dungeons that aren't very long or follow a particularly interesting progression.

I never cared for rogue-likes so I've not put this game on my radar. I might try the demo one day, if there is one. I generally like huge worlds to explore and this doesn't really fit the mold. Steve will one day make a game that interests me. I like the looks of his games and the polish I hear about, so I look forward to the day.

I'm not sure about this game. I enjoy TomeNET a lot which is a roguelike, and other rogues back to 1990's Moria on the Amiga, but this game… I just don't know. $10 I'd jump on it, but not $20.

Originally Posted by ikbenrichard
Yes damn. So many nice games, so much girlfriend time needed in the end so little time for the games

Just talk her into playing some multiplayer with you.

Originally Posted by GhanBuriGhan
If its like a Roguelike, I might not have enough time to learn it well enough to actually have fun playing. At least that is my experience with the genre - you really need to invest time to "learn" these games before it becomes anything but frustrating.
Nethack is the only one I ever managed that - because i can play it on the iphone so I played it a lot on the train, on flights, etc.

We keep getting compared to Roguelike games because we have a lot more depth than typical action RPGs, but the game isn't hard to get into.

Originally Posted by crpgnut
I never cared for rogue-likes so I've not put this game on my radar. I might try the demo one day, if there is one.

We will definitely have a demo eventually.

Steven

Any chance of a more extensive set of item bonuses, or haven't I gotten far enough yet?

One of the primary ways of making loot interesting, is to have enough unique bonuses, so as to not have them be predictable. When things get predictable, the carrot of constant progression loses the illusion of meaning, or so I think is the case.

Since you seem to have been somewhat inspired by certain WoW conventions, it wouldn't hurt to peek over their shoulder in terms of phat loot mechanics

Very excited for this! May have to buy in early.

Glad to hear about the demo. $20 is chump change, but I'd still like to know what I'm getting first. Randomizing the game world just kills one of my greatest joys in playing crpgs, and that's uncovering the map and all its secrets.

Originally Posted by DArtagnan
Any chance of a more extensive set of item bonuses, or haven't I gotten far enough yet?

We do have lots of modifiers included a bunch of proc type effects. Anything specific you are looking for?

Originally Posted by crpgnut
Glad to hear about the demo. $20 is chump change, but I'd still like to know what I'm getting first. Randomizing the game world just kills one of my greatest joys in playing crpgs, and that's uncovering the map and all its secrets.

You do uncover the map in Din's Curse, there are secrets, and it even has special rooms like vaults and lairs. It's just random and not set in stone each game.

Just to chime in on the "rogue-like" thing. I don't think it actually is a rogue-like - I only used the term to illustrate the random/replay values vs a traditional story campaign. In terms of actual gameplay, it plays like a good hack'n'slasher (Diablo/TQ/Depths of Peril) and has some rogue-like traits (randomisation, random maps, optional hardcore mode, greater depth than common) but it doesn't have the arcane depth of weird commands and situations.

@crpgnut, I don't think this is your ideal game. It's just not an open world explorer. At the end of the day, it's a cool hack'n'slasher where you complete a scenario in a few hours (or get beaten - it's fun to lose occasionally), then rinse-and-repeat at a higher level. Still, there'll be a demo - check it out.

I agree it's not ideal, but I do play the Sacreds, TQ, Kult: Heretic Kingdoms, Dungeon Siege II, and that ilk. This is starting to sound like very short versions of those games. That'd be okay, as I generally enjoy building all the mage variations of those games. I rarely finish those, as I've mentioned in another thread but I did finish TQ, Kult, and DSII once apiece. Didn't finish either Sacred and never really played the Diablos.