Greedfall - Review @ TechRaptor

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TechRaptor has reviewed Greedfall:

GreedFall Review - The Heart of Ambition

GreedFall, the latest from French developer Spiders, is the type of game you can't help but root for. Known for creating unique RPG games for a small budget, their reputation as an almost BioWare-esque studio has grown large enough to cement a loyal fanbase. Yet, for all of this, Spiders still struggles to break through the glass ceiling with a massive hit. Ultimately, their games, either restrained by budget or by ambition, tend to fall short of the goals they set for themselves.

It is not hard to be somewhat trepidatious considering Spiders reputation. A mid-budget RPG that hopes to emulate one of the most successful companies in the field is an easy sell, but rarely are they anywhere close to the quality of other companies. Yet, something is different with GreedFall, for unlike the monotonous slog of The Technomancer, or the broken mechanics of Bound by Flame, GreedFall seems to have overcome some of Spiders own deficiencies. While it doesn't quite break that glass ceiling, it is certainly making a few cracks this time around.

[...]

GreedFall has problems across the board. It fails to create a cohesive or interesting main plot, struggles visually, and relies heavily on stereotypes and poor narrative cheats at times that hamper any choices and consequences that do work. Yet, it is a game that is uniquely charming in all its faults, has refined its mechanics, and has found a way to be appealing through the passion that is clearly poured into the screen. It is not an instant classic, but GreedFall will be a cult favorite among RPG fanatics, and really shows the growth of Spiders as they continue to inch closer to prominence in the big-budget RPG market.

Score: 6.5/10
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I must be an RPG fanatic then, because I don't agree and I think Greedfall is a sleeper hit like ELEX.
 
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Wow this review is way off base, so much I disagree with.

Fails to create a cohesive main plot? I thought the story and plot were amazing and way better than many AAA style games. In fact it was the story and plot that kept me on the edge of the seat every night, staying up past bedtime to see a little more.

As if ME3, a AAA game, had any real choices with consequences pfft. So many AAA games fall way short on CC and story/plot instead counting on their awesome buttons, high budget voice actors, and graphics to do the job for them.

Guess this is why I gave up completely on reviews. I only use reviews to see screenshots and read mechanical aspects of a game. I couldn't disagree more with this "eurodite-scholar" (as he calls himself) of a reviewer.
 
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I actually agree with some points from that review, disagree with some, but I have a huge problem with the score. ;)
Have to comment a few things from the review…

By my measure, 90% of the quest design works around player choice rather than integrating it.
Name me another game with 90% player choice quest design. With work around or integration, whatever. What? There is none? Well, yeah.
Some side quests have more unique elements than the main plot. Finding evidence of a lost saint for a religious Theocracy or uncovering a grand conspiracy within a mercenary guild really play to the strengths of GreedFall; choices and consequences mixed with some intrigue. On the flip side, the main questline comes across as a jumbled, confusing mess. It tries to throw in multiple twists and turns but ultimately comes across as a rushed, disjointed plot with no payoff whatsoever.
Dafuq? I wasn't confused anywhere with anything. Also, some sidequests add to the main story (like if you skip sidequests you'll never learn why Constantin got sick).
This is a fifteen-hour game stretched over thirty hours and really overstays its welcome by trying to ramp up the drama with false endings and unique twists.
No. This is plain wrong.
Trashmobs in the game do respawn and that's bad. But most of them (unless in narrow spaces) you can avoid or escape from and grinding is not required to progress the game like in the horror I'm currently playing Ni No Kuni 1.
If you do grind then the game will overstay it's welcome but then it's your fault alone, not the game's. And it's not possible to complete it in 30 hours (maybe fastrun on easy difficulty is, but I don't care about fastruns).
The unique twist the game does have. There is an ending choice some people had a problem with. I didn't. Why? Because my imagination is wild enough to see that the "evil" choice is possible if MC is actually in love with the end boss. And this is not the only case where the reviewer fails to recognize design resoning.
Most of the NPC and companions live comfortably within their own personal stereotypes. The worst offenders are perhaps the natives themselves. In concept, the druidic lore of the island natives seems unique. In execution, almost every single native character we meet, right down to the companion Siora, is just a ‘noble savage’ stereotype
Okay. And the problem there is what really? Siora should be, dunno, a genocidal maniac who joined - a diplomat MC? For what exact reason would a mass murderer wannabe join a diplomat? It's super easy to criticize and not offer what you'd change. And you wouldn't change anything because it can't work as it'd be illogical bs.
And not all natives are noble, for example Siora's sister is a xenophobic power hungry bitch. Seems the reviewer was skipping stuff. No wonder he ended up in confusion.
Early on, a cutscene showcases one overzealous inquisitor killing a native for not renouncing their gods. He is clearly a transparent villain, but you never get a final showdown with him. Instead, you forcibly gain his help on a side mission. It is that kind of wishy-washy use of characters, the path that refuses to take a side, that hurts GreedFall’s narrative and pacing.
Wait… First the stereotype characters suck, and then *non* stereotype storyline sucks. A developer dared to plotshield a lunatic, there is no possible way for MC to kill the bastard and that's bad design? No, it's not. Why should MC always be the one and only person to sort all things out in a world? This design decision to have at least one "cliffhanger" was top notch.
There is also something charming
All Spiders' games have charm rarely any other developer can make. So, good morning.
I know it seems I’m being harsh on GreedFall, but at the end of the day, for all its faults, I cannot deny the heart and soul that Spiders poured into their work. The studio really tried this time around to deliver something that can match their ambitions, and in that regard, GreedFall takes a ton of risks that few studios would do with double the budget at their disposal.
Nothing wrong in being harsh, but as I pointed above, some of criticism is misplaced.
Especially, as the reviewer and everyone can notice, Greedfall was not made to be an ordinary mediocrity, it's a product of love.
And yes, Greedfall took risks and more than one ended up great. It's the biggest compliment any game can have and the main reason why I slapped 9/10 on the game in steam minireviews.
GreedFall is easily Spiders best game, but it pretty much on par with the weakest titles made by developers like BioWare. Mass Effect: Andromeda for all of its numerous faults, is a better title than GreedFall mechanically, narratively, even graphically. Yet, GreedFall has the heart that Andromeda severely lacked.
Is it better? Yes, no, yes. ME4 was like a decade in development and had a budget probably 10 times more than Greedfall, no wonder in technical part it looked better. But narrative? Gimme a break. ME4's narrative is a fest of cringe.

To sum up. A game that isn't top notch AAA mediocrity riddled with all sorts of DLC, season passes and microtransactions, a game dared to be different from mainstream and from rubbish sold as nostalgia or incompetence sold as retro, such a game gets 6.5 from a professional critic.
I'm not saying a pro should buff it to 9 as I did, but thanks to critics like these who pan the braveness instead of praising it when it works, and it does work in Greedfall, no wonder the genre got stale and the gaming industry got plagued with scams.
 
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Some days you're my biggest hero @joxer; :) Much better said than me.
 
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In case anyone is interested, I wrote a mini-review on Steam (being 30h in the game):
Pros:
  • fresh setting
  • great overall plot
  • great plot presentation
  • wonderful art style
  • most sidequests are intervowen with the plot
  • good voice acting
  • interesting companions
  • interesting factions without clear goodies and baddies
  • a lot of fast travel options
Cons:
  • a lot of backtracking in quests (running back and forth from/to NPCs, questgivers); but you have fast travel, so it's not a big deal
  • a few side quests are just about talking to NPCs, so you do nothing but run and click obvious dialog options
  • reuse of assets (governors palace, guard barracks etc.)
  • all 3 cities look quite the same and don't feel alive
  • loot laying ranomly around in crates and chests, even in buildings belonging to factions/NPCs with them not even commenting if you steal it, is really unimmersive

Combat isn't that important to me. I'm playing a mage and don't have any problems on "difficult" setting. Fighting mobs is quite short, bosses are a little harder.
This game obiously wasn't made with a AAA budget.
However it's really great fun. The developer Spiders really have improved with each game. If they had a budget like Bioware, I'm sure their games would blow away the Mass Effect and Dragon Age series. (I'm saying that as a huge fan of both.)
 
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I loved Spiders' Technomancer. I'm definitely gonna give Greedfall a go.
 
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Damn @joxer;, was that a spoiler for the endgame in that post of yours?
Use spoiler tags, man. :(
 
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@Morrandir; - That sounds about my view as well. I really liked the plot and settings and lore and story ... while that seemed to be what this review disliked the most as being bad.

Ah well we all have opinions for sure. Just I really did not agree with theirs.
 
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I must be an RPG fanatic then, because I don't agree and I think Greedfall is a sleeper hit like ELEX.

Its almost like you belong herr :)
 
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