Spell Master: The Saga - Released

HiddenX

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The open-world RPG Spell Master: The Saga has been released - first user reviews don't look good:

Spell Master: The Saga

SpellMaster: The Saga is an open world role-playing game set in an epic fantasy universe filled with magic, monsters and mysteries. Take the role of an ambitious wizard who is looking for a way to improve and share his powerful knowledge. In the ruins of a forgotten land, where monsters prowl and robbers hide in the shadows, you will build your own Magic Academy, where you can develop your magic skills, create and manage new faculties and train powerful wizards.

Embark on an amazing adventure in the world of Allyon, explore unknown lands, ancient temples, caves and tombs. Search for ancient artifacts, create new spells, finish countless quests and most importantly - gather a group of faithful magicians like yourself and bring peace to the world of Allyon once again!

Become a legend and the savior of this cursed world - a true Spellmaster about whom the bards will write songs for centuries to come!

Game features:


  • Various fighting styles in a detailed combat system.
  • Build and rule your very own Magic Academy that will serve as your base of operations and fortress in one.
  • Train ambitious young students and recruit famous wizards who will help you in your countless adventures.
  • An open and diverse world full of mysteries and populated by incredible creatures and characters with unique personalities and goals.
  • Different magic schools that can be combined to match any gameplay style.
  • Dynamic Day / Night cycle that directly affects the gameplay.
  • Your choices matter: the decisions you make have consequences in the game world.
  • Many quests with different ways of completing that lead to different results.
More information.
 
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Sold as a full and finished game but people complain than it's not even Early Access quality or content. Most of the positive comments don't even clock 1 hour in the game.

The Dev answer? he is alone, he can't do everything and the game is not finished.. You still sell it as a finished product my friend.

Was in the mood to forgive bugs and a rough gameplay if the game had interesting elements but this one is borderline dishonest.
 
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Yeah that's almost a fairly common practice now, at least from what I'm hearing/reading. Another reason to not pounce on a title day one or even week/month one, simply check out some review first and be a bit more informed. Hopefully this one gets patched up to the point where the buyers don't get burned.
 
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Sheesh, watching the developer play on livestream and it's looking really sad. The combat looks terrible! Just back off until the AI decides it's too far from home, then blast it with a spell as it turns around and slowly wanders back to the spawn point.
 
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people are reporting it as fraud, soooo yep, ill stay away from this game lol
 
Just based on the comments it does seem to go way beyond the common practice of release now and patch later. The developer admits that he ran out of money and released an unfinished product, but doesn't seem especially apologetic about it and didn't inform people about this before he declared it finished and put it on sale.
 
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Yeah, some of these folks that just know how little content to really playable at launch should be held more accountable, at least in my opinion. Perhaps the platforms need to tighten up on just what early access entails, maybe we also need a "locked in demo" phase, rofl.
 
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Game was made with only two developers so buyers should lower their expectations. Yes it's not Stardew valley and I know some one man developers are successful.

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Meh not the first time I've seen that happen. I remember another developer that stole assets and released multiple rpgmaker games every year under a new name.

So buyer beware.:(
 
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I tried it, and yeah, it's pretty rough.

It's a shame too, because the groundwork for a decent game is there. The music is really good, and I like the art style even if the graphics are a bit dated. I'm surprised to hear this was done by only two guys if that's true.

I hope they continue working on it because I think this could eventually be a good game with enough polish.
 
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well, I'll wait for the inevitable Steam sale where it is basically given away. These devs typically disappear from the face of the Earth after a little bit and the game goes cheap.

If @JDR13;'s optimism pays out, I'll buy it down the road too.
 
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It might be worth it during a sale *if* the game gets worked on between now and then. Just remember to check the update history first. If you don't see any patches, I'd stay away.
 
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I was impressed and had a hard time believing that it was only made by two people until I read the link @Lolozaur; posted. Explains it. Let's hope that they'll fix this time instead of disappearing. This game looks promising if it ever gets finished.
 
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Nod, I do like the premise and how it looks overall, I'll just be waiting for a fire sale to happen as well as reading that the game actually is finished/playable at some point. Sometimes things do happen beyond our control, not making defenses for anything here, simply trying to be somewhat understanding.
 
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Well, that is not good past, but it seems that this story is probably misleading. The writer tries to imply that Bitbox = Oleg, the developer of Spellmaster. It seems from some details that its NOT true.

If Im right - Oleg was hired by Bitbox. Bitbox was close to broke so company chief deciced to release unfinished game as final version. Most employees have to left including Oleg. Oleg founded new studio and get some funds from publisher. Now funds are spent so game is released. Sales will bring new funds. Now question is how long he is able to continue with his work.

Anyway it doesnt sound as bad as the writer of that post tries to imply.


----
News about upcoming fixes:
https://steamcommunity.com/games/1247100/announcements/detail/3097917293912970261
 
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I've not tried the game but its a shame the dev took this tact. If he had released it as an EA title and set expectations better, he might have had enough positive reactions and reviews to continue fostering some sales - and thus give him some continued revenue to keep working on the game. Just seems like a very poorly thought out decision on how he released it.
 
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As a huge fan of Gothic, I decided to give this a go. It is very rough around the edges, but there are definitely things to like and some potential here. That said, it doesn't seem finished, and it being released as a finished game makes me sceptical enough that I decided to refund it. Had it been released as an early access title, I probably would have kept it.

I will probably rebuy it if and when I feel more confident in it being finished, or when it is heavily discounted.

In the meantime, I've returned to Elex, as I suddenly remembered that I hadn't finished it, in spite of it being pretty excellent. :)
 
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