Wave of Darkness - Reviews

Myrthos

Myrthos

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Here are two reviews for Wave of Darkness.

Gamewatcher, 5/10

Wave of Darkness tries to separate itself from other games on the market by trying to do everything one might want to see in an RPG: deep item and spell crafting, open-world environments, tough encounters. All of these things are fine goals, but they're all done better elsewhere. It feels like Dreamatrix is iterating towards their vision of an engaging open-world RPG, but the game is nowhere near a place where I can recommend. Given time and some serious patching Wave of Darkness may warrant another look.
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And a more positive one at Universal Gaming:

Overall, Wave of Darkness has come quite a long way since Our preview article and I dare say that it’s quite a bit of fun to play now. It’s still not the best looking RPG that I’ve ever played and the voice acting can be a bit spotty but if you can get past these issues you’ll find a feature rich and very well made game that’s continually updated with improvements. Worth checking out if you’re looking for a new RPG to play.
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EchoTruMe has a somewhat positive video review as well, of which the following is a summary:

First things first, this is a pretty solid game. 70+ hours of good, above-average RPG gameplay is nothing to scoff at. The graphics are not going to blow you away and neither is the music. However, the game does have pretty good looking load screens and the intro is pretty awesome, frankly. As for the game itself, this one certainly has more fighting and action than the last RPG I covered The Age Of Decadence. The crafting system is actually pretty manageable and can yield some pretty cool items, potions, etc. There is a lot to do, as there appear to be TONS of NPC's to interact with, side quests to engage in and a lot more going on than just the main story. However, all that being said....nothing really stands out to me about this one. It is fun, it has a huge world with tons to explore and there really are a lot of possibilities....it's just not really sucking my in story-wise so far. I find myself plowing through without being very drawn into the game at all. It could be a personal preference though. I'd say it's worth about $20 and sits at a solid 3/5. Give it a try if you love RPG's.
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More information.
 
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Dreamatrix is one of those companies that I keep rooting for while buying the CRPGs they make while really never playing them. What I love about the company is their obvious passion for making games. They remind me of Origin Systems back in the 80s and 90s. I backed both Legends of Dawn & Wave of Darkness on kickstarter each time in the $200+ range. But their execution has been rough.

I felt the same way with CD Projekt Red - buying Witcher 1 & 2 (and both their second edition releases) never having played either much. Then came the home-run Witcher 3 and I was glad to have supported them over the years. I'm hoping for the same with Dreamatrix.
 
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The Witcher 1 Enhanced Edition is about 3x better game than LoD. There is nothing similar between these two studios.
 
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Archangel said:
The Witcher 1 Enhanced Edition is about 3x better game than LoD. There is nothing similar between these two studios.
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Why not 5x better? Or 5000x better?

Anyway, you kinda missed my point, perhaps because I didn't explain myself well enough. My main point is that both studios show a deep passion for game-making and gamer-centric attitudes. And when I say deep passion for game making, I also mean that they worry less about the numbers and more about the game experience. They are opposite from the likes of say, EA - which is a compliment from my point of view.

I wouldn't know if Witcher 1 and 2 were 3 million times better than LoD and WoD since I never played all 4 of those games. My point is about the people behind the scenes, who worked (and are working) very hard to refine their skills for primetime… of which CD Projekt Red clearly hit with W3. So here's to hoping that Dreamatrix achieves the same.
 
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In the end, though, they're going to have to make a game that's good enough to persuade more than a few dozen generous supporters to buy it.
 
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TheMadGamer said:
Why not 5x better? Or 5000x better?

Anyway, you kinda missed my point, perhaps because I didn't explain myself well enough. My main point is that both studios show a deep passion for game-making and gamer-centric attitudes. And when I say deep passion for game making, I also mean that they worry less about the numbers and more about the game experience. They are opposite from the likes of say, EA - which is a compliment from my point of view.

I wouldn't know if Witcher 1 and 2 were 3 million times better than LoD and WoD since I never played all 4 of those games. My point is about the people behind the scenes, who worked (and are working) very hard to refine their skills for primetime… of which CD Projekt Red clearly hit with W3. So here's to hoping that Dreamatrix achieves the same.
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Passion does not mean much if you cannot turn it into a good product.
LoD was a disaster. From reading WoD is not that much better.
Actually steam reviews says it is almost 2x better. LoD is 39% while WoD is 68%. :D :D
 
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The biggest problem with Dreamatrix games is that there is no wow factor. Everything in them has been done before. Being solid isn't enough. There has to be a mechanic or a storyline that compels people to keep playing.

Isometric, single-character is also a poor choice for garnering attention. If you go that route, you must have great equipment lists and enough art to show all the loot on your toon in a clear and evident manner. An avatar, that takes up such a tiny portion of the screen, isn't compelling.

If they earn enough money, they'll need to scrap the engine and go first person and get some artists. If they stay isometric, the story and gameplay elements will need to really stand out.

Perhaps they need to go the sex card route like The Witcher 1 :biggrin:
 
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This could work if they focused on combat being faster, more action and viceral. If the game played more like aRPG but with open maps and all it has now, it would be much more popular.
 
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