Balrum - Kickstarter Launched

Doh, I mixed up your name with that of one of the devs Obsyd when I sent the PM on Capt Huggy Face question! Heh.

From Obsyd @ Balcony Team

Re: Question from RPG Watch Member
To: Galaad
Hi there!
Thank you for the heads up!
We updated the kickstarter pages FAQ section with the answer.
Ofcourse you get the 5 chapters!! Smile

If you are going to go to realtime and single player may as well make it first person and give it some decent graphics.

It is not fully real time. The world is in real time so NPCs and monsters do their thing, but once you enter combat the whole thing becomes turn based...

And as for graphics, I think they're pretty good for this type of 2d game. There are some more artsy graphics out there (like Liege KS project) but then again, the game they're trying to create with all the crafting, building and such is also quite complex. Also keep in mind its a 2 man indie team on their first project.

It looks okay, but if they don't trust that their game can make money after release, why would I prepay? They've made it this far without my cash. If they finish, I'll buy if it's good.

Indie + 1st game + $50,000 US = No way

Still, I wish them luck.

Galaad said:

It is not fully real time. The world is in real time so NPCs and monsters do their thing, but once you enter combat the whole thing becomes turn based…

And as for graphics, I think they're pretty good for this type of 2d game. There are some more artsy graphics out there (like Liege KS project) but then again, the game they're trying to create with all the crafting, building and such is also quite complex. Also keep in mind its a 2 man indie team on their first project.

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That sounds better, sort of like ultima 6 which would be nice to have more of.

Galaad said:

From Obsyd @ Balcony Team

Re: Question from RPG Watch Member
To: Galaad
Hi there!
Thank you for the heads up!
We updated the kickstarter pages FAQ section with the answer.
Ofcourse you get the 5 chapters!! Smile

Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply. I find modern American society, in which everyone is an amateur lawyer either looking for or creating loopholes, to be tiresome. Perhaps is has made me too suspicious and cautious.

Your game looks good. I also wish it were party based, but I don't think that will stop me from pledging come payday. Best of luck with your venture.

I'm low on cash at the moment but I guess I'll be putting down $20 on this when I get my pay

Hmm, looks interesting so I will probably put down 20$ but honestly I think 50k for a new game from unknown developers and their first game is a bit too high, will be surprised if they make it.

I think setting it around 15k like Antharion did is more likely to succeed.

Saxon1974 said:

Hmm, looks interesting so I will probably put down 20$ but honestly I think 50k for a new game from unknown developers and their first game is a bit too high, will be surprised if they make it.

I think setting it around 15k like Antharion did is more likely to succeed.

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Well, they should ask for what they think they need to make the game, not for what they are likely to get, IMHO.

Looks like this isn't well thought out kickstater.They ask lot considering they are unknown and there is no big press coverage, no previews, no playable demo.

I think that video is more persuasive than most of what I've seen in other KS projects. It's not just a concept - it's a pretty complete engine, and they just need some extra assets. They clearly know what they're doing with the design and the gameplay.

I have more faith in this than you guys, that's for sure.

daveyd said:

Still, if this was party RPG I'd be backing it but as is I think I'll pass.

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That's one aspect of the community feedback they didn't respond to at all, although many people mentioned it. I do notice:

"Truly Cruel AI: We wanted to make bosses in the game really hard to defeat, and our community voted yes on our idea, so you can expect bosses that are going to be a real challenge."

So, how are they going to make bosses a challenge when you are controlling a single character in turn based combat? They don't say, but it's hard to imagine mechanics that aren't cheesy, random or both. Imagine playing XCOM Enemy Unknown with only one soldier!?

There is some suggestion that there will be allies in combat; from the Kickstarter blurb: "be aware that these powerful spells damage you and your allies as well." But, there's no other suggestion as to how they might be making an interesting combat system (compare the ideas in the Divinity: Original Sin KS, for instance); and 100s of spells are no substitute from some good mechanics.

Roq said:

That's one aspect of the community feedback they didn't respond to at all, although many people mentioned it.

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I asked them if they'd consider implementing companions and they said… "Sorry, but Balrum is a solo character game. The game was built for a single playable character from the beginning and we simply cannot change that." Someone asked about follower NPCs on their forum they said they were considering it, but if they do have followers they would be temporary (i.e., stay with you for one quest or area).

One thing I love about turn-based RPGs w/ parties is you have to take your character's various stengths / weaknesses into account when approaching a battle.. They're going for a one-man army character who can cast 100 powerful spells, yet also powerful in melee combat.

Roq said:

So, how are they going to make bosses a challenge when you are controlling a single character in turn based combat? They don't say, but it's hard to imagine mechanics that aren't cheesy, random or both. Imagine playing XCOM Enemy Unknown with only one soldier!?

Click to expand...

Yeah, that's exactly what I'm concerned about. With one character your strategy is limited (choosing the right spell or weapon for an enemy). The only way I can see to make bosses a challenge is by giving them an absurd amount of HP, immune to almost everything, do large amounts of damage, or perhaps have surrounding enemies that will spawn infiintely until the boss is defeated. And since your strategic options are so limited, the only way you can overcome an overpowered boss is by doing lots of grinding to get better equipment / more healing items, etc. IMO, if a cRPG requires lots of grinding than the dev has failed… What's the point of having an "open world" game if you're essentially forced to play it like a more linear game.

It's harder to pull off, but I've had some pretty brutal and challenging boss fights in the single character roguelike game TOME, where both you and the enemy have a large number of different abilities that can dramatically influence the fight. So it's definitely possible, whether or not they will be able to pull it off is another matter.

Roq said:

So, how are they going to make bosses a challenge when you are controlling a single character in turn based combat? They don't say, but it's hard to imagine mechanics that aren't cheesy, random or both. Imagine playing XCOM Enemy Unknown with only one soldier!?

Click to expand...