Game News Moonring is a free retro RPG inspired by the classic Ultima games and early roguelikes

[Infinitron]

Tags: Fluttermind; Moonring

Moonring is a retro-inspired open-world, turn-based, tile RPG in the style of the classic Ultima games, but created from the ground up with modern design sensibilities.

The world's geography is hand-designed, but the deadly dungeons beneath the surface reconfigure each time you leave... or die.

Travel, trade, sneak, fight and sail the world of Caldera. Speak with the townsfolk, learn Caldera's secrets, and challenge the Archon for his throne... or even overthrow the Gods themselves!

Features:
- Large, hand-designed open world
- An infinite supply of dungeons generated using your character name
- Over 100 varied enemy types, from fodder to bosses
- 35 unique Gifts from the Gods, their usage changing with the moon phases
- Sailing, ship-to-ship combat and boarding
- A Dungeon Synth OST with over 50 tracks, all made using retro Mod Trackers!
- A hidden magic system and many other mysteries​

 

[Ysaye]

Looks interesting, but two questions for the ether sphere:
(1) Say it is Ultima, but ultima doesn't use roguelike style combat?
(2) Why is it free?

 

[Cohesion]

(2) Why is it free?

This is also free roguelike for example https://te4.org/download
Addons cost money. Base game is free.

 

[ShaggyMoose]

I like the art style; the overworld map at the start was gorgeous. Definitely feels more Rogue than Ultima though...

 

[ShaggyMoose]

Play for a few minutes:

• The graphics are simple but clean.
• The interface is somewhat cluttered/complex, but efficient. The inventory screen looks like it might get out of hand later...
• You can control the game with mouse or keyboard exclusively.
• The view is definitely Ultima-esque and it uses keyword based chat.
• Bump-based combat is efficient for simple melee.
• It is a rogue-lite in that your game and the world state remain on death, but the dungeon you were in is reset and regenerated. Not sure how deep dungeons will get, so too early to tell if this will lead me to rage quit eventually... At least it has a "save and quit" option.
• Only played through one dungeon, but I noticed a few interesting mechanics like yelling to attract an enemy to run into a spiderweb, then ganking it while it is helpless. Also, fire spreads!

 

[Eisen]

Does it have permadeath?
I like the controls of a roguelike, top-view and grid-based combat, but nowadays i'm not a fan of permadeath.

 

[ShaggyMoose]

From what I understand, it does not have permadeath but I haven't tested the theory... The game is less than 100mb download, so I guess its easy enough to test. I don't want to chance throwing away my significant half hour investment.

EDIT: Since I got massively ganked on the overworld map, I can answer the question; there is no permadeath. You reset to the last save point, which will be at a town.

 

[VonHoffenHeimer]

Am i the only one who doesn't like Ultima and RPG's "inspired" by it?

 

[OttoQuitmarck]

The game is quite fun and well-made for a free one. Movement could be quicker. Also you can't seem to push objects around like you can in Ultima, which is a shame. Still, fun little incline.

 

[OttoQuitmarck]

Am i the only one who doesn't like Ultima and RPG's "inspired" by it?

Yea Ultima games are a bit overrated. They were good for the time but they really don't hold up that well. But games inspired by it can be quite good, especially if they copy the environment interaction. Which this game sadly doesn't.

 

[Grauken]

This is quite addictive and the mix of Ultima overworld and modernized mechanics plus roguelike dungeons is clever

 

[Grauken]

Am i the only one who doesn't like Ultima and RPG's "inspired" by it?

Pretty much all modern cRPGs are inspired by Ultima to some degree

 

[ShaggyMoose]

Am i the only one who doesn't like Ultima and RPG's "inspired" by it?

Yea Ultima games are a bit overrated. They were good for the time but they really don't hold up that well. But games inspired by it can be quite good, especially if they copy the environment interaction. Which this game sadly doesn't.

It does have some interactions though; fire is bloody dangerous, different terrain has different effects/uses, some enemies have facings which can be exploited etc. Its definitely not as "dumb" as some Ultima-likes but doesn't have anywhere near the complexity of Rogue.

 

[Percolator Fish]

the cutiepie tone maketh me to dump it in the garbage can - SEEYA!

 

[almondblight]

Am i the only one who doesn't like Ultima and RPG's "inspired" by it?

I've only tried IV, VII, and Savage Empire. Bounced pretty hard off of IV and VII, but Savage Empire seemed cool.

The Exile series seemed to at least be partially inspired by it, though, and all of those games are great.

 

[OttoQuitmarck]

Am i the only one who doesn't like Ultima and RPG's "inspired" by it?

Yea Ultima games are a bit overrated. They were good for the time but they really don't hold up that well. But games inspired by it can be quite good, especially if they copy the environment interaction. Which this game sadly doesn't.

It does have some interactions though; fire is bloody dangerous, different terrain has different effects/uses, some enemies have facings which can be exploited etc. Its definitely not as "dumb" as some Ultima-likes but doesn't have anywhere near the complexity of Rogue.

Yea apparently you can also interact with water to make yourself temporarily immune to fire, which is cool. I was more refering to the fact you can't push furniture around.

 

[ShaggyMoose]

Yeah agreed on the furniture, just wanted to point out to others that the environments aren't completely static. You can make yourself wet at water and in rain to be fireproof for a bit. You can also use a water flask to put yourself out. Unfortunately, I ran out of water and burnt to death in the last dungeon.

 

[Arthandas]

Looks great but I don't know if I can enjoy a roguelike with no kind of permadeath. What's the point if you're just respawning after dying and there's no penalty for failure?

 

[Nifft Batuff]

created from the ground up with modern design sensibilities.

This should be the rogue-lite procedural generation part.

 

[ShaggyMoose]

Looks great but I don't know if I can enjoy a roguelike with no kind of permadeath. What's the point if you're just respawning after dying and there's no penalty for failure?

The penalty for failure is you lose all of the loot you gathered from the dungeon and have to start again, in a newly generated dungeon.

EDIT: Deaths on the overworld are also penalised; you only save in towns and ruins. I have been ganked on the road a few times and lost a lot of careful travel time. The game has hinted there are methods of fast travel, but they are limited and not immediately available.

 

[Arthandas]

Looks great but I don't know if I can enjoy a roguelike with no kind of permadeath. What's the point if you're just respawning after dying and there's no penalty for failure?

The penalty for failure is you lose all of the loot you gathered from the dungeon and have to start again, in a newly generated dungeon.

Yeah, I've played it a little and it seems more like an adventure game than a real roguelike (and I'm not saying that's a bad thing), permadeath wouldn't be a good fit probably. I hope the dungeons are challenging at least.

 

[mindx2]

Am i the only one who doesn't like Ultima and RPG's "inspired" by it?

Yea Ultima games are a bit overrated. They were good for the time but they really don't hold up that well.

Seriously?!!!!



You are part of the decline... (sees join date)... oh, that explains it.

 

[OttoQuitmarck]

Am i the only one who doesn't like Ultima and RPG's "inspired" by it?

Yea Ultima games are a bit overrated. They were good for the time but they really don't hold up that well.

Seriously?!!!!



You are part of the decline... (sees join date)... oh, that explains it.

Yea I'm a zoomer cry about it old man

 

[Tao]

Pretty good game. Amazing is free for how good it is tbh

 

[Trash Player]

Very accessible UI yet still old school enough. No handholding but in-universe hints. Keyword convo system.
Limited character progression, gated by exploration and milestones. Virtue-like devotion system, optional bonus for conduct.
Combat unremarkable RL fare but reasonably lethal by the standard of a open world RPG.
Dungeons do wear me down a bit 8 hours in however, too repetitive. Enemy variety isn't that impressive either.
Loot is mostly randomly generated by zone danger level, along with a few guaranteed loot like plot coupons.
Still going to quest and explore until I become eventually bored in the next 20 hours. Great value for a free game.