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Ghost of a Tale - stealth action-RPG where you play a mouse

Abu Antar

Turn-based Poster
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Jan 19, 2014
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13,514
Enjoy the Revolution! Another revolution around the sun that is. Shadorwun: Hong Kong Divinity: Original Sin 2 Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire Pathfinder: Wrath I'm very into cock and ball torture I helped put crap in Monomyth
combat-less Elder Souls knock-off
Knock-off of what now?
That whole review had me cringe.
That sentence you quoted makes absolutely no sense. It feels nothing like Elder Scrolls. The one thing this might have in common with Souls games is the way you can unlock shortcuts from one area to another.
 
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Jinn

Arcane
Joined
Nov 8, 2007
Messages
4,930
Going to repeat my initial impressions from the news thread, as they remain the same after 5 hours of play.

I must say that I am very impressed with my first couple hours of play. Level design seems top notch so far, inventory and armor is handled excellently, the stat system aimed more towards pure stealth is refreshing, atmospherically and aesthetically it's absolutely beautiful, dialogues are fun, and there seems to be a fair amount of choice and consequence in a more environmental way. Stealth could be more challenging, but when there aren't really combat options I understand why it is as powerful as it is. These are all first impressions that lead me to believe I'm going to enjoy this whole game very much.

Really having a great time.
 
Joined
Apr 19, 2008
Messages
3,059
Location
Brazil
Divinity: Original Sin
Pasting my post I wrote in the release news thread (which I thought was this very one thread).

I've been playing this. It's good. Visually it is kind of similar. the animation and the fact that it is a third person. Level design is similar to Dark Souls, in the sense that the whole world is just one big level with labyrinths, dungeons, forests, and they're all interconnected. You go on finding keys, doing quests that are all of the fetch kind - but it's never boring at all, since it looks like finding loot on thief games - and talking a lot with characters here and there, and dialogue is actually funny and humorous. Gathering items also gives an adventure/metroidvania vibe, since it involves a lot of backtracking. There's also a day/night cycle that influences in how some quests and puzzles are solved. Exploration is great, and you have to find the maps yourself.

Controls are very simple and stealth gameplay is not light/shadow based, more sound/visual based. Works more like a Metal Gear Solid stealth. Guards can only be knocked out, but you can outrun them easily. Your stats are improved by the kind of costume you wear, and there's specific pieces of gear like gas masks to avoid poison areas, a helmet with a candle attached so you can see in the dark (these two features are also similar to dark souls). You have a number of gadgets that help you complete your journey: A refillable oil-lantern, a candle on a stick to set fire, throwable sticks and bottles to attract guards attention (bottles knock them out, but only if they are helmetless), a flint and firesteel (haven't figure it out yet), and a slime jar that can be used on fire or to make the big rats slip. There's some skills to unlock as you level up (xp comes with solving quests and doing things like burning enemy flags around), and there's also stamina (another imported feature from dark souls), and food as health recover.

The visuals are impressive, it is a very beautiful game, and very detailed too. Not only animation and texture work are truly an amazing work, the books, notes, papers have all nice stylish font. And the game looks smooth (I haven't count the FPS but it runs very fluid on my rig - i7 2600, gtx 970, 16mb ram).Talking about books, the game seems to have a huge amount of lore. You get a lot of entries about characters, locations and slang. And the inventory/skills/lore ui is very simple and easy to use.

The only thing that feels indie in this game is the complete lack of voice acting. It's not a bad thing, but your character being a bard, sometimes he sing a song for a character, but it's only text and a instrumental music. At least these sequences should have been with voices. Finally, the story is that this bard mouse wakes up in prison and is looking for his wife, while trying to escape this prison.
 

Hobo Elf

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Feb 17, 2009
Messages
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Platypus Planet
Finished the game. It was fun and good throughout the whole game, never got boring or repetitive. The game is only a stealth game for the first quarter of the game, then it becomes more of an adventure game. The ending
isn't really an ending as nothing gets resolved and the game only ends up creating more questions; it's just setting up a sequel. There's a lot of world building and character building during the game, especially with Tilo hearing things about his wife that he never knew about, so it'll be interesting to see what will come next. I hope the sequel *will* get realized, otherwise it'd be kinda sad and shitty.
 

Madawc

Educated
Joined
Mar 6, 2017
Messages
66
Pathfinder: Kingmaker
What's the deal with florins? Am I supposed to spend them at the blacksmith for tips & maps, or are they needed later?
 

Urthor

Prophet
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Joined
Mar 22, 2015
Messages
1,872
Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire
What's the deal with florins? Am I supposed to spend them at the blacksmith for tips & maps, or are they needed later?

you can buy food in the kitchen as well. Apart from 1-2 dialogues that's it. Also the maps can be collected, the best way to use florins is to get collectibles marked on the maps
 
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toro

Arcane
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Joined
Apr 14, 2009
Messages
14,031
This game is a gem ... and it's the only game I've backed on indiegogo :)
 

ghostdog

Arcane
Patron
Joined
Dec 31, 2007
Messages
11,079
I started playing it too. I can confirm that this is a very charming game. Simple but effective stealth that's not too easy, adventure elements and very nice exploration with one huge area to explore. Definitely one of the best crowdfunded games.
 

AetherVagrant

Arbiter
Patron
Joined
Apr 12, 2015
Messages
519
Im pleasantly surprised by all the positive codex reactions. The lack of combat and progression had me dubious, as well as typical kotaku sperging all over it, but looks like solid fun regardless.
 

Hoaxmetal

Arcane
Joined
Jul 19, 2009
Messages
9,157
19728.jpg
 

toro

Arcane
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Joined
Apr 14, 2009
Messages
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Finished the game. It was fun and good throughout the whole game, never got boring or repetitive. The game is only a stealth game for the first quarter of the game, then it becomes more of an adventure game. The ending
isn't really an ending as nothing gets resolved and the game only ends up creating more questions; it's just setting up a sequel. There's a lot of world building and character building during the game, especially with Tilo hearing things about his wife that he never knew about, so it'll be interesting to see what will come next. I hope the sequel *will* get realized, otherwise it'd be kinda sad and shitty.

Thank God I did not press the Spoiler button before finishing the game :)

Yeah. This is a setup for a sequel ... which is a good thing and a bad thing at the same time. I assume that they are already working on the sequel.
 
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Siel

Arcane
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Joined
Aug 25, 2013
Messages
885
Location
Some refined shithole
So I was curious about the dude behind this game and found out his thoughts on Bioshock Infinite on his website:

So recently I finished playing “Bioshock Infinite”. My first thought was: my god, what passes for “deep storytelling” in video games nowadays.

In my opinion this scenario is a bungled mess of a story full of contrived, preposterous twists and an overly complicated narrative about unexplained motivations. I mean ANYBODY can write an absurdly knotty story full of confusingly interrelated parts. It doesn’t make it a good story.

That THIS is lauded as a potential game of the year and praised for its supposedly amazing storytelling is frankly beyond me. A friend of mine wisely noted that the threshold for writing in games is extremely low. And the writing level of Bioshock Infinite would pass for a mediocre novel. But slap it onto a video-game and suddenly gamers are gushing about a masterpiece.

I could try and pick up one by one all the pieces of the story that do not make sense or rather only make sense in the writers’ minds because they thought it up in the first place. I could point out the contradictory motivations, the lack of genuine emotion… But I won’t, because it would be a little akin to laughing at an Alzheimer patient because he can’t remember stuff.

I feel this problem will go on as long as gamers (and gaming journalists) mistake complexity for richness. I KNOW video games have long lived a very healthy life without anything resembling a satisfying story. But come on. The quality of writing really needs to improve. Or does it? Let’s be honest here; if good writing was a necessary component of games we wouldn’t have those kind of issues anymore. But still. I’m hoping for better days.

So in the end what’s left of Bioshock Infinite are some very nice visual moments and some pseudo-philosophical attempts at making you believe there is profundity at the core of its story.

:salute:
 
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Darth Roxor

Royal Dongsmith
Staff Member
Joined
May 29, 2008
Messages
1,878,405
Location
Djibouti
So I was curious about the dude behind this game and found out his thoughts on Bioshock Infinite on his website:

So recently I finished playing “Bioshock Infinite”. My first thought was: my god, what passes for “deep storytelling” in video games nowadays.

In my opinion this scenario is a bungled mess of a story full of contrived, preposterous twists and an overly complicated narrative about unexplained motivations. I mean ANYBODY can write an absurdly knotty story full of confusingly interrelated parts. It doesn’t make it a good story.

That THIS is lauded as a potential game of the year and praised for its supposedly amazing storytelling is frankly beyond me. A friend of mine wisely noted that the threshold for writing in games is extremely low. And the writing level of Bioshock Infinite would pass for a mediocre novel. But slap it onto a video-game and suddenly gamers are gushing about a masterpiece.

I could try and pick up one by one all the pieces of the story that do not make sense or rather only make sense in the writers’ minds because they thought it up in the first place. I could point out the contradictory motivations, the lack of genuine emotion… But I won’t, because it would be a little akin to laughing at an Alzheimer patient because he can’t remember stuff.

I feel this problem will go on as long as gamers (and gaming journalists) mistake complexity for richness. I KNOW video games have long lived a very healthy life without anything resembling a satisfying story. But come on. The quality of writing really needs to improve. Or does it? Let’s be honest here; if good writing was a necessary component of games we wouldn’t have those kind of issues anymore. But still. I’m hoping for better days.

So in the end what’s left of Bioshock Infinite are some very nice visual moments and some pseudo-philosophical attempts at making you believe there is profundity at the core of its story.

:salute:

Gobble gobble

One of us
 

kintake

Savant
Joined
Jul 14, 2017
Messages
239
Location
Norway
So I was curious about the dude behind this game and found out his thoughts on Bioshock Infinite on his website
Whelp after reading that I guess it's time to buy this game for my second steam account as well.
 

Darth Roxor

Royal Dongsmith
Staff Member
Joined
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Messages
1,878,405
Location
Djibouti
DZElzj.jpg


"Impressive, in most games those dangling braziers are non-collider props that you can just pass through", I thought at first

and then

9lOPd4.jpg


I was stopped by an invisible wall over this goddamn gate :lol:
 

ghostdog

Arcane
Patron
Joined
Dec 31, 2007
Messages
11,079
IMPORTANT: If you try to go through the open metal gate in the Harbour and you're blocked by an invisible wall, please go around via the Northern Slopes or the Shore and you'll be able to cross that gate again (the invisible wall will disappear automatically).
 

toro

Arcane
Vatnik
Joined
Apr 14, 2009
Messages
14,031
DZElzj.jpg


"Impressive, in most games those dangling braziers are non-collider props that you can just pass through", I thought at first

and then

9lOPd4.jpg


I was stopped by an invisible wall over this goddamn gate :lol:

http://steamcommunity.com/games/417290/announcements/detail/1665643240481515344

Big release update (6.5)!
24 March - SeithCG
This is by far the biggest patch update (6.5) since the release of the game last week. It takes care of the vast majority of the remaining bugs. I won’t hide that it’s been a very intense period, with a lot of work and very little sleep.

In case some of you are wondering why those bugs were there to start with, the answer is simple (besides the fact that Ghost of a Tale is quite complex under the hood): a dozen persons testing the game on and off over a period of 2 months is simply no match for having thousands of people all starting to play at the same time. That being said, it's my fault of course.

When I realized what was happening it was obviously too late to say “whoops, sorry I’ll put it back in the fridge for moment”. The fact that most sounds didn’t play in the second half of the game furthermore gave the impression that it wasn’t finished. And that sucked.

Of course, 95% of the people who play Ghost of a Tale love it and that feels great. But I’m painfully aware that early adopters (including reviewers to this day) played with builds that were just not at the technical level they should have been. Which was particularly frustrating after an excellent run in early access.

Today, exactly 11 days after release, the game is what it should have been right from the start. So let this serve as an apology to the players who felt the game was not up to their technical standards when it launched, and an invitation to those who've been waiting to come and visit the world of Ghost of a Tale!

I can say at 95% that you won’t regret it... :)


Fixed:
  • No ambient sounds playing in the catacombs, harbor, great hall and shore.
  • Abrupt transitions between ambient sounds.
  • Elevators (courtyard, baskets, bells, etc…) don’t play their sounds.
  • Ravik’s arrival sequence (on the bridge) doesn’t play any sounds.
  • Sounds during dialogs are sometimes too loud.
  • Spiders don’t play their sounds.
  • No sounds when climbing ladders.
  • Several reverb zones are not kicking in.
  • Gallworms don’t play their sounds.
  • Pressure plates don’t play their sound.
  • Pinecones don’t play their sounds (collapsing worm holes, etc…).
  • All ambient sounds are turned off after quitting and relaunching the game.
  • The rebel mice remain visible although the skiff has left the harbor.
  • An invisible wall keeps Tilo from crossing the already-opened metal gate in the harbor near the crab’s pen (coming from the elevator).
  • The commander is sometimes not visible in his office.
  • It is possible to sleep in the commander’s bed.
  • Rolo at the forge is not hammering and talks about weird unrelated stuff.
  • The camera is too close to Tilo after reloading a save.
  • Cases where reloading an autosave results in the camera remaining locked on the spot.
  • Cases of invisible Ravik on the bridge.
  • The Gusto & Fatale’s achievement is not triggered.
  • The Lore Master achievement is not getting unlocked.
  • The wrong map is shown after getting to the shore via the cave.
  • Some map markers for items on the maps are wrong.
  • The well key can sometimes get stuck in an unreachable place.
  • The HUD is not properly restored after leaving photo mode.
  • The guards in the harbor can chase Tilo beyond the harbor (and disappear).
  • Some French characters are not properly displayed in the books UI.
  • The grid ladder in the jail tower can sometimes get stuck (after reloading multiple times).
  • Problems when reloading a save while the end sequence is still playing.
  • Some trees on the shore are missing their colliders.
  • Rare cases where Silas is awake instead of sleeping.
  • Some missing colliders in the catacombs walls.
  • Tilo can sprint and sneak while wearing the armor when launching the game and loading a save with the armor upgrade skill.
  • Ambient music abruptly kicks in instead of fading in.
  • Guards’ knocked out timer UI remains on screen after leaving the area of the guards.
  • Shutters don’t play their sounds when Tilo opens them.
Changed:
  • Added an option to hide the build number (in the lower right corner).

Although it should be fixed now, if you ever meet a framerate drop in the catacombs (just after talking to the squad leader) please call the game’s main menu, wait for 3 or 4 seconds and exit the main menu. That should fix it.

Regarding Chinese support: I’m still looking for a way to implement proper support for the font (character ranges are proving tricky). But it will happen eventually!

As always, thank you for your patience!
 

Darth Roxor

Royal Dongsmith
Staff Member
Joined
May 29, 2008
Messages
1,878,405
Location
Djibouti
I wish this game's soundtrack was available somewhere.
 

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