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Gujian 3 - Story-driven Action RPG from China

felipepepe

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This one came out in late 2018, but was translated to English only last month. It's basically a AAA Action-RPG from China, the closest comparison I can think of would be something like Witcher 2 or Greedfall, but more linear and story-driven like a JRPG.



I just finished it, took me around 50 hours. It's really good, the combat is much better than Withcer 3 or Greedfall (there's even an unlockable boss rush mode), while the story has a nice wuxia / chinese myth flair that feels entirely different from western or japanese games.

It feels like a VERY expensive game. Not only it's gorgeous and fully-voiced, but has several mini-games (including a card game and a clone of Captain Toad), plus a home base you can customize by researching & crafting decorations.

My only complains are the very limited customization options , and the fact that you can get locked out of important side-quests (and extra bosses) if you advance the story at certain points. Also, the translation is professional, with only a few typos here and there, but be warned that voiced dialog is only in Chinese.

Other than that, it's currently on sale on Steam for a good price, I recommend it for storyfags:
 
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felipepepe

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So this is part of a trilogy? Or is it like Final Fantasy where each title is a self contained story?
First two games are only in Chinese, so I jumped in blind and had no issues whatsoever. Apparently all games are set in the same world, but tell entirely different stories with different characters. There were clearly some nods here and there, but nothing vital to the story.
 

Dayyālu

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.... while the story has a nice wuxia / chinese myth flair that feels entirely different from western or japanese games.

Theoretical question: if someone hates wuxia (and I mean strong hatred of the genre) the influences are strong enough to be annoying? Similar to anime, I can stand it if the underlying system is good enough.

Also, how's performance?

I expect low quality for a product made in China.

Should try Norinco, stuff works.
 

Jinn

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Theoretical question: if someone hates wuxia (and I mean strong hatred of the genre) the influences are strong enough to be annoying? Similar to anime, I can stand it if the underlying system is good enough.

If you don't like wuxia, this wouldn't be the game for you. This is the embodiment of stylish Chinese historical-fantasy wuxia. I'd say it has some of the best action RPG combat ever made, but the RPG systems themselves aren't super indepth. Much closer to JRPG style progression.

Also, how's performance?

It's good, with infrequent FPS drop on my mid-high range system.
 

Skdursh

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Game looks interesting, but from what I've been told the saves are directly tied to an online server, meaning if you do not have internet access you cannot access your save games. For that reason I highly recommend people AVOID this game.
 

Jinn

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Game looks interesting, but from what I've been told the saves are directly tied to an online server, meaning if you do not have internet access you cannot access your save games. For that reason I highly recommend people AVOID this game.

A terrible practice to be sure. However, the original Gujian apparently launched with the same type of DRM, then reverted after a couple of years to a save on hard drive system.

I wasn't happy to discover the online save system at first, but ultimately I feel Gujian 3 will follow the trend of its predecessor at some point. Otherwise, it really hasn't interfered with my enjoyment of the game.
 

Arthandas

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Game looks interesting, but from what I've been told the saves are directly tied to an online server, meaning if you do not have internet access you cannot access your save games. For that reason I highly recommend people AVOID this game.
I agree, Felipe likes to hide this very crucial fact whenever he's talking about Gujian. I'll buy it if it ever goes offline like the previous parts.
 

udm

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Make the Codex Great Again!
If Jinn likes it, I'm willing to give it a try.

See mate, this is how much I like you.

The Brazilian guy in the corner there with shit tastes, who wrote some book? Not so much.
I'm kidding man love ya too :brodex:
 

Jinn

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If Jinn likes it, I'm willing to give it a try.

See mate, this is how much I like you.

Thanks man, I appreciate it.

I did enjoy Gujian quite a bit, but everyone looking to get it needs to remember a couple things: that I'm pretty biased towards this type of fiction genre and that it is a very story-heavy game. The later of which to the point where I really wish it would lay off the narrative a bit more and allow more player freedom to simply enjoy the game and explore the world.

I stand by what I said about the combat being some of the best action-RPG combat I've seen. And on the higher difficulties it can really provide a nice challenge. I just wish there was a bit more of it, and a bit less cutscenes. That isn't to say I don't like what's going on in the cutscenes, because I certainly do. It just suffers in terms of pacing due to their frequency and length.

This post at cruel too.
 

deama

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How is the story? I seem to usually not like or be just "ok" with jrpg stories.
So how does the story compare to stuff like... kingdom come deliverance, or even jade empire?
Will the story give me some sort of new perspective (or attempt to at least) or is it just fluff?
 

Robber Baron

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Looks intresting and I'm a sucker for good graphics, also chinese culture is so alien to me it's always nice to see some genuine non hollywood representation of it, will try it out
 

felipepepe

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How is the story? I seem to usually not like or be just "ok" with jrpg stories.
So how does the story compare to stuff like... kingdom come deliverance, or even jade empire?
Will the story give me some sort of new perspective (or attempt to at least) or is it just fluff?
It's clearly NOT written by western or Japanese writers. You have very few main characters and long conversations about morality, fate, the gods, love, etc... without getting into spoilers, the main character is basically a deity, in an epic journey across the land of mortals and various spirit worlds.

While the setting is Wuxia-inspired like Jade Empire, BioWare clearly just saw Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon then read the wiki for Journey to the West and wrote the setting as cliche and bland as possible. Gujian feels much more fleshed out, full of unique sights, like the mythical Bronze Age China from the Yellow Emperor's rule. It's not extremely original, it's very in line with Wuxia RPGs like Tale of Wuxia or Chinese Paladin, but it's a great starting point since it's well-translated and feels great to play.
 

deama

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How is the story? I seem to usually not like or be just "ok" with jrpg stories.
So how does the story compare to stuff like... kingdom come deliverance, or even jade empire?
Will the story give me some sort of new perspective (or attempt to at least) or is it just fluff?
It's clearly NOT written by western or Japanese writers. You have very few main characters and long conversations about morality, fate, the gods, love, etc... without getting into spoilers, the main character is basically a deity, in an epic journey across the land of mortals and various spirit worlds.

While the setting is Wuxia-inspired like Jade Empire, BioWare clearly just saw Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon then read the wiki for Journey to the West and wrote the setting as cliche and bland as possible. Gujian feels much more fleshed out, full of unique sights, like the mythical Bronze Age China from the Yellow Emperor's rule. It's not extremely original, it's very in line with Wuxia RPGs like Tale of Wuxia or Chinese Paladin, but it's a great starting point since it's well-translated and feels great to play.
Alright, I'll give it a go.
Is the English translation applied automatically or do I have to download it separately?
 

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