Putting the 'role' back in role-playing games since 2002.
Donate to Codex
Good Old Games
  • Welcome to rpgcodex.net, a site dedicated to discussing computer based role-playing games in a free and open fashion. We're less strict than other forums, but please refer to the rules.

    "This message is awaiting moderator approval": All new users must pass through our moderation queue before they will be able to post normally. Until your account has "passed" your posts will only be visible to yourself (and moderators) until they are approved. Give us a week to get around to approving / deleting / ignoring your mundane opinion on crap before hassling us about it. Once you have passed the moderation period (think of it as a test), you will be able to post normally, just like all the other retards.

KickStarter Himeko Sutori, tactical JRPG, 100+ unit armies

Joined
Jan 14, 2018
Messages
50,754
Codex Year of the Donut
I'm going to try staying classy, so I won't offer you anything besides a review key and my gratitude.



is this a jrpg or does it only look like weebshit

because if it's an actual jrpg, i don't play those, so it's probably a bad idea to give it to me

Yes, actual weeb JRPG. Thanks anyway for taking a look. It seems rusty_shackleford doesn't like JRPGs either. Is there anyone in admin who owns a waifu-pillow or something? I want that guy to review my game.

Thanks ERYFKRAD hopefully we can get felipepepe 's attention if I just spam his name here enough.

Oh, while I'm spamming everyone's names, happy Kruno day everyone.

I believe the codex will publish any member's review as long as it's thoughtful enough, it doesn't have to be done by a staff member.
Codex has plenty of weebs so it shouldn't take long to find one willing to review it.
 

felipepepe

Codex's Heretic
Patron
Joined
Feb 2, 2007
Messages
17,274
Location
Terra da Garoa
Yes, doesn't have to be a staff member, anyone can write a review and submit it to Infinitron or other mods.

I like tactical JRPGs, but I just got burned out with Arcturus - The Curse and Loss of Divinity, I'm really not in the mood to jump into another long JRPG, sorry.
 
Self-Ejected

Thac0

Time Mage
Patron
Joined
Apr 30, 2020
Messages
3,292
Location
Arborea
I'm very into cock and ball torture
Hmmh, I havn't finished this game yet, and I don't really feel like writing reviews while my account is still only like 1 year fresh.
I can tag some other JRPG players from here, who have probably played and liked Ogre Battle, but most of them are quite picky.
I'd search for Ogre Battle in the search functions, and ask users who liked that if they were willing to review a spiritual successor if you provide a copy. Maybe open a chat and ask them in PM, as to not build to much pressure.
 

Deuce Traveler

2012 Newfag
Patron
Joined
May 11, 2012
Messages
2,899
Location
Okinawa, Japan
Grab the Codex by the pussy Divinity: Original Sin Torment: Tides of Numenera Shadorwun: Hong Kong Pathfinder: Kingmaker Steve gets a Kidney but I don't even get a tag. Pathfinder: Wrath I'm very into cock and ball torture
Hey, anyone want to write an official Codex review of the game? I wrote to the site's Contact Us page and the great Infinitron said I should just ask around and see who wants to write a review.

Thac0 Humanity has risen! AdamReith You seemed to really like the game and I wouldn't mind getting a positive review. :P
Mr. Pink where did you go? I used to see you pretty often around here.
CryptRat you seem to like unknown indie gems. I'll send you a key if you think you might want to write about Himeko Sutori.
Darth Roxor any chance I could interest you in taking a look? It seems you've looked at niche indie games and Asian-themed RPGs before.
Deuce Traveler how about you? Asian-themed strategy seems to be within your bailiwick.

Despite being active on the Codex, I'm going to try staying classy, so I won't offer you anything besides a review key and my gratitude. But still, I would be seriously grateful to anyone who reviewed the game. A little publicity can go a long way for small-timers like me.

And is there a better way to beg for a review than to tag everyone who might be able to write one?

Actually, I like all types of tactical and strategy games, and the cute JRPG graphics won't bother me as long as the tactical combat is solid. A couple of concerns, however. First, I play on an old Windows 7 computer (my newer ride is a linux), so I can't be sure I could even run the game. Do you have a demo? Second, from reading some comments on the Steam page, it seems like this game is still not completed, but you and your team are continually doing patches and updates. People who stuck with the game past the initial handful of hours seem to enjoy it, but even they comment that it is a work in progress. You would probably earn a better Codex review when the game is in a more completed form.
 

Nathaniel3W

Rockwell Studios
Patron
Developer
Joined
Feb 5, 2015
Messages
1,226
Location
Washington, DC
Strap Yourselves In Codex Year of the Donut Codex+ Now Streaming!
Actually, I like all types of tactical and strategy games, and the cute JRPG graphics won't bother me as long as the tactical combat is solid. A couple of concerns, however. First, I play on an old Windows 7 computer (my newer ride is a linux), so I can't be sure I could even run the game. Do you have a demo? Second, from reading some comments on the Steam page, it seems like this game is still not completed, but you and your team are continually doing patches and updates. People who stuck with the game past the initial handful of hours seem to enjoy it, but even they comment that it is a work in progress. You would probably earn a better Codex review when the game is in a more completed form.
The game is completed. What I'm doing now I consider more like ongoing support. The patch intensity has diminished a lot over the last month. I'm still fixing bugs as they get reported. In the last few weeks I added some crafting recipes and an option in the menu to switch to windowed mode. I made a slight change to the way reaction abilities work so on-death reactions always trigger. I think future changes to the game might still include more crafting recipes and more late-game equipment, maybe more crafting stations here and there. But I haven't changed anything really core to the plot or gameplay in a long time.

You're probably right that the game would get better reviews the more I work on it, but that probably holds true for every game--unless the fans start getting angry that the game hasn't been released yet. I pushed the game into full release, and I stand by it as a finished product. Let the reviews come.

The game should run fine on a Windows 7 machine. I actually developed the game (and am still working on it) on a 10-year-old PC. If you think you'd like to write a review, let me know and I'll just send you a key.
 

Fluent

Arcane
Patron
The Real Fanboy
Joined
Apr 8, 2021
Messages
830
hi Nathaniel3W. i remember this game and you from years ago when you first started working on it and posted a thread on RPGWatch. great to see it's been completed! :) congrats! while i wouldn't really want to write anything, i would probably be able to do a little "Let's Look/Let's Play" for it on my small youtube channel. GAMEGODFLUENT on youtube if u wanna check it out, it's an all RPG channel. anyway, good luck with the game and stick with it! because over time these small passion projects blow up, or at least get more views and plays, when the word of mouth spreads. God bless. <3
 

Nathaniel3W

Rockwell Studios
Patron
Developer
Joined
Feb 5, 2015
Messages
1,226
Location
Washington, DC
Strap Yourselves In Codex Year of the Donut Codex+ Now Streaming!
hi Nathaniel3W. i remember this game and you from years ago when you first started working on it and posted a thread on RPGWatch. great to see it's been completed! :) congrats! while i wouldn't really want to write anything, i would probably be able to do a little "Let's Look/Let's Play" for it on my small youtube channel. GAMEGODFLUENT on youtube if u wanna check it out, it's an all RPG channel. anyway, good luck with the game and stick with it! because over time these small passion projects blow up, or at least get more views and plays, when the word of mouth spreads. God bless. <3
Thanks! Yeah, things have come a long, long way since my first announcement.

I would love to see you do a Let's Play for your viewers. I sent an email to the address listed on your YouTube page. Thank you for any coverage you'd like to provide.
 

Fluent

Arcane
Patron
The Real Fanboy
Joined
Apr 8, 2021
Messages
830
First episode will be up at Noon EST, tomorrow, April 15. Hope u and anyone who watches it enjoys! :) <3
 

Fluent

Arcane
Patron
The Real Fanboy
Joined
Apr 8, 2021
Messages
830
2 episodes up now at this point, working on more of course. Hope I do this game justice with the videos! :)
 

Skdursh

Savant
Joined
Nov 27, 2018
Messages
734
Location
Slavlandia
Anyone have an opinion on this game now that it's complete? I really like the visual style. JRPGs aren't really my usual interest but this reminds me more of something like FFTactics or Ogre Battle than typical JRPG fare.
 

Fluent

Arcane
Patron
The Real Fanboy
Joined
Apr 8, 2021
Messages
830
Anyone have an opinion on this game now that it's complete? I really like the visual style. JRPGs aren't really my usual interest but this reminds me more of something like FFTactics or Ogre Battle than typical JRPG fare.

i'm only 2 hours in so far but i think it's pretty cool. it's graphically pleasing, has nice music, cool battles and plenty of loot, classes and character customization. i think i'm going to definitely enjoy playing much more of it.
 

Fluent

Arcane
Patron
The Real Fanboy
Joined
Apr 8, 2021
Messages
830
sorry to double post, can't edit posts (yet?).

anyway, playing more, and i'm downright enjoying this little gem! i made a tactical mistake and went for a chest instead of attacking the enemy, and i lost 2 characters to permadeath. have to replace them now as i found the bandit hideout and i don't want to enter with just 11 comrades. i figure i can add some level 1's and should they survive they'll get nice XP in a battle with the bandits. also, crafting has been unlocked but it's a little early to really dig into it yet, yet there is druidic crafting, engineering, smithing, alchemy and so on. really cool stuff, as u can buy recipes or find them, as well as buy or find tools and train characters in the various disciplines. there's a ton of soul in this game, leveling up your characters and seeing them perform in the simulation-like combat is very rewarding, there doesn't seem to be level scaling so u really feel their heightened power as u progress. there's also plenty of places on the first overworld map to poke around in - abandoned mines, small locations like a fairy forest, a little town with crafting stations and plenty of combat if u want that, too, as u can engage packs of slimes, bandits, wolf packs and more. all in all, i'm really enjoying it and can't wait to play more. hope that helps some of u guys who may be on the fence. take care. <3
 

pakoito

Arcane
Patron
Joined
Jun 7, 2012
Messages
3,086

Fluent

Arcane
Patron
The Real Fanboy
Joined
Apr 8, 2021
Messages
830
i haven't listened to the soundtrack yet (don't want to spoil it :) ), but the music thus far is remarkably beautiful.
 

Nathaniel3W

Rockwell Studios
Patron
Developer
Joined
Feb 5, 2015
Messages
1,226
Location
Washington, DC
Strap Yourselves In Codex Year of the Donut Codex+ Now Streaming!
For anyone interested, you can now listen to the entire Himeko Sutori soundtrack on YouTube. I don't think I'm the only one who likes listening to video game music while working or studying. Check it out:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLaBBt-H9_mmVTCaSroURhioTCqhLeQLsv

Hey, check that out. I think I turned the image into a link.

This is much better than I expected. How did you get a full orchestral sound without going broke?
For the one song that actually was performed by a full orchestra, that is the result of making friends with Kevin Won, who at the time was a student getting his master's degree in music composition at Berklee Valencia. The final project of his master's program was a few hours at Lyndhurst Hall with an orchestra and some sound engineers. He decided to write and record Himeko Sutori's prelude for his final project. Trying to book an orchestra and a recording hall on my own would have cost tens of thousands of dollars.

The music by Chris Lane and Vasco Grossmann was all licensed from stuff they already recorded, and considering the quality of their work, I really got it for dirt cheap. Seriously, it was the easiest and least expensive of all the stuff I added to the game. All of Kevin's work I commissioned specifically for the game. It was quite a bit more expensive, but that is now signature Himeko Sutori music that you'll never hear in another game.

It's amazing how good digital music production has become. These guys pay a few hundred dollars for a pack of sound files, containing recordings of one instrument, and there's a sound for the note's start, and the note being held, and the note being stopped, each one recorded multiple times at a different volume. And the composer buys packs for all the instruments he wants in his own personal digital orchestra, and his composing software knows which sound file to insert based on how he plays the part on the electric keyboard. It's not as good as actually recording an orchestra, but it's good--certainly a whole lot better than the chiptune midis videogames used to play.
 

pakoito

Arcane
Patron
Joined
Jun 7, 2012
Messages
3,086
Thanks! I am taking notes, because I also have a game in my head that'll happen sometime :D

I see that you're reselling the OST; did you get a license from Chris and Vasco, or is it a revenue sharing scheme?
 

Fluent

Arcane
Patron
The Real Fanboy
Joined
Apr 8, 2021
Messages
830
can i just spam about how cool this game is? heh. :) the customization levels are very high, it's got a deep character development system that i am just loving. i wouldn't dare "auto level up" because there is a lot of fun to be had in carefully customizing each unit with the fun card system. Of course there is the loot and gear system as well, and a deep crafting system, too! It's really hitting all the right notes for me so far, as it seems the developer is very in tune with what makes JRPGs unique, interesting and fun. okay, this is my last post for awhile now, going to play a lot more before spamming again. :D much love, guys. <3
 

Nathaniel3W

Rockwell Studios
Patron
Developer
Joined
Feb 5, 2015
Messages
1,226
Location
Washington, DC
Strap Yourselves In Codex Year of the Donut Codex+ Now Streaming!
Thanks! I am taking notes, because I also have a game in my head that'll happen sometime :D

I see that you're reselling the OST; did you get a license from Chris and Vasco, or is it a revenue sharing scheme?
I licensed their music through a third party, and I double-checked and the vendor said that it's OK to use the music in any "digital product," including the game itself, the soundtrack, and promotional materials. I'm just not allowed to re-license the music to others. So you can use the digital product I created (i.e., play the game, listen to the soundtrack), but I can't sell you rights to use the music in another game. Does that make sense?
 

Fluent

Arcane
Patron
The Real Fanboy
Joined
Apr 8, 2021
Messages
830
The enjoyment I'm getting from this game is top notch. Truly, it is. So my recent explorations had me ambushed by a squad with many (7) lances, fully equipped with enemy mages and ranged units. So up until this point I've just made 2 giant globs of lances and 1 ranged lance. Well, let's just say that the losses were many. Turns out making a huge glob is a bad idea, especially with a lack of good healing support. One lance got completely decimated because enemies ganged up on it, especially the mages who had an 'attack-all' spell that just drained us over time. Somehow 2 main characters survived out of about 7, and the other lances were able to carry the battle a bit. It was truly epic, though! Since there's permadeath my army was a bit knocked around, but I patiently went back and recruited some lower level characters and used the slime caves nearby to grind against slimes (which is very effective!) Now those once low level units are reasonably strong units and can make a difference on the battlefield. But what an amazing emergent gameplay that happened in that large battle! And I also learned to spread out the lances a bit so one huge lance doesn't get ganged up on. I made sure to supply at least 1 healer, possibly 2 to each lance now. And I have 2 strong melee groups, a mixed melee/ranged group, and a ranged group. We'll see if this is enough to overcome the odds stacked against us.

Awesome game! :)
 
Unwanted
Dumbfuck
Joined
Dec 14, 2020
Messages
803
I just started ogre battle psx version, i only play jrpgs on portable consoles and use my pc for strategy/simulation stuff so if you ever port it to the switch i would play it.
 

Angelo85

Arcane
Patron
Joined
Apr 4, 2010
Messages
1,569
Location
Deutschland
Taking advantage of the jRPG sale on Steam to support a fellow citizen



pfpbrjr5.jpg


dis better be good... or else
 

Angelo85

Arcane
Patron
Joined
Apr 4, 2010
Messages
1,569
Location
Deutschland
I played through the extended tutorial now and the game is quite alright. Good job! Will definitely continue to play.

TL;DR section coming up, mostly for the (hopefully) benefit of Nathan.
I wish to share a new user's experience with you, so that you might gain some insight into a inept users' bumbling behavior. Perhaps it can be of help for game-design purposes.

First though a little bug I encountered after finishing the tutorial slime fight. Not game-design related but it was one of the first impressions I got from the game. I put walking speed on fast/high and wanted to rush back to the castle. The fast walking speed resulted in me being catapulted near the bridge over a hill behind some city buildings, which I could not escape from. So I had to load a save and redo the fight. No biggie, just a minor inconvenience. But a first impression that plants the "5 minutes in and this happens. Am I in for a bugfest?" thought into your mind.


While leaving the city for the first overland quest I'm being told to fight some slimes to level up my guys. On the overland map I venture South-West towards the quest goal and still wonder if combat can happen by random encounter. The first enemy I encounter is a goblin patrol. The strength gauge at the bottom says it's about equal. Half my army gets wiped out, I reload.

This time I see a flag on the map, thinking it might indicate a quest encounter or something special. It's an abandoned mine. Let's check it out! My army gets crushed, I reload.

Wondering if I need better gear even though I literally got dumped 2 dozens items on me shortly before going outside. The goblin trader doesn't seem to offer real improvements, besides the prices are out of my reach. So I try to find the slimes and go in circles. No slimes to be found. I decide to - for me personally counter-intuitively - ignore all encounters and go further west towards the quest objective. Hot damn, this is where all the slimes have been hiding!

A further hint/nudge to look for slimes further west would have been helpful here IMHO. Naturally the first thing a player does is try to fight the first thing they encounter once unleashed upon the world. Don't know if it's design choice to put the slimes further away without hint though, but regardless I personally didn't have a problem with having my ass kicked through experience. Yet I could see some people perhaps being turned off by this and quitting the game without ever to return.


After visiting the quest village, the first NPC I encounter says I better buy a skinning knife because it's super useful. I use 90% of my wealth to invest in a skinning knife. (spoiler: the first loot drop I got besides the slime stuff is a *drumroll* skinning knife. Little §!&$ scammed me! I feel a little shafted).
I also encounter a duo of barbarians that tell me about the cheese they are looking for. I still wonder if these special things are acquired via random drops from regular fights like the skinning knife, through special encounters marked by flags, from random encounters while traveling on the world map or if it's part of the main quest (i.e. bandit leader is also having the cheese/merchant with him) etc.

I get the hint that the Bandit Boss can be lured out by defeating Bandits.


I leave the village towards the north and proceed to fight some encounters in order to level up my army a bit. Including a single group of bandits. On the way I pick up some abandoned carts. I don't hover over the cart icons any longer to see the text-blurb describing what it is, because I expect by now that everyone is the same.
So I did not realize that the cheese is obtained by visiting a cart, since it also has the same icon as the regular loot carts. So I ignore the cheese cart that I can see on the map a bit further to the north-east thinking it's just a regular abandoned cart not worth going after. Only after quite a while roaming about a bit I almost accidentally hover over the cart and see a different text-blurb.
Since by design it seems intended to be able to differentiate between regular cart and cheese cart, it would have been nice to have a different visual as well (even low effort like a big yellow wheel of cheese inside the cart or whatever).

But back to the Bandit Boss. Since I got the hint that defeating Bandits lures him out, I would have probably chased Bandit groups thinking I need to kill X before the Boss reveals himself. By lucky accident after the single Bandit group I defeated like mentioned above, I visited the Village to the far west and discovered the Bandit Boss by accident. If I didn't had the curious urge to visit the village icon, I would have probably wasted some more time grinding bandits before questioning what I had to do in order to make a Bandit Boss stack spawn.


So yeah this has been my extended tutorial experience. Like I mentioned, perhaps it can be of help to you in regards to game-design learnings or whatever :)
 

As an Amazon Associate, rpgcodex.net earns from qualifying purchases.
Back
Top Bottom