Game News Might & Magic X Update: Puzzles and Riddles, Open Dev Chat #2, Dungeon Layout Contest Winner

[Infinitron]

Tags: Limbic Entertainment; Might & Magic X: Legacy; Ubisoft

After a short hiatus, the folks at Limbic are back with a new Might & Magic X Legacy development update. This one's about the game's puzzles and riddles, which were in short supply in the game's Early Access version. I quote:

Dear blog readers,

for many players of the M&M RPG series, solving riddles and puzzles was always a big part of the fun. And we're doing our best to keep it that way! You can find the first few riddles in the Early Access version, and currently our team is busy hatching a lot of new puzzle ideas for the Acts to come. Our aim is not to repeat the same puzzle over and over again, but to come up with different puzzle settings, types and combinations of them.

Currently, the MMX team is working on the following types of puzzles:[

• Lever puzzles: put some levers in the right position to open or close some passages. You must for example find the correct order or combination in order to progress.
• Pressure plates: your party has to step on pressure plates in the right order. If you succeed, something special will happen.
• Teleport puzzles: "A classic from the Wizardry/Dungeon Master days", says Creative Designer Julien. There are 'teleport' tiles in the dungeon that send you to another part of the dungeon. Your job is to find out which tiles your party has to step on and in which order.
• Riddles: A question is asked. You must find clues (in the dungeon for example, or by talking to NPCs) and then type your answer into a text field.

... but other types of puzzles are also being discussed. "There will for example be optional riddles or puzzles that will reward you with a great treasure when solved, but they will be very difficult", says Level Designer Angela from the MMX dev team. Other options that come into mind are musical puzzles, puzzles that work with a timer, and missing-piece puzzles. Edit: A missing-piece puzzle is a puzzle where you have to locate some items and put them into the right place. A typical example would be a cog you need to put on a mechanism. Can be combined with level puzzles for extra fun.

It’s all about the details

While creating riddles and puzzles is fun, there are also many details that have to be taken into account. Should solving a certain puzzle be mandatory or optional? How do we make sure it's neither too easy nor to hard? Does the riddle work in all the different languages? Are the puzzles and riddles consistent with the rest of the story?

And of course, where will each puzzle or riddle be located? There are for example different types of dungeons in the game; some are focused on combat, while others are heavy on riddles and secrets. Also, mysterious Obelisks have been spotted around the Peninsula, waiting for you to solve their mystery …​

In other news, you may be aware that the guys at Limbic recently held another Open Dev Chat. Since we've played the game now and know much more about it, this chat wasn't as exciting as the previous one, but the summary they've posted still has some interesting tidbits of information. Here are a few of them:

[19:19] <@LE-Stephan> The question is "Hello will monsters become weaker, im up again naga lord.- he can instant kill my group with one hit". The answer is: We are aware that Mamushi is really a tough guy for some players. While we are quite happy with the fact that he is not an easy kill, we are are monitoring it. In general what you should do is visit Den of Thieves, improve your party and restock with some
[19:19] <@LE-Stephan> pots as soon as the merchants are working. In any case I can confirm it´s possible to beat him!

[19:23] <@LE-Stephan> The question was "hi, are there any plans to change mana consumption or regeneration?". The answer is: Please consider the current spell costs and the spell balancing not final. Due to the fact that there is not enough mana potions ingame (again the damn merchants) and the time is passing to fast we have an issue with mana regeneration. I think that "mana costs" for spells is one of the
[19:23] <@LE-Stephan> top priorities for the next balancing round.

[19:48] <@Ubi-Gary> Question: "Please, have you any news on availbility of boxed version in CZ, SK, HU, CA and US?". Answer: "As I previously said, the Box Edition is not available in those countries for many reasons (related to Ubisoft and not Limbic Entertainment). Ubisoft is currently trying to find solutions about those countries, but we cannot commit nor comment
[19:48] <@Ubi-Gary> for now.".
​

Finally, there's a post announcing the winner in the dungeon layout contest. The winning dungeon is Crow's Fortress by Sandro, who somehow managed to overcome Morphi's massive lead in the last few hours of voting. Harumph!

 

[Nael]

Good to hear they are working on more puzzles. I hope they boost the difficulty on them however. They weren't particularly challenging, especially the one on top of Mamushi's tower.

 

[MicoSelva]

Is the naga lord really that tough that he/she needs nerfing?

 

[mediocrepoet]

Is the naga lord really that tough that he/she needs nerfing?

I suspect a lot of people don't understand Mamushi's abilities and take a one shot TPK repeatedly because they're not paying attention.

Spoiler

He does a knockback, you start out next to an edge. If you don't move, your whole party gets one shot. He hits pretty hard in general, but in order to beat him at all, you have to dance around while fighting him so you don't get knocked off of the platform.

 

[MicoSelva]

I suspected something like this. In before the games gets 'balanced' towards the lowest common denominator and is super easy in the end.

 

[Elwro]

So, the way to buy this thing right now is to pay 30 Euros on Steam? Is there a cheaper option?

 

[Nael]

I suspected something like this. In before the games gets 'balanced' towards the lowest common denominator and is super easy in the end.

I dunno. From the devs comments it sounds like they are at least leaving Mamushi as is. I thought it was a really fun fight myself. Challenging without being cheaply difficult. As Microselva mentioned you just have to pay attention to the mechanics of the battle and use your mage properly.

 

[MicoSelva]

So, the way to buy this thing right now is to pay 30 Euros on Steam? Is there a cheaper option?

Yes.
Or if you don't like Allegro, check here.

 

[Roguey]

The winning dungeon is Crow's Fortress by Sandro, who somehow managed to overcome Morphi's massive lead in the last few hours of voting.

It spells out his name oh my god. An appropriately tacky element for a tacky-as-hell game series.

 

[Elwro]

So, the way to buy this thing right now is to pay 30 Euros on Steam? Is there a cheaper option?

Yes.
Or if you don't like Allegro, check here.

Thanks! It says "DRM: Uplay". Is it something you need to install separately from the game which bloats your system and should better be avoided?

Roguey: maybe it's an homage to the early M&M's; I'm pretty sure they had something like this.

 

[Infinitron]

Thanks! It says "DRM: Uplay". Is it something you need to install separately from the game which bloats your system and should better be avoided?

Yes, but there's no choice. At least until pirates crack it. Returning to oldschool roots has its costs and tradeoffs.

 

[Crooked Bee]

The winning dungeon is Crow's Fortress by Sandro, who somehow managed to overcome Morphi's massive lead in the last few hours of voting.

It spells out his name oh my god. An appropriately tacky element for a tacky-as-hell game series.

That is very much in line with older RPGs in general. I wish it'd spell out "JVC" instead of whoever-that-guy-is's name, but whatever. I've always liked the idea.

 

[CappenVarra]

I've always liked the idea.

Too bad it isn't a crossword puzzle instead, eh?

 

[Dorateen]

Almost as clever as spelling a villain or antogonist's name backward.