Indie Obscure indies that deserve more attention - Updated Jan. 2020

[Jack Of Owls]

However, it contains what basically amounts to the single longest go-kill-rats-in-the-cellar-low-level-scum! sequence that has ever been done in an RPG - or will be done.

Longer than that 4-level dungeon in Drakensang?

I never played Drakensang so I wouldn't know. I think I'd actually try it though. One of the biggest complaints I saw about this severely maligned game was the sheer tedium in having to back track across huge landscapes with a character that runs like a retarded drunken sailor with a broken back at the Special Olympics, that is, carefully... at a crawl. That would normally be unbearable and a huge deal-breaker but nothing that a speed hack (I recommend Cheat Engine 64) can't fix.

 

[Jack Dandy]

You do know there's a version out on Steam, yeah?

 

[V_K]

Updated the tags/description for Gates of Skeldal - I misremembered it having a pre-made party, while in fact you get to create 3 out of 6 characters.

 

[Jack Of Owls]

You do know there's a version out on Steam, yeah?

Are you speaking to me, sir, and my comments about Heroes of Steel? If so, yes, I knew it was available on Steam...for $9.99. The Google Play version is $3.99 for all 4 episodes (2 acts per ep). Besides, I wanted an excuse to keep testing that remarkable Android OS emulator AmiDuOS which seems to handle anything & everything I throw at it with excellent speed. Some have complained that the text in some games/apps is far too small to read comfortably with AmiDuos (yes, Heroes of Steel among them) even on an 1920X1080+ monitor, but I found a nice built in feature of AMIDuOS that adjusts DPI. Now it's a perfectly enjoyable experience.

P.S. What's that little parrot icon with the 2X figure next to it beneath my original post? Have I been bad, or have I been bro-fisted?

 

[V_K]

What's that little parrot icon with the figure 2X next to it beneath my original post? Have I been bad, or have I been bro-fisted?

That's what we have instead of brofists now - agenda and parrots. Since no one knows what it means, it's just easier to assume that either equals a brofist.

 

[Slimu]

I've been playing Heroes of Steel recently and can recommend it based on the first act. Amazing that this is basically a two-man team and an andoid/tablet game to boot. I'm playing it on PC with the excellent AMIDUOS android emulator. However, it contains what basically amounts to the single longest go-kill-rats-in-the-cellar-low-level-scum! sequence that has ever been done in an RPG - or will be done. The entire first act, in fact (about 6-8 hours). But don't let this deter you. Seems like a good game. Will continue my play-through today

You can buy the game on steam if you like it. I will play it when the game is finished. Right now they started working on act 4 and I think it's the last one.

Damn it, somebody was faster than me.

 

[aweigh]

Some obscure indies that deserve attention for your thread.

Paper Sorcerer (2013)

(PC) - [ENGLISH]
DEVELOPER: Ultra Runaway Games
PUBLISHER: Ultra Runaway Games
GAME SOUNDTRACK:
GAME MANUAL:
GAME WALKTHROUGH:
GAME WIKIA:
BUY THIS GAME: http://store.steampowered.com/app/263560/

Sanctuary: Black Edition (2015)

(PC) - [ENGLISH]
DEVELOPER: Black Shell Media
PUBLISHER: Black Shell Media
GAME SOUNDTRACK:
GAME MANUAL:
GAME WALKTHROUGH:
GAME WIKIA:
BUY THIS GAME: http://store.steampowered.com/app/328760/

Swords And Sorcery: Underworld - Definitive Edition (2015)

(PC) - [ENGLISH]
DEVELOPER: OlderBytes
PUBLISHER: OlderBytes
GAME SOUNDTRACK:
GAME MANUAL:
GAME WALKTHROUGH: (BLOG POSTING) http://crpgrevisited.blogspot.com/2013/08/sword-and-sorcery-underworld-fighting.html
GAME WIKIA: http://steamtradingcards.wikia.com/wiki/Swords_and_Sorcery_-_Underworld_-_Definitive_Edition
BUY THIS GAME: http://store.steampowered.com/app/408400/

The Bard's Legacy: Devil Whiskey (2003)

(PC) - [ENGLISH]
DEVELOPER: Shifting Sun Studios
PUBLISHER: Shifting Sun Studios
GAME SOUNDTRACK: http://www.devilwhiskey.com/pages/music.html
GAME MANUAL: http://www.weekendwastemonster.net/crpgs/dw/DWManual.pdf
GAME WALKTHROUGH:
GAME WIKIA: (FAN SITE) http://www.weekendwastemonster.net/crpgs/dw/bl/bl.html
BUY THIS GAME: http://www.gamersgate.com/DD-DEWH/devil-whiskey

Sorcerer 1 (2011)

(ANDROID / iOS) - [ENGLISH]
DEVELOPER: DEATH=HEAD & Co. / Naoya Yoshimura
PUBLISHER: DEATH=HEAD & Co. / Naoya Yoshimura
GAME SOUNDTRACK:
GAME MANUAL:
GAME WALKTHROUGH:
GAME WIKIA:

 

[Jack Of Owls]

Update on my playthrough of Heroes of Steel. I'm now regretting that I selected "Normal" difficulty because it's turning into a cake-walk. Into the last part of Act II (I think) and it's no challenge at all = boring. I guess I shouldn't have optimized my party, especially that cleric, because I never feel any pressure to carefully manage my healing potions/spells/buffs, whatever. My cleric is second only to Jesus Christ himself in her miraculous powers of instantaneous healing. Wish I could have created my own party instead of being forced to play with the pre-rolled characters or buy new ones from the in-app purchase options. I would have left the cleric out. Clerics are just too fucking overpowered. I remember breezing through a very difficult NWN module with just a cleric and 1 henceman and didn't die once. Oh, well. Maybe I'll start Serpent in the Staglands or something which should ramp up the difficulty. I'm beginning to think Heroes of Steel, though it has some depth, is more for the casual portable RPG crowd. Not enough meat on dem bones.

 

[Snorkack]

aweigh Is sanctuary rpg really worth playing? It's in my steam library but the ubiquitous cringy forced-meme humor threw me off and the mechanics seemed pretty shallow. Isn't everything procedurally generated, too?
But except this and sorcerer 1 I'd endorse the addition of these titles.

 

[aweigh]

i haven't played it myself but i will. i was gifted a smartphone today out of the blue and i'mgonna install the game on it. i mean just lookat this trailer!

EDIT: Dear god i was going to link you the game's trailer but the one it has is not good (20 sec long), so instead i looked for a Let's Play and i feel raped from having to hear the awful voices and horrible diction of these grotesque man-creatures blathering in asinine tones very pointed and heated exclamations about absolutely nothing at all; and of course nothing meaningful abut the game. they serve only to irrevocably detract from the pleasurable experience of playing a game by imposing their weakened spirits and opinions on the LP viewer, i.e. me. so instead i will simply link you the game's OST which is quite good,and when i play it very soon i willtell you allabout it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=86wFOG4qOow

 

[V_K]

Some obscure indies that deserve attention for your thread.
[...]

Paper Sorcerer and Swords&Sorcery:Underworld aren't obscure enough by my arbitrary rules (no dedicated thread on the codex or a thread that is less than 5 pages long). I might reconsider about PS, but SSU has pretty active threads, there's nothing to be achieved by including it here.
Sanctury and Devil Whiskey - well, personally I think they're terrible (DW somewhat less so), but if enough people think otherwise I'll add them to the OP.
Never heard of Sorcerer 1, thanks!

 

[Snorkack]

Never heard of Sorcerer 1, thanks!

If you want to include mobile platform rpgs, I'd add tales of illyria , undercroft and silversword

 

[V_K]

Never heard of Sorcerer 1, thanks!

If you want to include mobile platform rpgs, I'd add tales of illyria , undercroft and silversword

I don't. :D Just didn't realise that one was for mobiles.
Undercroft is availible for PC on the other hand, but isn't it kinda mediocre? IIRC the best thing about this game is the trololo ending.

 

[Snorkack]

Never heard of Sorcerer 1, thanks!

If you want to include mobile platform rpgs, I'd add tales of illyria , undercroft and silversword

I don't. :D Just didn't realise that one was for mobiles.
Undercroft is availible for PC on the other hand, but isn't it kinda mediocre? IIRC the best thing about this game is the trololo ending.

I wasn't aware there's a pc port. Never finished it, just played the ios titles on my ex gf's phone. As a mobile game undercroft is absolutely serviceable, but on PC there are better choices indeed. It's a bit like junior's first blobber.

 

[aweigh]

believe me V_K i'm well aware that Sorcerer is a mobile-ware game when i put it on my list... the reason the Sorcerer series (there are 4 ROOFLES) are so good is because they're done by a japanese guy whos a lifelong wizardry freak. all 4 sorcerer games are, mechanically and elementally; well... as literal to the term "basic early Wiz-clones" as you can get. obviously i ain't saying they're great games or whatever, but i'd bet money i don't have they're way better than say, whatever the fuck Bards Tale 4 ends up turning out to be. I'm betting on it ending an MMO

 

[V_K]

Never finished it, just played the ios titles on my ex gf's phone.

Spoiler

Basically, in the end your chars are given death penalty (I don't remember exactly what for, might have something to do with the curse a lich placed on them in the previous level), but at the last minute the priests snatch them for some ritual (sacrifice? details escape me) and they are instead cast onto a desert island with no supplies. Especially funny given how it all started with some stupid chicken. Come to think of it, the whole game plot was one big trope subversion: instead of going from one heroic deed to another, you were going from bad troubles to worse.

 

[aweigh]

Spoiler

Basically, in the end your chars are given death penalty (I don't remember exactly what for, might have something to do with the curse a lich placed on them in the previous level), but at the last minute the priests snatch them for some ritual (sacrifice? details escape me) and they are instead cast onto a desert island with no supplies. Especially funny given how it all started with some stupid chicken. Come to think of it, the whole game plot was one big trope subversion: instead of going from one heroic deed to another, you were going from bad troubles to worse.

Spoiler

 

[shadow9d9]

Great thread.

Though, I found Paper Sorcerer to be completely under baked.

I loved the idea of Swords and Sorcery, and tried both plain and the newer edition...It was fun at first, btu the clunky interface just made it feel like a chore... Like a grind.

 

[Aothan]

the Steam "About this game" description makes it sound like it could be sufficiently engrossing, and the review comments from IGN Spain among others are generally favourable, I'm not too sure what the interface issues may be but the list of updates might include some changes or improvements to those areas

 

[Leitz]

Nice! Are there some shorter games (around 20 hrs) among these? I like to play shorter RPGs here and then and indies are usually shorter.

 

[CryptRat]

Voidspire Tactics, Dex (I'd add Paper Sorcerer and Heroin's quest) are around 20 hrs long. Artifact Adventure is about 10 hrs long with some replayability.

 

[V_K]

Ruzar and Dustbowl are also around ~10-15 hours, Excelsior 2 shouldn't take longer than 20 hours too.
A single scenario playthrough of Occult Chronicles takes about 3-5 hours (if you don't die earlier that is).

 

[Charles-cgr]

I loved the idea of Swords and Sorcery, and tried both plain and the newer edition...It was fun at first, btu the clunky interface just made it feel like a chore... Like a grind.

Could you elaborate on that? Never know, maybe I can improve it still. I did "streamline" spell casting in a recent update for instance.

 

[Roqua]

I loved the idea of Swords and Sorcery, and tried both plain and the newer edition...It was fun at first, btu the clunky interface just made it feel like a chore... Like a grind.

Could you elaborate on that? Never know, maybe I can improve it still. I did "streamline" spell casting in a recent update for instance.

For me, I am kind of whore to UI as graphics whores are to graphics. For instance, Devil Whisky is a good game but the UI killed it for me. My memory is very not good and I last played your game when it first came out on steam (I owned it and played it long before that) but I also remember feeling the UI could use improvement. Have you tried Madman? The game is really decent but the UI kills it for me pretty quickly.

I really think every PC game should have full key rebinds. For games with a lot of repetitive commands I would like a repeat last command right at the top of the list. If I am remembering correctly, if I wanted to do a basic attack in your game I might have to hit like a close with an enemy option, then attack, and then it changes for the next person. If it is a game with a lot of combat and not a lot of thinking I should be able to click right through, or the UI shouldn't be a hassle. I really dislike when the hotkeys are dictated to me and they are all over the keyboard. I like the setups I come up with.

Also, as an aside, I dislike when mats are needed for spells when it doesn't really add to the game. Frayed Knights is another example of this.

Don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed your game and want to see more blobbers from you, I am just trying to answer the UI question from my perspective with information that isn't fresh in my head.

 

[Charles-cgr]

Roqua, No problem, thanks for the feedback. Spellwise I made changes you might like. Key rebinding is something I might come around to but for the moment I'm on the sequel's greenlight. Also I don't want to hog this thread too long.