Review RPG Codex Preview: Lords of Xulima

[Zorba the Hutt]

If we have had more budget, we have focused in improving the graphics, and created cool cinematic sequences for the main plots, but the game-play would be the same.
...
We would love to have nice cinematic sequences for those moments to bring the intense that they deserve but that was out of the budget.

I do find it a bit strange that, given the type of game you've set out to make, your main regret appears to be the lack of more "cool cinematic sequences". I would have thought it more worthwhile (and surely cheaper / more feasible) to address the quest variety, as Felipepepe suggested:

The kill the witches quests is banal. Four times you'll go into a town, someone will say "we have a evil witch", and you'll go to the forest, find her, kill her and go back to town to get your rewards. The fact that you always have to kill them is boring. You could kill one, the other offer you a quest, the other make a series of riddles that if you failed she would attack, but if you won she would give you a reward, etc... There was so much more that could be done. Hell, even simply having to find their hidden lairs, killing them and getting the "reward" from their chests on your own would be better than having a NPC ask you, point were she is and reward you every time.

 

[felipepepe]

Not all RPGs need dozens of NPCs that tells you about their life and their problems. We wanted to focus in the main story and their main protagonists.

I think this is your main problem. The story needs context, needs support, needs some sense of weight. the life and problems of the NPCs of Xulima are exactly what you're here to change. You cannot simply show us a plot and expect us to care, if the game doesn't give us a reason to do so.

Take Baldur's Gate 1. Sarevok is controlling the iron mines, creating an iron shortage in the region. K', why should I care about macro economics in my epic fantasy? Because no iron means no armors & weapons! And that is shown on the shops, it affects the players. It makes them care.

This is the part that we cannot agree with you at all, and even less after reading the comments. Perhaps the problem and our fault is that the gameplay is eclipsing the main story and most people does not care about it bypassing the dialog part and over looking the story. We would love to have nice cinematic sequences for those moments to bring the intense that they deserve but that was out of the budget.

I would go the other way around, removing the exposition bit and melding them into gameplay. Keeping them so separate is what makes people skip it in the first place.

For example, the Cursed Hounds. I have no idea WTF they are, and the game never addresses it. Are they regular fauna here, a result of the temples corruption or agents of Yûl sent after me? I have no way of knowing, no one else in the world even comments about them. So you ask us to care about the plot, but give no way for the players to be involved. Honestly, it's like those bad mystery novels/movies, where the killer is someone that was never shown before and you go "how the hell would I know?"! You want me to care about the Cursed Hounds, but give me nothing to work with.

You said that side-quests are irrelevant, and here is where I heavily disagree with you. If the first town had a child afflicted by the Cursed Hounds curse and I had to find a cure, I would be able to:

A) Learn about the Cursed Hounds curse and how to heal it without any tutorial.
B) Be aware that the hounds exists and are troubling people.
C) Ask the NPC about the hounds and their origin. (Thus having some interaction)
D) Learn about their lair & leader and be for the rest of the game looking for it. I would finally care.

The way it works, you simply throw stuff at us and expect people to care. More even, the lack of NPCs and side-quests makes all of them sound shallow.

Here is an example of the encounter of Gaulen with prince Nengorth when Gaulen reclaims the Key of Febret:

Spoiler

<NARRATOR> At the end of the great hall a proud figure, seated upon a throne, watches you arrogantly…
<NARRATOR> As he stands, you notice his towering height. Under his wavy brown hair, you catch a quick glimpse of his tranquil, dark eyes. His mouth is hardly visible under his mustache and beard. He seems young, but the look in his eyes reveals that he is much older than he appears.
<NARRATOR> You expect him to address you, but instead the Lord of Nabros stands watching you silently…
<NARRATOR> After a few tense moments, you finally decide to speak. But just as you are about to, his deep and heavy voice interrupts…
Lord_Nengorth Who dares to address the Lord of Nabros, heir to the South-Eastern Kingdom, Protector of Velegarn, and Custodian of the Temple of Febret?
Gaulen You hold yourself in high esteem. But why do you leave off your other titles? Oppressor of the People? Killer of the Innocent and Ally of Darkness?
<NARRATOR> Nengorth, far from being offended by your words, answers with a smile.
<NARRATOR> Once again, he observes you silently… First he looks at your hands, still bloody from your last fight. Then he looks back at the guardians of the throne room that you left dead behind you.
<NARRATOR> Again, as you are about to speak, he interrupts just as you breathe in.
Lord_Nengorth And tell me, how many have you killed to get to me? In your path to the throne room you have reaped the souls of many men along the way…
Gaulen That… is different… you and your soldiers are not innocent victims. You are the aggressors. You invaded Velegarn, killed the priestesses of Febret, and now you harbor in the temple a servant of darkness…
Gaulen I tried to reach you peacefully, but you would not allow it and sent your soldiers to capture me.
Lord_Nengorth So, you feel you have the right to reap the souls of men, as long as your cause is justified?
Gaulen …yes, if the mission is just.
Lord_Nengorth And… who decides if your mission is more just than mine?
Gaulen My mission is divine. It was entrusted to me by the Makers of the world…
Lord_Nengorth And mine as well. And perhaps your Maker is more just than mine? Was it He who entrusted you to kill so many of your brothers in your efforts?
Gaulen Enough! You are a servant of darkness, Nengorth! I have come for the Key of Febret. If you are not prepared to give it to me, then prepare yourself for the consequences!
<NARRATOR> The prince smiles complacently. As he looks at you with utter contempt, his fingers play with the key, which is on a chain that hangs around his neck. He observes you in silence…
Gaulen ANSWER ME NENGORTH! I WILL HAVE THE KEY!
Lord_Nengorth …
Gaulen Nothing to say? I will take that as a NO.
<NARRATOR> You take a step towards the Prince and in that precise moment he breaks his silence.
Lord_Nengorth Not only will you not have the key, I sentence you to death for your actions: MURDERER OF MEN!

Yeah, I like his dialog. He tells me that I'm evil, that I killed countless guards while he only followed what his god asked of him. Cool, but the NPCs at the village all said he was evil and were very grateful after I killed him. If those guards had family, or if the prince's god had any supporter, they are nowhere to be seen in the game. Any doubts I had of "am I the wrong one?" just vanished once everyone back in town gave me gifts and "thank yous".

The story you wrote may play with gray morality, but the game plays like a straight forward heroic quest.If you want me to doubt myself, don't tell, SHOW. Show a family of guards back at the village that now hates me. Show people that liked the prince and now are sad. This is what makes things interesting. Imagine that, I arrive at the second town and they ask me to go save the first town, that's been raided by monsters now that the guards were killed. That's much more powerful than any cutscene. And cheaper too.

 

[HiddenX]

Another nice preview from IndieRPGs.com:

Craig Stern:

My first impression was almost entirely positive. The game’s art style is lovely, its musical score is great, and it just comes across as very polished in almost every respect. The mixture of Baldur’s Gate-like isometric exploration and Might and Magic-y first person combat works much better than I expected, making for a legitimately compelling experience. I particularly enjoyed the game’s tendency to scatter hidden goodies all over the world map, rewarding careful exploration.

Lords of Xulima has a well-designed lock-picking mini game, as well as a trap disarming mini game that is somewhat less interesting (but still pretty neat). It also features a food system to limit the amount of resting you can economically perform between fights, and (this is especially clever) terrain effects on the amount of food you consume while moving around.

Can't wait for the final version … I think I'll start this soon.

 

[felipepepe]

Tried the new Summoner class. While it's cool, I was disappointed that you can't control the summons... they just do what they want.