KickStarter Solasta Pre-Release Thread [GAME RELEASED, GO TO NEW THREAD]

[rusty_shackleford]

there's a bug where you can't move, it's caused by clicking 'cast spell' then changing characters. Just click cast spell again twice to open/close the menu and it fixes it.

 

[rusty_shackleford]

do enemies not have a limited number of spells?

 

[Stormcrowfleet]

do enemies not have a limited number of spells?

Infinite fly

 

[Doctor Sbaitso]

I was positive on this and it's growing on me. Seems fairly well balanced if the AI were a bit tougher. After KOTC2 this shit is training wheels.

 

[rusty_shackleford]

Finished the EA content. It's pretty decent. Biggest gripe would probably be the lack of reactivity and linear dungeons.

Spoiler

I picked the crown up on my paladin because I thought he might be better at resisting its curse and it doesn't seem to change it at all
Also managed to talk that skeleton knight dude into letting me into the castle, cleared it all out, came back out and he's just hanging around. He really should be gone after the necromancers are dead, no?

Good itemization.

The rest spots should probably be one-time use only outside of easy difficulty though.
Actual random encounters when on the world map beyond combat/flavor text would be nice.
Reaction system doesn't slow combat down at all IMO, it's a nice addition.

[edit]
And I still like the UI. It's simple and stays out of the way, you don't even notice it when playing. If you're judging it based off of screenshots you should play it. On the non-graphics part of the UI, it's really well designed all around. The spellbooks, bestiary, etc., A lot of effort went into it.

 

[Mortmal]

"Fixed the main quest not updating if the player immediately rushed to the secret passage instead of entering the courtyard"

yeah.. I ike how they say it, its our fault for rushing to the secret passage , totally not their fault.

 

[Ontopoly]

"Fixed the main quest not updating if the player immediately rushed to the secret passage instead of entering the courtyard"

yeah.. I like how they say it, its our fault for rushing to the secret passage , totally not their fault.

You're a fucking pansy if you read that and get butt hurt because you think they're attacking you. They're not blaming you. Don't worry, you're still a capable big boy.

 

[Mortmal]

"Fixed the main quest not updating if the player immediately rushed to the secret passage instead of entering the courtyard"

yeah.. I like how they say it, its our fault for rushing to the secret passage , totally not their fault.

You're a fucking pansy if you read that and get butt hurt because you think they're attacking you. They're not blaming you. Don't worry, you're still a capable big boy.

Nope phrasing is not good, you are getting far too compliant on being treated like shit my friend.

 

[Ontopoly]

"Fixed the main quest not updating if the player immediately rushed to the secret passage instead of entering the courtyard"

yeah.. I like how they say it, its our fault for rushing to the secret passage , totally not their fault.

You're a fucking pansy if you read that and get butt hurt because you think they're attacking you. They're not blaming you. Don't worry, you're still a capable big boy.

Nope phrasing is not good, you are getting far too compliant on being treated like shit my friend.

Yeah, sure. Developers should treat me like the pretty princess I am and be sure not to offend my sensibilities

 

[PulsatingBrain]

Nope phrasing is not good, you are getting far too compliant on being treated like shit my friend.

They described the activity which triggered the bug, and then described the activity they had predicted. That's it.

They also fixed it. Meaning they're acknowledging that both activities should be considered valid by the game.

I bet you're a fucking nightmare to deal with IRL

 

[Shrimp]

I just finished the early access version a few minutes ago. I don't feel like immediately replaying it, so I think I'll leave it for the full release next year.

I've seen a lot of people praise the general combat encounters found within the game, a statement I must respectfully disagree with.
Sure, the elevation and light sources are interesting mechanics, even though there are some cases where I don't think the light sources were implemented properly. However towards the end of my EA playthrough I was growing increasingly weary of continuously fighting the same groups of ghouls, skeletons and wights. I really wish more game devs would prioritise making few but memorable encounters rather than sending you against the same cannon fodder every time you enter a new corridor. As far as I am concerned they could easily remove 2 or 3 of the random groups of enemies inside the Bone Keep without it negatively impacting the journey through the area.

I don't really want to comment on dialogue and story since that evidently isn't where the majority of the game's focus is going to lie. The personality tag system seems really great on paper, but I found a lot of my party's comments felt like they just were random generic stock replies or comments. The differences might become more apparent if I replay the game with a completely new set of characters, but I'd rather leave that for later. Has anyone experienced the tags actually affecting the characters' personality in the dialogues?

With that being said I think the game handles a lot of other things really well. Reactions, ready actions and dodge are all implemented very tastefully without feeling like forced additions. Reactions don't feel like they disrupt the flow of combat at all. The game obviously needs more classes than the six ones currently available, but unfortunately it sounds like the developers aren't exactly enthusiastic about this.
Excerpt from a Q&A I found on Steam:

Q: You will add some new class post-launch ?
A: Solasta launches in Early Access with the 6 classes available in the Demo, however we have already promised to add the Sorcerer as a free post-launch DLC during our Kickstarter Campaign.
Ideally, we'd love to have all official SRD classes in Solasta - however we don't want to make any promises. We'll likely be looking at DLCs post-launch to add new classes (depending on how the game performs!).

The same Q&A also contains a bunch of other answers that lean dangerously close to just being a rephrasing of "we don't want to" and "we'll do it if we feel like it."
Sorcerer being the only confirmed additional class and everything else being 'possible' (with the suggestion that other classes might not even be free additions) doesn't sound very good at all since the linearity of the game suggests it's one of those games where the biggest replay value comes from trying out new party/character builds.
Negativity aside I honestly think the game has the potential to be a sleeper hit if its handled with care. It's definitely going to be interesting to see how it turns out.

 

[Mortmal]

Nope phrasing is not good, you are getting far too compliant on being treated like shit my friend.

I bet you're a fucking nightmare to deal with IRL

You dont know 1/100th of it, but it take skill , lot of experience and practice.

 

[LJ40]

Nope phrasing is not good, you are getting far too compliant on being treated like shit my friend.

I bet you're a fucking nightmare to deal with IRL

You dont know 1/100th of it, but it take skill , lot of experience and practice.

Pretty sure it would take a steady diet of paint chips for that logic leap you made back there.

 

[rusty_shackleford]

The game obviously needs more classes than the six ones currently available, but unfortunately it sounds like the developers aren't exactly enthusiastic about this.
Excerpt from a Q&A I found on Steam:

Agreed, a D&D game with such few classes feels like a bummer.
I like the subclasses though.

 

[gurugeorge]

OK, having finished the EA, I've realized that the best thing about this game's combat is its speed and flow.

Basically, there's less faffing around, options are cleaner and simpler (though not over-simple) so the gameplay is faster. And the pace of the gameplay becomes itself an addictive factor, so then one feels a sense of momentum in going through the game.

Yet at the same time, the game has quite a good simulationist feel - lots of little "realistic" details are represented in some way, and the rhythm of action and rest (beard stroking over inventory and build) is nicely balanced. So it's also quite strongly immersive (one feels like one is living through the story).

I don't know how much of this is down to the more streamlined 5e ruleset, and how much to the devs deliberate efforts, but I guess they wanted 5e for this reason, that it's streamlined, but still reasonably simulationist and immersive.

 

[Doctor Sbaitso]

Spoiler

In the bone keep just outside the master's chamber. Anyone able to get to the nearby resting spot?

 

[rusty_shackleford]

Spoiler

In the bone keep just outside the master's chamber. Anyone able to get to the nearby resting spot?

Spoiler

do you mean in the room with the teleporters? one of them takes you up there, you can knock down a box to allow the rest of your party to crawl up

 

[Lawntoilet]

Spoiler

In the bone keep just outside the master's chamber. Anyone able to get to the nearby resting spot?

Spoiler

do you mean in the room with the teleporters? one of them takes you up there, you can knock down a box to allow the rest of your party to crawl up

Spoiler

I didn't find that one, but I had a potion of Fly and got up to the box that way.

 

[Doctor Sbaitso]

OK finished now. The team has a long road ahead of them obviously, but what is there is clearly crafted with care and I can see nods to some great features from classics. Lots of really nice and fairly unique touches. Some highlights for me:

• Love the automap
• Atmosphere is moving in the right direction
  
• Combat system is mechanically sound, but a few things are missing from the ruleset
  
• You can see the love poured into the descriptions for spells, items, abilities, etc
• UI is understated but elegant, UX is great
• Travel system shows promise
• Foci are partially there but the implementation looks interesting

Lowlights

• Expose more of the systems and rules. It's an EA demo really, but what they show is expertly presented and leave me wanting more
• Limited character development right now, hopefully due to partially implemented mechanics
• I enjoy the levels and art style aesthetically, but they are linear AF and the puzzles are almost so simple as to be a waste of time. They showed a bit in the Stone Keep but would like that taken 2 levels beyond what we have seen so far
• Difficulty levels are coming so will wait to see how that shapes up. I had to reload a fight once and that was largely due to bad key strokes on my part. Game is rather easy right now.
• Crafting, enchanting, etc looks interesting but we don't get to play with it much

Will pick it up again maybe once more before release. I rarely replay anything unless the game is mechanically/systemically interesting and has some depth. This will be one of those eventually I believe.

 

[rusty_shackleford]

Despite liking it I have no drive to replay the EA because it felt very linear. I've played through BG3's EA two and a half times now and know I haven't seen all the content for comparison. I know that Larian is a much bigger studio, but I'm not asking for fully mocapped sex scenes

Spoiler

or am I?

To summarize my constructive criticisms after my above post and thinking on it for a day:

• Badly needs more classes. Druid and bard at the minimum, I consider both to be iconic D&D classes. They need to reevaluate their decision to not add more classes, this really hurts the replay value.
  
• Story needs to be more reactive to your decisions and your character's background/class. I loved the part in the
  Spoiler

  attacked fort area where I could convince a soldier to let me in by using my paladin's sellsword background. They both fought at the same battle, my paladin described the battle in minute details only someone there would know, so the soldier completely trusted him due to being a brother in arms.
  That's an example of good reactivity, the game needs more of that.
  
• Not all of this will be negative criticism. I like the crafting so far. I don't think 5e really has any crafting rules(?) so if it's homebrew, it's well done.
• I agree with the guy above that the simulationist aspects are well done, probably moreso than any other D&D game.
  
• Create Food and Water feels too powerful currently. 15 rations is a lot. Creating enough for one rest is already very powerful, 15 rations is nearly enough for 4 rests.
• To add to the above, (nearly) unlimited resting is too powerful. The idea of rest points is good and I'm glad games are using them, but they should be limited in all but the easiest difficulties. Alternatively, maybe there should be repercussions for wasting so much time. I thought there was at first so it made me think twice about resting unless necessary, but I don't think there is.
• Needs an option to speed up combat animations. I like the animations, they're well done, but I hate having my game interrupted just to watch them. Imagine you're playing a game and someone takes away your keyboard+mouse/controller for a few seconds everytime you select an option. That's what it feels like.
• When looting containers, clicking an item should add it to your inventory rather than having to drag it to your inventory.
• The portraits in the UI should be on the right side rather than the left. Currently, dragging items to a party member requires far more effort than it should. Example of what I mean, here is the default:
  DEFAULT

  
  and here is what I suggest:
  SUGGESTED

  
• Inventory should have multiple ways to sort it and/or have filter tabs. One especially important way to sort it is by order of acquisition, I love when games have it and hate when they don't.
• Needs more loot. I understand not wanting to give out magical items too easily(this is good) but there are zero(?) boots/belts/gloves/helmets(sans crown) at all. I found one pair of bracers.
• Enemy wizards seemingly have unlimited spell slots. From the vampire that kept casting darkness everywhere to wizards that keep casting fly and are untouchable by melee characters, this is annoying and broken.
• The overland map needs more encounters. I don't mean combat encounters, I want random encounters. Traveling merchants, people who need help, etc., There's already flavor text for it, I was actually pretty sad when I realized that it's just fluff.
• Darkvision feels too powerful. Not really sure what else to add here, I disagree with the SRD giving it to so many races in 5E without any real drawback.
  
• The UI is functional which is all I ask (above poster said the UX is great, I agree.) I actually love the spellbook design. Which makes my critique of the inventory above all the more pertinent: the spellbook has a bunch of filters, categorized, etc., but the inventory is just a bunch of haphazard icons. It feels like the odd one out in an otherwise great UI. Players spend a lot of time in the inventory and examining our items, it shouldn't be a chore to work with.
• Combat, for a lack of better word, flows well. I was unsure how reactions could be implemented without being annoying or underused, but you guys did a good job. With an option to speed up animations it will be great.

No idea if Myzzrym is reading our feedback or not.


Here's a screenshot of the spellbook for those that haven't played, btw:

 

[Generic-Giant-Spider]

The Solasta devs are getting real fucking lazy with their lack of cat pictures per update.

Hey, HEY DEVS, pick it up.

Hahaha. Alexa, play Purple Rain.

cruises on by in his caddy

 

[Harthwain]

To add to the above, (nearly) unlimited resting is too powerful. The idea of rest points is good and I'm glad games are using them, but they should be limited in all but the easiest difficulties. Alternatively, maybe there should be repercussions for wasting so much time. I thought there was at first so it made me think twice about resting unless necessary, but I don't think there is.

When playing the demo my thought was that both rests and spells/rituals that take time to cast (Identification) will be important somehow in the full game, because of how the flow of time is simulated. Otherwise it'd be a strange decision to go through mechanical implementation only to not make use full use of it. Perhaps difficulty levels will introduce a timer of sorts, forcing you to manage your time as a resource?

Edit: a typo.

 

[Shrimp]

Needs an option to speed up combat animations. I like the animations, they're well done, but I hate having my game interrupted just to watch them. Imagine you're playing a game and someone takes away your keyboard+mouse/controller for a few seconds everytime you select an option. That's what it feels like.

Holding down space bar speeds up some of the combat animations. Just be advised that space bar also is the default (or only? I didn't check the keybinds) hotkey to skipping your turn so if you hold it down for too long it skips past you without asking if you actually want to skip without doing anything.

 

[rusty_shackleford]

shh nobody tell Myzzrym I found this

Spoiler

 

[Whisper]

Who is Myzzrym?