The Dwarves

[Gilrond-i-Virdan]

The Dwarves

New game "The Dwarves" by KING Art Games just came out: https://www.gog.com/game/dwarves_the

It's an interesting blend of real-time tactical combat and story driven adventure / rpg. It was crowdfunfed originally.

The game is based on the book by Markus Heitz - "The Dwarves".

Blind Guardian even wrote a song for its soundtrack:

 

[Gilrond-i-Virdan]

I didn't know about it until recently, so I didn't back it. It was day one Linux release, so I bought it on GOG, and so far I'm quite enjoying the game. It doesn't have complex RPG mechanics of something like Baldur's Gate or RPGs in the middle like The Witcher and Dragon Age: Origins. But the story and dialogs are great. It feels more like an adventure game to me. Story screens also remind me Pillars of Eternity. I should read the book as well.

 

[Gilrond-i-Virdan]

The game is really good - I highly recommend it.

 

[volsung]

Awesome! Thanks for the recommendation. I'll add it to my GOG wishlist.

 

[Odinsauge]

I'm a bit disappointed that it is quite sort and doesn't have much RPG elements but I really liked the books (at least the first 3 and the last one) so I maybe give it a try.

 

[Gilrond-i-Virdan]

I'm a bit disappointed that it is quite sort and doesn't have much RPG elements but I really liked the books (at least the first 3 and the last one) so I maybe give it a try.

If you try to approach it as a classic RPG, you might be disappointed. Enjoy it as is. Or if you want to categorize it for yourself, see it for example as an adventure game with tactical combat. It's a quite enjoyable and somewhat unusual blend, even if it's not in the same category like Pillars of Eternity or other RPGs with complex systems.

It shows that it's based on a book, it makes characters more believable and interesting. I'd say it gives an effect similar to the Witcher games (since they draw on well written book characters). It's not easy to make an interesting character with depth and personality. The game does it well, even for different companions. Voicing acting is quite good, and narrator is a nice touch.

 

[Gilrond-i-Virdan]

The active group can have only four characters, but there are quite a lot of companions to choose from at various points of the game.

Spoiler

Despite tensions between them, Narmora and Giralda make an excellent ninja team. Just they two can take out many enemies by using smart tactics with shadow teleporting and luring enemies away from large groups.

 

[Odinsauge]

If you try to approach it as a classic RPG, you might be disappointed. Enjoy it as is. Or if you want to categorize it for yourself, see it for example as an adventure game with tactical combat. It's a quite enjoyable and somewhat unusual blend, even if it's not in the same category like Pillars of Eternity or other RPGs with complex systems.

It shows that it's based on a book, it makes characters more believable and interesting. I'd say it gives an effect similar to the Witcher games (since they draw on well written book characters). It's not easy to make an interesting character with depth and personality. The game does it well, even for different companions. Voicing acting is quite good, and narrator is a nice touch.

Sounds interesting I should really give it a try if i have time for it.

 

[Gilrond-i-Virdan]

Just finished the game. It's not very long, but pretty high quality - I liked it a lot. I suppose they plan a sequel, since one of the directories in the game is called "episode_01".

 

[volsung]

I am really enjoying the game, except it has a few extremely annoying problems.

1) The camera is terrible. Not only is it hard to find a good angle sometimes in the heat of battle, but also it won't let you see too far ahead. It's always centered on the selected character and it's not always possible to zoom out enough. This means, in some crowded battles there are archers shooting from far away and you cannot even see where they are. Redirecting a character to attack a far away enemy is also difficult for this reason.

2) The characters won't stay in place. They move around all the time chasing enemies which makes tactical positioning very hard. For instance, having a healer hide behind a pillar (to avoid unseen archers) and casting spells requires constantly monitoring their position.

3) For a 3D game there's a surprising amount of pixel/object hunting, probably an issue derived in part from the awkward camera angles.

My suggestions would be to:

1) Have a free camera, pan by touching the edge of the screen and rotate/zoom with the scroll. You know, like a typical strategy, cRPG or strategy/RPG hybrid.
2) Have more control over the characters, in attacks and movement. Eg, have abilities to stay in place, defend and auto, with auto using different profiles (prefer nearest enemy, strongest, archer, magic user, etc.).
3) Make interactive areas more noticeable or provide a way to detect/highlight them.

Also, a good amount of time is spent in the world map and apart from the occasional choose-your-own-story events, there's not much to do. Rations are limited and each day uses a lot of them, so exploration isn't exactly encouraged. Maybe I'm doing something wrong.

Either way it's a fun game. I'm not done yet but thought I'd share my impressions so far. If these issues were fixed it'd be great. As it is it's kind of frustrating to be honest, but I still like it. The dwarven cities and character models remind me a lot of Dragon Age: Origins. I just wish the combat controls/camera were just as good as they were in DA:O.

 

[Gilrond-i-Virdan]

volsung Yeah, rations limit your ability to explore, and even though you can buy them in a few places, it's not enough to just roam freely. In a way they force you to choose only certain paths. But I think it's by design, and fits with the story - there is a constant feeling of urgent events coming, so there is no time to linger around really.

Camera issues were indeed a bit annoying, but I could tolerate it to enjoy the game in general. Hopefuly they'll crowdfund the sequel, so you can submit your constructive criticism to them directly

 

[volsung]

volsung Yeah, rations limit your ability to explore, and even though you can buy them in a few places, it's not enough to just roam freely. In a way they force you to choose only certain paths. But I think it's by design, and fits with the story - there is a constant feeling of urgent events coming, so there is no time to linger around really.

Camera issues were indeed a bit annoying, but I could tolerate it to enjoy the game in general. Hopefuly they'll crowdfund the sequel, so you can submit your constructive criticism to them directly

Yeah I don't mind having limited rations. In games like Expeditions: Conquistador collecting and managing rations is an important game element, essential for survival. I just want to see more locations, all 3D battle areas are pretty small. It does fit the story though, and I often have enough rations to just get to my destination (makes sense right?). I also have a huge team and I'm not using all of them. Maybe in the sequel we could have the option of (temporarily) dismissing team members and coming back for them.

I really like the concept and the game itself. I did not know it was crowdfunded until a few weeks ago, the trailer (and the price) made it seem like a regular game. Maybe these issues can be patched in the near future? Either way I would probably support a sequel, but a battle intensive game like this needs more tactical options.

 

[volsung]

Oh so apparently I just finished the game, I wasn't too far from the ending. I like it, but that was one weird and awkward final battle.

Good concept, nice graphics, fun story, good writing. But please, PLEASE improve the camera and add tactical options. Make the combat resemble a proper RTT --real time tactics-- game. Sort of like Dawn of War 2, maybe?