Post by Corvus G. in The Dark Queen of Mortholme comments

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It's an great concept, but as other have said, the game basically cheats to get to the predetermined outcome of you losing. The moment you start to see it, everything becomes a lot less enjoyable.

It also undermines the entire premise and story of the game. The hero is not getting better, he is not changing to fit your tactics. He is simply running through lives until he gets to one that triggers the next phase, until he eventually gets to the one that lets him figure out which exact pixel of the screen he can stand on.

"This game is about the capacity for change" -- The author.

It really isn't. Ironically, the only reason this game works is because everything is set on stone.

Happy Slaying188 days ago(+5)(-6)

You must be fun at partys

Corvus G.187 days ago (1 edit) (-3)

NPC-type reply.

Just because you don't have the brain capacity to have a meaningful discussion about the game doesn't mean everyone else has the same problem.

DerzTankman188 days ago(+3)

i really expected that this would be a sort of branching path experience with the potential for outcomes based on how you act or what you tell the Hero. it seems really cheap on a repeat playthrough when you start to see different dialogue options pigeon-holing you back into the same respoonses

dejaime188 days ago(+6)(-2)

I don't think this was ever supposed to be a skill based game or anything like that. This is a visual novel, but in an interesting and unusual format.

This is a game where you don't have the capacity to change, but the enemy does; i.e. now you have to deal with their changes as they come, while you lack that capacity.

Look at this as an inversion of the traditional grind-based game if you must, but it is still just a very creative visual novel.

Makeshift1188 days ago (1 edit) (+2)(-4)

This is a fun theory, until you realis the fight sequences are the exact same on every playthrough, nothing changes, and the hero's progress is entirely scripted. I was so excited to play this game and it turned out to be a sad attempt at a conclusion you already know before you start with a method that undermines the entire point.

dejaime187 days ago (1 edit) (+4)(-1)

It is not a theory, this is literally a visual novel. The listed genre is "Interactive Fiction".

On top of that, there's a lot of grind based games that are exactly the same. You use the exact same moves and skills over and over again, nothing changes. You just deal that extra bit more damage for that extra hour of grind, and then try again.

Corvus G.187 days ago

Yeah no I wasn't trying to imply that the game should be skill based or anything. I'm okay if the predermined outcome is you lose. The problem is that in the current way that is implemented it diminishes the entire premise.

The enemy is not changing. That's the problem.

Zephynox179 days ago

Spoilers Ahead

(I guess? others should have played already this down in the comment section, 20 minute game people)

I thought the whole point was the hero not giving up, and the lessons that the queen ends up learning, hero does seem to get better every fight, I understand it might not have been in the way you expected, an NPC's AI slowly adapting to everything you do, but this game was more about the narrative of change (and the lack of it) at the end of the day.

I think you just got mad that the hero figured out patterns by the end, making you lose. Unfortunately things are always set in stone because games are HARDCODED, unfortunately the game won't rewrite itself to accommodate to what you wanted.

I do get that after a few runs the premise does water down a little bit, but that is just natural since you already finished the game and can no longer be surprised by the hero's apparent improvements.

There is also word in the comments about an ending where the queen actually wins, I haven't got to it yet so I don't know if its possible, but even if there is not such an ending, it doesn't really make the game bad by any means.

I can respect you not liking the game, everyone has their particular taste, but I think you are being a bit too harsh claiming the author's lying or that the game is not enjoyable.

itch.io

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