Recent reviews by Wlerin

Short version: I've enjoyed it, and am looking forward to the full release.

The game has a solid foundation, it's fun to explore and find secrets, the lore is intriguing. Currently in EA there are three regions available for exploration, with at least(?) one more likely planned for the endgame (based on the story being told within the game, I haven't followed development at all).

The character building mechanics are pretty simple, with there being 4 primary stats and 8 derived skills. The skills gain 5 points for every 1 point invested in your stats. Since the stats max out at 10, this means you can get a total of +50 to each skill this way. You can boost them further through backstory choices, and through gear, spells, and temporary training buffs. The latter can be found in each faction HQ as well as added to player housing. (Did I mention the game has player housing?)

Most obstacles in the game (e.g. locked doors) can be solved with at least two different methods, either a stat or skill check (usually Might, Lore, Lockpicking, Charm) or exploration (e.g. finding the back way into a mine). You'll eventually be able to max out all four stats, so these multiple options are more of an issue in the early game than the late.

Beware if you've a fear of heights (like me), the game takes place on floating islands with lots of high cliffs and plenty of locations where the land rises to what could be either a cliff or a ridge, and only by sidling up right next to it can you tell if it's a sheer drop into the corrupted abyss or a hidden slope concealing an item or herb.

A fun exploration game with plenty to discover, a unique artstyle, and plenty of interesting mechanics that complement each other well and unlock at just the right pace for you to master each before needing to combine them. If I had any complaints when it was over it was that it was over.

If you enjoy space exploration games, this is a nice little slice of one, with some very basic world building, exploration, crafting, and alien hunting. It is more the skeleton of a exploration game than one fully-fleshed out, but none of the bones are missing, and it still offers 10-20 hours of enjoyment as you explore what it has to offer.

I can imagine something like prospector (the 2D roguelike that partly inspired Approaching Infinity) being rebuilt on top of this framework, and perhaps it was that imagination that kept me going even when the seams started to show. But eh. For $5? Or even less on sale? I don't regret the purchase. And I don't think you will either.

Controls are janky, what content is there is pretty slim (I was able to 100% the game in 1.4 hours). But, it's a student project, and it's free. And it scratched a little of that Sable itch I was till feeling. If you can get past the jankiness of the character and the boat's movements, there's some decent albeit brief fun to be had here.

The journal entries also hide quite a few easter eggs for those who've played similar games.

I was initially kind of on the fence. The game lacks a number of features (e.g. unit customization, map sizes) that I enjoyed in other similar fantasy 4X titles and at least initially feels a lot more streamlined. The story content (in random events, wonders, the story missions themselves) is also very disappointing. Well-written but meaningless. Admittedly it's hard to have meaning with the world parameters they've chosen. The AI is terribad and multiplayer barely functions.

And yet... And yet... I have been playing for 131 hours.

The tome and affinity and race creation systems allow for a lot of interesting combinations. It's interesting combining the racial, societal, and cultural traits + units, which you can't change after game start, with different paths through the tomes and the affinity tree. In theory you can unlock almost all of the latter, but it's usually not worth doing so and the game does kinda fall apart at the seams if you do (too many spells, too many units, no ability to filter, very limited sorting). So it's more about finding the fastest way to combos that complement your static (race/society/culture) build. Idk. It's fun. It's interesting. It's kept me entertained despite its many shortcomings.

I will say though, be careful of the mods that remove the game's limitations (e.g. on map size, city population). They are there for a reason, and you will lose what little balance is left after near-complete tome selection freedom. Map size in particular, while it comes with lots of headaches--particularly in regard to the AI settling everywhere before you have a chance to--because there's very little ability to speed up armies on the world map (Forced March is too brutal), larger maps are pure pain, at least until you complete the Astral Affinity tree in the late game. Also the turns take much longer for some reason.

The first two episodes of story mode were amazing mostly solitary frozen wilderness exploration experiences, and once you get over the initial hurdles survival mode just continues in the same vein with even more to explore. (The main hurdle being, stuff you could just do in story mode now has a chance of failure until you've practiced.)

The third episode had too many other people in the frozen wasteland with you, and was also a step back from Episode II in that you only had one (large) region to explore rather than several. It also introduced timber wolf packs, probably my least favorite addition to the game. Episode IV continues in the same vein.

Despite my dissatisfaction with III and IV I still find the game as a whole enjoyable, and more than worth the purchase price.

Tarn changed all the keybindings. Game is literally unplayable.

Fourteen thumbs up, 7/7.

Fantastic game with abundant lore to discover.

Experience is fairly similar to Sunless Sea except it's a lot easier to start out (thanks to Trade Tasks) and a lot harder to get stable--and trading is actually a viable way of making money. Also, storylines span multiple towns instead of each being confined in one location... oh wait I'm reviewing Vagrus not critiquing SS (which I love too). Lots of events and decision making in town, companion stories to pursue, bounties to hunt. There's also a fourth "Ambition" in the works, "Knowledge", which I am looking forward to with wild-eyed anticipation.

Lots more I could say and I might later, but right now I have to go. My comitatus needs me.

Lead a party of adventurers with their own personalities and quirks through branching handwritten (with a procedural twist) storylines. After the final chapter, start a new story with the survivors, still bearing the transformations they underwent in the first story.

Your characters will learn different skills on each playthrough (with the option to keep a few from the previous), uncovering new synergies. Weapons can be enchanted with elemental spirits, adding new effects on a critical hit--ahem, I mean a "stunt". Otherwise I find the gear system to be a bit underbaked, but weapons are the only gear piece your heroes retain between runs so eh.

It's fun.

Amazing game. Fixes the issues of Sunless Sea while retaining its charm.