Drakensang: The River of Time

[Renevent]

So apparently this game is finally released in NA on gamersgate and Impulse tomorrow...anyone planning on picking it up?

I only played the demo for the first game and while I thought it was cool, I never ended up purchasing it. Felt a little slow paced and typically real time party based RPG's with pause combat mechanics kinda bore me. They feel a little too much like RTS games.

I am thinking about picking this one up though...posted this on the official forums:

Hello I noticed this game will be available on gamersgate tomorrow in North America and had some questions regarding the game.

I have read the company behind has went under so wondering if the game has proper English translations? I don't mind minor mistakes but I have played games from overseas under similar circumstances that was pretty much unbearable. I don't want to install any unofficial patches either.

Does anyone know if the gamersgate version is fully patched bug/content wise?

How is the game itself? Fun? How long does it take to complete?

A little about my own gaming preferences...I generally prefer more action orientated RPG's like Titan Quest or single character action heavy open world games like Risen, Gothic, Two Worlds, and other similar games. I did enjoy NWN2 though and from time to time like slower paced party RPG's...if they have really cool character progression systems, great item system, and a really cool world to explore with lots of cool things to see and find.

Would you recommend this game to me?

I appreciate the help and thanks in advance!

[hooby]

I played through the german version (twice), so I can't comment on the quality of the translation.

But I recommend this game to anyone who likes rather old-school story-based roleplaying games that are based on Pen&Paper Rulesets (think Neverwinter Nights, Temple of Elemental Evil, Baldurs Gate, etc.).

The story is rather lighthearted (and not dark at all) but quite good, the setting and history are deep and complex, the world is believable and the humor is decent - that's a matter of personal taste though.

Combat is similar to many Bioware games - running in pausable realtime, but internal calculations are done round-based.

The plot is mostly linear and there is no open world - you unlock new areas to explore while progressing through the storyline. (But there's no focus on exploring, and the areas aren't incredibly big).
Side quests are not that numerous but well crafted. They all have their own little story and never feel repetitive or formulaic. In fact they are quite varying.

Character development is quite flexible, complex and well-proven, like you'd expect it from a Pen&Paper ruleset - including a choice of non-combat skills too. But you get a party covering all skills needed, so you aren't required to learn any of those on your own. Just take the right companion with you.

Item diversity is not comparable to action RPGs - there are no random item drops and no random modifiers on items - every single piece is hand-crafted. But the number of Items you can choose from is high enough, since the different effects items can have on the gameplay are manifold.

Replay Value is low to non-existent. Once you are through the storyline there's almost no reason to continue playing except for maybe doing some sidequests you missed. Starting a new playthrough does not offer anything fresh except for maybe trying another class or build.

The expansion set - Phileasons Secret - is not worth buying though. The story is boring, the new quests are repetitive and the new items are overpowered... very dissapointing.

If you got any specific questions, just shoot away ;)

[Renevent]

The only thing holding me back at this point is the combat system...I really don't like real-time-turn-based--party based-bioware style combat. Just feels too much like an RTS or something. I like either direct control or true turn based like Temple of Elemental Evil or something.

[hooby]

The only thing holding me back at this point is the combat system...I really don't like real-time-turn-based--party based-bioware style combat. Just feels too much like an RTS or something. I like either direct control or true turn based like Temple of Elemental Evil or something.

Me too.

I prefer un-delayed direct control for playing a single character, and real round-based combat with an "end round" button for party based games.

I strongly believe that pause is for taking a call or going to the toilet, and that being able to play (by giving commands) during pause is a felony and totaly breaks both immersion and suspense.

If you play Drakensang on easy difficulty setting, you can beat the whole game without pausing ever, and without giving any commands to the party - just controlling your main toon.
On normal difficulty you should only have to pause during some of the tougher boss fights.

That's how I played it. ;)

Edit: Damn... now I have to post a thread on this into the rant forum...

[Renevent]

Hmmm...that might work :p