Legionwood - Tale Of The Two Swords *Complete and FREE*

[Dincrest]

Speaking of art, I'm still wondering what's going on with Whispers of a Rose.  Early screenshots of that game blew me away with the art in the sprites, tiles, portraits, character designs, everything.  That's a game that seemed to really push the limits on the RPGM engine.  But the RosePortal site's down and no word on what's going on.  Story seemed cool too.  Deadly Sin is another one which had excellent spritework and solid design... but the story and characters were an absolute yawn so I ended up not liking the experience as much as I wanted to. 

[MeshGearFox]

IDK I think Ifferimoon sort of trounces Eternal Eden in the art department, mostly because it has its own unique style instead of just being rather standard anime-ish.

[Dincrest]

When comparing all indie RPGs, then I'm with you on Iffermoon's art, which is awesome.  That game was f'n good.  A freeware game I'd totally drop cash for.

When looking at just RPGM games, I gotta give it Whispers of a Rose in the art department.  

[Indy]

However, the art is definitely NOT up to snuff with Eternal Eden, by far. In fact, it's several factors worse. In every way, practically. I like the sun glare in the Sheerbark Ruins. Nice touch. I also dislike random encounters, whereas EE almost entirely got rid of those and let you decide if you wanted to face any enemy you ran into. Also, those enemies never returned, which was very, very nice.

I haven't played the game but I wanted to comment on this one issue.  Frankly, I happen to think that of all the indie RPG's I've played or looked at, Eternal Eden is far and away the best when it comes to art.  The only game that I can think of that has artwork of a similar quality are the recent Aveyond game (and unfortunately, it's only for the cover art).  I happen to think in that regard EE is simply in another league.  Most indie RPG's are going to fall short.

Hmmmm...
That's the kind of art you find in my 3 Stars of Destiny, and I don't think it's in another league really...

[Dark Gaia]

Hi everyone! The latest version of Legionwood, including the new third chapter, has just been released! I urge any of you interested in trying it to persue the links in the opening post. Enjoy!

P.S Due to popular demand, the game now includes a full PDF proffesionally styled manual.

On the topic of art, I feel that Aveyond has the best of all the RPG Maker commercial games I've seen as so much of it is custom and well done, as opposed to Deadly Sin and EE, which both use stock standard RPG maker VX graphics available on any RMVX site, except for the promo art for both, which is actually quite good. Here's an image from my own game which I use as promo art:

[Dark Gaia]

Update!

To circumvent all of the patching that has to be done, I've uploaded a new version of the game with all of the problems fixed and at a smaller size too (58MB).

To move your save files over, do this:

Copy and paste the Quest*.rvdata and Quest*.bmp into the new directory, or simply reinstall over the old game's directory.

[Fei]

After six posts in a row, it's time for me to say that I didn't like this game at all. 

[Daggerstrike]

I thought this game was shite and the constant posting is absurd. There is an edit button.

[Dark Gaia]

Well, if you don't like, don't play. It's quite that simple. I'm not gonna sit here and try to argue with you. But there are some out there who enjoy the game so I shall continue to post updates for them. Perhaps though for the sake of improvement could you tell me why you didn't enjoy the game?

New Mirror

I have updated the first post's MegaUpload mirror. It was found to be linked to an old unpatched version. It is now fixed and holds the same file as the RapidShare link.

[Fei]

I thought there was promise with what the masked man was saying in the beginning, but by the time actual gameplay begins, you're completely removed from the flood of information.  From there, the plot and gameplay seemed generic and I just lost interest.  Probably a slow burn, but without any significant deviations from the norm I have no patience.

I tried it a long time ago, and said nothing because I had nothing good to say.  You're still actively updating this and no one is saying anything... did anyone else try this besides Daggerstrike and me?

[Daggerstrike]

I thought there was promise with what the masked man was saying in the beginning, but by the time actual gameplay begins, you're completely removed from the flood of information.  From there, the plot and gameplay seemed generic and I just lost interest.  Probably a slow burn, but without any significant deviations from the norm I have no patience.

I tried it a long time ago, and said nothing because I had nothing good to say.  You're still actively updating this and no one is saying anything... did anyone else try this besides Daggerstrike and me?

This.

I just found it to be a game with no real depth. Very shallow and boring. I will admit that I didn't finish it, so maybe it gets better, but I played it for a couple hours and just could not find anything good.

[Dark Gaia]

@Fei

Really? One of the most profound criticisms on other sites was that there is TOO MUCH of an information flood. I've redone the entire opening parts because of that. The story was really quite full on in the past and I was told by many people to give it a slower start. It soon picks up and becomes quite fast paced within the second hour or so, but it's true you may have lost interest by then.

Maybe not here on RPGFan, but on other sites the game has many players, I've counted over two hundred different posters in all the game's incarnations so far and I take their criticisms to heart.

@Daggerstrike

Possible improvements then? I am intending to make an enjoyable game, so if you tell me where you think it should be improved I can address it.

[Dark Gaia]

UPDATE NEWS

A new release is currently on the way, expected to arrive in mid January. While it isn't a new chapter release, it is still a release worth getting, due to the fact that it addresses most of the criticisms people have about Legionwood.

In short: This is a version of the game designed to get rid of the things people hate about Legionwood and make it a more appealing game to the people who currently despise it.

Features

I've decided to pretty much overhaul Legionwood as I've decided I want to make it into a game that everyone can play that is fun to play. I'm addressing the most pressing criticisms about the game and turning the game into a more casual game overall. I don't want to make a revolutionary game; just one that is fun and does what it does well. Thus, whether you're a fan of Legionwood already, someone who's never played, or someone who despises the game with a passion, I urge you to try this new release, as it is a new Legionwood and one which I've engineered to appeal more to you.

1. Every line of dialogue in the game and every cutscene will be streamlined and rewritten, and will flow smoother and more naturally.

2. The issues with balancing in the early areas of the game (which thankfully do even out later on) will be resolved. The early game difficulty will more closely match the later areas of the game. You will be able to clear the first dungeon at level one.

3. Several skills and items will be rebalanced as some are too weak/too powerful.

4. Focus will be taken off characterisation and placed upon the story instead. I agree: Legionwood is always awkward in the scenes where I make the characters try to characterise so the story will now become more world driven.

5. A complete playtest will be done and every reported bug and sound error will be fixed.

6. Chapter three will be extended slightly. You'll be able to proceed to Castoth's fortress this time around.

Release Notes

Despite all these massive changes, those currently playing the game will be able to use their save files to continue if they want to.

[Fei]

When can we expect this?  This is a game I wanted to like, and would give it another try, if only to test the validity of your word! 

[Dark Gaia]

You can expect it in say a week or two. With the help of many members of the RPG Maker community I've pinpointed the great criticisms people have and I've worked meticulously to remake those parts of the game. I hope you'll enjoy it.

Everything from the smallest NPC to the battle system has been redone to appeal more to the people who didn't enjoy the game the first time around.

I've put a MASSIVE summary of all the changes to the game in the dev blog at www.legionwood.webs.com if you wish to see; it's far too big to post here.