The Thaumaturge

Wiktor would be best friends with Geralt.

结局有点潦草但是还是可以的

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What an interesting game this was. Even after completing the main story, I'm still torn on my overall verdict. It was one of those games that I came close to quitting a few times, only for it to draw me back in again. From a technical perspective it ran very well. For an indie game, the voice acting and character animations were well above average! [h2]The Good[/h2] The setting and world-building are doing most of the heavy lifting here. Early 1900's Poland combined with historical accuracy do make for quite an interesting setting. Cobblestone streets and Art Nouveau architecture deliver a cozy vibe throughout. The story was also quite intriguing, with lots of threads to follow through both main and side quests. The combat system was very cool and I think it had huge potential. Being able to see forecasted moves and abilities which span multiple turns provided a fun challenge and a fresh perspective to the turn-based genre. The salutors, by far, provided the most interesting movesets and that's where the combat truly shines. It's a shame that this system ends up being hampered by a very strange design choice in Act 2 of the game (see below). [h2]The Bad[/h2] On the flip side of the coin, the combat system was ultimately quite shallow. Limited skills and movesets, lack of enemy variety, and short fight durations held this system back from being truly great. Enemies are limited to human-types only and their attacks don't have much dynamic range - a sword slash here and a gunshot there. Foundationally, they had a lot to work with here but there just wasn't enough variety. Beyond that, the progression was very simple. I could have forgiven that if not for a confusing design choice in Act 2 which can end up locking the player out of the final 1/3rd of the entire skill tree. Spoilers ahead. [spoiler]Initially, you will gain the first full set of 4 salutors by way of main story. It's very intuitive and you slowly unlock new portions of the skill tree. However, the next and final set of salutors are all hidden behind completely optional quests in Act 2 and that is not made obvious in-game. This MIGHT have been a passable mechanic if not for the fact that several other main skills (not related to salutors) are also locked behind that progression.[/spoiler]So this essentially means you can make it all the way to Act 3 without unlocking any new salutors, resulting in difficult fights and skill checks which are impossible to pass or level any farther. [h2]Conclusion[/h2] For years I was hesitant to start this one due to mixed reviews and I would say for the most part those are spot on. The story is interesting, and the combat system had potential. But the point-and-click nature of traversal and shallow "investigation" mechanics kept me teetering between finishing the game or shelving it. Ultimately I'm glad I saw it through, but I'd say this is a probably more of a game for those who enjoy strong narratives rather than outright gameplay.

good game