My thoughts after 10 minutes of playing

Unfortunately, I only had around 10 minutes to play this morning before I had to rush out the door to work. However, after arriving to work (10 minutes late), I had time to gather my thoughts about the game and so far I am very happy with what I saw. Granted, the character moment is a little silly looking at the current stage, I think the game has great potential.

Basically, I felt like I was playing Ultima again.. and more specifically, Ultima Online. I can't even begin to explain how happy I was when the game started and no instructions, colored arrows or blinking tutorials popped up. In fact, for a second, I almost thought the game was frozen because I have learned to anticipate things like this with new online games. If any of you ever played Ultima Online, you will know that when the game began you were given no instructions... you had to seek out other players, ask them questions, and learn the knowledge and lore of the game through trial and error. I remember being 12 years old (I am 28 now), playing Ultima Online , and having my mom take me out to buy the Ultima Online guidebook. I read that book front to back, and same for the T2A book when it came out... and my knowledge about the game was earned, and learned... rather than displayed in front of my face as the game began. I went on to become a counselor in a very popular shard.

I feel that Shroud of the Avatar has the same potential to win my heart as Ultima Online did when I was a child. To this day, there is no game that has ever sparked my interested as Ultima Online did, but I think this game may have a shot!

 

Wow! 10 minutes! Wish I got to play for 10 minutes! This is soooo exciting!

But, I did already make a deer friend. Wonder if he'll still be there when I come back?



Wanna ask him lots of questions like which bush is the best bush? Or what's it like to be really fuzzy?

Wonder if he's a wizard? Could maybe teach me magic things.

Oh, I so can't wait to help make the conversation things more smart!

You're welcome, everyone!

Elli

 

Every time I login, I hear Lord British whisper: "Go now, my young avatar, go play in your sandbox."

And then that's it. No more voices.

No more direction.

 

oh there are voices "why are you hording 500 cats and 300 furs and 400 bottles in your new house"

I DONT KNOW its because my mom didn't buy me a pc when i was a teenager.

 

I also only played around 20 minutes or so. And well....I am the most enthralled about an MMORPG since first setting foot into Ultima Online. Every single door can be opened...every building can be entered and is different. Nobody telling me where to go is a HUGE bonus! Thank you for that! From a roleplayers/crafters perspective, this game is most likely to be the MMORPG I can finally settle down in since Ultima Online.

I even sat around in furniture knowing full well how these tools will be implemented by players. Player taverns, massive mansions run by sadistic and opulent Lords, etc. The city felt more alive than most AAA MMORPGs that I've seen, and had a LOT more charm.

Alright, enough gushing. But seriously, great job devs. Hats off to ya!

One small tiny complaint would probably be lack of chat bubbles and the ability to walk. Please please please grant us these eventually.

Otherwise, thoroughly impressed and will be increasing my pledge!

 

He looks to be flanking you for a sneak attack.

 

Oh my gosh! Kenthron, thank you for saving me from a hoovy death! When I first saw him, I just wanted to pet him.

But then...



I looked closer...



Oh no! He’s evil! He’s an evil wizard deer! Please tell me these won’t be in the final game world! It’s too horrifying!

Is now really scared,

Elli

 

I've been playing on and off all day.

My initial reaction: YEEEEEEEES! I had a blast. Of course it's rough around the edges, it's PRE-ALPHA! But I had a huge smile on my face while exploring Owl's Head.

Kudos RG and the dev team. I'm so excited to see where SotA takes us!

 

I agree, OP. My first impressions were pleasantly nostalgic + very impressed with the smooth, beautiful visuals and smooth controls!

 

Never trust a deer.

 

I know there's "hardly a game" here... but you know what? I DON'T CARE!!!! I've been wandering around most of the evening having a great time checking out the effects, finding chests of stuff, taking screenshots, and so on.

 

I felt the same way. Release 1 is giving me a great deal of hope for what *can* be, in terms of SoTA's development.

 

Sure, there will be an intro cinematic, some dialog, exposition, the "setup" if you will, to get you "into" the game. But once there, please don't spam me about what I should do or how to play the game. That's right, no in-game tutorial. No UI pop ups on how to control my avatar or navigate the world or what the UI elements are for, no newbie quest tutorials on how the quest system works, etc. Bleah. I will read the lovely manuals with line art by Denis Loubet if I want to learn how to play the game, or the backstory / novel by Tracy and Richard if I want to know more about the lore and history, and embrace the lovely cloth map to see the world I'm now in. Once I enter through that "rift" or whatever from Earth to New Britannia, I'm just "there" and need no further hand holding.