Underrail is a top-down, turn-based, single player RPG similar to the model used for Fallout 1 & 2.
Has anyone played this? Impressions?
http://grogheads.com/forums/index.php?topic=3915.msg406906#msg406906
http://grogheads.com/forums/index.php?topic=1890.msg38201#msg38201
Unfortunately, these are trailers and not impressions of people who have played the game.
looks too cartoony for me.
I put some time in with this game but never came close to finishing, so these are only initial impressions. It is very similar in play to the original Fallout games 1 and 2 so if you liked those games you might enjoy this one too. It has that retro feel in look and UI, with turn based combat, crafting, character skill development choices and slow pacing as compared to the more modern RPG's. But for me the game lacked the depth of story and the immersive world that Fallout gave us. Maybe it's just me, but those old RPG's that I loved in their day just don't do it for me any more. Their slow pacing and high difficulty, sometimes requiring 100+ hours to complete, are now a turn off rather than a positive.
Rayfer - thanks for the insights.
I've not given it a long go yet.
My two post-release attempts were rough. As in my character kept getting dead during certain encounters.
The first time, I mistakenly went through the wrong home base exit, going downward instead of upward due to ambiguous mission text. Was getting murdered by the more capable enemies. Seems I'm not the only one to make that mistake, after searching around on some forums for tips. It has some degree of open world to it, as far as a game based in underground tunnels with locked-off areas can, so I'm okay with this. I'd rather have the freedom to go more places & possibly die there than be lead by the nose down one a single straight path. ;) Just wish the quest text was a bit more clear about that first foray.
I created a new character and started a new campaign, determined to squeeze as much efficiency out of my character build as I could. The character builds have a good amount of variety, but it seems best to specialize in a very few skills and then build around those.
Did great until I reached what might be considered an early "boss". Died a few times, but finally got him after save scumming. Figured out how to lure him into an explosive environment, instead of going head-to-head, and finally killed him. But I had to burn a high amount of expendable resources in doing so, too.
In other words, it felt like my wimpy noob character was very underpowered in some of these early fights. Like I couldn't get in a toe-to-toe fight with a named enemy mob and survive unless I shunned fighting and used some dirty trick(s) instead. This may be looked upon as a good thing by some players, but not being able to directly fight what is essentially the first big battle was just frustrating for me.
While that boss wasn't completely invincible, it still felt like I was being forcefully pushed into solving an environment puzzle. Though an easy one to figure out, doing puzzles in an RPG just isn't very enjoyable for me. Having my character, who is built for combat, forced into using such things convinced me to temporarily shelve it.
I intend to approach it again and see if that situation changes after that part, and leveling up a bit. The turn-based tactical combat and character customization looks like it can be fun as long as this "puzzle combat" isn't forced on you regularly.
I would suggest one of Colonel RPG's playthrough series to get a grasp on it. He seems to know what he's doing.
Edit: By Episode 5 I think he has it figured out. Made the same mistake I did, going the wrong direction when first starting off. :D
YouTube Underrail series (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9OPeEnX3SI&list=PLXabidRc6PFBN_ysDnuXsjzKgET5tzetX)
Underrail has a lot of Pros going for it IMO. I just found a couple frustrations in my early forays, but haven't tossed it to the side yet. It definitely has a Fallout 1/2 vibe, despite the setting being less notable.