Puzzle Quest done
I spent all morning on the endgame of Puzzle Quest. Highly recommended but damn it's addictive and I'm glad to have it gone from my life. (Now classicaljunkie gets to play it all she wants. Muhahaha.)
The final battle was indicative of the game's general quality. I had to attempt it several times, observing how the bad guy fought and then tuning in just the right combination of all the junk and spells I'd accrued through the whole game, blessed with a touch of good luck. I never felt frustrated.
I really appreciate that the game doesn't follow the typical RPG model of giving you the same stuff with bigger and bigger bonuses; the game instead has you accumulate a shallow but broad arsenal of things with specific powers that apply in certain situations, and leaves it up to you to figure out how to best arm yourself for specific fights. This isn't so important against the teeming hordes that make up the bulk of combat time, but it makes boss battles really shine.
It seems odd to me that a match-three game would contain this level of RPG innovation, so I'm figuring it's more likely that RPGs as a whole have gotten better in these ways and I haven't noticed. I don't go out of my way to play them, normally.
The final battle was indicative of the game's general quality. I had to attempt it several times, observing how the bad guy fought and then tuning in just the right combination of all the junk and spells I'd accrued through the whole game, blessed with a touch of good luck. I never felt frustrated.
I really appreciate that the game doesn't follow the typical RPG model of giving you the same stuff with bigger and bigger bonuses; the game instead has you accumulate a shallow but broad arsenal of things with specific powers that apply in certain situations, and leaves it up to you to figure out how to best arm yourself for specific fights. This isn't so important against the teeming hordes that make up the bulk of combat time, but it makes boss battles really shine.
It seems odd to me that a match-three game would contain this level of RPG innovation, so I'm figuring it's more likely that RPGs as a whole have gotten better in these ways and I haven't noticed. I don't go out of my way to play them, normally.