Adding to this thread since it seems to be the latest of the larger BoK talks, and I just finished the game.
I will state that this is a very good game, but it is still overrated. Fans of CRPGs like a certain part of the genre: combat resolution, story, lore,puzzles, dungeon design, character generation and development and so forth.Where Betrayal at Krondor is strongest is in the areas of the background lore and puzzle solving, and not more towards what I look for in an RPG, such as tactical combat and character creation/development. But even in lore and puzzle solving, Betrayal at Krondor is beaten by other games such as The Dark Heart of Uukrul and the Elder Scrolls: Battlespire. The Dark Heart of Uukrul also beats out Betrayal at Krondor in character generation and tactical combat. What hurts Betrayal at Krondor when it comes to combat is that your party size is normally limited to 2-3 characters, and that cast of characters fluctuates. Having larger parties and more diversified character classes adds to your combat choices, which is why many of the Gold Box games should be rated much higher than Betrayal at Krondor. I could go on and on, but some other games that share strong puzzles, lore, and have better combat include Nethergate, Exile: Escape from the Pit, Prince of Qin, etc and etc.
Here is my mini-breakdown of what I liked and didn't like.
+ I did like the character of Gorath. He stood out in a cookie-cutter cast, with a background story that was slowly revealed over time, and showed his significance in the greater world. Best character of the game.
+ Resource and inventory limits forced me to really think about each and every excursion I made, and I really enjoyed the challenge of planning my trips and trying to figure out what equipment to bring and what to sell or ditch.
+ Weapons and armor could degrade over time, causing you to have to maintain repairs and upkeep, or sell off and continually purchase new equipment.
+ Spells were different and varied, making me want to at least try each and every one of them, though I did settle on using only a handful primarily.
+ Skill system and progression by practicing your skills. I do prefer a solid skill system over class-based levelling. Too bad my party members I tried to develop kept changing.
+ Lack of wandering monsters. Except for a handful of areas, if you killed a group of bandit in any given chapter, they stayed dead until the next chapter.
+ Exploration was solid, and rewarded with chests and other containers full of goodies. Some of the chests also had puzzles associated with them, some being easily solved and opened, and others requiring a rather large vocabulary.
- I couldn't get behind any of the other characters. There were a few important character deaths that should have had a larger significance in the story, but the surviving characters would talk briefly about their being killed, then move on with a verbal shrug.
- There is a Mary Sue character you meet at the end, whose magic is so powerful that upon this characters arrival, all the loose plot threads are concluded in retarded ways. Also, the dialogue was stretched generic fantasy so far that it almost became parody.
- If there were spellcasters on both sides, conflicts could usually be determined in the first round by whoever could get a spell off first.
- Front line fighters will just let enemies run right by them and go after the spellcaster. It reminded me of Dragon Age.
- The character types seemed to be melee fighter with some lockpick skills and spellcaster with some bardic skills. Yes, this was skill-based instead of a class-based system, but there was little reason to develop characters outside those specialties.
- Dungeon encounters are unbalanced. I had a hell of a time passing some battles leading up to the finale in the last chapter, only to get through final encounters with ease. The last battle of the game is a case-in-point.
Again, good game. But there are better, and although it belongs in our top 50 greatest RPGs of all time list, it doesn't deserve to hold the #13 slot. I just found the book, Krondor: The Betrayal, in a free book bin and I'll read it soon as a curiosity.
I will state that this is a very good game, but it is still overrated. Fans of CRPGs like a certain part of the genre: combat resolution, story, lore,puzzles, dungeon design, character generation and development and so forth.Where Betrayal at Krondor is strongest is in the areas of the background lore and puzzle solving, and not more towards what I look for in an RPG, such as tactical combat and character creation/development. But even in lore and puzzle solving, Betrayal at Krondor is beaten by other games such as The Dark Heart of Uukrul and the Elder Scrolls: Battlespire. The Dark Heart of Uukrul also beats out Betrayal at Krondor in character generation and tactical combat. What hurts Betrayal at Krondor when it comes to combat is that your party size is normally limited to 2-3 characters, and that cast of characters fluctuates. Having larger parties and more diversified character classes adds to your combat choices, which is why many of the Gold Box games should be rated much higher than Betrayal at Krondor. I could go on and on, but some other games that share strong puzzles, lore, and have better combat include Nethergate, Exile: Escape from the Pit, Prince of Qin, etc and etc.
Here is my mini-breakdown of what I liked and didn't like.
+ I did like the character of Gorath. He stood out in a cookie-cutter cast, with a background story that was slowly revealed over time, and showed his significance in the greater world. Best character of the game.
+ Resource and inventory limits forced me to really think about each and every excursion I made, and I really enjoyed the challenge of planning my trips and trying to figure out what equipment to bring and what to sell or ditch.
+ Weapons and armor could degrade over time, causing you to have to maintain repairs and upkeep, or sell off and continually purchase new equipment.
+ Spells were different and varied, making me want to at least try each and every one of them, though I did settle on using only a handful primarily.
+ Skill system and progression by practicing your skills. I do prefer a solid skill system over class-based levelling. Too bad my party members I tried to develop kept changing.
+ Lack of wandering monsters. Except for a handful of areas, if you killed a group of bandit in any given chapter, they stayed dead until the next chapter.
+ Exploration was solid, and rewarded with chests and other containers full of goodies. Some of the chests also had puzzles associated with them, some being easily solved and opened, and others requiring a rather large vocabulary.
- I couldn't get behind any of the other characters. There were a few important character deaths that should have had a larger significance in the story, but the surviving characters would talk briefly about their being killed, then move on with a verbal shrug.
- There is a Mary Sue character you meet at the end, whose magic is so powerful that upon this characters arrival, all the loose plot threads are concluded in retarded ways. Also, the dialogue was stretched generic fantasy so far that it almost became parody.
- If there were spellcasters on both sides, conflicts could usually be determined in the first round by whoever could get a spell off first.
- Front line fighters will just let enemies run right by them and go after the spellcaster. It reminded me of Dragon Age.
- The character types seemed to be melee fighter with some lockpick skills and spellcaster with some bardic skills. Yes, this was skill-based instead of a class-based system, but there was little reason to develop characters outside those specialties.
- Dungeon encounters are unbalanced. I had a hell of a time passing some battles leading up to the finale in the last chapter, only to get through final encounters with ease. The last battle of the game is a case-in-point.
Again, good game. But there are better, and although it belongs in our top 50 greatest RPGs of all time list, it doesn't deserve to hold the #13 slot. I just found the book, Krondor: The Betrayal, in a free book bin and I'll read it soon as a curiosity.
