For those of you still kind of on the fence about this game because you're not sure whether it's RTwP or TB or something in-between, here's a brief summary of how it works.
Roqua, et al, please correct me on anything I get wrong:
- While you're exploring in the game, which features full mouselook and even WASD movement if you configure it so (it's actually p. cool this way), enemies move freely and the game is fully in real-time. In this fashion, the game is a lot like a first-person shooter. If, and only if, you decide to target and attack an enemy, AND, only if you have the game's options configured so (there is a hotkey for turning TB-mode on and off in addition to an in-game slider controlling the game's "speed"), that's when the game goes into turn-based (or actually phased-based; see below) mode.
- Once in TB-mode, the game indicates which character's turn it is to act, and he does so. In a phase-based fashion, the enemies will also act on their turn, specifically for attacking. I believe the exact order of this is based on Dexterity, or the speed statistic, but I could be wrong. Enemies are free to maneuver during combat, so they may (and frequently do) try to surround you, putting your backline characters in harm's way. You can also move, as a blob of course, but should do so cautiously, because you have to be quite close to enemies -- basically kissing them -- to be within melee range. The patch(es) that Roqua recommends alter this aspect a little, making the reach for certain weapons like spears a little longer.
- Crucially, if you get in over your head during a fight, you can actually just run for it, even using a sprint key, and that puts the game back into real-time mode unless, I
think, you're actually struck with something or you decide to re-engage.
- The manual states that combat can be paused and put into phase-based mode through other actions besides attacking, such as clicking on a spellbook to decide what to cast, but since I'm still reacquainting myself with the game I haven't tried that yet.
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Some other notes:
- Going through the patching and modding list that Roqua posted is certainly worth it. Running in the modded higher resolution really helps a lot on modern large monitors, and the balance and other alterations are very welcome. The game is still quite challenging but not frustratingly so (so far).
- I'm experimenting with the game's speed adjustment, but there's something about its pseudo-realtime component that adds a uniqueness to the game. It's similar to Wizardry 8, of course, but just different enough to not feel you're playing the same game.
- There are enough "modern" touches to the game, such as right-click functionality, bindable keys, some fairly well-done voiceovers, etc., to make one smile and appreciate the game more. Playing Bard's Tale Trilogy, in contrast, is also a lot of fun, but even with its graphical overhaul and addition of convenience features it still feels extremely primitive (which is to be expected, seeing as it was released 15 years earlier!) compared to W&W.
- There is noticeable mouse lag running the game on my system (Windows 10) but it's nothing that I couldn't get used to within 5 minutes. Messing around with the mouse settings in Control Panel seems to help a tiny bit, but it's not worth it to have to change those every time I want to play the game so I just said forget it. Everyone complaining vehemently about it at GoG and elsewhere are either exaggerating like hell or have some oddball setup going on with their mouse.
- Play this game. It's six bucks, ffs.
