KickStarter Quest For Infamy - A Quest for Glory-like Indie Adventure Game

[Broseph]

Damn! I was SO close to winning that drinking game. That was amusing.

And I usually play a fighter in these kinds of games, but decided to play a Mage...

How are the spells? And how is spell combat like? I usually always play a mage in these games, so my purchasing this game is dependent on mage gameplay. Thks.

 

[Jaesun]

How are the spells? And how is spell combat like? I usually always play a mage in these games, so my purchasing this game is dependent on mage gameplay.

I'm only a few hours in so....

There is actually quite a few spells. Interestingly FIRE does not work on Undead (The Mage trainer mentions this), Ice only works on them (which is refreshing).

You need to find all the reagents to learn the spells (I like that). The Mage trainer does not tell you specifically what you need in a way, so just pay careful attention to what he says. You can always talk to him again, if you forget. You will need a pen and paper to write down what reagents you need.

Combat is broken up into 6 second "rounds". You have 6 seconds to choose an attack, such as Pierce, Slash, (some other option I am forgetting) and Black. If you do not select anything, you will do nothing. After you have selected an attack, both you and the creature you are fighting make their moves. The first battle you have (I assume they do this just for tutorial reasons) you will use your sword you are carrying. I like it. It's simple and it works. This isn't Jagged Alliance 2.... heh

I have not gotten into combat yet as a Mage (and you are given a free offensive spell to start with). I assume the UI will now show spells I currently know, and will have to select them within the 6 second rounds of combat.

 

[SuicideBunny]

spells have a shared charge bar and you can only cast one once it's full. when it isn't, it's back to using the sword again. overall the combat is kinda meh when compared to qfg (other than 4, i guess) since enemies don't have tells and as a spellcaster your are effectively encouraged to input your command at the last possible moment (for which there also is no indicator afaik).
combat spells seem pretty limited too. damage over time, direct fire dmg, direct ice dmg, escape spell, heal yourself and that's it... possibly some upgrades to those but no idea.

 

[Jaesun]

Still haven't found the damn Swamp yet. Spent a few hours mapping out the outside areas. The forest area seems quite large. And I got 2 new spells now.

 

[Crooked Bee]

Am I the only one who's pursuing the Path of the Rogue in this game? I like how it emphasizes exploration and figuring things out on your own.

 

[Blackthorne]

Look for the swamp in the northeast corner of the Volksville woods.

Bt

 

[Jaesun]

Am I the only one who's pursuing the Path of the Rogue in this game? I like how it emphasizes exploration and figuring things out on your own.

Oddly enough, I figured you would play a mage first....

 

[Crooked Bee]

Am I the only one who's pursuing the Path of the Rogue in this game? I like how it emphasizes exploration and figuring things out on your own.

Oddly enough, I figured you would play a mage first....

Haha, I actually played a Rogue in HQ too It's just my favorite pllay style.

 

[JarlFrank]

Taffers gonna taff

I wonder what I should try first, mage fighter or rogue... but I'm too addicted to Divinity OS right now to start this.

 

[Infinitron]

RPS review: http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2014/07/16/wot-i-think-quest-for-infamy/ Blackthorne

While I realise I’ve spent a lot of time picking at Quest for Infamy – and not with any pleasure – I did for the most part enjoy my time with it. It’s a brave, brave game that takes on the Quest for Glory challenge, and that the result has a few cracks is as unsurprising as most of them are forgivable. They’re disappointing, but you move on from them and there’s lots of good stuff to make up for it, including fun characters like Prospero the sorcerer trainer, the “Aha!” moments of remembering something at the other side of the map that now makes perfect sense, and plenty of moments where Roehm’s snark is exactly what the doctor ordered. It is, in most ways that count, a fine tribute to a fine series. Had it come out just a few short months ago, I suspect I’d have been raving far more effusively about it, as well as far more willing to overlook the problems.

Unfortunately, Quest for Infamy has the misfortune of coming in the wake of Crystal Shard’sHeroine’s Quest, which doesn’t look quite as nice or have as snappy dialogue most of the time, but does pull off the Quest for Glory adventure style far more effectively – a mix of feeling generally more confident about what it is, better implementing the tools and RPG side of things, and continuing the tradition of exploring a new type of environment and mythology. And most surprisingly of all, being free. It’s easier to cut an indie game slack when you’re not just off playing another game that managed to do the same things better with the same engine and more even more limitations – including not having had a $63,281 Kickstarter to fund its adventuring.

Be that as it may though, this is still a good crack at the Quest for Glory formula that, like Roehm, has little stomach for infamy but doesn’t do a bad job at reluctant heroism. If you remember the original games fondly, you’re almost certainly going to enjoy it, even if it doesn’t quite reach their level. If you’ve never played them, the whole set of originals can be had for ten bucks at GOG.com (with a VGA remake of the second available elsewhere). It’s impossible to recommend playing Quest for Infamy before or instead of those, but do keep it in mind for when you’re done, and enjoying the knowledge that there are, finally, more games like them both out and on the way.

Quest for Infamy is available now.

(warning: some SJW content)

 

[Blackthorne]

Ah, reviews. It's not terrible, but I do often remind myself - reviewers don't buy games. Gamers do.


Bt

 

[Infinitron]

The good thing about Richard Cobbett is that it's easy to drag him into arguments in the comments.

 

[DeepOcean]

The review is full of nitpicking, I just wanted that RPS applied the same standard to all those indie/pretentious hispter games with barely any gameplay on them that they love so much.

 

[MRY]

You fared much better than we did with Primordia. :D And, frankly, giving the cover art, I'm amazed you got as far as you did.

 

[Jaesun]

It's almost like RPS reads the codex, and if we actually like something, they go out of their way to say the game is shit (or not that good). I actually believe this.

 

[Infinitron]

More reviews: http://www.gamebanshee.com/news/114064-quest-for-infamy-reviews.html

IncGamers, 5/10.

Unlikely to live in infamy. Quest for Infamy is a reasonable attempt at making a Quest for Glory game, but it's let down by dull combat and puzzle design.

Strategy Informer, 3/10.

As an adventure game that places a premium on its narrative, you might be able to look past Infamy’s primitive combat. What is harder to turn a blind eye to, however, is the equally primitive and archaic portrayal of women.

...

It’s a shame that Infamy devolves into such juvenile practices as there are some nice flourishes on display – for instance, the hand-drawn aesthetic lends a quaint, homely feel to adventuring that feels refreshing in light of the grandeur that western RPGs typically strive for – yet it’s impossible to root for a game that makes such a critical misstep.

Gamezebo, 4.5/5.

The result is a game that is nearly perfect in its presentation—its characters, dialogue, puzzles, and world are brilliant in their combination of believable depth and ridiculousness—but requires significant player effort to unlock all of its potential. Is it worth the effort? Absolutely. And at the very least, you’ll have Roehm to empathize with you when the going gets vague: “Oh, for God’s sake just let me go on and stumble upon what I’m supposed to find.”

Leviathyn, 8.5/10.

Quest for Infamy offers a very niche audience – fans of the Quest for Glory series of the 90s – a suitably enjoyable adventure that could proudly stand amongst the series it lovingly recreates with a genuinely funny tone and solid gameplay. While its strict retro style can be infuriating in some aspects, it should not be missed by anyone with fond memories of Sierra’s golden age.

Twinfinite, 3/5.

At the end of the day Quest for Infamy is a good, fun game. While it gets bogged down by a little too much tedium, the story is fun and the conversations hilarious. With enough choice to make it feel real and human, the player will find no shortage of dastardly deeds and hilarious moments to make playing through to the end worthwhile.

Mouse N Joypad, 82%.

In the end, Quest For Infamy is a lovingly created love letter to the hybrid genre we see all too rarely these days. It offers the best of both worlds while harkening back to the days when adventure gaming drove the industry forward. If you’ve played Dirk, King’s Quest or are simply a fan of the genre, this game is a must. For those who yearn for a more traditional adventure, it’s bound to give you something to carry you over until something new appears on the horizon. A definitive recommendation.

PopMatters, 4/10.

There’s an FAQ for the demo on their Kickstarter page that asks how players are supposed to find a particular event that pushes the story forward. You’d think that if players are so universally confused that they have to be offered instructions through an FAQ that something is wrong with the game, but not in this case. Nothing was changed in the final version I played for review. For better or for worse, Quest for Infamy is exactly the kind of game it’s supposed to be.

High Score Reviews, 6/10.

Overall, Quest for Infamy lives and dies by its commitment to delivering a retro, role-playing, adventure experience, and its appeal is probably limited to those who really want to scratch that particular nostalgic itch. With some truly witty dialogue and a great sense of humour, though, Quest for Infamy is never anything less than enjoyable for the audience it wants to cater for.

 

[Crooked Bee]

Ugh, compared to some of those, Richard Cobbett's is a masterpiece of a review, nitpicky as it may be. At least he's knowledgeable about the genre.

 

[Sceptic]

I was going to write a long post picking apart the RPS review, until I saw the other reviews Inf posted

Fuck this world. And fuck those shitty reviewers for making me think that Blaine is right after all.

At least some of them do get it and draw parallels to QFG, not to "portrayal of women", when deciding how to score it. Good thing this was KS-funded too, at least it's profitable by default once it got released. What depresses me is that there really is no way to draw new blood to these types of games. Those of us who have liked them for decades keep playing them, and those that didn't play them back then won't try them because of SJW and dumb adjectives like "archaic" and "primitive" thrown left and right. Maybe Garriott was right and the best way to make money is to go full decline...

 

[DeepOcean]

Ugh, compared to some of those, Richard Cobbett's is a masterpiece of a review, nitpicky as it may be. At least he's knowledgeable about the genre.

Yep... actually, the Strategy Informer review makes Richard Cobbett look like a fair review, look to the pearls of wisdom:

Quest for Infamy sticks resolutely to a blueprint established by Sierra’s classic Quest for Glory series which saw release during the home console period of gaming. As such, you’re presented with an authentic experience but one that bears all the imperfections that have since been ironed out or bettered as the genre has evolved. Unless you’re a staunch adherent of this period of gaming, these shortcomings are likely to invite some frustration along the way.

Genre evolved? Unless by evolving he means that it was buried and was evolving on a putrefying body.

The voice acting, however, plays second fiddle to the controls as the most irritating feature you’ll encounter early on. In the name of fidelity, Infamy adopts a tiered control system (akin to Quest for Glory’s) whereby you use the mouse scroller to swap between walk, interact, talk, observe and item functions – instead of tying these actions to a singular mouse click. It’s an utterly counter-intuitive system that makes simply talking to an NPC an arduous task.

"Yeah... it is so terrible to scroll the mouse scroller, it is so terrible... I just wanted a single click system where all actions are automaticaly chosen for me. This is so boring..." Morons, morons never change.

As an adventure game that places a premium on its narrative, you might be able to look past Infamy’s primitive combat. What is harder to turn a blind eye to, however, is the equally primitive and archaic portrayal of women.

At some point in the story, you‘ll chance upon the white-walled city of Tyr – a fortress resembling those that Daenerys Targaryen stormed in the third season of Game of Thrones. Standing sentry outside Tyr is a legion of scantily clad females, adorned in metallic underwear. Their leader, Voleris, informs you that the city is closed, after which you’re afforded the opportunity to not-so subtly imply that you’d like disrobe the crimson-haired vixen.

Yeah... you know, it is extremely sexist for a MAN and an ANTIHERO to say that he has desire for a woman... yeah, this is absurd, obviously that men and women are angelical creatures that never think on the other sex on a sexual way, obvious that when women show sexual interest they are just expressing their sexuality but when men do... boy you are almost a rapist just to think on sex . Yeah...this totally makes sense.

 

[Blackthorne]

I find it interesting to note that the GameZebo review, 4.5/5, was written by a woman, Jillian, who addresses Roehm and the Women in QFI as I'd hope most would understand.

Anyway, you guys have always been great at supporting this project, so I do want to say thanks, yet again.


Bt

 

[Sceptic]

Well at least most of the GOG reviews are good. And even the guy who gave it 1/5 says "just try the demo first in case you had different expectations".

 

[Pope Amole II]

I guess I'll step against the collective opinion here and say that, SJW bullshit aside, I kinda agree with some of the RPS thesises.

First, Roehm is really boring protagonist (who may be also used wrong). He has an incredibly boring motivation (lewt and whorez, ha-ha), somewhat random personality (dunno if that's inconsistency in writing or he's designed that way, anyhow, that doesn't make for a good story) and he's not written that well (I also haven't laughed once through the game yet, but I guess it's the subjectivity of humor). I understand that lazy and uncaring egoist is kinda the point of this game, but I feel it could've been done much better and interesting.

Second, combat is much worse than in any of QfG parts. And, after QfG 2 remake, where combat was actually good and interesting, that's a bogus. And it's not just being worse than any of the previous parts, it's also about being clunky as hell and imbalanced.

Third, puzzle design can be inconsistent sometimes. Let's not forget that all QfGs (but third) have supported multi-classing (at least to a certain extent) so skipping it altogether here is going against the tradition, I guess. Also, there are too many small, but annoying things - like, oh, you can't really use combat magic outside of combat, except when you can. Or just not enough interchangeability between the different (but similar) items. Minor stuff, but in the playthrough itself such pedantism can get really annoying.

All in all, the game is rather good (and don't forget that RPS also agrees that the game is good), but definitely not flawless.

That's my biggest issue with the Codex, btw - so when the bethesda & bioware fans praise their favorite studios mindlessly (without even considering their flaws), they're called dumbfuck biowhores and bethestards. Ok. But when codex begins to show the same level of fawning to any of their selected games, pretending they're immaculate and so, suddenly it all becomes fine and dandy. Ok.

 

[Blackthorne]

Hahah, bet you're glad you got the game for free, huh?


Bt

 

[Pope Amole II]

Nah, I wouldn't be sad if I paid for it, but the thing is, we're not living in the world of zeroes and ones. This notion is that I'm supposed to either hate or love stuff (with the occasional addition of "don't give a fuck" stance) is really childish and one of the major flaws of, like, our society. I mean, it's really common and it annoys me as hell. Because it has nothing to do with the real life.

Let's take, say... LEXX. I love LEXX, but at the same time I'll say that 80% of the series is pure, unadulterated shite. And not shite in an endearing matter, like, it's bad but so charming, but quite literally shite, in the fucking annoying grade. Filler at best. Still, the 20% are so great that, well, they don't exactly make the show worth watching (I wouldn't recomment it to anyone, at least not past the first four movies), but they overshadow the pain and shame, at least. And, if you throw fanboyism aside, that's a common situation with art.

And I don't mean to say that QfI is that bad, but it is certainly troubled and what good does it make to anyone to ignore those problems? I guess it makes the extreme fans happier, hurray for them. But it also spoils the developer - we've already seen Jeff Vogel go to shit this way, for example. Also, it's just the way with this game that you can write much less about this game's strong sides than weak sides. Purely in terms of volume.

QfI is good because QfG system is ridiculously strong and, when you implement it in a rather large world (and QfI boasts the largest world within its category, it seems) it becomes almost impossible to spoil the fun. Even if I find the jokes stupid, I can just skip that crap and focus on the exploration and it's still gonna be good. And the art & music in this game is really nice. In terms of art, it's probably the best in the sub-genre, in terms of music... I guess it's behind the Aubrey Hodges work, but not much else. And those all are huge upsides, the problem is, you can't really write a lot about them without repetition. Whereas it's much easier to review the flaws of this game from many sides.

 

[DeepOcean]

That's my biggest issue with the Codex, btw - so when the bethesda & bioware fans praise their favorite studios mindlessly (without even considering their flaws), they're called dumbfuck biowhores and bethestards. Ok. But when codex begins to show the same level of fawning to any of their selected games, pretending they're immaculate and so, suddenly it all becomes fine and dandy. Ok.

I wasn't criticizing Richard Cobbett for mentioning what he thinks are the flaws of the game, I was criticizing him for his shitty review, some parts that really called my attention:

All this stuff achieves is to be juvenile, desperate, and worst of all, not funny – Quest for Infamy trying to act like a bad boy with nothing to back it up except occasionally saying ‘bollocks’ and sometimes showing boobs. Gracious! Fetch the smelling salts! Or, indeed, not. Sigh. Disappointing.

Yep, calling a kickstarter game juvenile, desperate and unfunny just because of a few boobs, yeah... RPS and their professionalism. "We RPS are in favor of integrity with our beliefs, we gonna maybe harm the sells of a kickstarter game with a shitty review just because we are anti boobs in games."

Running out of steam about as early is such a waste of infamous potential; the chance to take something like the intro, where Roehm is caught with the local Baron’s daughter, and turn it into a sequence where he has to sneak naked back through town for instance, or must meet a prisoner in the dungeon by causing trouble and getting himself arrested, or work with brigands and outcasts instead of them being the usual enemies in the woods. So many opportunities.

I agree here, there are maybe opportunites that weren't taken and a scenario of you working with the "bad" guys would be incredible but this flaw doesn't justify the review conclusion of this game being so flawed that Heroine Quest and Quest For Glory are better.

death is usually a cheap slap on the wrist and teleport back to the Healer, unless it’s suddenly not – dying to a giant spider in the South Woods for instance not counting, but dying to a highwayman in the same location, or forgetting to eat for a couple of days, being a drop-dead Game Over. These rarely matter much though, because you have to try to fail when you have fast teleport via a map, free meals on a daily basis, and an economy that lets you earn 100 coins in a couple of clicks in a game where health potions are practically free, and then loses interest in even that and just hands over enough cash to fill a swimming pool with the things and make Roehm invulnerable to everything save perhaps diabetes if they contain sugar. There isn’t even a cooldown on swigging them or anything else that you need money to purchase by that point. I had tens of the things when I faced the final boss. It was a less than epic duel.

He has a fair point criticizing an economy that is too generous with the player and the balance being on the easier side but he criticizes "cheap" deaths and, at same time, how the game is too easy. I could bet if food and other resources were rare, he would criticize the game for being too punishing with those "cheap" deaths way more frequent. It is interesting how this isn't something new and QfG already had this problem, he even admits this but that doesn't stop him saying something like "Only buy this game if you like QfG because it isn't a good game on it's own." in the end. I'm not a fair judge of the quality of the game but I know the smell of shitty reviews.

Quest for Infamy only goes so far with this though. If you’re not supposed to use a skill, it all too often won’t even acknowledge that it should work; Unlock being more accurately called Unlock The Doors You’re Supposed To Use This On. Others will simply show a generic ‘nope’ or be ignored completely, much like Take Inanimate Object unless there’s an Inanimate Object you’re intended to Take with it, expensive climbing gear only works in a couple of places, and there’s only one acceptable reagent for the Sorcerer spells you have to learn regardless of how open the demands seem.

This is nitpicking, yeah, it would be better for some logic reason be used to explain why some doors can't be interacted, why the spells demand specific combinations and why the climbing equipment only works on some places but this doesn't change the gameplay and isn't a huge problem.

Quest for Glory of course didn’t allow free reign either, but it was usually pretty good about giving a reason why, like a locked door also being bolted on the other side. Quest for Infamy just slams down its boot, sometimes in the weirdest of ways. The Sorcerer for instance can’t cut down that bush I mentioned earlier due to it not being “your style”, despite wielding exactly the same sword and only having been a sorcerer for a week or so by this point. It’s such a needlessly petty restriction, and it doesn’t take many such slaps for the charm of the RPG elements to be washed away.

An interesting alternative solution to the bush problem would be it required big strengh to cut the bush down, a mage and a rogue would just fail on an embarassing way because of the low strengh(it could be even a good comedic scene with Roehm defeated by a bush.). He has a point in here but again, if you are a rogue or a mage is way easier to get to the solution requiring the skills of your class than trying to rise strengh to just cut it like a fighter would(if you are replaying, you will trying something different anyway than just repeat what you did with the fighter) . Again, some good flavor was lost and an opportunity for a funny scene was lost but nothing major.

Unfortunately, Quest for Infamy has the misfortune of coming in the wake of Crystal Shard’sHeroine’s Quest. And most surprisingly of all, being free. It’s easier to cut an indie game slack when you’re not just off playing another game that managed to do the same things better with the same engine and more even more limitations – including not having had a $63,281 Kickstarter to fund its adventuring.

Why mention Heroine's Quest here? Why mention kickstarter here? Why receiving money from kickstarter makes this game better or worse? Yeah... Heroine Quest maybe is better on some aspects but Quest for Infamy could be better on others (like the size of the game for example). Why make this pointless comparison? Why imply that one game is just superior to the other and end the review on a biased tone in favor of a game that isn't even discussed on the review?

If you remember the original games fondly, you’re almost certainly going to enjoy it, even if it doesn’t quite reach their level.It’s impossible to recommend playing Quest for Infamy before or instead of those, but do keep it in mind for when you’re done, and enjoying the knowledge that there are, finally, more games like them both out and on the way.

Again, comparison, just say that Quest for Infamy doesn't reach the level of the original and you can't recomend this instead of the originals? What is this? Horse racing? Why you can't play this AND the originals? Why so much comparisons with the objective of ending the review on a negative note against Quest for Infamy? I didn't play the game so I can't be a fair judge but Blackthorne and company would have to FUCK IT up to make a game worse than Quest for Glory V and have spent the kickstarter money on hookers and booze to not make a game better than Quest for Glory 1 and 3 that were kinda simplistic and short with Quest for Glory 3 if you play with a rogue, it is a big FUCK YOU.

Well, at least, is better than the Strategy Informer and others that aren't worth even the minimal mental energy required to read them.