Hidden Curses

[Kjeld]

The devs seemed to like the idea of "find it out as you go" with most of the game.

I do agree, but for me, this is a positive attitude (ie : there is some "magic", some genuine pleasure discovering the little things, so we won't spoil it for you) rather than a negative one (we won't give you info because we don't have time or because we dont want to).

Take the "Gift of Kurgi" description : the description of the artifact is purposefuly (imho) vague : we learn that it is an item made of madness that can grant great power but at a tremendous cost. Not knowing exactly what it does place the player before a dilemma, and I think it adds to the flavor of the game.

There are a lot of surprises (events, sites, spell effects ...), a lot of things to discover, experiment and experience, and it is where this game's greatness lie.

As a big strategy gamer myself I know it's more important to give me the facts first... then go into a little story or history of the item.

What I find rather interesting in this game is that it is not only a strategy game, but a very immersive experience by itself, that can in some way remind roleplaying games (just have a look at some AAR, and to the fact, according to the developpers, that the Ars Magica pen and paper game setting and concepts were widely used when designing the game), and, of course, the detailed and rich "flavor texts" play a very important part there.

However, back on topic, while I don't mind (and sometimes appreciate) "vague" descriptions on magic items for the reasons previously mentioned, I do 100% agree that the cursed (unremovable) flag should be obvious in an item's description.

[Kristoffer O]

Originally posted by Kjeld:
I do agree, but for me, this is a positive attitude

Of course it is. It is positive for everyone.