04 July 2013

Your Reviews

We rely heavily on our players to help market the game. We can tell people it’s unique and fun, but coming from you, that has a lot more weight. So thanks to all of you who have posted reviews on the App Store or GOG.com, mentioned the game on Facebook, tweeted about it, or simply told a friend.

One aspect of the iOS App Store is that while reviews are public, they can be hard to see in two ways: When a new release of the game comes out, reviews for older versions may be difficult to access (depending on what device you’re using). And you can only see reviews posted from your country’s App Store. In other words, if you’re using the Australian App Store, you can’t see reviews from the US, UK, or Canada (even though they’re probably in an intelligible dialect).

As to the first point, many of you have posted a new review when a new version comes out. Thanks!

As to the second point, in case you’re interested in what people from your neighboring clans say, here are all of the App Store reviews since 21 March 2013. They are not edited in any way.



Wow.... Wow ★★★★★
I have never spent more than 1 dollar on an app but man am I glad I did. This game is worth every dollar and more! It took me 8 hours to look away from it to write this review! If your an rpg/strategy fan you will absolutely love this game.

1 star
I have to give 1 star to any game that doesn't optimize for the iPhone 5... Its just to easy of a fix.

It's worth a try for $5, not $10 ★★★★
Pros: -Nice illustrations -Deep gameplay -Educational about clan relationships in lieu of a powerful empire, like the Romans Cons: -It's engaging, but not fun. It's rewarding as a test, not entertaining as a game -Bad user interface pulls the player out of the imaginary world I don't regret this purchase, but I feel like $10 was too much. This is an old PC game from the 90s that was ported to, but not really adapted for, the iOS.

So much fun!!! ★★★★★
Well worth the money. Don't be a skeptic. You won't regret it!

Awesome game! ★★★★★
One of the best games on IOS. Must buy if you like RPGs or role playing books. Kind of a hybrid RPG / board game, highly addictive and worth every cent! Do be advised that there is some complexity and learning curve, but the manual and wikis available online will help. Overall, love this game!

Something Special ★★★★★
There isn't anything quite like this game. It is something truly special, and worthy of serious attention, premium price or not. The whole of the game contributes to this uniqueness, from its presentation style to the opaqueness of its mechanics. Don't judge this game on surface qualities alone, it is rich and requires a little delving before you can understand it. Rest assured the experience is worth the investment.

A Masterpiece ★★★★★
Worth every penny, cent, satang, or any currency denominations! This is a truly labour of love.

Amazing ★★★★★
This game is absolutely perfect it's so addicting and very enjoyable. Seems a little difficult on the lowest difficulty but I guess it only seems hard, but in reality, well I haven't lost yet so it mustn't be too hard!

TLDR in game form. ★★
"This game is not for everyone. I gladly took the risk of the high-price point based on two things: - All the right gameplay elements - Astounding reviews I was, however, very disappointed. This game takes a ""read the manual first"" approach which really put a huge obstacle between me and the wonderful mechanics this game seems to offer. The cluttered and hard to use interface only served as ""walk the plank"" into the sea of text that the designer's called a tutorial. If you don't mind steep learning curves & endless manuals, though, this game might be worth the initial time investment it takes to start having fun."

Really wanted to like this ★★
Just isn't fun. Couldn't play for more than 15 minutes before being overwhelmed by the complicated gameplay.

Just buy it! ★★★★★
If you want an in depth game with great storytelling and strategy, this is for you. I put over 24 hours into this game, much more then any other iPhone game. Very worth it. Steep learning curve though. Check the guides.

A fantastic and solid game! ★★★★★
This is a wonderful game. You'll most likely find it tough in the beginning. But once you've passed that, you'll forget how much you paid for it 😃

Amazing! ★★★★★
This game is great and always makes me want to keep playing! And to all the whiners saying its to hard it really isn't. You don't need to read the manual to learn how to play just the basic tutorial. BUY IT

Bes ★★★★★
Keep the games commin five stars

Gelungener Tiefgang, absolute Empfehlung ★★★★★
Schade, dass die wirklich guten Spiele so schwer zu entdecken sind. Doch durch Zufall wurde ich auf dieses Spiel aufmerksam und bereue bis jetzt keine einzige Minute die ich davor saß und versuchte die nicht immer leichten Englischvokabeln zu verstehen.  Es ist faszinierend wie mit Text und Bildern eine ganze Welt in meinem Kopf entstehen kann. Ganz ohne 3-D. Das Verständnis für den Spiel Inhalt wächst mit jeder Minute und macht die ganze Sache auch auf lange Sicht spannend.

Great game ★★★★★
Great game but a bit pricy

Hmmm))) ★★★★★
Очень интересно, но очень трудно. И кажется, что иной раз покупая болтню для магии, происходит событие, болтня в итоге не куплена, но гудсы или коровы снялись со счета...и ваще! Подскажите как не голодать, я захватил двух соседей! Где мои нах паздбищя? Все от голода померли)) десять раз играл, не считая провальных начал... П.С. Не понятно как отправить отзыв) третий раз жму на отправить кнопку И раз такая пьянка, то gamebook adventures - тож очень круты, если не играл кто)

Iphone5 ★★★★
Widescreen update for iphone is the only thing missing!!!

Great game ★★★★★
Love this game ! Had my doubts but turned out to be a great game. Buy it !!!

Most Complete, Replayable Experience on IOS ★★★★★
Extremely fun and strategic game with a rogue like element. Great way to pass time, but also easily a game to spend hours on end with. Highly recommended for anyone who loves role playing, fantasy, and a good strategy game.

GREAT GAME ★★★★★
I'm a huge fan of this game since having it on PC so long ago. I recommend buying it for sure. If your playing games for a fun, yet thoughtful challenge, then this is the game for you. It's really great to see a game that isn't just mindless drivel and explosions or gun work. This game is a refreshing change nowadays. AND it's always fun to come back to after a hiatus. The only negative I can think of is that there aren't more of these games.. Playing as trolls or beast men or dragonnewts or any of the other fantastic species would be a blast! Edit: just started again. Can't believe I've been playing this for years and only beat it once :)

One of the best games you can buy! ★★★★★
This game is a little complicated and takes a bit to get into. But once you mess around with it enough and understand the mechanics it is simply amazing! It is great for killing a few minutes or a couple hours. Don't hesitate to play this! You will not regret it!

Best game for Ipad ★★★★★
This game is takes a bit to figure out, but honestly this is one of the most entertaining games I have ever played

A must buy ★★★★★
Without a doubt the greatest app out there. Tons and tons of replay value with no two games being quite the same. Difficult to get your head around at first but the manual and the wiki that you can find online quickly teaches you, as does trial and error. The game can be very challenging but even if you lose through raids or poor decisions on events the first thing you want to do is pick it up and learn from your mistakes. Worth twice as much as asked for I encourage all who love strategy and taking control to buy this app as you will not be disappointed. I know I wasn't!

Rather unforgiving ★★★
I want to love this game, but being expected to memorise which rituals i performed in sacred time just doesnt work for me. Adding a simple screen with this information would vastly improve the game and make it much better for casual intermittent play. Its a shame because there are loads of great things about this game as well. But for me its ruined by a lack of basic information.

Superb ★★★★★
Love the game and anxiously awaiting future update. Also. Their support team returned my email same day.

Amazing ★★★★★
Great storytelling game, got it almost 3 years ago and still playing it. Even though it takes a while its so awesome when you start to understand the lore and gameplay. 10/10 recommend

Brilliant game! ★★★★★
Love the role playing, strategy and chance involved in this. I am always wondering what is the best choice and have reloaded a year many times to try and get a better outcome.

Great ! ★★★★★
Love this game. Great to see that you keep upgrading it !

Zieht einen in den Bann. ★★★★★
Das beste Spiel was ich mobil bisher gespielt habe. Weiter so mit den Updates bitte :) !

Enjoyable ★★★★★
.

Fantastic Game! ★★★★★
Thanks for still developing this amazing game!

Great ★★★★★
One of the best game avalaible on the AppStore for those Who like turn based game with rpg elements.

Brilliant game ★★★★★
If you love epic storytelling, you'll love this unique and unusually well-crafted game

Complexe, riche, unique ★★★★★
Unique mélange de jeux de rôle et de stratégie, extrêmement riche et complexe. Un Ovni sur OS pour ceux qui aiment les challenges!

Worth every peeny. ★★★★★
I have spent so many hours in this game. Possibly like 30 attempts to beat the game all in horrible failure. I kept coming back fixing my previous mistakes. So much to fun to see you do better every time. There is no wrong or right decsion listen to your clan ring and do what you think is right. A great story, mytholgy, and your clan ring become like friends its wierd to say it but its true. When one dies on a poor decsion of yours gets them killed its a sad moment. Finally though with my many attempts I have done it not a single time you retry is it the same. I recomend get this game you need to try it expierence your failures and wins. I completed this game on normal with the King of Dragons Pass way and it was a challenge and so much fun they should make a game like this with a bew culture would be awesome.

Espetacular ★★★★★
Rpg muito invulgar nos dias que correm, hibrido entre livro e um civilization lite. Historia extremamente rica e envolvente. Mais de 10 horas de jogo ate agora e ainda nao percebi toda a mecanica inerente. Um dos melhores jogos para ipad que comprei ate agora. 5 estrelas!

Great! ★★★★★
Fantastic little game. Full of character. Be careful though as you'll find yourself losing track of time.

Wow... ★★★★★
An mir ist das Spiel früher auf dem pc vorbeigegangen. Jetzt bin ich durch Zufall darauf gestossen und schwer begeistert. Es gibt nicht vergleichbares was ich kenne. Sehr komplex, spannend und eine schöne langsame Geschwindigkeit, perfekt fürs tablet. Englisch sollte man aber gut können, die grosse Anzahl von Texten besteht nicht nur aus Schulenglisch.  Gehört für mich zu den Top 3 Games. Im -App Store.

Holy Uralda ★★★★★
Dear lord buy this game. It was well worth the money!

Yeaaaa ★★★★★
Hi

Great game, but be patient with it ★★★★★
This is the first game I've really got into on the ipad/iphone. I've been playing this for about 40 hours so far. I've been getting more interested rather than more bored of it, which shows how much depth it has.  Good replayability too - I've started again several times as I got better at the game and did not found it repetitive.  This game is not for the casual gamer though - you'll need to be patient with it. I was frustrated at the beginning as I didn't know how the various choices available would affect me. Over time I've gained some idea about their consequences through experience. I now think it would be too easy if you knew exactly what the outcome would be, as you'd always make the same choice. It's more rewarding to learn slowly from experience and make mistakes from time to time.  Having said that, the tips and the wiki I found online really helped me to understand the game and to start enjoying it.  You can reload to previous points in the game but I don't use this anymore - I prefer to deal with setbacks and learn from them. Still, this was a handy feature when I first started to play.  I was put off from getting the game by other reviews that mentioned talking ducks etc. But this wasn't an issue once I started the game. Most of the interaction is with humans and only a little is with beastmen things like the ducks. The other creatures (like lizardmen and chaos warriors etc.) are way cooler than the ducks.  Overall I'd give it 4.5 out of 5 stars, if I could. I'd take half a star off for the first 10 hours when I didn't have a clue what was going on. Be prepared for this, get through it, and you'll find many hours of enjoyment.

Great update ★★★★★
Nice to see a company keep coming out with updates.

The Story Crafting! ★★★★★
A well complemented balance of community management and story building. Create your own people!

Engrossing, unforgettable, and updated yet again ★★★★★
King of Dragon Pass is quite simply a masterpiece. The developers have fine tuned and improved it since it's original release in 1999, and trust me, it shows. It transcends genres and surpasses expectations, if you enjoy deep strategy and role playing experiences, you really cannot go wrong with King of Dragon Pass  - Lost In Blue

Brilliant. ★★★★★
A rare gem of a game, and a unique narrative experience.  Highly recommended.


Again, thanks to everyone who took the time to write a review. And to people who rated the game (1018 of 1118 ratings have been five stars, which is humbling).

4 comments:

  1. Every 5 star review is well earned, it's a shame some people don't seem to realize the complexity of the game before they buy it though (and take it out on the game in their reviews)

    I feel like if people knew the depth of what they were getting into beforehand, there wouldn't be a single bad review (save for the ridiculous ones like the guy complaining about iOS 5)

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  2. I've been thinking of a way to bring people into the game more gently, as much as an exercise for myself as anything else.

    One possibility would be a game shorter than the short game, like "INTRO" that pulls from a much smaller (or possibly even hardcoded in order, rather than random) list of scenes, and has a hardcoded Ring, and move all the tutorial widgets to that. You could enhance the tutorial text to be less generic - for example, it could point out "Ask such and such on the ring how many hides of land we can plant, because her skill is blah blah blah" which will get them thinking specifically about those things.

    The hardcoded scenes could add italicized helper text to them, or have tutorial widgets attached, could add help text to the allocation of clan magic, and might have a separate winning condition of simply survive 5 years, with custom winning text that says "Hey, go try the short game next!"

    I feel like the Ring advice is really good about some of the more advanced features of the game, like the magic tree and the heroquests, but learning to ask the ring about things and the basic resource management choices were what was hard for me.

    I also only recently enabled game center. I've noticed that a lot of games use Achievements as a way to teach players by giving them micro rewards for certain positive actions. I don't know what kind of achievements KoDP has already, but if they were given away for things like "First time you allocate land", "First time you establish a trade route" or "Discover something in your own tula" or even "Learn about a heroquest" can encourage people to not only explore the UI some and know which sorts of actions are valuable in the early game (because you're rewarding them), after a while they may glance at the achievements list and use that as a guide for what parts of the game to explore.

    When I started out I often ignored parts of the game I didn't understand (I kept playing because I found the story so compelling) so it took me a long time to really play with what trade and exploration could do for me. I feel like that's the biggest hump for all the people i've introduced the game to.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Interesting ideas. Which may be a bit tricky (e.g. the ring can’t be fixed if they can be sent exploring, to never return, or might die in combat).

      The ring will comment on lack of exploration or trading missions, but not for a while.

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    2. David - I'm nothing but interesting ideas. It's easy, since I have to implement NOTHING.

      I was merely thinking of a sane starting ring, much like how the easter egg has a default ring. Ring management is tricky, and having the right combination of thanes at the beginning can be a huge boon at the top of the game.

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