First of all, i just want to say how much i loved playing this game, the customization, mechanics and story are very awesome, i dare to say this is one of the best cRPG`s i`ve played in my whole life, and i consider the devs real legends for it. As i see it, there`s room for plenty improvement, and i have no doubt that if the devs manage to improve some small (to me, a simple mortal, it`s small because i`m looking from the outside, i can`t even imagine how hard is the work of those involved specially in programming) details it will become a timeless masterpiece as it should be at first place.
Since i was a kid i love the medieval fantasy genre, i loved castles, knights, dragons, wizards and adventure as a child, even though the first ''RPG'' was Diablo on PS1 (got a PC later on), soon after i`ve met with Baldurs Gate, Icewind Dale, Neverwinter Nights, Eye of the Beholder, Ultima, Daggerfall, as well as movies like Conan, Legend, Hercules and Lord of the Rings, im not a big nerd on those but they sure left a beautiful nostalgic mark in my life, a real passion of mine.
Solasta brought to me that feeling from the 90s and early 2000s back when i played it, the cutscenes with beautifully crafted dialog, the absolutely wonderful landscapes full of life and danger, the sense of a great adventure ahead, the tabletop fidelity, all of this cativated me greatly, yet, i couldn`t have left without noticing some details that i think would not diminish the quality of the experience, but sure are opportunities to make it even greater.
In (classic) Baldurs Gate, the played had great freedom of choice on how to interact with the world and its consequences based upon the alignment of the characters, i could exterminate an entire village just because lolz, be a rogue cloak and dagger never to be spotted full of riches in the pocket, be a pacifist, manipulate characters through magic and cunning, or be the bastion of good and justice defending the weak and punishing the wicked, all while travelling to the same destination taking some detours. I think that if Solasta brought the same freedom to the game it would be absolutely epic.
Another detail is the lack of variety in gear and magic, specially headgear. Why headgear? Well, if you look into most old school RPGs, headgear is essential to fighters, maybe not so much for the rest, but since fighters are the ones tanking damage, the head is one (if not the most) vital regions of the body, it doesn`t make sense to cover your whole body with steel while leaving the head exposed but i understand the dramatic purpose.
One of the games i consider a masterpiece also is Pathfinder, one of reasons is that they managed to implement a horse/animal riding system which i consider marvelous and pioneering in RPGs. Even though there are magic users who can cast haste, one does not simply underestimate the sheer power behind a knight mounted on armored horse charging with lance and sword, Saint George slew a dragon on horse back couching lance, according to legend, mounted knights were terrifying not only in Europe but also the Middle east, Africa, Asia and the Americas with the indians, also Alexander the Great, even in the napoleonic wars there were still horseback units riding under cannon fire, and i think its worth it to include such mechanic in RPGs (imagine riding dragons and griffons, how fun would it be).
I hope i`m not imprecise in my considerations, i played the game last when it came out and i don`t know how it is now, but im sure that when i have the time im going back to play this beautiful experience, i saw that there are a lot of mods out there and it makes me excited. Please, feel free to express your views about what i just wrote, maybe there are some imprecisions but only through dialog we can build real powerful knowledge and create the change we want to see in the world around us.
Wish you all the best and that 2023 is going to be a year of victories to us all.
6KTW9