Mage or Trouble
Updates
Per feedback, I've reduced the encounter rate to make the dungeons a little less tedious.
Play the game here! https://synystercola.itch.io/mageortrouble
There seems to be a missing resource with the Windows download. I am removing it from itch.io for the time being.
Since I'm using pre-made assets, I have bowed out of the Graphics and Audio ratings, thanks!
Synopsis
Congratulations! You beat the final boss!
Now you need to get out of the dungeon alive. The problem is - everyone knows the only reason a curse hasn't killed
your party is because your mage, Lancaster, is keeping the curse at bay.
If he dies, everyone dies. All is fair in heat death.
Controls
- Arrow Keys: Move Player/Cursor (Selecting with your mouse also works)
- Enter: Action (Left click works too)
- Esc: Menu/Back (Right Click works too)
Gameplay
This is a turn-based RPG with some mechanics seen in games like Octopath Traveler.
Offensive pressure is important. Striking your enemy's weakness will eventually stagger them, allowing you to inflict major damage!
As you strike down your enemy, you will learn their weaknesses.
But be warned - the enemy knows your weakness too. They will not hesitate to focus their efforts on Lancaster. Knowing when to keep attacking or fallback to heal is the difference between surviving another fight or decaying in a dead universe.
Traversing through the labyrinths (with limited supplies!) often have two paths: The path of least resistance, which will get you to the next floor. Side paths have more encounters, but the experience can be worthwhile. Enemies often drop supplies. Lastly, treasures and upgraded equipment can be found if one chooses to explore.
Watch out - often stronger enemies await you and block your only way out.
Characters
Rayna The Sentinel
Rayna is the leader of the group. She is strong and ready to help her teammates. She has a mix of offensive skills and defensive skills that allow her to divert the enemy's attention. She can deal damage or take damage as needed.
Lancaster The Warlock
Beneath Lancaster's cool demeanor lies an intelligent mind with a knack for destruction. Lancaster's spells deal devastating damage, and he can even bolster the team's offensives. However, keeping curses at bay take a toll on his defenses.
Merwyn the Templar
The optimistic Templar, Merwyn keeps the team together with his sacred healing spells. He can throw punches and deal damage in a pinch. Utilize Merwyn's support capabilities and the team will be near impossible to take down.
Jennelle The Hunter
Jennelle believes the best defense is a never-ending offense. She is the first to strike and can cause trouble for her enemies early. In a pinch, she can slow down her enemies, or put them to sleep.
Hints
- You should be able to run from every encounter, save for boss battles. You don't need to do every fight, unless you want the experience/supplies. It is possible to beat the maps at level 70 - leveling up adds some cushion.
- The more advanced mazes have a path of least resistance - pay attention to the environment!
- Rayna's "Provoke" skill helps with mob control. Be careful, some enemies can bypass the taunt, and it's useless for skills that target more than one person.
- Merwyn's "Bulwark" spell raises defenses - don't hesitant to use it early in a fight!
Genres: role playing
Tools: RPG Maker
Comments38
Good job
@lectvs Thanks! I utilized those cut scenes as tutorials. Glad to see they worked!
@dedicave Thanks! I wanted to add my own assets but due to unforeseen issues I couldn't! Glad you liked the concept - I had a lot of fun coming up with it!
@rein - Appreciate the kind words. It was a tough balance - like I wanted to make trash mobs, but I also wanted to showcase the use of weaknesses. By staggering, that's where you can often kills enemies in like two hits.
@madewink Hey thanks for all the feedback! I wanted the first area to be linear to sort of show the general path (bottom left to top right) before throwing you into the mazes! I might consider adding more save points.
I would try to find some different sound effects to avoid using the RTP but the game really stands out by itself!
@oqlqo Thanks! A little automated battling goes a long way it seems :) I know RTP is frowned upon, but I ran out of time to add some of my own tunes. Still appreciate the feedback!
@b-golda Appreciate the feedback! My intention was to utilize the "stagger" status to increase damage done.
@wuceng Thanks! I had intended to add more monsters to mix up the fights, but I ran out of time. Also weird with that random sound error. Was this via web or the download?
@epsulon Thank you! It's all out of the box though, so I didn't opt in to Graphics.
@kaeveris Thank you! RPG Maker takes care of a lot of the under the hood things so I can focus on the game. As for the battles - I tried to balance it out by allowing escaping always and making the optimal path in the mazes fairly low in the encounter rate. Thanks for the feedback though!
@ranjan Thank you for the feedback! RPG Maker, for all of its faults, allows for really rapid development. I tried to balance the encounter rate by allowing escaping to work all the time, and by making the optimal maths in the maze nearly encounter free.
The starting point felt like a neat take on the theme, even if I didn't get to feel much of a hurry to escape (although once I was actually going to wander in the labyrinth for treasure and my party told me not to :sweat_smile: )
Like in most JRPGs random encounters can be frustrating after a while, but well, that comes with the genre, and I could escape without issue from all the lesser encounters I tried to, so that's something :)
Good job!