Adventure Gamers - Forums

Advie - 23 June 2012 12:09 AM

JBS - 22 June 2012 11:33 PM

Are there 3d models in this game or fully 2d adventure?

amazing 2D
but the graphics are top notch , even better than Daedalic’s previously Praised TWW

That’s not entirely true.

According to this video (German)

http://www.larp.tv/tv2/index.php?option=com_hwdvideoshare&task=viewvideo&Itemid;&video;_id=526

the characters were realized in 3D because a 2D frame by frame animation would have been too time consuming.

BUT you hardly even notice because it all fits so well into the layered 2D backgrounds. It really feels very 2D.

The game was very good and very addictive so i finished it in one go. Overall it was fairly easy though, there were a few moments near the end where it seemed like there was nothing to do but for the most part there was always a clear puzzle to be solved and an idea on how to solve it and there weren’t really any illogical puzzles. I liked how the game used a mixture of puzzle types in the game including inventory puzzles, environment puzzles and logic puzzles, and made them fit into the world without seeming forced. The addition of magic powers was also good, and there was some very good use of these powers in the game to solve puzzles.

The graphics were excellent, and if you unlock the timelapse video you’ll see just how much work went into designing every scene. Animation could be a bit stuttery sometimes, especially mouths, and for some reason i had a lag spike every time a new scene loaded, but aside from these minor issues, it was one of the best looking adventure games i’ve played.

The sound and music were good, and the voice acting was excellent on the whole, and although the main character read a few lines with the wrong inflection, it didn’t really detract much from the experience. All the voices seemed to suit the characters well.

The story was interesting as well, with twists and surprises and a great cast of characters. It was perhaps a bit short, and the last chapter of the game only really had about 3 puzzles in between cutscenes but it was nice to see a game where the ending isn’t just a teaser for a sequel.

The only thing that really disappointed me was that there was the illusion of choice/consequence in the game, with branching conversations that can go in completely different directions, but it turns out after talking with some other players of the game, and trying multiple paths myself that no matter what you choose, the game forces you into the same path, so it doesn’t matter what you choose in the end. Hopefully if there’s a sequel they’ll do more with this.

As for making a sequel, i don’t think the game needs one and i don’t think it would work, but i would definitely like to see more stories set in the same world perhaps with some crossover of characters.

Overall, this is one of the best adventures to be released for a long time, Daedalic have put a lot of effort into the game mechanics and the production and it’s one everyone should play. 9.5/10

ADan - 23 June 2012 06:18 AM

the characters were realized in 3D because a 2D frame by frame animation would have been too time consuming.

BUT you hardly even notice because it all fits so well into the layered 2D backgrounds. It really feels very 2D.

Interesting, if characters realized in 3D why no lip sync?

JBS - 23 June 2012 12:56 PM

ADan - 23 June 2012 06:18 AM

the characters were realized in 3D because a 2D frame by frame animation would have been too time consuming.

BUT you hardly even notice because it all fits so well into the layered 2D backgrounds. It really feels very 2D.

Interesting, if characters realized in 3D why no lip sync?

the close-ups of the characters aren’t 3D, or i’d be very surprised if they were as they look hand drawn, but 3D wouldn’t have an effect on lip sync anyway, especially when they are only really using a couple of frames for facial animation, like mouth open and mouth closed..

marcd2011 - 23 June 2012 01:08 PM

JBS - 23 June 2012 12:56 PM

ADan - 23 June 2012 06:18 AM

the characters were realized in 3D because a 2D frame by frame animation would have been too time consuming.

BUT you hardly even notice because it all fits so well into the layered 2D backgrounds. It really feels very 2D.

Interesting, if characters realized in 3D why no lip sync?

the close-ups of the characters aren’t 3D, or i’d be very surprised if they were as they look hand drawn, but 3D wouldn’t have an effect on lip sync anyway, especially when they are only really using a couple of frames for facial animation, like mouth open and mouth closed..

I do agree on the closeups; from what I’ve seen they seem to be 2D. On the subject of lip syncing: This is a simultaneous release in four languages and I doubt they put all the different sincs in. I really don’t know if there was the time or the (wo)manpower nor do I know if the engine allows for that kind of shenanigans…

i’m enjoying the game so far. the background art is spectacular. wouldn’t say it’s much better than TWW but i think chains of satinav equals to it (and that is almost the highest score). the voice acting is not so annoying for the first time with my daedalic experience animation is a little bit snappy though… like there aren’t enough frames. so in this case I prefer TWW’s animation style, i think that we all agree on that. besides from that, i’m playing with pleasure. I think i’m gonna like it more than Deponia (i began to hate the main character only from the teasers)

Does anyone think the chapter with the giant peacock was the best fantasy section in a game in years? I mean wow. Stunningly beautiful with clever quirky puzzles. If only the whole game was like that. Some parts weren’t very good.

Oscar - 28 June 2012 11:28 AM

Does anyone think the chapter with the giant peacock was the best fantasy section in a game in years? I mean wow. Stunningly beautiful with clever quirky puzzles. If only the whole game was like that. Some parts weren’t very good.

i did like the puzzles in that realm, especially the colour related one and the water related one but i wasn’t keen on the realm itself, i preferred being in the real world locations. My favourite bit in the whole game was the bit when you’re tied up in the shack.

I’m still gawking at these graphics, that’s the kind of art I like! Unfortunately, $30 is a bit rough to my pockets at the moment.

From what I’ve seen so far, in my opinion The Dark Eye is the best Daedalic adventure to date. I wasn’t expecting much, especially after rather average A New Beginning, but this game is brilliant.

BTW, when you’ll visit the location with some obvious references to other Daedalic adventures (with Spot mascot lying on the shelf etc.) don’t forget to use Puppet Head with Magnesium on the Curtain. Something really, really, REALLY exciting will happen. If you’re interested, here’s the whole scene:

lol ummm… tell me that isn’t really in the game.