RPGWatch Feature - Solasta Early Access Preview

I find it increasingly peculiar that you need to look towards Europe/Russia for an actual [meaty] DnD game these days. The closest the US has come in recent years has been Pillars of Eternity but I consider that, if anything, to be DnD-lite.

This is my #2 most anticipated game right after Owlcat's new Pathfinder outing.
 
Joined
Nov 10, 2008
Messages
5,980
Location
Florida, USA
I think one of the main issues is that North American products try to set the appeal for everyone, and that often just creates a watered-down version of something that very few will actually enjoy. This current trend seems to transcend all media platforms, at some point you simply need to accept that not everyone will enjoy the product and just gear it for one particular audience. Those that do that often find themselves with a veritable hit on their hands, as it should be. I'd rather have one hundred people absolutely thrilled with my product than five thousand thinking it's just so-so.
 
Joined
Oct 18, 2011
Messages
19,068
Location
Holly Hill, FL.
I'd rather make a game that makes enough to feed my family, personally. Lots of European devs are one and done or never make enough to stay solvent over the years. Smart American companies learn to go mainstream and get bought out by Microsoft and make billions. I'm sure they're weeping as they cash those checks. Larian is a good example. Make DivDiv, very niche, make DOS 1/2 less niche, make an American game with an American title and an American game system: extremely mainstream. Buy a Porsche.
 
Joined
Oct 18, 2006
Messages
8,836
I am so glad I Kickstarted this game! I have been following its development since the KS was successful. The game is not a lavish as BG3 but I actually enjoy Solasta more. The game feels more like a tabletop where BG3 tried to bring tabletop to Divinity Sin and didn't quite get it right (so far that is, both games are still in EA). BG3 still looks to be a great game, but I think Solasta translated the tabletop experience better.

Lue.
 
Joined
Nov 15, 2012
Messages
114
Location
Austin, TX
purpleblob said:
Thanks for the in-depth preview @Redglyph;!

Just wondering - I noticed spell book in the inventory. Do you need magic book to cast spells? Does it work a bit like Pillar's grimoire (i.e. it allow you to cast spells within the magic book on top of what you memorised?)

Edit: I love the mage outfit in this game!
Click to expand...

This is from one of the latest updates:

The Spell component system has been implemented (options are available in the settings if you want to disable it)

Verbal:
Full (Default): Silence now prevents you from casting spells with Verbal components.

Somatic:
Basic (Default): Restrained now prevents you from casting spells with Somatic components
Full: Same as Basic, but you also need a free hand. Two-handed weapons (i.e. Quarterstaff) count as having a free hand.

Material:
Basic: You must have a holy symbol, spellcasting focus or component pouch equipped to cast spells with Material components. Magic wands and magic staves are also considered as spellcasting foci. Note that spells with expensive components can also be cast in the same manner without any additional cost
Full (Default): Same as Basic, but spells needing specific components will require you to have them in your inventory (i.e. a pearl to cast Identify, a diamond for Revivify…)
 
Joined
Feb 21, 2015
Messages
2,173
Location
BW, Germany
Luethar said:
I am so glad I Kickstarted this game! I have been following its development since the KS was successful. The game is not a lavish as BG3 but I actually enjoy Solasta more. The game feels more like a tabletop where BG3 tried to bring tabletop to Divinity Sin and didn't quite get it right (so far that is, both games are still in EA). BG3 still looks to be a great game, but I think Solasta translated the tabletop experience better.

Lue.
Click to expand...
It's funny because Larian has integrated the tools to hold a virtual tabletop game in D:OS2, (I wouldn't be surprised if they did that later in BG3), but this game doesn't feel much like one, except for the story side... but in that mode, it's the role of the DM. Perhaps this was to complement their future board game.

Perhaps it's only my impression, I haven't tried to be honest. It would certainly feel more like it in a game like Solasta.
 
Joined
Aug 29, 2020
Messages
10,434
Location
Good old Europe
Solasta already has mods on Nexus, apparently. There are mainly new feats and subclasses, but I also saw a new class.

It's a good sign, in two ways: it's possible to mod it (we knew it since it's Unity, but there's still the matter of knowing the tools). And there are fans to tackle this already, even though it's Early Access. Well done, modders!
 
Joined
Aug 29, 2020
Messages
10,434
Location
Good old Europe
What's the point of using mods for the Early Access version? As most of those mods will probably be made incompatible once they push the latest weekly update.

Anyway unity mods always suck as you need a third party program just to install.
 
Joined
Oct 1, 2010
Messages
36,489
Location
Spudlandia
Couchpotato said:
What's the point of using mods for the Early Access version? As most of those mods will probably be made incompatible once they push the latest weekly update.

Anyway unity mods always suck as you need a third party program just to install.
Click to expand...
That's one way to see it... maybe not the most positive?

One of the modder, ChrisJohnDigital, has made several of those mods. I think he's trying to help the devs by adding more content, the choice of class and subclass being one of the criticized limitations. Who knows, if that's not adopted in the game, we'll still benefit from that later, mods have often helped games live longer.

Anyway, they are just passionate people, I'm not sure they need another reason to do it :)

I'm using UnityModManager for a few mods in Pathfinder, it's pretty simple, safe and non-invasive.
 
Joined
Aug 29, 2020
Messages
10,434
Location
Good old Europe
Joined
Oct 1, 2010
Messages
36,489
Location
Spudlandia
Redglyph said:
That's one way to see it… maybe not the most positive?
Click to expand...
Well let that be a lesson I'm rarely positive about most games nowadays. Anyway look at Bethesda games just drag and drop. It doesn't get any easier to install mods.:)
 
Last edited:
Joined
Oct 1, 2010
Messages
36,489
Location
Spudlandia
JDR13 said:
What mods are you using?
Click to expand...

I'm using Bag of Tricks too, initially it was mostly for the camera tools.
In the final stage of the game at the House of the Edge of Time, I used it to kill the enemies, the game was just too long for me to cope with, endless hordes of enemies didn't make it very entertaining anymore.

Also SkipIntro, the main menu animation is driving me crazy (even if it's possible to click on it when it's still 2 miles away).

I used Visual Adjustments briefly, to change the portrait of my main character. But there are other, safer ways to do it like this external tool.
 
Joined
Aug 29, 2020
Messages
10,434
Location
Good old Europe
Couchpotato said:
Well let that be a lesson I'm rarely positive about most games nowadays.
Click to expand...
I noticed ;) But some indie games are promising, I believe they're one good hope, if not the only one, to keep games entertaining and innovative.
Couchpotato said:
Anyway look at Bethesda games just drag and drop. It doesn't get any easier to install mods.:)
Click to expand...
D:OS2 also had a menu for mods IIRC, but mods are probably made by the tools they provide. It'd be nice to have something easier, but I hardly see how Tactical Adventures would make time for this, it must be pretty low on the priority list. Besides, setting up Unity may be too complicated for most modders so the return wouldn't be worth the effort:

Q: This may have been asked before so please forgive me, but will it be mod-able so we could add in our own content/classes/races later on?

A: The game will be moddable since it's on Unity (and we don't plan on obscuring the code specifically against modders).

We don't have modding tools planned for now though, as we have scoped it in the past - and while we could have a Unity Modding SDK up and running fairly easily, it would be very difficult to use for anyone who isn't a game developer already. Discussions with prominent RPG modders led us to understand that if it's too hard to use, people won't care about it.
Click to expand...

Of course, they could add a button just to launch a UnityModManager-like installer, but they probably don't want their support to be hit with the consequences, nor take the time to approve mods.
 
Joined
Aug 29, 2020
Messages
10,434
Location
Good old Europe
Bit of news regarding side quests in the dev update:

Now that we've have a sizeable chunk of the main campaign playable, we've started working on adding some side quests into the mix! This should hopefully alleviate the feeling of the game being too linear, forcing you to rush down the main quest from one mission to another. That being said remember that Solasta is not intended to be an open world game - side quests are meant to enhance the overall experience, which is still focused on the main campaign.

2ewMb7RiUCPORJNPgsUelOo9iw48ZE1XN1J3j1v8.png
Here's a little glimpse into one of the 8 Background Quests, which availability will depend on your characters' background
​

We plan to have two major types of side quests in Solasta. The first type, shown in the screenshot above, are fairly elaborate quests with cutscenes and oftentimes handcrafted levels - for instance, Background Quests and the Legendary Quest mentioned in last week's article.

The second type are more straightforward quests with little in the way of narration, such as pickup quests asking you to clear a pack of monsters in an old location you've already visited for example. Those are mostly here to give you a little break from the story and encourage you to visit (or revisit) locations to make sure you're not missing out some cool loot and experience.

That said, do not worry - you can absolutely ignore all of that and focus on the main quest if you prefer.
 
Joined
Aug 29, 2020
Messages
10,434
Location
Good old Europe
Excellent preview, Redglyph! This wasn't on my radar before, but now it definitely is.
 
Joined
Sep 15, 2014
Messages
612
The final release will be available today around 8am PDT / 11 am EDT / 5 pm CEST :cool:

As I posted in the price alert thread, it's -20% on GOG, Steam and Gamesplanet until June 2nd.
 
Last edited:
Joined
Aug 29, 2020
Messages
10,434
Location
Good old Europe
Well, it's already there and it's a 12.55 GB update if you had the EA, probably about the same from scratch. :)

EDIT: https://www.solasta-game.com/news/126-solasta-10-full-launch-were-finally-there-people

I didn't know there were so many stores... the more the merrier
Solasta is now out, and available on multiple different platforms. Choose your favorite!

Click to expand...
 
Last edited:
Joined
Aug 29, 2020
Messages
10,434
Location
Good old Europe
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom