I have recently completed Quintessence, and it is very amazing. I'll write a bit of an unofficial review then! It wont be in the usual format of a review.. so that is why I'm calling it unofficial. Plus, Im not a RRB =P
Reviewer's Comments:
From the very beggining of chapter one, you'll find yourself watching a cinematic depecting random scenes from what I can only assume will be future scenes of Quintessence. My personal favorite is the one of the soldiers trying to attack Reivier. However I may be wrong and these scenes may instead depict the "First Journey" that Reivier undertakes. Reives shows his position as a positively amazing cutscene maker. Throughout the game, you'll find that the cutscenes (and there are MANY of them!) very well done. I would like to make a special mention of Reives use of the Pan Screen option. Used often, it is easy to miss its use, but the effect it adds is definitely seen.
Reives maps with recolored tilesets, heavy usage and fogs and generally all effects to give his maps a very realistic and unique feel. The horizon can be see at the top of each map which I felt was a nice trick. Another thing to note is his use of Arrows telling you where the Teleport Events are. I wasn't too sure about them and felt they kind of broke the realism the rest of the , but they are nontheless a very helpful addition, and find that once you get used to them they dont feel so out of place. The first two chapters are nothing but storyline and introduction, but the storyline is intriguing and the characters are lovable. My personal favorite character is the man who has the callous wife who treats him terribly but seems to care about him deep down. His slight lack of intelligence but loving and kind nature makes him one of the more enjoyable characters I've seen in a long time.
You play as Reivies, the hunter of a small quant village. The village his a very peaceful feel to it, and everyone appears to be good friends with each other (save a certain couple!) Everyone works hard and does their share, and they support each other.
Now, about the other characters. I personally did not like Reivier as much as the other character in the game, but I have no gripes about him, he just simply isn't as good the other characters. He is once again a caring character but tends to panic easily. Something I love about the character Lunair (you'll find her soon enough those of you who haven't yet) is her sarcastic and bitterness. I find it enjoyable to see a game's hero who isn't really all that good of a person every now and then. Overall, the game's characters were all enjoyable in their own way, and acted like real people.
Unfortunantly, the 2 Chapters of introduction can move a bit slowly. Interesting though they may be, I found myself aching to fight something or go exploring and find treasure about halfway through, and to my dismay I found that exploring the town didn't seem to net me any extra treasure or useful goodies for peeking around all those corners. Thankfully, like I said earlier, the storyline is one of the most interesting I've seen around here, so if youre a fan of the "RMXP Movies", but still like to control a little, then this is the game for you. It is (and declared by the creator) a game based on storyline, which is one of the most interesting aspects of a game. I just kind of wish there was some monsters in that forest west of the town, or if we got a chance to go hunting as Reivier for a little minigame before the story progressed.
Upon reaching Chapter 3, you'll find the game's first dungeon. The battles were fun, though I only ended up using Reivier's Arrow Attack and the occasional trap to fight as he was basically superior in every way to Lunair. His battle system brings something unique to the genre, and though it does contain its flaws like every system, is something I was grateful to see instead of the usual Turn-Based or ATB. Something I liked about the dungeon (It's often the accumulation of little things like that make me really appreciate a game) were that in the scorpions were different sizes, colors, and speed. Which makes sense afterall, whoever heard of all animals looking exactly the same? Unfortunantly, Monster battles dont give any EXP or GP, making fighting them pointless and forcing you to try your hardest to avoid them, interesting though the battles may be. It may become repetetive once in a while when youre just spamming arrows behind a fence, but I liked it when I was running away from a snake that was chasing me while trying to snap an arrow at it when I had made some sizable distance from it.
The Dungeon Puzzle was also quite interesting, it was a bit tricky, but wasn't too hard, and I found myself able to beat it before I began cursing in rage at difficulty, but after I thought "Gee.. I'm going to have to think about this one." I wish I could have fought that creature at the end as a boss though =P
I didn't find many mapping problems, save a book behind a desk, or some trees that looked like they were floating on the water. The visual effects more than make up for the rare mistakes found.
All in all, Quintessence is one of the more amazing games out there, and is one that will seriously Wow you with it's many effects and visual expertise. Quintessence is a game that will make you think "Gee. I wish I had thought of that!"
So if you have some time on your hands, go ahead and download it now! I had a great time playing it, and I bet you will too.
Oh and for those who are wondering, I took abour an hour and a half to complete chapters 1-3, so expect a fairly short game for now, but don't fret as there will of course be more chapters being released soon.
