Arcadie II: Cold Lands

I think I would give this a mixed review if I could. This game adds stuff not in the first game, but also removes some things that I kinda wish had stayed. However, it also keeps a lot of the things the first game had that were good. The good changes include the following: Music, illustrated backgrounds and portraits, as well as a shiny new UI. This is nice, and makes the game feel more modern but that's about it. It also tells you if you are locked out of a choice. all in all, these are merely nice things to have, and honestly don't really add or detract to my opinion of the game. The game also made some changes that I disliked. The biggest issue I had was the lack of a stats page like in the first game. Yes, it's obvious how certain options lead to changes down the line on a macro scale, but I liked how in the first game, every small interaction with a character had a correspondingly small (or sometimes big) change in their opinion of you, and that opinion strength mattered down the line. I liked that you could actively see what your choices did, so I could know if they mattered or not. For example, every time I had to reign Will's bloodthirsty instinct in, I could not tell if that actually affected her opinion of me, whereas in the first game, if I had done something especially cowardly, her opinion would drop significantly. I ended up disagreeing with her quite a bit and I have no idea if that changed anything because she still seemed to love me. My second biggest issue with the game is something they didn't include, which is a save import mechanism. While the game allows you to dictate some of your past through dialogue and questions, some things are taken for granted. The biggest one that I immediately noticed was that both commanders are automatically loyal to you. Them turning on you had a lot of emotional impact in the first game and to see that repealed is very disappointing and limits replay-ability, And for what? Cyril most definitely did not need to be loyal to me in the playthrough I did. What it means is that the author either couldn't figure out how to work these branching narratives or didn't want to, and that leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Narrative wise, I have to say I'm somewhat disappointed as well. As others have pointed out, the story feels short. The reason it feels this way, in my opinion, is because we jump around from place to place quite a bit. Without spoilers, I would describe it like a rushed season of a tv show, where you constantly jump from arc to arc. Perhaps the biggest sin of the narrative is the lack of tension and overbearing threat. In the first game, it really felt like Stanislas or his men could get to you at any time, so there was this feeling of urgency, as well as real stakes, involved with trying to take him down. Cold Land's premise is much weaker and it's because it lacks this overarching threat. The place the story leaves off on is also just poor, in my opinion. Without spoiling, if I could describe it I would liken it to Mass Effect 2. ♥♥♥♥ went down in Mass Effect 1, and sure some important stuff needed to be taken care of in Mass Effect 2, but at the end of that game it was like: 'this was cool, but I can tell ♥♥♥♥'s going nuclear in Mass Effect 3' and I very much get the same vibe here. In conclusion, Cold Lands almost feels like the epilogue ASB didn't have. Maybe once I do a second playthrough I'll change my mind but I don't really have a desire to replay it immediately since it was actually very easy to get a satisfactory ending. If you liked ASB, then yeah, I'd say you could have some fun with this book but it's certainly not as good as the first one. In fact it's actually kinda criminal that its more expensive than book one, considering the only thing that seems to justify the price tag is the extra art and music which... diehard fans of the genre know is completely unnecessary. Oh, well. I hope the third book can be better.

I really wanted to love this game because the first game is one of my favourites. But I don't. First of all, I am not overly bothered by linearity, since I tend to only play one route. And I despise stats that prevent role-play, but love when they are used for creative flair and tailoring to player choices. I don't miss the stats, I miss the customisation they gave. Both these are purely a personal thing, though. I chose Cyril as my love interest, as in the first game, and I still love him as a character. He's a good foil to Will. The romance was nice, Cyril is a good character and I enjoy him very much. But his character seemed rather inconsistent. He's supposed to be a grandmaster in the game of politics but completely forgets what it would mean for him to marry the queen. His parents are right, he cannot have both. So everything else felt underwhelming. The character motivation didn't make sense. And Marc was more of a plot device than a character to me. A huge, political fall out ends up feeling reduced to a little brother being jealous his big brother has a new friend, and putting at risk everything and everyone he cares for and stands to protect. I spared Stan, but I don't think he'd have been missed if I didn't. He does nothing. And I cannot work up the cognitive dissonance required befriend the person who murdered my entire family and tried to murder me. But he isn't even a useful tool. I am also rather disappointed in how things end with the Kaltlanders. Their motivations make no sense. At best they are a group of idiots. They are the Darwinian theory made manifest in Arcadie. Paired with the southern tribes, who I made a deal with, now they are suddenly my enemy again because the Kaltlanders, bless their tiny brains, basically took themselves out for me. I think a lot of this is because it is so short. Nothing had time to shine. I mean it's called Cold Lands and I don't think I was in the Cold Lands long enough to warrant that title. And if the implication of the spreading cold is the reason it's called that, it was way to minimal an issue to be the title. The spreading cold and the connection to the Kaltlanders and dArcadie being another thing that has just confused me. I am befuzzled. I honestly feel like I am going a bit insane. There were so many plot holes and contrivances that I am still ruminating on them. Arcadie has the foundations for a rich and fascinating mythology, yet it never gets to shine. I keep thinking I maybe missed something, like my reading comprehension dipped for a bit and now I just feel confused and frustrated. I mean this even to the point I cannot see myself bothering with the third game, because the foundations in this game are so brittle it will not work for me. Really, if you only care about the romance then you might like it. I was just so confused and frustrated with the overarching plot and lacklustre character motivations completely took me out of the story.

Honestly, I have to say that this game is a significant step down from the first game. It is significantly shorter than the first game, an average playthrough lasts about 60-80 minutes, and the differences between the three routes mostly boil down to extra relationship scenes between the major events which are fixed between all playthroughs. The visuals and music are a nice upgrade from the first game, but it now leaves it in this awkward spot where it’s just enough like a visual novel to make you miss the parts where they didn’t go full visual novel, such as character busts or CGs which are completely absent from the game. The absence of character busts strikes me as especially odd, as they are all over the steam page but are completely absent in game, like they were planned at some point before being ultimately scraped. Most damningly, the plot of the game feels very much like a holding pattern that goes nowhere. Unlike the plot of the first game which begins with a single dramatic event and follows through from start to finish, the plot of the second game seems to mostly be wandering around looking for stuff to do, before suddenly ending on a sequel hook. Ultimately I do not recommend it at full price, Might be worth a shot if it ever goes on significant discount.

I was excited to support the author, but unfortunately, the game feels like a step down in quality from the first installment. There are no stats, very little meaningful branching, and almost no decisions that seem to have any real impact on the plot. It feels less like an interactive narrative and more like a short, straightforward novel that can be slightly customized through the different romance options (But even that can be frustrating. Characters you are not romancing become largely irrelevant to the story, and you barely interact with them). The pacing is also disappointing. The story moves rapidly from one problem to the next, but each conflict is usually introduced and resolved very quickly. These events rarely receive enough development to feel significant, and once they are over, they are often barely mentioned again. As a result, the plot feels like a sequence of disconnected set pieces. For anyone interested in the game, I would recommend waiting for a substantial discount. At its current price, the experience feels far too short and linear to justify the cost.

Compared to the first game, I expected more from the features and length. Disappointing.

So first of all, I really liked the first game. Cold Lands unfortunately is a disappointment. I feel like Cold Lands fell into the sequel trap I have encoutered before. There is no real storyline, just going places we have heard about in the previous game. Going by the title I thought we were actually going to see the actual cold lands, but we just drop by for a minute. There are just too many things crammed into one game and none of them are fleshed out properly. Even the codex stopped updating very quickly, though I feel like there were things it still could've contained. It's a real shame, I was really excited for the sequel, I have replayed Second Born before playing this and I still really like it. I don't really mind removing the stats feature, sometimes it's nice to play more of a narrative like game, without the "heavy" gameplay of a CYOA. It's the story that didn't really grip me :(

I really wanted to like this game especially since the first one was so fun, I finished one of the routes for Will annnd I think it was a bad one? Honestly it felt like a half-baked game, the character creator screen didn't add anything relevant to the story. Will's character felt...different, motivation wise and as far as Nathanial goes, he's not even in the game. He's not even a romance option which felt weird since it leads to that in the first book. The main character doesn't add to the story really, beyond just going places and snooping around. All in all, it's an okay game.

The illusion of choice.

[h3] Little disclaimer before I start. I am not a native English speaker, so bear with me if I make mistakes. Also, I won't be sharing any specific spoilers in this review, so you can safely read it in its entirety, if you wish to do so. [/h3] I just finished the game on Cyril's route and all I can say is wow. I was a big fan of the first book, but this second book made me fall in love with its universe and the characters even more. The additions to this second game are lovely. The backgrounds are beautifully drawn, and the music... Mama, the music is incredible. I truly hope the OST will be released somewhere someday se we can listen to it. I really love some of the soundtracks. Furthermore, if you liked the writing in the first book, you should really love the writing in this second one, dare I say I found it to be even better. I also saw some complaints in the reviews for the game, some of which are valid, I think. The first one being its length. So, it's most likely because English is not my native tongue, because I am a rather slow reader and gamer who likes to take his time and because I took some breaks while keeping the game running, but here I am at 34.1 hours and I just finished the game for the first time. Without the breaks I mentioned, it is probably closer to ~28-30h of real reading, which is about twice as long as it took me to finish a single route in the first book - at least for me. The second biggest complaint is about when the game ends. I understand that one. The story basically ends, not exactly mid-action but not very far from it either, while leaving things very very open for a third book. (Which I really, and I mean [b] REALLY [/b] hope eventually happens. Dear Sofia, please hear my words and just take my money already, I beg you !) The third complaint, I saw some people talking about the lack of tension that was so very present in the first book. I must admit, I do not share this complaint at all. Maybe it is specific to Cyril's route (My beloved by the way. Her romance is so sweet, I'm deeply in love with her character. I need more, I want more !), but damn the tension was stellar. It's not the same type of tension as for the first book, yes, but it was still very much present for me. I think I felt much more tension in this second book, specifically on this route, than I did in the first book. It was a different kind of tension, but it truly made me feel so isolated and cornered. This, plus the music, it was damn perfect. I found myself shouting "WHAT ?!" at my own screen multiple times throughout the story, that was amazing haha. The last popular complaint I saw concerns the lack of stats for the MC, something that was present in the first game. While I understand why it could bother some people, it didn't really bother me. Yes having them could have been a plus, but I personally didn't miss them that much. In the end, I strongly recommend this game (and the first one), the universe is really well-built and the writing is excellent. Sofia has her own very personal style which is both beautiful and highly enjoyable. Plus, French touch. Fingers very much crossed for a third book ! [b] [i] Glory to Arcadie ! [/i] [/b]

Greatly enjoyed the game - it picks up pretty cleanly where the first game ends, and the stakes are still strong enough to make me stress about choices. It also retains the distinction of feeling like an early choice has a repercussion much much later. I was interested to see that each route with the same MC type, while still hitting the same story beats, felt extremely different depending on who you were romancing (or not). I also enjoyed how the best ends aren't always full sunshine and roses - this game does not shy away from Consequences, and some things feel out of your hands (organically). The characters feel like they have their own agendas, while still fitting into the world and their relationship(s) with the MC. This game might suffer a little bit from 'middle-child syndrome' that some games have, where it sort of works more as a bridge between the intense introduction of the first game, and the eventual culmination of all choices that a third game would be, but I believe it holds up quite well. Will definitely be going back in to see how things further change within each route with different choices. Definitely recommended - but it's in your best interest to play the first one beforehand. Some games you can skip the first and go right to the second - would not advise that for this series. The story is very tightly interwoven, and some of the emotional impact of the previous game's events will be lost if it's skipped, and that would do a disservice to this game.