BOOK OF HOURS

tldr：核心玩法严重拖累整体体验，可惜，可惜！ 从《陷落沦敦》到《无光之海》，再到《密教模拟器》和现在的《司辰之书》……如果说叙事和玩法是游戏两大支柱，那Alexis Kennedy的这几部作品在叙事这块儿，尤其是构建“秘史世界”(World of Secret Histories)这套世界观上，可以说堪称完美。醒时、漫宿、林地、司辰、具名者、长生者……这套融合了语言学、历史学、神秘学的设定，可不是中二病在小本子上涂涂画画能搞定的，地理、历史、语言处处透着现实考究和艺术价值。就拿这经营图书馆的本作来说，游戏中有近三百本书籍文献，跨越不同历史时代，出自各路学者之手，从中甚至能窥见夜勤处和防剿局的审查历史。这些书既贴合虚构世界观，又能让你咂摸出现实历史文化的味儿——而这些书籍内容全是作者一个人虚构杜撰出来的，这工程量不得不让人佩服。 上来就喷玩法拖后腿，是不是说《司辰之书》的玩法就一无是处？倒也不至于。咱们先扬后抑，先鼓励和表扬一下AK在玩法设计上的勇气可嘉。虽然AK玩法方面的功力不算顶尖，但这几部作品确实可谓没走寻常路。AK不愿用市面上现成的成熟玩法，更不像现在一堆XXlike游戏那样直接套个模板图省事，而是大刀阔斧推陈出新，设计了完全新颖的新系统。尽管这些游戏又晦涩又小众，但却引得无数人借鉴学习甚至照抄玩法：《陷落沦敦》直接拔高了文字冒险RPG网页游戏的天花板；袜子社的爆款《堆叠大陆》和今年国产黑马《苏丹的游戏》能火，都证明了《密教模拟器》玩法大众化后的含金量。跟人开玩笑时说，AK就好像一个长项是写作的文科生，随手在文章里发明的公式，愣是被理科研究者们拿去反复钻研套用——但不得不承认，这也证明了AK的创新精神确实牛！ 如商店页面介绍所说，官方对本作的定位是角色扮演游戏，游戏背景设定在1936年英格兰康沃尔郡的布兰库格“噤声居屋”图书馆，主角作为被选中的图书馆第十二任图书管理员，修缮岛上的密教图书馆、构建秘术书籍收藏、通晓无形之术伟大之术，同时实现自己的理想。“玩家一边享受整理书籍与修缮新居的甜美平静，一边从你周遭充满神秘气息的石墙上缓缓揭开几百年的历史。” 本作的艺术风格和文字底蕴都可以说更上一层楼了，整座图书馆精美典雅，每个房间风格装饰都独树一帜：修道院教堂花窗玻璃的圣洁典雅、鸥鸣塔凉廊瞭望台的惬意恬静、分界仪式厅宴会台的觥筹交错、地下墓窟石棺墓室的幽深冷峻…（你问图书馆为啥有这些？问就是写作图书馆，读作贵族隐秘避暑山庄，要啥有啥！）而手绘风格的卡面配以细节考究、隐喻丛生的文本写作，可以说艺术感拉满。 那么问题来了：游戏玩法到底出了什么问题呢？我拜请司掌揭示之神弧月，前往月亮的居屋寻求她的开示，对着她那空无一物的面庞虔诚发问。弧月答曰：“呃，这位信徒，你问问题前先查wiki了吗？我可是启-铸-灯相的。想问我？先凑齐15启15铸15灯再来吧您内！” 核心问题，就是这套从《密教模拟器》继承来的准则性相系统——太强调“凑”了！本作不仅保留了前作的灯、铸、刃、冬、心、杯、蛾、启八大准则，还新增了月、蜜、引、鳞、穹五个。再配上九大魂质、九大伟大之术、七十三种技艺……好家伙！修图书馆要凑数值，编书写书要凑数值，学技能还要凑数值……随着流程推进，需要盯的东西贼多，书籍道具摆位整理记忆麻烦，追踪特定物品跟大海捞针似的，满屏多而乱的卡牌难以管理。本作放大了前作就有的凑属性凑数值问题，太过重视数值，会使得玩家需要记忆的要点、需要监控的数据过多，而游戏糟糕的流程引导、UI/UX设计、QoL不仅没能帮你转移注意力、缓解疲劳、提供方便的管理工具，反而把这堆问题赤裸裸地暴露出来，甚至雪上加霜。说真的，游戏中每本书、每幅画、乃至每株盆栽的交互文字写的都很有可读性，但就因为这套凑数值的系统太“重”了，我想绝大多数玩家在玩的过程中，眼中只盯着这些玩意儿能提供多少数值、能凑哪些性相，硬生生让一个糟糕系统，逼着玩家忽略了游戏最精华的部分。就冲这点，都值得给个差评当反面教材！ 而且一如既往的，因为糟糕的引导，模糊的描述和繁杂的数值系统，玩家实际不事先查阅wiki攻略之类就会有几个小时甚至几十小时低效混乱的探索，而什么都看wiki自然也少了那种探索游戏内容的乐趣，这点可谓是跟《密教模拟器》一脉相承，被我划为“不看wiki没法玩”类型的游戏。 自认为我算玩家里面耐心足、包容心强、愿意忍着缺点去挖掘游戏闪光点的那类人了。可即使是我，玩的时候也经常觉得游戏的魅力被一大堆乱七八糟的噪音给盖住了，玩得那叫一个心累，感觉像在盯着油漆慢慢变干。甚至我查阅wiki后发现游戏中的二十多位图书馆访客，也算是本作的队友，他们每个都有自己独特的性格、喜好和章程，甚至队友间互相之间的沙龙谈话记录竟然有几百条！本来这文本量放在正经RPG里也应该是顶级配置。但实际我居然觉得“看wiki了解这些，比在游戏里体验舒服多了”——这已经能充分说明问题了。 核心玩法整成这样，实在太可惜了。唯一的安慰是AK的下一步作品《夜游漫记》总算选择了传统的对话驱动、玩家选择走向、无战斗的等距视角CRPG的模式，也明确说了受《极乐迪斯科》的启发，没有死磕新系统而是回归传统文字冒险玩法，我也相信在这个赛道上更有利于作者发挥叙事看家本领，期待下一部作品的表现吧！ PS：中文本地化做的依然很神，我们拜请汉化组，千手百眼者，号令文字者，载话语驶过门关者，祂的神力谅必使我们渡过这片谜语之海！

正如AK有言： “Sending us abuse won't make it happen faster - but if may discourage us from localising future games into Chinese.” “给我们投差评并不会使翻译更快完成——但它可能会阻止我们将未来的游戏中文化” 既然你一如既往地敌视中文玩家，还一边装成受害者一边威胁其他语种的玩家出来攻击中文玩家，我不给个差评反倒是我不解风情了

I really wanted to love this game, but it is inscrutable. It is clearly a very well made, and really beautiful game, but the general gameplay is impossible to wrap my head around. Progress is frequently barred by a skill system that is deliberately obtuse to help tell its story, but the charm is wasted when it is this frustrating. I'm going to try and find some online guides or YouTube tutorials because trying to work out how to play on my own has been nothing but a sad and irritating experience.

For a very select few, this game will be your Holy Grail. But you won't be left wondering why no-one else talks about it. Book of Hours is about as niche as a game can reasonably get without being an unplayable mess. And oh my god, does it commit to this niche. It is a wonderful thing. I think every writer will appreciate it immensely.

I wish I could love this because the lore, writing and universe seem a solid 10/10, but the fact that basically nothing is explained and there is absolutely zero convenience built in the game kills the fun. I tried playing it blind, and missing a key concept once can get you stuck for hours. It's my own experience, but everything slowly sapped the fun out of the game, and you don't get any sense of "purpose". Sure, I loved analyzing books, learning from them, sorting them by theme, and trying to be proud of the collection I was building... But the underlying "story" or purpose of the game is hidden SO well that once the fun and awe is taken over by boredom and repetitive seasons, if you don't understand what is going on, then you just play for the sake of playing. I thought I would spend dozens of hours on this game, so I am disappointed to let it go so soon.

A lovely game. Excellent writing. Immersive af. But a word of warning if you will: This game is made for spreadsheet addicts. The correct way to play if you wish to accomplish anything of note in any reasonable period of time is to start the game with an empty spreadsheet, a passion for manual data entry, and a foolish conviction that you can somehow document everything that exists ever. Or at least that's what I did, and I ended November of 2024 a hundred hours deep, with every room unlocked and a beautiful monster painted in 6 point font. Then I wandered off into the mist, lost contact with the house's soul, and never came back to finish what I started. Another librarian, gone same as all who came before. Maybe the next one will be lucky! But somehow I doubt it. The numbers just don't line up. It's a strange feeling looking back at this now. Once that spreadsheet was almost a familiar to me. I summoned it, fed it, trained it to serve me. And it served me well. Now the magic's gone, and I'm left to sit with the corpse of a love I'd half forgotten. In conclusion, if you are here for the great vibes, they are great! And also if this game ever feels a little more "difficult" to interact with than some others, remember that it was designed in meaningful part for people like me. Turns out the Build Your Own Demon crowd sometimes has a different idea of fun... Such is the way of things. Enjoy yourselves out there! -Crimson

[h1]《司辰之书》：先来上网课吧[/h1] 　　《司辰之书》的名气或许just so so，毕竟3000+评价只能算一款熬出头的独立游戏，但还到不了出圈——不过其前作《密教模拟器》就算是大有来头了。评价条数接近1W不说，更恐怖的是那生人勿近的超高上手门槛，以至于本作在卡牌圈子里一直特立独行，截止到目前仍旧将将只有80%出头的好评率，但这不妨碍拥趸们称之为神作，而剩下的一部分则弃若敝履。 [h1][quote=] [table] [tr] [th] 欢迎关注 [b][u][i]U_U鉴赏家培养计划[/i][/u][/b][/th] [/tr] [tr] [th] 关注U_U鉴赏家，开启精彩游戏之旅。 [/th] [/tr] [/table] [/quote][/h1] 　　《密教模拟器》就是这么一款充满争议的作品，而其续作《司辰之书》完全继承了前作的古怪，不过在细节上更进一步，做出了全方位超越《密教模拟器》的续作——至少在我看来是的。虽然人气不及前作，不过90%的好评率似乎说明本作将受众更加细化，Weather Factory对前作犯下的错误也并不打算进行丝毫更改，而是将长板继续放大，如此才能赢得拥趸的一众好评吧。 　　先说说本作可能最大的雷点——那就是跟前作一样缺失的引导。毕竟玩法上基本跟一代一毛一样，如果你是前作的老玩家那确实是久旱甘霖，不过萌新初上手本作的时候难免会一头雾水，这时候就得跟当初玩《密教模拟器》的时候一样，老老实实去外面上几堂“网课”。至少这是数字媒体时代相较于古早纸媒时代的巨大优势：[b]如果游戏里引导有缺失，可以轻松靠攻略来补齐，而不用担心会因为过高的门槛错过一些好游戏。[/b] 　　《密教模拟器》玩法核心是卡牌，但本质上其实是文字解密，而《司辰之书》继承了这一点，所以游玩思路跟前作保持一致：安排每天的时间，不断吃书来获得属性点的成长。读新的书→获得教悔→获得技能（升级技能）→读难度更高的书/更难的事件检定/合成更牛的道具，核心循环差不多是这个流程。虽然肝，但确实很符合“一分耕耘一分收获”的态度。 　　不过《司辰之书》的优点在于将游戏背景更加贴合游戏设计：玩家作为一名密教图书馆的管理员，通过干好管理书籍的工作来完成属性成长。看着越来越多的书籍，玩家接触到的知识也就越多——以及书中的回忆。所谓「一书一世界」大抵就是如此吧，在《司辰之书》中寻到世界的宁静。 　　提到《密教模拟器》，或许有些朋友会想到今年大火的国产独游《苏丹的游戏》。相较于《苏丹》对密教玩法的揉碎重铸、做出了许多降低门槛的设计，《司辰之书》在玩法上无疑要更原汁原味——毕竟是正统续作嘛。

Reviewing (mostly) every game (or DLC) in my library, part 94: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️☆☆☆☆ (6/10) [i] Book of Hours [/i] is a tranquil, esoteric game about rebuilding a haunted library and delving into mystical knowledge. Set in the same universe as Cultist Simulator, it trades frantic timers for slow, introspective card play, inviting you to live the quiet life of a reclusive archivist. It’s strange, poetic, and richly atmospheric … but also, at times, maddeningly obtuse and functionally clunky. It offers one of the most unique gaming experiences out there: a poetic life sim about solitude, memory, and meaning. But it desperately needs UI improvements, better inventory systems, and more onboarding. For me, it’ll be a haunting reminder that design is just as important as aesthetics. Recommended only if you have the patience for its quirks or a love of beautiful, arcane tedium. 📚 Pros [list] [*] Incredible atmosphere and writing. This is where the game shines. The prose is lush, subtle, and dripping with arcane flavor. Every book, aspect, and object has a distinct voice, and the sense of place—the salt-stained air of Hush House, the ghosts of knowledge—is unmatched. You feel immersed in a world long forgotten. [*] A truly unique gameplay loop. There’s no combat, no score, no win-state urgency. You restore rooms, sort collections, and uncover secrets. This “librarycore” fantasy is rare and beautifully realized. If you’ve ever wanted to be a melancholy librarian in a broken world, this is your dream game. [*] Exploration through reading. Your progression is entirely narrative-based. Books don’t just give lore: they unlock new skills, memories, and rituals. There’s real joy in cross-referencing tomes, discovering obscure truths, or finally understanding a mechanic from a line of dusty text. [*] Complex, layered mechanics. Once you learn how the systems work, they’re surprisingly deep. Every action (studying, teaching, restoring, remembering) uses a card with a relevant "aspect" (e.g., Moth, Winter, Heart), and matching those correctly is like solving little logic puzzles. [*] Peaceful, meditative pacing. There are no timers. You can pause whenever. The game wants you to take your time. For players tired of frantic, high-stakes loops, [i] Book of Hours [/i] is a balm. [*] Gorgeous visual design. The art is elegant, delicate, and atmospheric. Whether it’s the candlelit UI, the soft palette, or the minimal animations, the game commits to its aesthetic and delivers a world that feels mysterious and sacred. [/list] 🧾[b] Cons: [/b] [list] [*] UI is unintuitive and actively frustrating. The interface looks beautiful but functions poorly. Cards pile up and overlap. Objects are tiny, hard to click, and can be lost across rooms. There’s no good inventory management, no sorting tools, no search function, and no clear way to retrieve misplaced items. Accidentally drop a book in the wrong room? You may never find it again. [*] Cluttered table management. You’ll often have 20+ cards and actions cluttering your screen with no way to organize them. There’s no auto-align, grouping, or filter systems. It's ironic that a game about archiving makes you manage a UI messier than a college student’s desk. [*] Obtuse, trial-and-error systems. The core mechanics aren’t just deep—they’re obscure. There’s very little in-game guidance. You’re expected to intuit what aspects are needed, how to combine cards, how to advance quests, or how to heal your character. While some enjoy discovery, others will find this unnecessarily punishing. And because the pace is so slow, trial-and-error becomes grindingly tedious. [*] Tiny inventory and object tracking issues. Items can be lost in rooms. There's no “search room” function, and the game doesn't help you locate misplaced objects. There’s no true grid: cards float loosely, often covering each other. You might spend 10 minutes looking for one memory fragment buried under another card. That’s not immersive; that’s frustrating. [*] Pacing can feel glacial. While the slow pace is thematic, it sometimes feels padded. It takes a long time to unlock core features. Much of the early game is spent with minimal direction, repeating basic actions just to see what they even do. Even when you understand what’s going on, progress can feel like molasses. [*] Mechanics lack QOL polish. There's no journal, hint system, or recipe book to track what you’ve discovered. If you forget how to perform a certain ritual or action, you're out of luck. The learning curve is vertical, and even seasoned players can get tripped up on one forgotten step. I don't understand why there's no in-game journal either. Do the devs want us to alt-tab to an Excel spreadsheet? I HATE the "You have copied this to clipboard" message. [/list] [hr] If you enjoyed this review, please check out my curator page to find more: [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/45814768-Verdict-Play-or-Pass/]Verdict: Play or Pass. [/url] Also, please leave a like and visit [url=https://steamcommunity.com/groups/Indie_Gems]IndieGems[/url] and our YouTube channel for more reviews like this one. [/hr]

最没压力的一集 惬意得就像我真的住在图书馆似的，我想，我或许真的被世界所侵蚀了，如此迫切地想要掌握一切的技艺 为此，我放弃了太多，甚至没有认真去读一会儿剧情，一切的行为都是为了凑齐那些相性 或许某一天我会重新再打开这个游戏，好好地坐在图书馆的椅子上，听着音乐读完每一本书。 不过在此之前，我需要再凑点相性。