Siege of Treboulain

[h1][b] Siege of Treboulain [/b][/h1] [h2] TLDR: [/h2] I was hesitant to pick up this game because the glory of battle has never been appealing to me. However, that’s not really what this game is about. Instead, this title focuses on stakes of a community in the face of a threatening force. It’s not the minutia of supplies, but the ecosystem of citizens, city, and companions that take up the core of this game. Because everyone matters so much, and you spend a significant amount of time with them, the stakes feel much higher than fight-to-kill or mine vs. yours politics. I played through this game three times already, and I have three more playthroughs planned. This one is going into my personal BEST list. [h3][b]The Good:[/b][/h3] - [u][b] The Writing [/b][/u]: I felt like this story defined itself against other types of writing because it didn’t elide over your choices. What I mean by that is if you choose to say something clever, the writer includes a clever thing you said instead of just telling you that your character said something clever. Considering the range of different approaches, personalities, and relationships, to make each response feel specific and unique was quite a feat! I’m excited for your next work, author-person! - [u][b] Heart [/b][/u]: By the time I fought in the final battle, my determination was at an all time high. My citizens were looking to me for guidance. The faith of my soldiers was in my hands. I didn’t just want to win, but I wanted to protect this community that I had worked over the course of the game to nurture. - [u][b] Drama [/b][/u]: I can’t say too much because of spoilers, but there is some really delicious interpersonal drama. I WANT MORE! I love when your past comes back to haunt you, and the way it’s done here was excellent. - [u][b] Not-Punishing-Stats: [/b][/u] Often I find that if stats matter you can only play one way. This is not the case in this game. Instead, you can have an array of skills without suddenly, and randomly, being good at everything. I hope this becomes the norm for other games, because this is the first time I really felt like an author got it right. - [u][b] Length: [/b][/u] Longer than I thought it would be, but I still craved more—AKA the perfect length for a game. There are a variety of missions, and I loved seeing the various ways that you could approach situations over multiple playthroughs. - [u][b] Fun: [/b][/u] I can’t say this one enough. This game is actually fun! I can enjoy things from a critical perspective; I can admire the artistry behind a game, but there’s nothing like getting so involved with an experience that your body just relaxes, and you start smiling to yourself. Don’t get me wrong, I admired this game in many ways, but I also ENJOYED the experience of playing it. As soon as I finished it, I opened it up and started playing it again. - [u][b] World: [/b][/u] I hope the author chooses to revisit this world. It’s so interesting! I’m very curious about the magic, and I’m already missing Treboulain! [h3][b]The Not So Good: [/b][/h3] - [u][b] Clarity: [/b][/u] I think it could have been clearer that certain choices could be potentially done by other people instead of you. Knowing that would have convinced me to pick different choices on certain playthroughs. - [u][b] Companions: [/b][/u] I got their vibes and their general interests, but I would've liked to know as individuals a bit more. I still cared about all of them, but there could've been more, you know? [h3][b]Suggestions for New Players: [/b][/h3] • Review your stat screen often if you want to play on easy mode. Never check your stat screen if you want to play on hard more. • Enjoy being good at multiple things! You don’t have to only play to your strongest stat! • You can make friends AND romance people. There is enough time to do both! [h3][b]You’ll Like This If OR if you liked this then you might try: [/b][/h3] • Choice of Rebels by Joel Havenstone for having high stakes, and a true feeling of duty! • War of the West by Lucas Zaper for a similar topic, but a very different execution!

I'm a bit conflicted with this one. I did like the story and the plot twist that came early on, but I just got too frustrated with the choices presented and also the apparent "pass or fail" system that came with your decision. It felt that even if you had a good level of skill for a certain trait it was almost a 50/50 of whether you would succeed or fail terribly ( and I mean terribly). It got so frustrating I gave up and ultimately asked for a refund, because I knew I would never want to finish it. I reset my game after I accidentally picking a different action than I wanted, gave my character the exact same stats and made the same decisions and yet when I chose one of the "pass or fail" choices my character failed horribly despite having the exact same stats and made the exact same decisions. It then felt like it didn't matter what level my character had with any skill because my choices still could fail because of the games ultimate decision. Some people might like that but I don't. I would also prefer there to be a spectrum of succession or failure rather than the extreme. I was constantly finding my character either doing something absolutely perfect or making a massive fool of themselves despite having a really good skill set. Furthermore, the choices didn't feel like what a real person would chose. Who in their right mind would smash a sword in the ground to get attention. I understand it is a fantasy game but sometimes I just wanted to shake my character silly for coming up with three actions that are either stupid or just plain cringe to be totally honest. I kept getting second hand embarrassment for my own choices that I would never have even thought to do in the first place. Obviously the dev and author can't predict the appropriate actions that everyone single person in the world would have thought of, but still it was to the extreme of what a person would do. Also there were very limited actions to begin with. Anyway, some people might love it, but I don't. I wish I could pick something other than not recommend as I don't hate it enough to not recommend but it sure wouldn't be the first recommendation I would give. The premise and story line was exciting just not the execution.

It is a good CoG story, rather simple in the concept and story line but entertaining enough. It does have its flaws: - The side characters are not very interesting, feeling two dimensional and empty. - The same can be said of the romance aspect. It is pretty forced (especially Celestino's). - You are shamed even for the most insignificant failure, it gets a bit annoying at times. But the game is worth it. While it sometimes is weighted down by clichés, it's a solid tale. - Good worldbuiling. - Nice uses of the stats. - It makes sense. And most importantly the replayability is correct. Nothing groundbreaking but pleasant enough to be enjoyed a couple of times.

整个故事都显得很人机，本作没什么剧情，设定也写得云里雾里的，各个势力的设定显得很割裂。整个游戏跟做任务一样，不停地对数值进行判定，外加一件又一件无谓的琐事需要玩家对此作出决策，但实际上也没体现出choices matter。这样的机械的写法放到十年前的cog游戏就算了，然而放在这几年的其他竞品之中就显得很苍白。

Не так много я читал интерактивных книг, в которых ресурс-менеджмент не вызывал у меня негатива (чаще всего - из-за неоправданно завышенной сложности и несбалансированности) и которые при этом захватывали своей историей. Эта игра удивительно порадовала меня. В стратегическом плане (ресурс-менеджмент) она разумно сбалансирована и все следствия выборов оказывали рациональный эффект на характеристики. Я не заметил никаких завышенных требований от характеристик персонажа, и при этом всё равно имелся определённый вызов для игрока, ведь слишком лёгкой эту игру тоже не назовёшь. Действуй с умом - и тебя ждёт успех. В сюжетном плане игра прекрасна. Её интересно читать, она увлекает и захватывает. Не на все вопросы найдёшь ответы, не всё ложится желаемым образом, но оторваться от неё всё равно было нелегко. Ну и моральные выборы здесь не всегда так очевидны, как в большинстве тематических игр, что тоже добавляет слоёв сюжету. Персонажи вроде бы и относительно архитипичные, но в них всё равно прослеживается определённая глубина, которая интригует своей нераскрытостью. Это вроде и не очень хорошо (даже немного грустно), но это создаёт дополнительный интерес и пожалуй даёт возможность самим додумать что на самом деле скрывается за тем или иным героем. Игра не идеальна и некоторым может показаться, что она недостаточно прописанная. Я не из таких людей, ведь недосказанность здесь мне не кажется ошибкой автора или чем-то подобным. Хотя про некоторые вещи я хотел бы знать побольше, я считаю, что отсутствие разжёвывания сюжета для игрока помогает ему самому определить что здесь является [для конкретного игрока] лучшим и/или правильным исходом. И мне понравилось то, как это было реализовано в этой игре.

meh its playable and readable but didnt really move me enough to want to finish reading it. The characters you interact with are pretty boring, about the only thing that seemed well thought out was the actual seige / combat. Which is probably why I wasnt interested in finishing the story, as I read these more for the characters and their stories. Its a good game, as far as these CYOAs go, but its pretty far down the list of good stories to read imho. As always YMMV.

Cool story with interesting choices

Игра не может похвастаться... ну ничем если честно. Средненькая история о защите города, в котором окроми осады возникли все проблемы, которые только могли. Разлад в религиозном ордене магов, пиратская блокада, дальний родственник что заявил свои права на престол. Ляпота! Но выйти абсолютным победителям по всем фронтам проще простого, если вы не "инвалид". Игра проста, но напряжна, так как успешность многих выборов зависит не от ваших навыков, а от личности (устрашающий/забавный, гордый/скромный, практичней/идеалистичный), и вы всегда должны анализировать варианты ответов чтобы случайно не вернуть эти 3 варианта на нейтральное поле (40-60%)... Это было не весело. Романтика здесь ничем не примечательна и наиболее банальна в своем воплощение. Пару коротких разговоров по душам, танец, поцелуй, предложение, свадьба. Но, именно из моего романса мне пришлось перепройти игру. Я выбрал жрицу, и примерно в предпоследней главе у нее есть шанс умереть... и я, идеально проходивший игру, именно здесь и облажался. Было 3 варинта для ее спасения... Скромность (я был гордым), Устрашение (я был забавным) и закрыть телом (У меня были вкачены ловкость и сила, но этот вариант все равно провалился. Возможно там нужно было быть идеалистом?)... В общем зашибись, ее спасение не зависит от навыков, лишь от личности... Аплодирую стоя за необходимость перепроходить почти завершенную игру.

*I played this in the Choice of Games omnibus app* Every now and then, there's a game that just does everything right. Jed Herne's Siege of Treboulain is one of them. The premise is simple: you're the recently-crowned young monarch of a proud and flourishing city, facing a challenge that might have brought a much more experienced sovereign to their knees - a prolonged siege by a vicious and relentless enemy. Military and economic concerns obviously demand your attention as you guide the city through the crisis, but your people look to you for leadership in spiritual and cultural matters as well. Almost every choice you make in this game feels important - and many of them are hard. Seldom can you please one influential faction within your city without displeasing another. Does Treboulain need a beloved monarch who can rally the people's morale and civic pride almost without effort, or a lofty, aloof sovereign who projects the kind of strength that wins battles? How many soldiers' lives is it worth to make a decisive blow at your enemy? Even when you've settled on a strategy - when you know which basket you want to put most of your eggs in - you can't just let everything else slide off your radar: leadership is a delicate balancing act. This is no mere military simulation, though. Siege of Treboulain is a story with a little bit of everything: some great action scenes, some tender romance (including a few tastefully steamy scenes, if you're so inclined), even a mystery to solve. The worldbuilding is absolutely delicious - Herne has stated that "there's a ton of depth, ancient lore, and hidden mysteries all wrapped up in" Treboulain, and that you "need to play the game a few times before you can fully explore even a fraction of the city." (And with three possible backgrounds for the main character, countless possibilities when it comes to priorities and leadership style, and dozens of variables factoring into the end state, this is a game well worth playing a few times.) Although it's not quite a personal favorite, Siege of Treboulain is a top-notch game I can see myself recommending frequently and returning to often. And I definitely hope I'll see Jed Herne's name again in the Upcoming Releases list before too long. *originally posted on Reddit*

Muy buen juego. Es más que simplemente manejar las demandas de distintas facciones, tiene una muy buena narrativa y lore. Este último punto es importante, porque vos como jugador no podrás conocer todos los misterios del mundo en una sola partida, asi que si te interesan los secretos de Treboulain, vas a tener que replayearlo. En definitiva, una buena obra. Estoy contento con haberla comprado, la disfrute.