Tales of Seikyu

So, I want to like this game. It's a very interesting game, and the premise is really, really neat. Unfortunately, the game does not live up to its premise. The good is that the characters are neat, the concepts are interesting, the ruins are a healthy dose of difficult without feeling impossible. The yokai forms are fun, the music is good, the designs are (for the most part) pretty great. There's some qol that could be found in most of these areas, but for now, the day-to-day is largely fine (in my opinion). However, it's not ready for a full release. I'd put this at maybe a .8 release? It feels like (most) of the pieces are all there, but they are only loosely tied together. Story/maps are easily breakable, UI and directions are utterly baffling, some NPCs have been completely broken (and some still have their events so far mixed up that their stories make no sense). A lot of the systems are still heavily unintuitive, and people have to go searching for the same answers over and over and over again. Some quests have a painstaking amount of guidance, and some have no guidance whatsoever. Some events will skip your entire day, some will allow you to say "let's do this later" with no rhyme or reason between. Some events will straight up skip you from wake-up to [i]the next[/i] day, despite canonically taking like twenty minutes. And the ruins map - the main area you spend time in the game - is so complicated (it really needs separate layers that you can check at will) that it adds an entirely unnecessary layer of complexity to simple quests. Characters events are blocked by all sorts of things with no explanation as to what you need to do to progress them. Relationships are where the game suffers the most. I'm not just talking about a lack of dialogue and things to do although the day-to-day dialogue [i]is[/i] stale, yes, and there's very little to do once you've done the three types of dates (plus there's absolutely nothing after marriage yet). Several late-game characters are romanceable, but have no real story or heart events except the one necessary to date them, making them woefully underdeveloped compared to other characters with long, full, healthy storylines. The real problem I have is that the game does not deliver on what it offers. Especially considering that I think that a game about nonhuman and all-accepting NPCs would be the perfect game to explore the different types of interests people might have. To start with, the jealousy system not only feels tacked-on (it wasn't there in EA, and many characters still have dialogue that suggests it was not originally intended, which leads people to get into uncomfortable situations) but it's just incredibly toxic. Many characters are locked behind story, and other characters are willing to confess within a few heart events, which means that unless you are aware of the jealousy system and unless you know there are other characters down the line, you might end up in an unhappy relationship. You can't break up, so all you can do is listen to your significant other make uncomfortable comments at you. They're not even the fun kind of jealousy, they're just... sad and bitter. And there's no real consequences; you might lose a few points of relationship status, but all you have to do is hug them once or take them to the bar to gain it back. Then there's at least two relationships that read like they were intended to have the potential to be poly relationships - even dialogue that sounds like you're in a relationship with both of the individuals, even if you're not - but it's not there at all. You can date both people, but they both get jealous of each other. And one of them is a relationship that you have to break up to date either of the individuals in it. There's also a "sugar daddy" type of relationship, a much older man who comments a lot on how young and youthful you are before asking you out. That doesn't bother me - it's totally there for people who like that sort of thing - but I find it incredibly ironic [i]that's[/i] okay, and homewrecking is ok, and cheating is ok, but you can't actually just love more than one person at a time. And it feels like the two characters that were the most interesting to folks had their stories gutted just because for some reason, the game just can't have that sort of relationship. I'd love to see an overhaul, but from what I'm hearing, the devs are not interested in it. I don't know if it's a dev thing, a publisher thing, or what, but it tanks Seikyu from a game that was middle-high of my interest list into a "not going to play again" game.

TLDR; I wanted to love this game as it was perfect for me on paper, but I wish I hadn't bought it in early access a year ago because now I can't refund it on full release. It's gorgeous and has brilliant ideas, but the execution so far makes it mechanically one of the worst farming games I've played. I WANT this game to be good, but right now it isn't. Okay, that's a lot to unpack, so the simplified list: Pros: -the art is stunning, the world vibrant, and the setting unique among other games of its kind -the whole idea for this game is brilliant, including not using tools to farm for the most part, instead using your ability as a shape-shifter -the marriage candidate designs are neat and varied, making it easy to find someone who you personally find appealing -you get to adopt pets- so many of them; you CAN and SHOULD pet the dog! -you can adjust many settings from day length, to an in-depth key rebind, to auto pickup of items(which should be on by default, imo) -you can do as much in a day as you want, so long as you make enough food to replenish stamina Cons: -this game was not ready for full release. As someone who played it in EA a year ago at time of writing to 1.0, it doesn't feel that different so I'm not sure how much really got done in that time. Models still clip and path through walls, the MC's soulless face doesn't [i]blink[/i], the 3D models overall need work to match up to the gorgeous portraits, there's no overworld indication of where you're aiming your skills or how much they will do- it's a mess -the romance system is the worst I've ever seen. It doesn't follow any logical progression from strangers to friends to lovers, you get so little option in choosing your own partner when you WANT to date them (especially when some options don't even show up til a certain point in the story, including the one I'm interested in), and the overall vibe is just bad. -while usually having a huge map is a good thing, it becomes tedious in the early game before you get the ability to fly; your farm is MILES from anywhere you need to go frequently and you'll need to increase your day length just to have enough time to get anywhere and not waste your whole day. If you're prone to getting lost like me, good luck Bucko- you'll be checking you map constantly and still not know where you are. -nothing you say matters. When you choose a dialogue option, there is a 50/50 chance it isn't the one whoever you're talking to has a written response for, so it can feel like talking to a brick wall. Why would they give you speech options if they were going to ignore half the choices? -some things in the game are not explained to you whatsoever. You can make a crafting bench and storage chest from pretty much the very start of the game -and you'll badly need to- but does it tell you that? Does it bollocks. Do you want to know when the shops are open in theory? Better check your map because it's as far as I can tell the only place shop hours are listed, and that's only if you're lucky- Musashi might be clipped into a stall somewhere and can't help you. -the fox ruins suck as a mine. I hope you remember exactly where the resources you need in the sprawling labyrinth are because they aren't marked on your map :) -anything else is a minor nitpick, so I'll end that there, but these are far from the only things that I personally found aggravating. Overall, the game is a frustrating mess that feels like what you want in theory, but needs a few more years in the oven. It feels EXTRA terrible considering I'm playing Fields of Mistria (still in EA at time of writing) at the same time, which is by far the BEST farming game I've played in the last 30 years, so the comparison does Seikyu zero favors.

Tales of Seikyu is a decent game, but after completing the main story, I can't say that I recommend it. If you really need to scratch the itch for a farming life sim, this game does have some good points - for example, using the different yokai transformations for farming was a good, albeit quickly abandoned, idea - but you'd be better served with Guardians of Azuma, as that game is far more polished in every way. First, for a farming game, the economy is too simplistic: more often than not, the value of crafted goods is simply equal to the component materials, neglecting to add value for the time or special equipment needed to make the item. Some storage options are linked to each other, but they aren't linked to any crafting stations, so you still need to spend countless amounts of time getting materials and bringing them to stations. Crafting times are also absurd (to the point where it takes two in-game days to make one wool felt for some reason). It seems like they were all determined arbitrarily; again, that extra time doesn't really add value, it just slows progression. It's also inconsistent in warning you about time passing: some activities/events would tell you how much time would pass before agreeing to something, others would not, and still others would simply "kidnap" you from your farm with no choice in the matter (leaving your farm and animals untended for the entire day). Toward the end of the game, the writing quality and pacing also became very odd: sometimes events followed each other in quick succession, and other times there were arbitrary waiting periods, with almost no rhyme or reason. From a fighting and exploration point-of-view, the island is actually quite vast and empty. Once you can fly, it becomes apparent that much of the island is just empty mountain landscape. The fighting is extremely easy and the best weapons are very easily obtained. In the end game, the developers seem to realize this, and suddenly give reused enemy types a larger HP pool and more damaging attacks. The final boss was indeed the hardest, but it was a "challenge" only if you didn't bring enough food with you. There were countless bugs, some of which have admittedly been fixed in a recent patch. Others (like hearing two overlapping soundtracks during the wedding scene) are unresolved. While the soundtrack is charming, its use left something to be desired (such as playing generic chipper music during tense or emotionally fraught scenes), and the sound levels were very inconsistent, so that sometimes the music would suddenly blare at you. In addition, character names (dialog tags) and portraits were missing during conversations several times toward the end of the game. Finally, one particular reason why I wouldn't even recommend the game on sale is my suspicion that AI was used in the artistic process. I cannot prove anything definitely, but after looking over many forum posts and videos posted by the developer to dispel this idea, I also cannot rule it out. There may have been original art made at some point in the process, but it appears to have then been passed through an AI engine to create more variations, etc. There is a post or two from the developers talking about "Liz" and "Yan Guo" as Lead Character Designers. Comparing this to the credits, Yan Guo is listed under "supporting artists" as a "2D artist," and "Liz" is not listed at all. (The credits also do not list ANYONE with the "Lead Character Designer" title/role.) It lends credence to the idea that they were contractors hired to sketch some of the AI art in different ways, or to sketch characters that were then manipulated by AI. It would also explain why the 3D modeling is so different from the 2D portrait art (to the point of giving one character a tattoo in completely different places in each design). This company, which also makes "Candy Disaster," is using another account to market "CD [Candy Disaster] 2: Trap Master," which clearly uses AI assets. Regardless, even if you don't care about AI at all, the game still struggles to stand on it's own in this already-expansive genre.

GER/ENG Manche Quests in der Dungeon haben mich fast in den Wahnsinn getrieben. Man muss sich durch diese labyrinthartigen Wege durchfuchsen, um überhaupt zu verstehen, wo es weitergeht. Die Verwandlung in verschiedene Gestalten war schon nice. Auch kann man die Spielgeschwindigkeit (In-game Zeit) selber regulieren und später auch eigene Teleporter bauen. Grosses Manko, die Yokai-Truhen sind zwar miteinander verbunden, zum Craften muss man die Zutaten trotzdem in der Tasche haben und auto. auffüllen fehlte. Die Hauptstory zieht sich am Ende ein bisschen wie Kaugummi. Wer Bock auf ein schönes, charmantes und herrlich verpeiltes Cozy-Game mit Suchtfaktor hat, muss hier einfach zugreifen. -------------------------------------- Some of the dungeon quests almost drove me insane. You really have to wrap your head around those labyrinth-like paths just to figure out where the hell you're supposed to go. Changing into different forms totally rounds out the fun, though. Plus, you can adjust the game speed (in-game time) yourself and even build your own teleporters later on. Big downside: the Yokai chests are linked, but you still have to put the materials into your inventory to actually craft anything, and there's no auto-fill feature The main story drags a little bit at the end. But if you're looking for a beautiful, charming, and wonderfully wacky cozy game with a serious addiction factor, you just have to grab this one.

I'm feeling very mixed about this game. The only reason I'm still playing is because I do love the references to Japanese mythology. The game itself does not feel finished. The choices you make have very little actual influence and the story doesn't feel well-thought out.

[h1]Продукт ШІ-слопний. Склад: 1% гра, 19% баги, 30% графоманія, 50% ШІ.[/h1] Чесно кажучи, я достраждав цю "гру" до кінця лише тому, що мені її подарували зі словами "чувак, заціни, це ж тупо наша кампанія у Пасфайндер!". І справді складається враження, ніби хтось сторонній заявився на нашу гру і вирішив покласти її сюжет в основу свого проєкту. Але цей хтось — азіат, і тому, само собою, вийшло всрато. Цей продукт не можна назвати грою навіть у найсміливіших фантазіях. [h3]Як сюжетна пригода, він не працює через дві причини:[/h3] 1. Повністю розбита хронологія подій: знайомимося ми з місцевим послом, виконуємо для нього декілька завдань, він із незнайомця перетворюється на друга і навіть пускає потусити до себе на хату, а через два ігрових дні починається катсцена, як він представляється, протягує руку і запитує наше ім'я. Або от один з персонажів після нашої з ним спільної битви каже "Сподіваюся померти у такому ж славному бою, перш ніж моя хвороба мене доб'є". Проходить тиждень, він кличе нас на таємну зустріч, де каже, що він... хворий і йому лишилося недовго жити. І наш персонаж весь такий у шоці, і чує він це вперше. Групова амнезія? Похєрена черговість квестів і катсцен? Не знаю, але весь сюжет через це виглядає, як сон шизоїда. 2. Половина подій залишається за кадром: згаданий вище воїн каже, ніби вчора я доказав у тренувальному поєдинку, що я гідний зайняти його місце, а йому пора йти далі. Вибачте, а коли це було? Не було жодного бою, катсцени чи діалогу з цього приводу. Чи от кажуть, що вчора я чудово попрацював у полі і мені можна довірити догляд за тваринами. Га? Мої поля виглядають, наче ядерна пустка, а весь вчорашній день я провів у данжі. Це що за подача сюжету заднім числом? [h3]Не працює і в якості симулятора ферми:[/h3] Так, можна вирощувати овочі та фрукти на городі, можна рибалити, можна завести тварин... Але навіщо? Все це потребує неймовірних капіталовкладень, забирає величезну купу часу і, найголовніше, нафіг не потрібне. Не треба щомісяця віддавати якийсь значний борг, щоб у нас не віджали хату, або вирощувати спеціальні інгредієнти для проходження гри. Усе необхідне можна купити або знайти у данжі у промислових об'ємах. Я пройшов гру, за весь час виростивши на городі одну картоплину, та й лише тому що туторіал цього вимагав. [h3]Також це не адвенчура:[/h3] Є тут відносно великий світ, який можна досліджувати... Але навіщо? Все, що у цьому великому світі можна знайти — це скрині з випадковим їдлом та ті самі противники, що були на початковій локації, але перефарбовані в інший колір. Нема потаємних босів, прихованих персонажів, івентів чи луту. Є різні зброя і шмот, які так ніколи й не знадобилися. Я через півтори години після початку гри придбав собі катану і пробігав з нею до кінця гри. Різних оберегів, амулетів чи броні я так і не побачив, але вони не потрібні, бо й без них пройшов гру на максимальній складності без жодних проблем. [h3]Як і не рольова гра:[/h3] Жоден "вибір" ніколи ні на що не вплине: усі квести мають одне завершення, усі вибори у діалогах ведуть до тих самих реплік. Не можна ані послати когось, щоб більше не мати з ними справу, ані банально нагрубити. В більшості випадків ми вибираємо між двома однаковими варіантами, просто по-іншому сформульованими. Молодша сестра кричить на нас, що ми їй жити не даємо? Не можна виставити пиздючку на мороз, щоб йшла шукати кращого життя, раз ми такі погані. Можна лише вибачитися перед нею. Двома репліками. Дівка, яка вчора хотіла нас вбити, проситься до нас в хату переночувати? Не можна відрубати їй голову чи послати під три чорти, лише погодитися. Двома репліками. Персонаж погрожує втекти з села сьогодні уночі, але перед цим хоче нас побачити? Він буде чекати там і через тиждень, і через місяць, просто нам будуть нагадувати про це щовечора словами "ой-ой, він же зараз піде і все, з кінцями!" А коли ми прийдемо на зустріч, то неважливо, що ми скажемо — він залишиться, а його відношення до нас поліпшиться. Взагалі, усі персонажі тут — гарем бездушних манекенів, мета усього життя яких — цілування нашої дупи. Що б ми не робили, ми: неймовірні, дивовижні, неповторні, фантастичні, надзвичайні, незрівнянні, чудові, прекрасні, справжнє благословіння богів! Навіть якщо ми просто виконали замовлення на вбивство кабана чи нарубали чотири одиниці бамбуку у лісі. Нас нахвалюють навіть за те, до чого ми жодним боком не причетні: рибалка сьогодні вловив здоровенну рибину? Ну це стопудово головний герой постарався! У фермера корова телят привела? Все завдяки протагоністу! Навіть антагоністи, яким ми роздаємо пиздюлів, негайно розсипаються у компліментах і закохуються в нас. Тут в принципі неможливо мати з кимось негативні стосунки. Будь-яка наша дія викликає захват у всіх навколо. Навіть у богів. Навіть якщо ми просто полагодили радіо. А коли персонажі не зайняті цілуванням нашого заду, вони цілують зади усім іншим — що б не сталося, усі одне одного люблять і поважають, вважають за найкращих друзів, та й взагалі практично сім'я. Тут ніколи не буває конфліктів, драми, злісті, ненависті. Ні з ким ніколи не відбувається чогось поганого. Тут все настільки веселково приторно радісне, що на фоні цієї "гри" My Little Pony здається темним фентезі. [h3]А що тоді це?[/h3] ШІ-слоп. Хай би як там розробники не клялися і не били себе у груди, мовляв, таким порівнянням ви ображаєте нашу банду художників та зневажаєте їхню працю, але навіть на сторінці гри видно, як на портретах персонажів є зайві пальці, або їхні руки заламуються під неможливим кутом, чи райдужка ока запливає на щоку, або вуса ростуть з шиї. Також цілком очевидно, що штучний інтелект використовувався для написання та/або перекладу тексту англійською. Насправді, я думаю, що взагалі усю "гру" розробляли вайб-кодингом — вона виглядає як лайно, але лагає, як сучий син. Тригери не спрацьовують (виявляється, певного боса я мусив бити, перетворившись на певну істоту, але гра забагувала і цю трансформацію я так і не отримав) або працюють криво (персонажі у катсценах провалюються під текстури, стоять у Т-позах, дублюються, або перетворюються у свої справжні форми (які вони приховують від інших)). Іноді багують діалоги і репліки повторюються, іноді зникають квести з журналу, іноді пропадають предмети з інвентарю. Продавець броні після фрази "давай поторгуємо" зник з гри. Навіть усі вищезгадані проблеми з сюжетом і балансом стають логічними, якщо припустити, що їх зробив ШІ. Я-то похавав (і з гордістю заявляю, що моя кампанія в Пасфайндер була кращою), але вам не раджу.

This game was released far too early. I love the concept and can appreciate the vision behind it. The characters seem interesting, but everything somehow feels a bit hollow. The controls feel delayed and somewhat wonky, which makes the gameplay less enjoyable than it could be. The art style is beautiful, and the character designs are well done. However, the enemies feel uninspired, and some of the furniture models look unfinished and unpolished. Nothing really pulls me back to play again. The gameplay needs a massive rework, especially the animations, as they don't feel smooth or responsive. Right now, movement and combat lack the polish needed to make the game feel satisfying, which makes it hard to stay engaged for long. Overall, it feels like the official release was rushed. The game has a lot of potential, but it simply wasn't ready to be released in its current state.

Was released from Early Access too early. There are still too many user interface problems that should never have been allowed to stand even in EA. The game locked up three times and forced me to end it from the task manager because the game vomited a series of tutorial popups and when I acted on one of those pop-ups, the next one blocked the UI from actually properly activating, leaving the game running but unable to control anything including bringing up the menu to load or dump back to the main menu. Crashed to desktop twice while running through the field, and I've been killed twice from enemies which the game didn't render. Steam? This is why you don't try to pressure people into reviewing a half-baked game.

首先画面优化做的就不太行，其次整体种田节奏也很一般，相对于星沙岛是更差的作品，其实买过一次画风就很不喜欢退款了，后面想想还是深入玩一下吧，结果确实不太行，属于半成品作品，不怎么推荐购买。

Worth a buy even with some small bugs. Honestly more fun than RuneFactory 5.