Frankly, movement feels pretty fluid. It’ll take me a little bit to readjust to being slower, but it shouldn’t take too long. It’s jarring to jump from crossing miles in moments to only being able to run somewhat faster than the average person, but it’s a sensation that I’ve dealt with in the past numerous times.
Besides that, there was a very nice connection between what I wanted to do and what my “body” did. Every game had some way of doing it, human perception and cognition wasn’t built to go at the speeds that some games allowed you to after all. However, this game in particular certainly had a very natural feel to it. The moment I had the intention of doing it, my body responded almost immediately, with my cognizant mind being able to pick up the movement within a miniscule amount of time.
It’s honestly so smooth that it might take MORE getting used to than any other game that I’ve played! I’m used to compensating for slightly less than perfect systems with my own, honed, gamer instinct, but that just doesn’t quite seem to be necessary here. Maybe when you get to higher speeds… but we’ll see, I suppose.
Anyways, disregarding that! This game had an AMAZING aesthetic to it! There was this seamless blend of that romanticized medieval town structure and actual comprehensive placement of structures, you know, something a lot of game devs seem to struggle with. The pale light that made its way through the trees also lended itself wonderfully to the aforementioned aesthetic. The sun wasn’t quite setting yet, but it wasn’t at full mast either. A mixture of orange and yellow bleeding through the thick leaves above.
So far, the game was getting full marks from me. But, none of this was quite what it advertised. Well, it obviously advertised them somewhat, but not nearly as much as the supposed advanced AI. So, I wanted to check a few things out!
“Hello sir!”
A modestly wealthy looking man looked down at me curiously, sitting in an open roof carriage, drawn by two… could I see a creature's name by looking at it?
A moment later, and the answer to that question was certifiably a yes.
Resiala Forest Wolf
The monster’s name was blue, presumably meaning that it was passive. Or maybe that it was weak, couldn’t really tell you.
“Can I help you?” The man turned his attention to me after glancing over at a few individuals who were currently offloading a few crates from a container attached to the carriage. Asking his question with a mild amount of confusion.
“Do you need any help with moving those boxes? I have a bit of spare time.” I smile as best I can, but only a moment later do I remember that my smile is, in fact, quite unnerving. At least it’s not as bad as a grin in the middle of a fight.
Looking me over in the span of a few seconds, a look of what I can affably describe as, mild disappointment, spread across his face for even fewer seconds, before quickly being replaced with his previous neutral expression.
“I’m sure my employees will be just fine without the assistance. If you don’t have any further business with me…”
Ooo! A straight up rejection, with no compromise? That was more promising than most other games. Npcs would at least give you an option to salvage a conversation, or some sort of quest… Alright, alright, no need to be annoying, just one last question.
“Sure, I’ll get out of your hair. But, mind telling me where you got those wolves?”
If before he looked somewhat confused, now he just looked annoyed.
“The Tamer’s Guild, obviously. What of it?”
Out of curiosity, I asked one simple final question, for real this time. “Where could I find that?”
Blinking a few times in that same mild annoyance, the man pointed a ringed finger northwest. Towards a split in the road. Not deigning to grace me with any further words, he quickly dismounted once he counted a grand total of zero crates remaining, dumping me unceremoniously and walking into the building his goons had previously been bringing the boxes into.
Alright, honestly? Good first showing! I was being a weirdo, and just asking a complete stranger questions. Them getting annoyed or weirded out, and leaving me alone makes sense! They also adapted pretty quickly to my questions. Other games usually took a little longer to formulate a response, and it definitely felt more robotic. Some just outright had pre-programmed responses that wouldn’t change no matter what you said though…
‘Your bloodlines muddled with itself you fat pig!’
‘Thank you brave adventurers.’
While, I myself, would never say such a thing, ever… definitely… It was still pretty funny to hear coming from somebody else after a raid quest.
If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.
Anyways, I started making my way down the road once more, working up another jog without breaking a sweat. It would seem stamina either didn’t apply outside of fights, or I just wasn’t pushing myself hard enough. Either way, I had a place to check out.
—
Still no fatigue by the time I arrived, not a single point of my 103 stamina drained during my jog. So, yeah, I suppose it really won’t be that much of an issue. Of course, my end destination was already set in stone by the time I’d started to move again. Here I stood, at the entrance of this supposed “Tamer’s Guild.”
A big fat sign, which I could read thank god. (some games made you actually LEARN their in-verse languages) Read off the following.
“Tamer’s Guild, open 6AM-6PM. Seeking assistance, enter after hours if interested!”
…Seeking assistance? Was that like, a job offer, or a quest? Well, only one way to really properly figure that out. It was, after all, currently…
6:32PM on the in game clock. So, stepping forward with a stride in my step, I held and twisted the doorknob, stepping inside a moment later.
“Hello, welcome to the Tamer’s Guild!”
Oh, that’s a classic! A bell attached to the door rang as I stepped inside, and immediately following that a young man called out that line.
“Are you here to apply for after hours assistance?”
Taking a moment to consider it, yes, I suppose so. Perhaps it might be a slight waste of time, but it wasn’t like being first to everything mattered. I had plenty of time.
“Yes, actually.” I nodded as I walked up to the front desk. The man looked older than he sounded.
“Excellent! If you’d simply read this, we can arrange a deal!” He smiled warmly and reached under the desk, handing me a small piece of old paper. Taking it from his hands, I received my first quest.
Hall upkeep-1
20 exp
30 copper
???
Clean up the halls.
Accept?
Y/N
Yes, obviously. I already said yes, what, would I just say “No, I’d rather not!” and walk out of the building after already saying that I’d do it?
Handing the paper back, I did my best to not smile, lest I spook the man before me. Though, for his part, he smiled freely.
Standing up a moment later, he stretched for a few seconds before stepping out from behind his desk. “If you’d follow me, I’ll go ahead and show you what you’ll be doing.”
“Of course.”
—
Well, I wasn’t really sure what I was expecting. I was, quite literally, just sweeping the halls at the moment. And after that I was supposed to be reporting back to the front desk, because apparently, they were one of the only managers in at the moment. “They”, because they haven’t told me their name unfortunately.
It’s honest work, sure, but I didn’t really get this game to work another job in it… I’ll probably just wrap this up and then head out. Unless that “???” reward is seriously absurd, which I, somehow, doubt.
…How much can I describe sweeping? It’s just menial work. I do it quickly enough, I invested into agility after all… but there’s really not much to describe here. It’s plain.
One dust pile finished, pushed into the pan. Another, and I’m almost d-
“LOOSE LYNX!”
…What now?
Spinning the broom in my hands around like a quarterstaff, I squint my eyes down the hallway as a distant tap-tap-tap-tap-tap grows ever closer to my current location. Eventually, a whole new creature bursted onto the scene! A monster in a monster tamer workplace. Who could’ve ever seen that coming. But uh, doesn’t uh, seem to uh… be very tame to me, to be frank.
Speaking of not being tame, it’s coming right at me. Uh, jinkies!
Resiala Forest Lynx-lvl ?