Another Hallowedlady review

Faery Legends of Avalon

Anyone in the arcade or indie stream has probably heard about Faery Legends of Avalon, most may have already brought and played it. Unless you own a PC, in which case you'll be getting in next year, which isn't that far off now, because of issue with steam. Having recently finished it on one play-through, and probably starting a second one soon, I thought now would be a time to review. Mainly because my other reviews are a little behind, also I just feel like reviewing something that can have a little bit of fun poked at it without much trouble.

Now as the game's title implies fairies play a huge role in the game and you actually play as one, unless you're a guy because then you get called an elf. As much as a relief this may be for any male that highly values his masculinity, it does seem rather inaccurate considering that their different creature. Yes one could easily argue that the root legends are very similar but when most hear Elf, they think of Legolas or Link and fairies...well, there's Navi. A small issue but there were other words that could have been used, like farifolk or something that means 'tiny winged bastards'.

Anyway back to the meat of this review. One of the best aspects of FLoA is the scenery used, which varies from a small rocky cove to a city built upon the back of a giant scarab. These places are colourful and unique with one each offering different figures of myths, from a Druid to Ifrit, and looking like something out a fantasy book. However one of my main issues here is the not-so invisible wall thing, because one can see the restrictions of each world. While that allows the player to know how far they can go it also makes one feel a little trapped.

The other gripe is that each world may appear big at first, but their actually look pretty damn small without and without their respective dungeons. They are well designed but lacking exploration like a movie preview, nice but you end up wanting more and in this case there sadly isn't. Lastly the camera can get a little annoying at times, whether the player is controlling it or not. Sometimes this ends with the fairy avatar stuck somewhere and the player not sure how to fix it. Finally, to all game makers out there, if you want a player to go on a seeking quest; don't make the place so dark that the things cannot be found.
(No it wasn't my screen, I tried turning up full brightness and that still didn't help!)

The player also gets six different companions through the course of the three worlds, all which are balanced and have very distinct personalities, with two romances choices pre-gender. As is standard for all games now, each party member has their own abilities that are useful in certain area, making you think about whom to have on your team. Also you can increase how much they like you by talking to them and having them around during events, some of which react well to kindness, some prefer rudeness. Your dialog options are spilt into jerk and good-guy responses, when not asking questions or in certain events, so it's pretty easy to choose how you'll respond

As the norm my biggest problem with moral/response choices is that there is little in the way of middle ground, something which makes it seems shallow. During missions the main question will always have a peaceful and violent option; it makes sense within the context. But again it is the same old be 'good' or 'evil' paths and there's no real aftermath for your choices, save some characters crying foul at first. None of the player's decision will have any lasting effect on the world as whole; the only big question is given at the end and then it's blank.

Now this problem will hopefully be solved during the other instalments, because it has been confirmed that there will be more to come. So I'm beating that the choices made will help you/come back to bite you in the arse later, as is the norm of the start of a series. Fair enough but some hints to the consequences would be nice, like how a tree without/with a hornet nest will change things for better/worse. Also I've noted that there are about six or so more mirrors, so I get the feeling we will be a little bit too bogged down with other worlds for this.

As much as I have complained and nitpicked, the game has some good point. I mentioned near the start how it looks like a fairytale come to life, well I'm going to explain a little more now. Every area is colourful and well presented, like an illustrated storybook, and because of how you travel the player can get an excellent view. The flying around gives what some might call a 'wow factor' and while a little problematic at time, it's pretty easy to use. However being able to walk at time would be nice, so to not miss stuff on ground level but that's probably asking a bit much.

I also found the character creation to be a treat. When you create a new game you design your avatar's facial features and skin colour, which can be anything from bright pink to a sunflower yellow. This doesn't seem like much but as time goes on and you level up more add-ons become unlocked, leaving you to choose how you character develops. Certain features, such as the bottom wings, can only be used in conjunction with their matching pairs and once you pick something there isn't any going back, as far as I know.

A few paragraphs back I mentioned romances, but they do not play a huge part in this game, in fact I was a little disappointed. Love interests and romances do not need to be a main plot point in a game but they should hold some idea of purpose, even if it's something small. In FLoA all your LI gives you is a declaration and it doesn't take much time to get that, I mean something like that should take a bit more time. Once again the fact that this is part of series does mean the creators could be planning something big, but that's not really an excuse.

Again I'm ranting here but I'd also like to see some voice acting. Yes creatures and characters make noise but they don't talk and you have to read text boxes, with tiny writing and some of these guys have much to talk about. If you own a HD television then things aren't so bad, if you don't I hope you enjoy standing near your TV. Also some of the wording is a little off but it's a French game translated into English so it's understandable...it could also been seen as in-character. After all most fantasy creature speech really fancy or weirdly...I said I was going to poke fun!

Next is the battle system, it's the type typical of a JRPG, pick an ability and target then sit around and watch what happens, then repeat. You get support magic, attack magic and blah blah blah most of you will know the drill, if you don't then go play any other JRPG. I'd like to point out here that I have nothing against JRPGs; I am a massive fan of the Shin Megami Tensei series and the early Final Fantasy games. What I'm saying is the combat is nothing special and takes back seat to the atmosphere, which is fine when the game is obviously focused on that.

To end this review I'd like to make a point, yes FLoA is flawed and could have done with more polishing and working, but let us look at it this way. It's an indie game and, as far as I know, first big project for Spider Game so I'd cut them a little slack. There isn't a game like it out right now either, so it's a rather unique experience, just remember this. Not every indie game is going to be a Super Meat Boy and while this does come close, there's room for improvement. FLoA has a huge potential with future instalments and I would suggest anyone who feels the least bit curious get it.