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I'm inclined to argue that the term "game" in "video game" is somewhat of an artefact title, coming from the origins of video games as games in the ludological sense. Since those days, however, "video games" have branched out, and I feel that today the defining trait of a "video game" is not that it has rules or goals, but rather that it be interactive (well, and that it run on some form of electronic environment, I suppose). To me a "video game" is about having an interactive experience, whether or not it's technically a "game".

If I were to name the medium today, I'm not sure of what I'd likely call it. "Interactive media" comes to mind, but that's perhaps somewhat overlong. :/

In terms of ludic versus narrative content, I think that I agree with the poster that suggested that video games may contain both. A video game, I feel, is not necessarily all story or all game, but some mix of the two. (Albeit slightly skewed: my requirement that a game be interactive allows for entirely ludic games, but I'm not sure of how to create an entirely narrative game--that is, one with no ludic elements at all--while yet having some interactivity).

(Funnily enough, I hold a similar view with regards to the genre-title "adventure game": it stemmed, as I recall, from comparison with the old game "Adventure", thus referring to a game similar to "Adventure", rather than a game on which one goes on an adventure. Over time the genre has acquired its own traits independent from that old game.)

On the plus side, while some states can be very difficult to recover from, I think that there are surprisingly few that don't have some path along which one can progress, and it's all but unsurpassed in terms of alternate solutions to puzzles.

a rogue-like version of Alone in the Dark

That does sound interesting. There are a few games along similar lines--if not quite the same--I think; The Binding of Isaac comes to mind, for example.

Wow, that looks like impressive work! Well done, and thank you. ^_^

I'll hopefully download the new version soon.

Hmm... Perhaps it's about time to start in on a Warrior playthrough...

So in other news, we have a release candidate for v1.1 so it's probably going live in a few days. We'll keep you posted.

Ah, that's good to read, thank you. ^_^

But that's just arguing why the game doesn't have to make Flame Aura protect against fire, it doesn't argue that it doesn't make sense that it does.

For the sake of not pursuing the same debate in two different threads, I've answered this in the "Completed Game Announcements" thread.

You're mixing up the order and forgetting a few steps in the final magic battle.

Ah, my apologies -- I was doing it from memory, and so may well have forgotten some elements. ^^;

Mr OUXX, I don't think you need to time the spells (apart from casting them quickly enough that you don't die, I mean you don't have to wait for an opening): it should always be one by Egther, one by you. You don't need to aim them at particular spots either (with maybe one or two exceptions, where it should be obvious).

I didn't mean to imply either -- if I did, then it was by mistake, and I apologise again. ^^;

For the sake of clarity, my solutions given above weren't meant to describe the entire sequence, including the player's responses to the various attacks; after all, Monsieur OUXX has, I think, figured the appropriate responses. Instead, I believe that I meant to describe the additional steps to be taken in the opportunity provided by the one spell that goes uncountered.

Also, magical fire isn't real, so I don't see why the game needs to follow the 'rules' set by other games or stories .

But that's just arguing why the game doesn't have to make Flame Aura protect against fire, it doesn't argue that it doesn't make sense that it does.

I didn't mean to imply that it should follow the logic of other games -- my apologies if I gave that impression. ^^;

What I meant, I believe, is rather that since the functioning of spells doesn't follow a single logic (and especially since at least one common thread runs counter to it), the logic that you use -- while quite reasonable, I do think -- doesn't go without saying. In other words, my objection isn't to the logic itself, but that it isn't conveyed to the player.

In all fairness, I feel that I should add -- given how vehemently I'm arguing this -- that I don't think that this is a major flaw in the game at all, which I believe I've already stated that I found to be overall wonderful. It's a small issue, in what I think that I recall to have been a side-quest, and which doesn't apply overmuch to any of the other spells or puzzles (that I recall offhand). Please don't take my arguing as a major criticism of the game, or the puzzles in general (or even the use of the spells, which I very much enjoyed overall).

It's an aura of flame/fire, so when she casts it, the aura around her is hot (or warm). If the heroine made her flame aura strong enough that it was the same temperature as the real fire, and the magical fire isn't burning her to soot, then there's no reason why the real fire will impinge past her magical fire.

That logic doesn't necessarily hold, it seems to me: after all, magical fire might simply not burn its caster, or the flames that surround the character might be at a different temperature to the effect applied to an external object (and indeed might just be for show).

By similar logic, I should be able to use the lightning spell to protect at least my hand from fire -- after all, lightning can get incredibly hot, and the lack of damage to my character when casting it should then imply that the spell protects at least the nearby body parts.

Again, I'm not saying that the logic doesn't hold in this case, just that the fact that it applies isn't necessarily apparent, and isn't strongly conveyed in-game.

But you know, at least the logic in the game is consistent regarding fighting other fiery enemies (I'll check whether we have a proper message for trying to use it on the fire circle in v1.1).

That's fair enough, and I'm glad to read it (given the lack of tone in text, I'll add that I mean that sincerely). In my own case I think that I largely stopped using Flame Aura in battle after a certain (fairly early) point since it didn't seem as useful as I'd hoped (save against vargs, which were weak enough to defeat without it by that stage), and didn't think to try it later. Again, similarly to my not thinking to try it in the puzzle I doubt that I would have thought to try it as a defence against fire attacks. (The placement of the key that activated it may also have played a part in my dropping the spell from my usual oombat responses, I think; but then I may simply have not found a good arrangement for my hands on the key layout.)

Regarding the final battle as a sorceress:

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No, I don't think that the poison is the intended solution.

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You should have everything that you require: a sorceress relies on her magic!

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Look for an opportunity -- more than one, in fact -- to cast an extra spell, rather than just countering his.

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Successive hints for the stages of the fight, based on my memory of the fight:

Step 1:

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First things first: dispel his protective circle!

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Explicit solution:

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Cast Disrupt on him.

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Step 2:

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Next, try to find a way to distract him.

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What would a Frost Giant react most poorly to?

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Explicit solution (I think; I may be misremembering here):

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Cast Flame Aura on him.

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Step 3:

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That done, get out of the way!

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(But don't let him notice that you've moved. )

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Explicit solution:

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Cast Shadow, then run to a nearby pillar. (I might have this step the wrong way around; if it fails, try running first.)

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Step 4:

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Now, give him a taste of his own medicine.

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Use his own fire against him.

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Explicit solution:

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Cast Arctic Wind on him.

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@slydog:

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Try another spell. How did you get through the blizzard after rescuing Heime?

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Try Sixth Sense.

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(Honestly, I would have expected your solution to work too, I think.)

the lack of a clue that

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Flame Aura can be used to protect from heat

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I think that makes perfect sense based on available information. After all, as Fizzii says, otherwise you'd burn up whenever you cast the spell. I assume you can also use it to defend against fire attacks in battle (e.g. certain attacks by svartalfar and muspells). As for the ring of fire around the valkyrie, that's a magical barrier which only manifests as flames. Some better feedback if you try that solution would definitely be useful, though.

Eh, I still disagree: it makes sense if you presume that the magic follows the laws of physics, but that's not necessarily accurate (and often inaccurate, I feel). As I said, it seems not uncommon that magic simply doesn't harm the caster in such circumstances, whether or not it protects the caster from similar but externally-applied effects. As to the spell burning the caster, it's shown to have variable effects, warming one object and incinerating another, so it could simply be that the character adjusts the intensity to "warm" when used on herself.

I do agree with regard to the Valkyrie's ring of fire.

I don't think that I ever tried using it to defend against fire attacks in combat; I generally relied on dodging (and being able to absorb at least some blows) for defence, as I recall. (I did try Flame Aura as a defence against physical attacks, hoping to damage my opponent, but after what seemed to be inconsistent results -- it seemed to work with some enemies and not others -- and given the slightly awkward control scheme I think that I ended up setting it aside as a significant combat option, and so didn't think to try it when I encountered fire-wielders later in the game.

Regarding the stash:
Do I remember correctly that you're playing as a sorceress? If so, then:

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Magic is the answer here, as I recall.

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Try Flame Aura.

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(I'm not a huge fan of that solution -- or rather the lack of a clue that

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Flame Aura can be used to protect from heat

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-- as I mentioned in the "Completed Games" thread for the game, as I recall.)

@Monsieur OUXX, regarding the frost flowers:

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I've just gone back to check, and yes, I do believe that you can break off a flower with nothing but Arctic Wind.

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Although you may have to work on your character's expertise in that spell, and you'll likely still want a way to handle the flower safely...

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If it didn't protect you, it would harm you whenever you cast it

On the other hand, the spell has already been shown to be able to heat to varying degrees -- warming one object and burning another, for example -- and it's a reasonably common trope (I think) that spells don't harm their caster (at least until they're in some way "released" or reflected), just as the lightning spell doesn't burn the caster's hand in battle.

I do see your reasoning, and do feel that it's fair enough -- I just feel that the logic doesn't necessarily apply with magic, and wasn't conveyed in-game, making its use as a puzzle solution a little non-obvious.

Thinking of spells, I'd like to add that I had a ton of fun with the lightning spell in battle once I got it. It's entirely possible that it's overpowered -- I seem to recall that I killed Fenrir in next to no time, for example -- but I don't care. It was late in the game anyway, and it was so very fun to just blast my enemies with sorcerous lightning...

Archery:

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If the wind is already blowing in the area, that might deflect your arrow.

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Look around for some indication as to how the wind is blowing.

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Look at the grass near the bottom-left of the screen.

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(Note too that weapons skill might -- I think -- be a factor.)

Monsieur OUXX, if I may ask:

Regarding the frost flowers --

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What effect did the time of day have? I got them -- playing as the sorceress -- simply by casting Arctic Wind, if I recall correctly.

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Regarding the riddles --

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Where did you encounter Odinn? I don't think that I met him at all. (Although I did encounter -- and riddle with -- Loki, as I recall.)

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[edit] I see that Snarky has answered at least some of my questions as I was writing; thank you, Snarky. ^_^

First of all, now that I've finished it (as the sorceress, at least), let me say to the developers: As someone who counts the Quest for Glory series amongst his favourite games, this is a wonderful game. It's well-constructed, interesting, with clever and well-integrated puzzles and good use of its character classes. I also love the use of Norse mythology (although I'm a little bit annoyed at one of my favourite undead -- the draugr -- being played as a near-zombie yet again ). Very well done indeed!

Thank you very much for it -- and for releasing it for free! ^_^

I won't say that it's beyond improvement -- I do have a few points that I think could have been handled better (in particular in providing clues to certain interactions) -- but overall it is an excellent game, I do think.

- The flame spell that sometimes melts stuff, sometimes doesn't: The same message causes the same confusion: "the places where you could put your hands are made too slippery by the ice". In several other places, the flames spell is used precisely to melt the ice. Here, it isn't. But with no explanation. Just the generic spell animation, but no effect. A clearer message would be cool.

I agree with this, I believe, and would like to add that I found the Flame Aura's effect to be a little inconsistent: sometimes it acts as a source of heat (as in protecting the player from cold, or in heating or burning objects), but in at least one case it somehow protects the player from heat.

When you're a sorcerer, you kill piles of wolves. Yet you can't get any meat. I understand you need a special skill for that. But the message "there's nothing of interest on this dead wolf" is very frustrating.

Actually, as I recall, you can get meat from the wolves -- you just have to use a tool on the wolf in order to do so. However, I also seem to recall that I only know this because I happened on the information in a forum thread. I think that it would likely help a lot to at the last include a clue in the response given when the player attempts to "use" a dead wolf; something along the lines of: "There's nothing of interest on the dead wolf. The animal's meat looks edible, if you have something with which to cut or hack it apart."

(If you don't have a knife, try the

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ice pick

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. )

Ah, wonderful -- thank you both, your hints are, I believe, just what I was looking for. ^_^

I'm stuck on the purple-crystal puzzle in Svartalfheim; I have seen that the solution is posted further up the thread, but I'd prefer to at least partially solve it myself, so would someone please give me a hint?

Specifically, I don't know what I'm trying to achieve.

Should I be trying to get all five crystals to light at least once (meaning, given that all but one light another, that I'd touch only three myself)? (Or each one twice, or thrice...?) Indeed, does the lighting of a crystal in response to my lighting another count as though I'd touched that one, or is it intended as a hint of some sort? Are the sounds produced by, or the patterns within the crystals relevant? Am I supposed to touch all five in some order? Am I missing some clue as to the intended order?

In short, I feel somewhat directionless facing the puzzle, and would appreciate a hint; my thanks for any given. ^_^

(I have discovered from the Caravel Forum that I should exit the puzzle between attempts, since there may be a bug that prevents it from recognising the correct sequence after incorrect entries.)

WHAM will finish making it if he can ever drag himself away from playing other games...

Ah, the eternal bane of making games: games.

Does anyone know whatever became of He Watches?

Is #1 perhaps

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gallows

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?

My guess is that the protagonist, and all of the others that he meets on the train, are dead from before the start.

Specifically, I think that the train is a sort of halfway-state for the dead that don't realise -- or won't accept -- their death.

As for the bags, while I'm not quite sure of how to fully explain them, my guess is that once a given spirit accepts their death they either become or are encased in a bag -- to be delivered somewhere, perhaps?

Our protagonist seems to have done something for which he feels remorse, and is perhaps holding on to that, and in doing so is unconsciously rejecting his own death. Over the course of the game events play out such that he slowly comes to realise his state; meanwhile, the other spirits are doing similarly, accepting their deaths -- or their lives -- and so being encased in the bags one by one. In the end our protagonist fully understands his death and gives the apology that has been holding him back, allowing him to accept "moving on".

I'm a little late in returning to this thread (for which I apologise), but I'd like to add that I, too, rather like your prototype, Trapezoid. I think it worked very well, and found it to be rather intuitive. ^_^

I'll confess that I think that in the context menu I'd prefer to move the mouse to each option rather than moving the option to the mouse, but given other opinions to the contrary I daresay that this is simply a matter of personal taste.