Thank you. Let's hope they can improve this port... Let's also hope they give up that trilogy idea! Well... I think that'll be too much.
Great News! Like I said earlier, I have no problems with the text, just the character disappearing thing has me worried.
So lame... I was playing this, in total for maybe about 6 hours. The text is really small, but I could deal with it. My saved character never dissappeared. But I am at some point where, no matter what quest I choose, what creature I run into, but whenever I'm in some battle, the stupid game ALWAYS crashes on me. I can't continue on... I've tried restarting my iPhone, trying different quests to do... I can't get around it. Can't wait for the update.
So, after reading some scary reviews and this thread...I took courage and bought the game some days ago; I would like to share my impression for the undecided. Before, I re-tried my XBOX360 version and downloaded the PC demo version....and went back and fort between those versions and the App Store images in my iPhone (to check fonts, graphics...). While I perfectly understand the criticism (rightly pointed out), honestly it is the best game I have on my iPhone (and I have A LOT of games, Rolando included). And it is undoubtly Puzzle Quest, one of the best game in last years and simply PERFECT for an iPhone. Is the port perfect? Surely no, but I probably already invested in Puzzle Quest more time than any other game...and it's one of the rare game I turn on the iPhone just to play it. For a number of reasons I never finished it on XBLA....I'm pretty confident I'll finish this first chapter and wait for the next. My only concerns are the disappearing character (a tragedy) someone have reported and the fact that probably I'll end up with 3 icons for ONE game in my iPhone (I really hope they manage to invent something to have paying customers to just have ONE icon...) Yes, the help fonts are almost unreadable (quests and dialogues are perfectly readable imho)....mana numbers are really difficult to read when double digit...I cannot see enemy objects...I really like the 'scaled down' graphics unlike many others...and I do not find honestly all that lag after 2-3 minutes of playing....aside from this I found the game perfectly playable, it IS Puzzle Quest, it PLAYS like Puzzle Quest...and I'm enjoyng it like on any other platforms...maybe a little more because I have it always with me. I do not know if I would liked more a port that changed things to use more of the iPhone features and screen...this one feels like a 'tiny' Puzzle Quest...and I like it so. Is it improvable? Sure!!! I would like to be assured that my character is SAFE, I would like that the superb music tunes had a more soft transition between one and another, I would like a little more responsivness when leveling up, I would like a faster access to the game... But I think it's perfectly playble and enjoyable as other Puzzle Quest versions and I'm really glad I bought this. Just my 2 cents for the undecided that want to play Puzzle Quest on their iPhone.
Again, the trick is; have you played PQ before or not? Other than understanding the mechanics of the Match 3 part of the game, there is a *lot* more to learn and the readability issue will stifle any enjoyment for those who do not know the game. If you had never played PQ before, would the text have been an issue? I've seen a few complaints about blurriness and I remember that issue well from the one day I owned the game. You can see it even in the HD video and in particular, here: http://toucharcade.com/2008/12/27/the-problem-with-puzzle-quest/ At the very least, the typeface needs to be re-designed to one that contrasts well against the background. I am really looking forward to the update and will re-buy it the moment it appears but if the issues stated here, including the disappeaering character, have not been resolved, I will not hesitate to again ask for a refund. Let's face it, for $1.99, I might be able to tolerate a mundane experience, but for top dollar, I expect the best.
Update Has anyone noticed that the typeface in the initial display screen shown on iTunes has changed???? Doesn't say the update has been posted yet but that is definitely a different font. Much more readable. Unfortunately, none of the other pics show similar improvements. I guess it's a start.
Nice find!!!! But...are you sure? I just checked the US App Store but I do not notice any difference from the game (unfortunately). On a side note, I invested already more than 20 hours in this game. Sure...I had some reading problems when understanding the help in the train mounts/forge items part...but other than that, it's the best game I ever played on my iPhone. Having said that, I'm obviously looking forward a major update for everything stated in this thread and better ported next chapters (and Galactrix too!!!). BTW anyone knows if there is a level cap (level 16 or 17 now, don't remember) in this chapter?
Just to join in, i've never played PQ before, and the text didn't turn me off one bit. The game is just simply so in-depth and fun that you can't really say no to it unless your eyesight is slightly below average. If you're an RPG fan, this is one of the best implementations of match-3 i've ever seen. No more useless bejewelled high scores!
Font change Check the original screen: http://toucharcade.com/2008/12/27/the-problem-with-puzzle-quest/ versus the same screen shown in the iTunes description. The font has clearly changed (for the better).
According to Kotaku the patch has already been submitted to Apple. http://kotaku.com/5124069/puzzle-quest-patch-on-the-way
While I'm immensely enjoying this game, I really hope that this update will resolve all the critics about it and cast some light on this almost dismissed title. I was just thinking...it's really strange (and sad) that a game like Puzzle Quest, very well known on other devices, received so little hype, even by the publisher...it came out without any notice, no promo...there aren't even ads on iTunes. It's really sad because it could be a really top performer on the App Store, and could make the iPhone a much more recognised gaming device. It seems to me that even the publisher didn't count on it so much...sad because they could make tons of money with this franchise (the iPhone seems almost the perfect device to play it on). And, on a side note, a LOT of gamers are missing a great game (poor port maybe, but the great game is still there). Just a thought.
I may just have been fortunate in the eyesight department, but I really haven't had trouble with the text size. The ONLY place it could have been much improved is mana numbers, but even then I can make out how much I have. Having never played Puzzle Quest before the iPhone version, I can easily say I've been addicted since Christmas. I have played this game NONstop, and the sheer amount of depth is unbelievable. I'm playing as a wizard, and it was a little bit of an uphill climb until I got the Fireball spell. Seriously, awesome game. I dont have the other versions to compare it to, but I've been very happy with my purchase so far. When I first heard it was "Part 1", I was thinking more of a "Toy Bot Diaries" type deal, but I don't even feel close to the end of Part I, so I think this is 10 dollars well spent.
I expect to be addicted once the 1.1 is released. Meanwhile, for the money, I really think Orions is a phenomenal buy compared to PQ.
Orions is really a wonderful game (not a wonderful port, the Windows Mobile origin is too evident, but the update resolved many things, in particoular the accidental cast spell while examining the card effects); it's really among the best iPhone games (I prefer the duel mode...too bad it lacks 3G multiplayer...as Puzzle Quest, I might add BTW...good ports or no but...this second wave of iPhone games has really impressed me.
I never played Myst. I cannot wait for that one to arrive on iPhone. Come to think of it, there's probably a lot more coming that I really am not gonig to have the time for. Not a bad problem!
