Universal Raziel: Dungeon Arena (by Indrasoft)

Discussion in 'iPhone and iPad Games' started by Boardumb, Sep 22, 2020.

  1. sakara214ever

    sakara214ever Well-Known Member

    May 10, 2012
    1,260
    168
    63
    I am also enjoying it so far (4 hours into the game) but we will see how it will be i later stages. So far i really like the graphics and the gameplay
     
  2. Dema9o9uehutq

    Dema9o9uehutq Member

    Mar 28, 2019
    21
    13
    3
    Male
    Still no pay wall. No auto-battle. I agree with sub above the game is so easy it starts to get a little boring. However, the level design and gameplay is nice enough that I haven't lost interest yet. Also there is clearly a ton of content to unlock and you can have multiple characters that you can instantly swap to in battle. Like a tag system so that keeps the gameplay interesting too since you can play multiple class types. Really well designed f2p Diablo-like game IMO.
     
    johnny_x and JasonLL like this.
  3. anthony78

    anthony78 Well-Known Member

    Nov 13, 2015
    3,036
    616
    113
    Have you tried Anima ARPG or Vengeance? Both are very good Diablo style games on mobile.
     
  4. JasonLL

    JasonLL Well-Known Member

    Feb 21, 2014
    546
    106
    43
    Male
    Very nice hack & slash mobile action RPG. Raziel is one of the better action RPGs on iOS that has a satisfying crunch to the combat that feels very blizzard like. This game is also reminiscent of Ire:Blood Memory in overall flow with small objective based levels in which you “search” for the objective on the small area map which will complete the level.

    Is it worth 8gb of free space though? If your limited on space then imo no it’s not since there’s nothing you probably haven’t seen before on iOS except in a prettier package (full disclosure: haven’t played the multiplayer modes in Raziel yet) but if you have the space available and you like action RPGs and don’t mind small objective based areas with satisfying hack and slash gameplay then by all means try out the game it’s actually quite good for what it sets out to do.
     
  5. johnny_x

    johnny_x Well-Known Member

    Jul 10, 2017
    50
    10
    8
    Game Development and Promotion
    Guangzhou, China
    Greetings! I work with the Raziel team. The game still is too easy. The original version was much more difficult, but yeah, the corporate world put their hands on it a bit too much in that aspect. I'm pushing them to make it harder.

    It's definitely a space hog, there's just no getting around it. It was our first attempt at making a game --- so I'm sure that many assets could be optimized to help save a bit on space. Actually, I think cutting the opening CG out would probably save 250MB or so.

    I wanted all of the "helper" markers on the in-dungeon minimap removed. I also wanted there to be a % complete indicator to encourage people to fully clean out each level. Many times you can run straight to the boss and be done with the level too quickly. (Increasing the difficulty would also force players to proceed with more caution)

    I thought the talent trees were going to turn people off--but it's actually a part of the game players enjoy. Several people compared it to PoE -- though PoE's trees are still much more massive.

    The "prettier package" thing is basically what the studio originally excelled at. We were an art outsourcing company for AAA game developers and then tried to make a game on our own. The CG, artwork, and graphics/effects in general are quite satisfying. The original version of the game had tighter mechanics and gameplay, more heroes, but with less "overall content". I'm trying to see if we can re-introduce some of that content.

    Anyways, thanks for everyone's measured and fair feedback!
     
    bx59, JasonLL and L.Lawliet like this.
  6. squarezero

    squarezero Moderator
    Staff Member Patreon Silver

    Dec 10, 2008
    13,502
    1,028
    113
    Male
    Chief Strategy Officer
    Salem, Massachusetts, USA
    Thanks, for giving us some insight into the kinds of decisions that impact the game development process. As someone who leads a creative team, I’ve seen worked compromises by client (misguided) priorities time and time again.

    As someone who spent a silly amount of time playing through the Diablo series, I appreciate the pleasures of simple monster bashing, stat raising, and loot collection. My problem with the standard mobile approach of quick fight/boss cycles kills the flow, makes exploration pointless, and shifts the bulk of the experience to fiddling with stats at the home base. You can definitely criticize the early Dungeon Hunter titles, but you always had a sense of going from point A to B and so on. You could track your progress by how far you made it through a real space.

    In any event — good luck with the game.
     
  7. anthony78

    anthony78 Well-Known Member

    Nov 13, 2015
    3,036
    616
    113
    Ok, so decided to give this a shot even though I wasn’t too keen on the 7.5 GB of space it uses.

    I like it a lot. The combat feels weightier than my other go to ARPGs (Anima and Vengeance). The graphics are phenomenal and just is very polished overall.

    One thing I have to ask. Is there any way you can give us an option for offline play? I usually don’t care too much about being “online” but have already had some connection issues even just upgrading skills and I never have had those issues with any other game.

    Would also like longer quests but understand the whole “mobile” idea.
     
    L.Lawliet likes this.
  8. Amenbrother

    Amenbrother Well-Known Member

    Jun 24, 2011
    6,659
    7
    38
    Man I think I remember beta testing this one and loving it. Probably the closest to Diablo you will get to on IOS. One question though where is my guy that carried around the totem pole type of weapon, I loved him haha.
     
  9. JasonLL

    JasonLL Well-Known Member

    Feb 21, 2014
    546
    106
    43
    Male
    #29 JasonLL, Sep 26, 2020
    Last edited: Sep 26, 2020
    Thank you for stopping by the TouchArcade forums and reading the feedback. Reading critique, as you probably know, isn’t always the most enjoyable thing to do especially on a forum that sways more towards a full premium experience. So it’s appreciated that you have entered the fray with us TouchArcade forum users.

    I agree but difficulty is always a tough balancing act. If it’s not hard enough without any use of player skill then it might as well be a auto-rpg and the player may find another game that’s more engaging. If the game is too difficult that it begins to feel unfair to the player then the player may go elsewhere and play something that doesn’t feel as punishing. My thoughts on difficulty, especially with f2p action RPGs, is that a “normal” campaign difficulty play through should be doable without spending and with a bit of pushback from the AI where the player still feels engaged and needs to make smart decisions but doesn’t feel like the level is impossible. Higher tier multiplayer/solo activity and events can (and should) have a much wider range of difficulty options for retention.

    I think the space it uses is fine honestly. Cutting 250mb from a game that takes gigs and gigs of space is like trimming the toenail of a walking colossus:D. Players who go to the AppStore and decide to download Raziel have probably made the space commitment before pressing the get button. I’m actually glad that there are more and more games coming out, both f2p and premium, that are a bit on the larger side for mobile. Certainly wouldn’t want all my games to be gigs worth of space (at least not yet) but it’s nice to have that mixture.

    I agree with all of this. The “helper” markers for dungeon minimaps are only needed with areas that have a huge amount of space and even then I always thought it takes away a bit of that exploration vibe when you are told exactly where to go.

    You and your team did a great job on this part of the game. The visuals are on point with nice effects and the feel of the game is superb. Way too many mobile arpgs feel “floaty” in movement and lack impact in combat.

    Agreed! Weightier is a good word for it and I’m definitely excited to see where the devs are able to take this game.
     
  10. bx59

    bx59 Well-Known Member

    Dec 2, 2016
    238
    115
    43
    @johnny_x I always approach such freemium experiences with a massive pinch of salt but tbh seeing you here, responding feedbacks convinced me to give it a try!

    An off-topic question, I've heard that your team has produced artworks for Final Fantasy, Tomb Raider and Saints Row franchises, is that correct? If so, that explains a lot in terms of the games beauty. ;)

    Good luck with the release!
     
  11. Amenbrother

    Amenbrother Well-Known Member

    Jun 24, 2011
    6,659
    7
    38
    I have been playing this more and more lately, I am still enjoying it. I have three characters unlocked now!
     
  12. adamphetamine

    adamphetamine Well-Known Member

    Jan 4, 2011
    965
    30
    28
    Programmer/3D Modeling
    Bethlehem, Pa
    After multiple days I’m confident enough to say that I highly recommend this game if you line the genre. No paywall but there is a grind, that said it is the point of the game. Graphics and gameplay are great, the different classes are all unique in playstyle. My fave class is the puppet master, shes great summoner, hybrid, it straight up dps machine.
     
  13. anthony78

    anthony78 Well-Known Member

    Nov 13, 2015
    3,036
    616
    113
    Does this have any sort of cloud saving? I ask because I want to try Genshin Impact, another incredibly large game, but I can’t offload this to recover all the space when 3.5 GB is data.

    So wondering if I delete the game if I’d be able to still pick up where I left if I redownloaded it.
     
  14. sakara214ever

    sakara214ever Well-Known Member

    May 10, 2012
    1,260
    168
    63
    Yes it does as long as you sign in with you apple id. Have not tried it with facebook and other services though
     
  15. johnny_x

    johnny_x Well-Known Member

    Jul 10, 2017
    50
    10
    8
    Game Development and Promotion
    Guangzhou, China
    Well, in our case, we were in need of financial support and Tencent came in and took the game for the domestic market. Is this version different from the domestic one? Yes. But the team isn't large enough to maintain two completely different versions. That's why this one is too easy --- and that's why it has that Chinese vibe to it.

    If you follow the dialog and don't skip anything, there is a sense of progression in the story. The dungeons do get longer as you go--but they're still not incredibly long. (But they do get x3 x5 x10 longer as you go) The voiced dialog doesn't match the text, though. I submitted the fix for that before the game's launch but it seems like they haven't put it in the game yet.

    I wish there was offline play! Unfortunately, there's no way to play this one offline.

    Hoatson! He was definitely one of my favorites. Rock took his place. They are both Orcs, but Hoatson was much more distinctive, with his massive wooden pile and his green skin. (Not to mention his size...)

    Yeah. Before Raziel we just handling creatives and art outsourcing for other companies. That's why this game's CG looks so sweet --- because that's how we paid the bills back in the day --- making those kinds of videos for others.
     
  16. johnny_x

    johnny_x Well-Known Member

    Jul 10, 2017
    50
    10
    8
    Game Development and Promotion
    Guangzhou, China
    Discussing this game on Touch Arcade is actually a pleasure since this community is well-moderated and mature.

    For this game's difficulty, it's still too easy for my liking. The pre-Tencent version was really well balanced. The bosses and mobs had mechanics and you had to watch out --- but you could still progress without spending money. Now, the bosses and mobs still have those mechanics, but they're nerfed too much.

    My iPhone is a 256gb model --- and I don't mind the 7-8GB either. This game's minimum requirements have hurt us in developing countries, however. Many players were disappointed that their phones didn't meet the minimum requirements to even install the game.

    Besides the game being too easy, the thing that bothers me the most is the language/text limitations. After the pack came back I submitted a ton of fixes for the UI and descriptions --- but they've yet to be implemented.

    I think it definitely merits a play through for the ten single player chapters. The end-game can become very grindy, but basically anyone can play through the first 60 levels and follow along with the dialog and the animated comic. :)

    Thanks for your praise!
     
    JasonLL likes this.
  17. subgenius

    subgenius Well-Known Member

    May 30, 2014
    149
    34
    28
    It really is a well put together game with fantastic art and a lot of content. Unfortunately for me at least the difficulty is a bit of a deal breaker. I'm not saying I want some kind of Souls style brutal difficulty, but so far (just hit lv40) it doesn't really feel like it matters what skills I use or what gear I equip, everything just dies the second I look at it. It makes a lot of sense now that you mention Tencent's involvement driving that change since the Chinese mobile market demands low difficulty levels in general, but it makes things feel a little pointless to me if that makes sense.

    If it was possible to add another game mode with the original difficulty scaling that your team had from the start, that would be amazing. Maybe something that unlocks once you get a character to lv50 or something?
     
  18. johnny_x

    johnny_x Well-Known Member

    Jul 10, 2017
    50
    10
    8
    Game Development and Promotion
    Guangzhou, China
    I agree about the difficulty level. Sometimes you can simply run up to a mob and kill them with an aura. (ex. Bison or Vilsack) That kills "flow" and engagement.

    Single player mode does have 3 different difficulty levels --- but I haven't gotten around to re-playing all of them. Before the launch the devs were promising to increase the difficulty for our release. I have managed to die around Chapter 7... but it's still not hard enough for my liking. I agree that it does need to be Dark Souls style punishment --- but I want players to consider boss and mob abilities/mechanics more often.
     
    JasonLL likes this.
  19. Havelcek

    Havelcek Well-Known Member
    Patreon Bronze

    Apr 30, 2013
    588
    62
    28
    How do unlock more classes? I’m level 22 with the archer
     
  20. ste86uk

    ste86uk Well-Known Member

    May 9, 2012
    6,550
    884
    113
    Anyone still playing this? I only got it and tried it today after finally having enough space with a new iPhone.

    I’m not sure what to make of it yet, I found it very clunky that I had to re download the game just to try the different starter heroes as I couldn’t find anywhere to swap them early on.

    I am enjoying the gameplay but I guess I’m wondering when I can start playing with others? I went with the ranger in the end as he felt the most fun to play for me just from a little go of each, I rarely play melee and usually play as a mage but I don’t like having a femal avatar so that left me with the ranger.

    I got to level 20 odd quite quickly and easily but what now? Just keep grinding missions?

    Is ranger a good end game choice? I like the look of the tank with lifesteal but the ranger really did feel more fun being evasive and killing from range.
     

Share This Page