No and no. What device do you play on? Never have either issues on iOS App Store. It could be your device or network. Worst thing about play store is half the time you directly search a game, it won't come up. Weird. Anyway, does anyone know why this went up to $10 than dropped back to $8? Edit: never mind. It looks like it accidentally went up to $10 prematurely. Sale stated thru 12/28.
Even though I am really not impressed at all with the Enhanced Edition and Beamdog's work, Baldur's Gate (much like KOTOR, discussed above) is measured in a scale very different from The Shadow Sun in terms of playtime (30-100+ hours for BG, 10-15 for TSS), triple A values in writing, voice acting and variety (in spite of the advanced age of the game), and that classic PC-desktop feel (which is not at all necessarily an advantage, possibly more a matter of taste). TSS is very much a mobile and mobile-friendly RPG, albeit one of the more sophisticated. But almost anyone with an iPad looking for the most epic party-based, tactical (not really as in a very tactical combat engine, but as in overhead tactics opposed to the first- and third-person twitch action of Ravensword: Shadowlands and Skyrim) RPG experience would probably do themselves a favour prioritizing both KOTOR and Baldur's Gate. (This is, of course, assuming you don't object to the settings in either game, or prefer The Shadow Sun's possibly, from a contemporary perspective, more refreshing fantasy setting). Leaving actual quality out of the discussion, being the subjective conversational mire that phrase poses, here is really no comparisong between the number of premium and original titles for iOS and Android. I can't remember the latest article I read on the subject (one among many), but the App Store has many times the number of original titles, premium console ports and non-freemium titles. (This is not really because of any inherent superiority or defining trait of either platform, but probably because cores of studies have shown that Android users are far less likely to spend money on apps. As in, vastly less likey. The individual app revenues and total profits made from the App Store outclasses that of Googles offerings by huge amounts. Thus, releasing high-priced games for the Play Store is a more risky prospect than for the App Store. Which is often risky enough )
Ack, went over holiday budget and downloading now. For those who got a starter pack, how is replay-ability with new character? Some reviews critique short game time and suggest replay with different character classes. I haven't even finished Bard's Tale so short play time is not an issue. thx
I got all the packs, so even though I'm basically playing as a warrior right now, I've gotten some use out of stuff from the other two packs as well. I'd say you should get at least three runs in and then likely move on for a few months, vaguely corresponding to the class archetypes. Seems like the most practical character is primarily a standard class, but with some abilities that are out of character. I don't see someone playing through a bunch of times in short succession with slightly different types of hybrids; there aren't that many abilities to juggle. The Bard's Tale is longer than this, but there isn't nearly as much differentiation in how you can set your character up in that as there is here.
@Greg G I have an iPad Air here myself and dont see camera unresponsiveness. This is something thats been puzzling me for a bit, where we see some reviewers/fans say the camera controls are great and fluid, while others complain about unresponsiveness or stuttering. When you swipe, do you do so in quick flicks or longer strokes? @kaibosh (and others) Thanks for your thoughts. I can understand being wary after previously flashy games being lean experiences. I do agree that a demo could help with that issue; we already had it in our plan as something to do at some point. As for a TA front page article a week before, well, we had that. Im guessing you missed it though. http://toucharcade.com/2013/12/12/at-long-last-upcoming-rpg-the-shadow-sun-is-set-to-release-on-december-19th/ We also had a release day review on the front page of several big sites. @Savant I think a battlemage (half mage, half warrior) with points in strength to do some melee weapon damage is a good way to go. @bored2death Having played Kotor myself, Id say the main difference is the combat. TSS is more real-time combat (tap to make each attack) vs tapping a target to attack and watching the battle unfold in Kotor. Also keep in mind that TSS was developed on a tiny budget for iOS, whereas Kotor had a multi-million dollar budget for PC/Xbox. I do think that both are great RPG experiences. @sa-ming Do you have the magi stone from the Mage Pack equipped by chance, with all your equipment slots filled? Thats a crash were aware of and fixing in an update. As for the blinking, weve found that upgrading to 7.0.4 fixes issues like that (it was an issue with Unity and iOS 7). Try it out and see if that helps. @Connector, @ScotDamn I guess you could say that we eventually decided to make the sale permanent so that more players could play our game. @heringer It runs great on iPad2 (I have the iPad2 here to test with). As for BG, it depends on what kind of game youre looking for. BG is much more tactical combat (assign different orders to your 6 party members and watch the battle), whereas TSS is real-time combat. I love BG though its the reason I went to work at BioWare.
If youre curious about more details on the making of The Shadow Sun, you can check out our recent interview with Digitally Downloaded. http://www.digitallydownloaded.net/2013/12/interview-ossian-studios-on-making.html
I understand that it is important for you to market your game, but that seems a bit disingenuous to me. I think most would agree that the main differences are found in triple A production values (that still show in comparison to TSS, in spite of time passed), 50+ hours of playtime versus 10-15, a story that is written by some of the most recognized masters of RPG storytelling (which really is not saying much in terms of quality, and leaves much for the imagination regardless, but still provides massive depth and intrication in comparison to TSS's narrative), and greater depth and variety in both character development and in-game activities. It is hard to see KOTOR's battle system described as "tapping a target to attack and watching the battle unfold" and not interpret this as a conscious attempt to paint the competition in a less appealing fashion, "both are great RPG experiences" notwithstanding. I'm not eally that fond of KOTOR's combat mechanics, nor the whole Neverwinter Nights paradigm of combat that KOTOR is built upon, but it has a tactical depth that is not done justice by "tap and watch unfold". I do agree that both are great RPG experiences, however. But that multi-million dollar budget that you so rightly point ro does make a difference, and the combat mechanics are just a small symptom of a much greater divergence.
One silly question,just finished campaign...but was hoping to continue from there...searching for what I left behind...but GAME OVER?!....every time I load last save I see the final cutscene and that's it!!!????anyone
Does anyone know how to complete the Geezou's Hope Quest. I found the clover and the nettle but I can't find the Kassite Rose. Anyone know where to find it?
@anouk82 Even though Im not seeing the camera issue, we are still investigating it. As for the ending, TSS is very story-driven (not open world), so once the story is over, it doesnt make sense to continue after that point. @Ayjona I was speaking about the main difference of combat because Ive often found RPG players split into two camps on that issue more than any other: those who prefer real-time action and those who prefer turn-based or semi-turn-based action.
The only slowdown I've seen if when the TSS is trying to log into the game centre. Anyone know what the levers in the sewers do? Found two but pulling them doesn't do anything.
Does this game have bosses in it like Ravensword? I still can't decide which game to buy but from all the videos I have seen Ravensword seems to have prettier looking levels and bigger monsters to slay.
Ravensword is more on freedom of free roaming, little to no story and some nice visuals whilst Shadow Sun is more story oriented with some more rewarding choices. Ravensword's story is as motivating as a walk to the market to buy something but on your trip there you do find some classic elf-are-better (not sure if this is considered spoiler) and combats (even one or two puzzles if I recall right). Shadow Sun is like reading a story, has a mini-encyclopedia to aid in your understanding of the world, but when you've finished the story is about over. I do like the idea of having secrets as well as its balancing. Both are nice looking, I'd say, first being more of the classic, western RPG while Shadow Sun is more on the Arabian (am I right???) style, both pleasing to the eyes and, in my opinion, Shadow Sun is what I like better of the two I played. PS: I almost forgot, yeah, Shadow Sun has some bosses that can put some trouble if you don't manage your companion good.
Thanks for replies, which would you say is more polished and stable? I read a lot about Ravensword crashing. Also with previous crescent moon games, there are a number of spelling and grammar errors riddled throughout the game which I feel decreases the overall polish.
I think both games are great, i loved Aralon, Ravensword 1 and 2. For the price they are superb, i dont remember seeing any odd spelling mistakes, they dont ruin it for me, for the price i get a lot of gameplay. Currently playing Shadow Sun, a very polished RPG, i prefer the combat here rather than turn based. Again iOS is a great platform, theres casual games and theres huge epic RPG's like this one. A great game
My Review! I have successfully played and completed The Shadow Sun! Here's what I have to say: The game is excellent! Time for me to give this game an old-skool GamePro type review: Graphics: Played on my iPad 2, the graphics are phenomenal. PC-like quality, hands down. [10/10] Audio: Superb compositions that flow with every environment. [9/10] Controls: Took some time to get used to the small mapped non-floating virtual joystick + the 'powerful' camera controls while playing on my iPad 2, but got used to it after around ~2hrs. I have no other control issues. [7/10] Replayability: Once you kill an enemy or someone, they are dead forever. No re-spawning of that particularly generated enemy, same goes for the decisions you make--most are permanent given the game's short length. The highest area of replayability lies in starting a new game and choosing one of the different characters and focusing on different skill sets to see what they do. All skills make a difference, and mastering one of them makes an even bigger difference. [5/10] Fun Factor: The game is fun and keeps you busy with interesting quests and a very interesting story. Character customization is a nice touch, and the skill/level up system works just fine. Framerate is consistent! Character dialogue is fun and entertaining as well as intriguing. Battles are fun, but not very challenging as grinding is practically non-existent. There are missable items, but the linearity of the game doesn't make it too hard to miss anything. Overall, the game will keep you busy and intrigued as you play, but it is just_too_short. I have faith that future expansions might be in the works because an expansion would fit like a glove for this game. [8/10] I have no regrets; money well spent to support this awesome developer.
