Bound By Flame

IMPORTANT!!! If you notice stuttering go to video options, switch to a different resolution, wait to refresh, and then switch back to your desired resolution. This way I got smooth animation at 60fps (fixed by the game) on an RTX2080 OC Super at 3440x1440 (and kudos to Spiders for supporting ultrawide resolutions). THE GOOD: Old style RPG with a compelling story and some pretty interesting companions (except for Sybil of course, she's just one nice lady). Decisions will affect your appearance (which is awesome) and the endings you will be able to unlock. Combat is decent, I played with a controller and it feels a bit clunky but serviceable. There is a little bit of backtracking, but nothing annoying like in "Mars: War Logs" so I think Spiders have made great improvements in this regard. THE BAD: For me, it was the soundtrack: kinda repetitive and uninspired, fit to study or sleep but not for the environments presented in the videogame. The lowest point was when they presented the most epic encounter of the game using some quiet and relaxing music. Not bad music, but it feels totally out of place when your adrenaline is supposed to be pumping up! THE UGGLY: I played in max difficulty (Captain) and it is fair with the player until the final boss... then I felt the spike! and when I finally beat it I didn't get the achievement... not that I care too much but if you do, well now you know it could happen to you.

Another great game from Spiders, while some things were improved in Greedfall, Bound by Flame is still arguably the best game from Spiders. An interesting storyline & companion characters paired with their own unique quest lines, Spiders; best combat system to date even compared to the newer games, and a arguably one of the greatest protagonist progression systems you will find makes this game a must-play for RPG & Action fans.

A beautiful semi-open world hack ‘n’ slash game. Very underestimated and with a very good story with choices between good and evil powers (much like the Fable games) and with different endings according to your choices. There are many quests that will make you better understand the world you’re in and the NPCs that will meet. Very beautiful graphics and sound. And many epic battles!

Keep in mind that this was the 2nd Spiders game I've played, and I was already a fan after Mars: War Logs. At 33.75hrs, I've finally beaten it on Hawk difficulty as an axe-wielding pyromancer. Yeah, the endboss was some bs with its difficulty. Actually, it wasn't that hard after a re-upgrade of all equipment to accommodate for the fight (and changed tactics; see Steam Discussions for advice on how to cheese the first phase). But when I tell you that game threw me once dat track kicked in? 👌🏿 Y'all, it was surreal. As for the rest of it, the story's interesting and they've made an interesting world with lore I wish I could read about tbh. The main characters are very much their own people with contrasting interests from time to time. The companions all compliment different playstyles (and boss fights). The combat and upgrade system's a progression from MWL, which I love to see. Only complaint I can recall is that I had to take a break from the game once I got to Chapter 3 since... they chose a particular method to crank the difficulty up. One that was exhausting at that point. Did it bother me after my months-later return? Barely. Is there anything I'd want changed? Make the endboss a bit less needing of cheese and remove a single enemy from (almost) every combat area of Chapter 3. There are some bugs here and there, though, unfortunately. Mostly in dialogue with half of (or an entire) line not being read by the voice actor. Chapter 2's got a quest bug of sorts involving the blacksmiths that... basically makes the decision for you. That wasn't fun, but I don't recall any others. Oh, let's be real here. In both BF and MWL, Spiders has a single woman scantily dressed in tattered clothes revealing her body. 😐 Initially, "Okay... whatever. Just make her interesting and not a damsel atleast." And they did. Problem is... in one of the routes... they handle her final scene in [unfortunate] taste. Slightly inappropriate and a bit concerning. 😑

Bound by Flame is a textbook AA game - passable yet distinctly previous-gen graphics and animations, awkward dialogue and (generally) poor voice acting, recycled enemies... but it also provides more than an initial glance would suggest. The combat system is simple and functional, with two playstyles (warrior and roguish, called 'ranger') augmented with pyromancy. Warrior is self-explanatory, while ranger is more about stealth, dodging, and the like. Timed parries lead into counterattacks, and you have single target and 'group style' (ala Witcher 1) attack types. Combat does have a bit of rhythm to it, as well. You can improve your character's abilities in the three skill trees (warrior, ranger, pyromancy), as well as gaining feats that allow you to craft items with less materials, find more loot from slain enemies, and the like. Most equipment can be upgraded with more damage, poison resistance, and so on, but the system overall is rather underwhelming and doesn't provide anything particularly exciting. Ok, you can upgrade your hammer to have an increased chance to stun enemies, or increase the critical chance of an axe. Meh. The game is rather linear as well, so don't purchase this thinking it's open world. You'll be stuck in an area with a town / camp hub you can return to for turning in quests and purchasing equipment, swapping out companions, and the like. Once you complete the story quests for the area, you move on, but generally fight a boss before you do so. The boss fights in this game are, simply put, atrocious. Warrior stance has a parry that, when timed properly, allows you to counterattack. Ranger stance has a dodge maneuver that allows you to dance out of the way of unblockable hits. All bosses have moves that cannot be parried, which means warrior is screwed. You can't sprint with your weapon out, so good luck. They can choose to spam these moves as well, leading you to stunlock death. Overall it's worth the low asking price. A decent romp.