I'm averaging at 100 FPS in towns with my rig @1080p EPIC (DLAA): i7 12700k OC'ed @4.8GHz, 64GB DDR4, RTX 4070 Ti OC, last gen NVMe drive, Win 11. Honestly better than I expected. Gunplay, ennemies and UI could be better. Immersion is really good, that is the defining feature of the game.
Caves of Qud has a long road ahead before becoming a recommendable experience, but it is on the right tracks. The first thing to consider is that it is not a competent roguelike. It was designed as a pure hardcore cRPG with randomly generated dungeons and permadeath added on top. Every run started the same, with the player struggling to survive the first twenty minutes into a viable build. The past tense was intentional, as it is no longer the case. Permadeath is now optionnal, allowing players to learn the mechanics without replaying the early game over and over, and it is a real game changer. I sincerely hope the devs keep purging the roguelike gimmicks that prevents the players to enjoy the depth and richness built into their engine.
As incredible as it may seem, it is impossible to bind WASD keys in this game, thus preventing non-qwerty users to enjoy the game. In 2021. Mind blowing.
Completed the game in hard difficulty in slightly above 5 hours, on Linux (Ubuntu 20.04). One can imagine it could go up to 8 hours when trying to 100% it on a first playthrough. Finishing the game unlocks Insane difficulty and NG+. Death resets all progression, even acquired or equipped items, and occurs often, to the point of annoyance. This gimmicky design cost the game one star, as it is does not suit the rhythm of the game. In itself, Momodora is not really difficult, just punishing for the sake of it, and extending the play time. The pricing definitively helps to seal the deal.
I've only played a couple of hours on normal difficulty, and I cannot fathom why a game so poorly designed is so positively reviewed. There is litterally nothing about it that a tabletop rpg guy would like. The open-ended design is negated by the progression structure: you have to do certain things in order to be able to progress further, whether it is gathering new party members, grinding XP to pass difficulty checks, etc. There are good and bad ways to accomplish quests, with punishment for the latter. The game mechanics rely essentially on savescumming and foreknowledge. The production value is here, but there is no competent role playing game to be found.
