Heads Will Roll: Reforged lets the player to take a role of an ordinary medieval soldier who finds himself in the middle of the legendary Hundred Years War between the kings of England and France. You start your way as a simple footman, whose sole ambition is to survive, but with proper skill...
Heads Will Roll: Reforged lets the player to take a role of an ordinary medieval soldier who finds himself in the middle of the legendary Hundred Years War between the kings of England and France. You start your way as a simple footman, whose sole ambition is to survive, but with proper skill and cunning or through blood and preservation, you might soon see yourself becoming one of the most famous knights of your time.
This game is a unique type of RPG with survival mechanics and turn-based combat that requires player to make careful decision both inside and outside the fight. The sophisticated combat system utilizes many different parameters including characters’ stats and attributes, familiarity and proficiency with certain weapons, weapon length, fatigue level, various traumas and injuries, as well as hundreds of different items and consumables.
The game offers more than 200 different lootable items varying from all kinds of medieval weaponry and armor to trinkets with unique effects, several types of poisons, medical supplies and many crafting items.
All of the actions that your character takes will have in-game consequences. The NPCs will change their opinions of you depending on how you treat them and how you behave both inside and outside of battle. This in turn will enable or disable various future interactions with them and sometimes trigger special events.
Make good use of any loot or supplies that you got your hands on. A lot of them can be combined in order to craft medical and utility items, as well as many types of crossbow ammunition.
Heads Will Roll utilizes many random generation elements that will turn two separate playthroughs into two completely unique experiences. Start with different items and stats, face different enemies, make different choices and live through different events each time you play.
The game has dozens of weapons ranging from swords, axes, maces and spears to throwing knives and crossbows. All of them have varying movesets that rely on and make use of different stats & skills (strength, agility etc.), while also having distinct features and countering each other in some way.
Fight not only for wealth and honor but also for the hearts of several stunning beauties with unique personalities, views on life and tastes in men. Conquering some of them might prove to be just as tricky as surviving the war.
Choose from a wide array of authentic medieval defensive equipment: from all kinds of helmets and armor to gorgets, bracers, greaves and chainmail stockings. All with varying qualities and characteristics.
Game features a complete Roguelike mode where player can level his profile with each death, unlocking new starting items and improving character's base characteristics allowing to progress further and take on even harder challenges.
There is a special story mode for those who are after the thrills and twists of the story rather than hardcore survival. It offers just enough of a challenge to keep you engaged as well as quick save and quick load options that can be accessed at any time.
I just couldn't get any fun out of this game. It feels like someone sat down and thought, "You know what the world needs? A 'Well, life just isn’t fair' - simulator."
And that’s exactly how it plays. The game is divided into two segments: rest phases and combat phases. So you constantly switch between checking your equipment, improving your stats, or talking to NPCs.
Then it's time for "war," and you're thrown from one fight straight into the next. But the completely ridiculous stamina and fatigue system makes most battles boil down to just replenishing those while enemies beat them right back out of you.
But that’s not even the worst part. The rest phases are constantly interrupted by NPCs treating you like their personal errand boy. And you have to do it because anything you don’t complete exactly as intended gets you hit with draconian penalties.
That means if you want good gear and a decent amount of money, you have to grind hard and make a lot of sacrifices. Then, at some point in the game, everything is just taken from you. Just like that, you lose all your money and a huge chunk of your equipment.
That was the point where I completely lost interest. You spend 20 hours busting your ass just to get some halfway decent gear, and then the game strips you of everything. Even your weapon. Yeah, no thanks—I don’t need a game that’s designed purely to frustrate me.
This is one of the first, non-adult (NSFW) visual novel and I must say I am hooked. The combat is just deep enough to have strategy but not too deep to grasp. I am on Chapter 4 and can't get enough.
The game loop is criminally similar to A Legionary's Life, but on steroid.
I wonder if is the same developer
Graphics are sharp. Setting is fantastic and promising.
Text is a bit long-winded but not annoying. Nice and atmospheric.
As with A Legionary's Life, the RNG is a major issue.
You swing and stab and click for ages, hoping that you score a hit. Even with very high hit chances the enemies pull off a nice parry with his shield or dodge and ... just rinse and repeat.
You start a lowly peasant and you will have a very hard life training and earning some penny to improve your chances of survival.
After a few frustrating and un-fun iteration, you start to have better stats but, the problem is, the game loop remains punishing all the way.
Your opponents get better. Hit harder. Are better equipped and, overall, the combat doesn't feel any different.
In between battles you have resting phases that you should use to heal. Rest and train.
But with grievous injuries, you will have less time to train and rest. Making every new battle more and more of a impossible task.
This means you need to get lucky in the first few battles and retry until you actually complete them without being battered to a pulp even if alive.
And all this, without much "strategy" on your side.
Does not really matter if you take a defensive or offensive stance. If you stab. Slash or deep cut. Because your chances to hit are so low. The damage you inflict is so little, that you will achieve nothing, other than remain out of breath.
Every time you rest, the enemy will have a free chance to kill you, by aiming at the neck.
And you know, after 30 slashes, he will hit you there. And you will die.
Again.
Sorry, but no. This is not fun. This is not interesting. This is not engaging.
And, as a reenactor, this is not how it works.
