King of Dragon Pass

The Good
*2nd update.

Well, at least I know some developers out there still have soul..even if it maybe their undoing. King of Dragon Pass is one of those 'rare' games that is (unfortunately) fighting a losing battle against the majority 'graphic-priority based games'.

King of Dragon Pass is more like fairy tale your Grandma used to tell you when you were a kid. Based on the words, you yourself create the images surrounding the story, where the result is always beautiful and memorable. In King of Dragon Pass, even those simple graphics came true. King of Dragon Pass introduced a fairy tale story line of a struggling clan ambitious for conquest and survival.

Storyline, simplicity and art is what King of Dragon Pass is all about. This game is about making choices for your clan. Choices of which will dictate the course of your clan, making every game unique and 'almost' unpredictable.

Graphically, the game is very much appeasing. Oil paintings backgrounds and images that describe every story and even in the game does wonders to your imagination as the lack of graphical animation forces you to visualize what the graphics do not. The last game I played that had similar "oil-painting" backgrounds was "Darklands" and that was quite minor compared to this beauty.

The game play itself is very unique and original from most games I've played. You control your clan through a circle of elders: 7 heroes which make your council, each with their own characteristics and specialties for the benefit (or loss) of the clan. This means that this RPG is not centered to one character, and if one of your elders die, they can be replaced by the young, making this game virtually immortal (no time limit), if you choose to do so.

As mentioned earlier, every new game in this game is technically new. You can choose various choices in the game and still come up with new events you've never experienced before. Yep, this isn't a game. It's storytelling.

The Bad
Well, it was kinda 'too small'. I would have enjoyed it greatly if the map was bigger. There is also one point that if your clan gets too big, you have to give up some land for better management. A downside to my opinion.

The fact that is game is based on 'random' events that are set in advance, if you played the game for a certain period of time (e.g. your 15th time), a sense of repetition will arise as you've already memorized most of the events/stories in the game.

(Spoiler Warning!) Another downside in the game is that there is this "time-limit" in the game. When your small tribe expands and you choose to become a kingdom, there is a time limit you must fulfill or else the game will end (in a bad way ie. your not the ruler of dragon pass). I prefer approaches introduced by KOEI in their strategy games. They have time limits but the time isn't noticeable in what may seem like forever in gameplay. I really don't like to be rushed in my style of strategy gameplay and a time limit in any sort of game to me is always a negative aspect in a game.

The Bottom Line
The manifestation of pure excellence. They should make more games like these...although honestly it probably wouldn't hit 'big' in the gaming 'capitalist' market.

I don't recommend games that much. But this game regardless of genre, is #1 recommended on my short list.