Verdant Echo
A narrative sort of RPG that starts at the final dungeon and goes backwards.
My first RPG Maker project, it involved a lot of experimentation on my part. There is no level progression. It uses all default assets.
A late submission for the Cookie Cutter RM2k3 Jam, a challenge to make an RPG Maker 2003 game using all the same maps.
Playable in browser or download and install.
Takes a little over an hour to complete.
Download
Development log
- Verdant Echo Update3 days ago
Comments
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There's a lot going on here! The main premise is obviously a cool idea, the way the story is structured is smart and even when moving backwards in time it feels like new info is revealed in a natural way that builds toward the ending in a satisfying way where everything really comes together. The end is nice and I got a kick out of one particular bit of it.
At first the high encounter rate seemed intimidating, especially coming off a bunch of low-resource management focused games, but I eventually realized that stats and items are generous enough to encourage being fast and aggressive with magic and attacks, and the escape rate is pretty consistent if you get stuck, at the cost of not getting any money. So that definitely streamlines things and lets you feel cool and powerful while doing them, while not quite slipping into it just feeling free. You did a good job making those later bosses feel more tense despite them technically taking place "earlier" in the timeline (which in a way makes sense since the characters have less experience - why wouldn't it be harder?)
All in all you made a very cool thing and I'm so glad you pushed through and got something in for the jam!!!
Oh my gosh this is probably the most high-effort feedback I've gotten on anything I can remember doing ever, thanks tons first and foremost! :D
I'd love to go through my entire creative process but the main thing is that I'm so very glad the story reached you. A writer's biggest fear is trying something weird and different without knowing if it will hit the mark or not. Glad the storytelling worked in the strange way I approached it.
Also very glad to hear the combat worked out. I did not set out to make a game with a lot of aggressive battles, but as the nonlinear story began to click with me, it seemed the way to get the feeling I wanted.
Thanks again and again, this overall fell so short of what I imagined in my head that it means a lot to know things did work in their own ways. I mostly just want to make another game and your honest words will help a lot!
Cool little game! I did notice that if you use the teleport spell when inside the ghost slime puzzle house, it gives you the option to teleport to outside the tower, which I'm pretty sure you're not supposed to be able to access during that part of the story.
Thanks for the feedback! Yes, I did try to correct that but I still may not have implemented the skill properly.
Hopefully, any players who find themselves in that situation simply return to the world map, which should then put them back on the right track.
hi! really enjoyed my time with this, i wrote abt it elsewhere already but i liked the idea of reversing the order of the narrative, and there were some cool story beats included here! good job!
Thanks again for leaving some encouraging words and for trying my first attempt at an RPG Maker game. :)
"You'll soon soon"?
That typo is embarrassing for me, thanks for pointing it out.