Jonas Hedenquist

With Avernum: Escape from the Pit being the combined result of more than 15 years of development of different titles, and an engine already tried and tested in a few other games, there is little I can think of to improve the experience. But the one thing I would like to see is more transparency where the mechanisms are concerned. I'd probably be satisfied with a small addition to either the inventory or statistics screen showing the character's current chance to hit and adjusted damage (after taking into account attributes, skills and perks, curses and blessings, weapon specifics, circumstances, etc), together with similarly reflected statistics in equipment tooltips. This would help derive the exact effects of circumstances such as dual wielding and the related skill, spells, sickness and other character states, and other possible more subtle aspects of the combat mechanics. Throw in some more stats in the same place, such as evasion rate, armor, chance for extra action points, possibilities to act earlier in combat, lock pick chances, monster evasion chances, lore (these last three depending on how transparent they are supposed to be, since parts of these activities are hidden. These might be more fun to keep obfuscated from the player), etc, all stuff that can be derived from reading the skills but in this suggestion consolidated in one place, and I canna think of anything more to improve my sojourn down into the bowels of a place that is looking better every time I revisit it... (Normally, I enjoy the sense of mystery and immersion found in not knowing all mechanics, having hidden mechanics as a part of the challenge of particular aspects of or activities in the game, or finding them out on my own, but for all its dramatic and immersive qualities, and the narrative, developing characters and carefully planning their tactics quickly becomes a part of the fun of Avernum, and improved transparency and information on character and combat mechanics often makes this process more satisfying, at least short-term and in the beginning.)

(Since the first iteration of this post went belly up in the forum crash a few hours back, I'm at it again, second's the charm an' stuff.) I must say that I had my doubts. The typical kind of old-school, conservative, curmudgeon-style misgivings wont to infect nearly anyone who first fired up Exile: Escape from the Pit as a child, and has since played every iteration of the Exile and Avernum games (not to mention Nethergate and Geneforge). When I realized that Avernum: Escape from the Pit would in part be based on the Avadon engine, the old miser in me reared his ugly head. And I really, really liked Avadon. However, I was a bit worried them new-fangled talent tree-style traits and possibly simplified character development would go less well with an old established franchise like Exile/Avernum, and remove the depth and variation inherent in the old skill-based system. Well, I can happily report that I was wrong. The old skills are almost all still there, together with a few new ones, only represented in a more attractive way. Talent tree it might look like, but it really is a complex skill system. Together with the old attributes, and a considerably expanded and more advanced trait system, this might just be the most in-depth iteration of Exile's/Avernum's character building engine yet. (Now I also realize that perhaps Avadon was not simplified either, only different ) So far, the only thing I miss are the special skills found along the course of our adventures, one of my favourite addition to the last releases in the fist Avernum series. But perhaps they will appear as I venture further in and down, no? In most other regards, the game seems to be just smashing. The music is better than ever, the UI more practical and prettier than ever, the gaming world larger than ever, character portraits and models more appealing than ever, and the story artwork in particular is *very* good, AAA-style (what artist?). Just keep 'em coming, Spiderjeff, and we'll keep 'em well played and experienced.

I must say that I had my doubts. The typical kind of old-school, conservative, curmudgeon-style misgivings wont to infect nearly anyone who first fired up Exile: Escape from the Pit as a child, and has since played every iteration of the Exile and Avernum games (not to mention Nethergate and Geneforge). When I realized that Avernum: Escape from the Pit would in part be based on the Avadon engine, the old miser in me reared his ugly head. And I really, really liked Avadon. However, I was a bit worried them new-fangled talent tree-style traits and possibly simplified character development would go less well with an old established franchise like Exile/Avernum, and remove the depth and variation inherent in the old skill-based system. Well, I can happily report that I was wrong. The old skills are almost all still there, together with a few new ones, only represented in a more attractive way. Talent tree it might look like, but it really is a complex skill system. Together with the old attributes, and a considerably expanded and more advanced trait system, this might just be the most in-depth iteration of Exile's/Avernum's character building engine yet. (Now I also realize that perhaps Avadon was not simplified either, only different ) So far, the only thing I miss are the special skills found along the course of our adventures, one of my favourite addition to the last releases in the fist Avernum series. But perhaps they will appear as I venture further in and down, no? In most other regards, the game seems to be just smashing. The music is better than ever, the UI more practical and prettier than ever, the gaming world larger than ever, character portraits and models more appealing than ever, and the story artwork in particular is *very* good, AAA-style (what artist?). Just keep 'em coming, Spiderjeff, and we'll keep 'em well played and experienced.

Does anyone know if the Ambidextrous trait give any benefits beyond two points of Dual Wielding?