Tropicalia Reviews

I like it

capivara

nothing quite like it

A very refreshing game. Obviously the theme is very novel for a video game, makes for a very pleasant experience. The mechanics are not too complicated, which I feel is a positive in this game, the idea and execution are simple but well thought out. I'm still going to play more to see how it develops but at this price point I feel it is already worth it.

A very creative setting for the genre! Took me a while to beat the game. I got lost the Caatinga area, and after dying a lot and almost giving up, I gave it a second chance using the playground/battleless mode. I'm really glad this mode exists, although I love classic jRPGs, I think I'm too old for the grind nowadays... I enjoyed learning with the Encyclopedia, especially the creatures! The puzzles were very challenging!

This game is a hidden gem which would deserve more recognition! Pros: - [b]Setting:[/b] Tropicalia takes place in pre-colonial South America and includes many elements of Brazilian folklore and indigenous mythology. This gives the game a unique identity with an original universe to explore. This is a very nice change from the usual medieval fantasy / scifi universes that we are used to see in such RPG games. - [b]Gameplay:[/b] The RPG system is overall classic but Tropicalia also includes a souls-like system for skill points which works very well for this kind of game. - [b]Exploration:[/b] The game contains a huge open world with many interconnected maps that progressively unlock with the learned exploration skills (push boulders, swim, etc.) in a Metroidvania/Zelda spirit. - [b]Graphics:[/b] The 2D graphics are retro-style (similar to the first Final Fantasy games) yet great-looking, and the character/monster design is really well-done. Many of the creatures encountered in the game are unique due to the original setting, which feels very refreshing. - [b]Game duration:[/b] Beating the 7 main bosses is likely to take at least 20 hours of gameplay, and there are many secrets to unlock that give important advantages (like equips or weapons) that should not be overlooked given the challenging difficulty. - [b]Puzzles:[/b] The game contains many puzzles which are greatly designed and become diabolically difficult in the latest parts of the game. Completing all of them took me many hours of thinking (sometimes for a single puzzle) and was a big challenge. - [b]Capybaras![/b] Cons: - [b]Bugs:[/b] The game contains a few bugs here and there, from crashes at the end of fights to out-of-bound moves in the world map (which also crash the game). - [b]Story:[/b] While the setting is very interesting and original, the story is essentially a pretext for pushing the player to explore the world and beat bosses. This isn't a big issue in itself, but the scenario could have been a bit richer. - [b]Balance:[/b] The difficulty is overall well-balanced and challenging in hardcore mode but once certain skills are unlocked, bosses (even the ones in the latest parts of the game) become a bit too easy. All in all, I really loved this game and I absolutely recommend it to anyone interested in retro RPGs and pre-colonial South America!

O jogo tem uma temática bem divertida, com elementos culturais do Brasil o que torna bem satisfatório de jogar. O que eu acho que poderia melhorar é a história ser mais relacionada, questão dos NPC's darem dicas de onde você deveria ir para completar a história.

Worth trying out, and definitely suggest buying, but expect to face some frustrations (not shocking given the nature of early access). The Pros: Combat is pretty easy to figure out. Fresh setting that stands out from similar games Definitely feels retro. If you feel you hit a wall, pretty grind-friendly. Nice use of crafting and skill learning. Needs Improvement: Equipment relies heavily on crafting, which is nice, but it looks like your material inventory limit is 4, which feels way too low given how much you are expected to make/use while traveling. Tech/Magic abilities definitely works as something you want to either save for big fights or use heavily when grinding near a campfire. You can't really use it casually through normal traveling from point A to B (although maybe I need to play more to see otherwise). I love that you can unlock new ways to travel, and this may just be a result of this being in beta, but it feels like you unlock all the modes of travel so fast. The Cons: Game sometimes just freezes up, but given this is early access it's forgivable/expected At some point, you start having warnings about an image not loading when exiting some tents, which eventually results in the game locking up. This might be the result of hardcore mode, but critter difficulty seems to jump notably from zone to zone, and you have no clue until after you're in combat itself (rooms with low level mobs that hit for 20-50 damage lead into rooms where mobs hit for 500+). Feels like those jumps should be more gradual. May be a result of the beta map being smaller due to it being a beta.

I really wish that Steam let people give neutral ratings. I don't think the game is bad but it needs a lot of balancing work. I actually like that there's a difficulty curve - silly as it may sound, I like that the game throws you out into the wild and you have to be careful or you'll get your butt kicked in the first encounter. It's a nostalgic feeling. I also like that there's a lot of grinding. I like the setting, though I do wish that the bestiary had little blurbs about the creatures you encounter so we had some context! Also: I love the Capybaras. I hope they live happy, healthy lives. Now on to what I didn't like. The progression is... sort of broken. Not enough to be rage-quit inducing, but enough that my soul despairs at some encounters. See, you start out with low level enemies, and slowly progress forward. Sounds about normal! Eeexcept that these enemies are where you get a lot of your materials. And one of those enemies? Runs the moment you attack it. Why is this an issue? Well because it's the only source for vines early in game that isn't starting the new day and going to forage for it. I'm currently level 8, taking down ocelots - which do waaaay more damage to me - but I haven't killed a single armadillo. As you imagine, this causes some issues with gaining needed materials early on. The next bit of progression that feels broken is actually more related to a mixture of drop rates versus item integrity. See as you use items their durability goes down and they break - a common enough mechanic. But see when you mix that with the most common item needed for both weapons and shields coming from a single mob (admittedly it's on the first encounter table you run into!) and their overworld gathering being infrequent... Well let's just say I've been punching tapirs for a while. It would be fun if I were grinding for exp, but grinding for an item so I have enough equipment to go to higher level areas and then grinding for MORE since the equipment breaks fairly quickly... Well it's not fun? The progression issue is that I can't progress, because my armor breaks faster than I can make it. MUCH faster than I can make it, either because I don't have enough sticks, or I don't have enough vines. I'm not a game designer, but as a player I'd really suggest the following: -Either nerf the durability mechanic while fleshing out the crafting mechanic, or make more sources for sticks and vines, and then any future items that are needed in great numbers. -Either nerf the armadillo's ability to run (be that lowering the run rate, or make it so that it has to be below half health before it runs), or make it so that it only has one attack so that it can't run on the same attack you drop it to below max HP. Honestly, these are my biggest issues with the game, but they're big enough that they're hindering my progression severely, and I can't suggest the game until some tweaks have been made.