Reviews - Ramzea

I purchased this game what seems like ages ago and it was pretty much unplayable then. Every update, I hoped and hoped, but nothing significant was ever delivered. The game is simply not intuitive.

Take a game like Towns. It was pretty much unplayable when I first got it, but every update made it more of a game, and now I can even have fun with it. Every resource I look into, every wiki, every forum, every video, offer me nothing that helps me to understand how to play this game. And the developers genuinely seem to simply not care about the game whatsoever. They treat the entire thing as a joke, and perhaps it is. Perhaps they're laughing every time someone purchases this game.

As for my score, I understand that it seems a little high for a game of such poor quality, but I just didn't have it in me to give it a 2.

I do not know how I've had this game for so long without reviewing it.

First off, I have to say that I've gotten more fun and play time out of this game than most AAA titles. The artwork is missing a few icons (jewelry comes to mind) but what is there is beautiful and consistent.

I typically listen to Pandora radio when playing but the recent update that added a new score of music to choose from made the audio enjoyable. The old score is still there for people who prefer it and that's a very nice touch I don't see in many games.

And now the gameplay. This is the meat of Gnomoria. Barring a few pathing bugs that crop up every now and then, it is a real pleasure managing the lives of my busy little gnomes. I love watching my soldiers in particular grow from being somewhat passable with their weapons to devastating murder machines with legendary weapons. My miners will eventually slice through stone like it's butter and my farmers brew a legendary glass of wine every other day. Once it hits this point, the real difficulty begins. I delve deeper, in search of more ore. I find more monsters. My elite military is stretched thin defending from goblins and ogres on the surface while skeletons and zombies harrass my workers from below. A gnome gets killed by a zombie and rises from the dead to harrow what were his brothers and sisters in life. And then one of my miners breaks a wall, opening into a cave. Hundreds of beetles swarm out, almost instantly consuming him. The fearless warriors I have had from the beginning are pressed back. They fight the wave of beetles while falling back to the upper levels, giving what workers they can time to escape. Some don't make it. And finally, even my warriors are bleeding. One falls. Then two. Another makes a run for the hospital. But eventually, the last beetle dies. I've lost many workers and half my military strength, but in this cave I have found the resources to delve ever deeper.

This is what I love about Gnomoria.

I gave this game a 9 for the fact that friends of mine have trouble running the game without it crashing but I was tempted to rate it a 10 because I've had so much fun with it. I create a new world with every update and have yet to tire of the game. The only downside is the music. It's a single, very repetitive track. Thankfully it can be turned off, and I will either talk with people in Mumble or listen to Pandora radio while playing.

I can't say much more about it. It's a great game that I hightly recommend.

The game claims Linux support and the engine is listed as Flash but when I tried to install the demo, it checked for Adobe Air. I tried installing the last supported version of Air for Linux but the game would not run on it. As such, the game doesn't run on Linux.

Do not purchase this game if you are using a Linux-based operating system.

Well, this is what I get for not checking supported platforms before actually purchasing a game. I saw this game listed on Desura, which I run on Ubuntu. Only Linux games should be listed and the summary page indeed says that the game has a Linux version. I bought the game but when I attempted to install it, it claimed there were no available releases to install. I checked the summary page again, it still says it supports Linux but this time, I notice that the 'Buy' button doesn't have a Tux icon next to it.

This game remains one of the best action/platformers I have ever played. The graphics are simple, but coherent and beautiful. The level design is superb, giving you expansive areas to explore and rediscover once you have new abilities later in the game. The characters are unique and endearing. Each one will leave their own impression and many people may find themselves really caring for them, however strange they are. The story makes great use of this, tugging at the player's emotions in many key moments of the game. The music is well-made and matches the style of the game, being suitably retro. Controls and gameplay are absolutely perfect for a game of this type. The character moves smoothly and all of his actions are responsive. The best part of this game is that most people will need to play it two or three times to truly appreciate it. I highly recommend playing blind the first time and using a guide the second.