by David Simon
| Game Info |
Publisher: Ambrosia Software 
Shareware Fee: $25.00
Requires: Still uncertain, but probably any Power Mac or a fast 040
3D Support: None
Demo: Not Yet
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Nearly every time I play a new Role-playing Game I am disappointed. It seems to be very difficult to find a game which takes the role-playing element seriously. Designers have been so obsessed with creating huge worlds that they tend to pay little attention to the individual people within that world. Diablo is a perfect example - spectacular eye-candy, lots of things to find and creatures to kill — but that's all there is to do.
Cythera, the upcoming RPG from
Ambrosia Software, I'm pleased to say, is not what I have come to expect from a RPG. It is rich, detailed and most importantly — personal.
The Story
The story deviates from the usual course of RPGs, most notably there is a distinct absence of races. Normally you would choose your race based upon their abilities — dwarves traditionally make good fighters and elves are skilled archers. In Cythera you get to choose from a list of archetypes: Explorer, Fighter, Swordsman, Beserker, Mage, Wizard, Mystic, Storyteller, or Rogue. Each archetype has advantages and disadvantages - the Beserker is skilled with hand-to-hand combat while a Swordsman starts with a strong initial skill of sword handling. Your choice depends upon your style of play.
You enter the world of Cythera as a complete outsider. You have been literally taken from your comfortable home in the real world and transported to this distant world by their aging king, Alaric and his fool, Magpie (who in turn seems to have been plucked out of a Shakespearian play as the wise fool). Alaric proceeds to explain that he rules the kingdom of Cythera and is bound to it magically, but his land has been falling apart recently as crime and mysterious phenomenon are on the rise. He is no longer able to heal his land and nobody in Cythera can help him. This is why they chose to summon you, a stranger from a distant, long-forgotten world, in a desperate hope that you will be able to clean things up and solve the mystery.
Fortunately, Alaric and his followers are sympathetic to your ignorance of Cytheran ways and proceed to explain the workings of a detailed culture and political structure. This makes it much easier to get into the game and strongly encourages the role-playing aspect, since you know as much about this world as your character does! Some of the people of Cythera even offer to join you in your quest and you can end up leading a formidable party of warriors and mages.
Exploration
Throughout your explorations you will meet an incredible number of people who all have their own lives to lead and don't always have time for you. At night time they will return to their beds to sleep and during the day they will be at their place of work - unless they're taking a break to get some food. You too need to eat and sleep regularly and finding a bed is not always easy. You can always use somebody else's, but you are likely to be kicked out in the middle of the night as they return from a hard day's work.
Glen Andreas, the creator of the Delver Engine that runs Cythera as well as the creator of the Cythera scenario itself, has obviously put a lot of time and effort into creating a rich world populated with complex people. The greatness of Cythera lies not in its size, but in its detail. I have been playing this game for a week now and I know that I have only just started to touch some of the deeper and more intriguing aspects of the story in this game. Trust me, it will keep you interested for a while.
One of Cythera's greatest assets is a meticulous attention to detail. A kitchen may contain a sack of flour, a bucket of water, a rolling-pin and an oven - but these are not simply aesthetic touches. If you spread some flour and add water then you will have a sticky mess that you can then flatten into dough with a rolling-pin. If you have trained in cooking, you can then place the dough in the oven to produce your own freshly baked flat-bread!
But Cythera is not a game for the impatient or the unobservant. If you feel like some quick action then go and play Carmageddon 2 - it's a lot of fun and a great game. If you have a few hours to spare and want to put your brain to use then play Cythera. Occasionally you will be stumped, at these times your best option is to move onto a different mystery since there are heaps of them out there. Eventually you will stumble across a clue where you least suspect it.
Ninety Percent of Statistics are meaningless
Like most RPGs you have stats for body, mind and reflex as well as health and magic. However while most games increase these figures automatically as you gain levels in experience, Cythera periodically awards you training points. To use these points you then ask individuals in the world to train you in whatever field they specialise.
A warrior captain may teach you how to use a sword more effectively or how to defend yourself, while a Mage will teach you to improve your magical powers. As well as general training in magic, some areas such as healing and runes require you to train with a Master of that field before you can learn certain spells.
But training is not just about learning to fight and cast spells better. There are many specific skills that the people of Cythera may be wiling to instruct you in - such as cooking and sewing. You are free to train in any field, though you will certainly want to learn at least some fundamentals of magic. Use your training points wisely though, because the more experience you gain, the harder it will be to earn more.
The Interface
The interface takes a little while to get used to, but once you're accustomed to it, it becomes a simple yet powerful tool. Floating windows present you with all of the information you need and can be arranged to take full advantage of your screen, no matter what resolution you run at. At 1280x768 there is plenty of room to arrange things so that everything you need is just a mouse-click away. People restricted to 640x480 may end up feeling a little more claustrophobic, however you can easily collapse the windows containing your 'to-do list' and 'journal' to save space.
Virtually all commands can be executed using the mouse, but keyboard controls are provided for those of us who like to play with two hands. Contextual menus are well-implemented and used in abundance, but are not necessary if you don't like them.
Eye-candy
The graphics in Cythera are mostly hand-drawn and modest, although they are quite sufficient for the game's purposes. The variety of objects and scenery means that rather than looking at how beautifully drawn one item may be, your focus is more on how all of the elements combine to create a polished, integrated environment. Sure, a spoon isn't particularly exciting to look at - but when it's on a table next to a knife, a fork and a plate with a vase of flowers nearby, an attractive picture is created.
The game features a nicely composed music track which is atmospheric but doesn't distract from the game play at all. At the moment the sounds are unexciting, however Ambrosia seems to be making moves to improve these and rework some of them entirely so they may well be excellent for the final release.
The scratch in the paint-job
My only real complaint is that occasionally your objectives are a little too obscure. All you may need to do to advance the plot is say one word to the right person, but if you can't guess that word or find that person then you're stuck. Fortunately the beta testers have been picking up on some of these obscurities and complaining — so this too should change before the release.
Something to look forward to...
Cythera is by no means a finished product, there are still a number of bugs to be ironed out plus there are several game balance issues waiting to be addressed. However, when it is released (hopefully this or next month) we will be treated to a new experience that will change the way we think of Role-playing games. Remember how much Diablo cost? All it involved was killing things and finding things. Cythera will be $25 for the shareware fee and a modest download of about 6 megabytes, plus it will even run on an 040 processor. With a fascinating story and courageously new game play - I know where my money will be spent!
Be sure to check out our
interview with Glenn Andreas, the creator of Cythera.
