Attn Eschalon author: Convince me to buy this game.

quasius · Post by **quasius** » November 27th, 2007, 8:54 pm

I want to like this game. I'm probably right in your target audience. But I need to know something before I drop ~$30 on your game. Unfortunately, I can only 10 screenshots and a short trailer that says little about the game on your main page. When I took the time to dig into the forums (which most people won't), I found a FAQ that should have been on the main site.
But that's still really not enough. Where's info about the world? Info about the gameplay mechanics? Info about your design philosophy for this game?
Is there a demo? Will there be a demo?
If this comes off like being a dick, that's not my intention. I'm just trying to tell it like it is, because you are definitely losing sales because of this. Which is a shame since it looks like you worked hard on this project.

YouTube · November 27th, 2007, 8:59 pm

The demo is available from http://basiliskgames.com/book1.htm

Check out the very positive preview published on http://rpgwatch.com viewable right on the front page.

And I'm sure a dozen people here will gladly confirm that the game is pretty good.

quasius · Post by **quasius** » November 27th, 2007, 9:10 pm

You're missing the point. Obviously if I spend enough time digging, I'll find info. (Although I had not found that review.)
Also, when you google Eschelon Book 1 you get this page: http://basiliskgames.com/book1.htm It does not have the link to that review. Also, I completely missed the link for the demo on that page before. That probably says something about the viewability of the link.
Yes, it was a quick skim. But my point is that a quick skim is all you're likely to get from most people.

cubgrace · Post by **cubgrace** » November 27th, 2007, 9:18 pm

HOME, TOP RIGHT CLICK, You do not have to double click

tungprc · Post by **tungprc** » November 27th, 2007, 10:31 pm

Not sure if I agree. People who are knowledgeable in the least bit about the indie scene or crpgs will find this game easily. Those people are the target audience. People like you may happen upon the game or not, but crpg lovers and shareware lovers have heard about this game for quite a while. Sites like rpgwatch, rpgcodex, etc., have kept us informed. I wasn't really sold on the game, but I heard of it about a year ago. Further postings on the above sites piqued my interest enough to grab the demo when it became available.

That said, I think that BW would like to grab a broader audience than the old crpg veterans. In that case, the more targets he can reach, the better his fiscal outcome. That's where you and hopefully others come into the picture. Download the demo, and if you like the old classics, this game should have something in it that will appeal to you.

Sakar · Post by **Sakar** » November 27th, 2007, 10:40 pm

Fact is, this is a niche product and the word will get out to those who grew up on old school CRPG's. This isn't the type of game that's going to bring in "new blood".

If the demo and reviews don't convince you to buy it then nothing the developer can say is going to make any difference.

quasius · Post by **quasius** » November 27th, 2007, 10:45 pm

Sakar wrote:Fact is, this is a niche product and the word will get out to those who grew up on old school CRPG's. This isn't the type of game that's going to bring in "new blood".

If the demo and reviews don't convince you to buy it then nothing the developer can say is going to make any difference.

I'm not talking about "new blood." I'm talking about modding the page to make said demos and reviews easier to find for "old blood."
And there's a demographic you people might be missing: people who grew up on old school CRPG's but don't have time to stalk RPG codex or whatever other sites got mentioned. The only reason I found this site was because an acquantance mentioned it. The only reason I spent more than 2 minutes trying to find info was because I want to find a game I like.

YouTube · November 27th, 2007, 10:57 pm

Point taken, quasius. In the next week or two I will make some changes to the website so that it's a bit more accessible to people.

realmzmaster · Post by **realmzmaster** » November 27th, 2007, 11:06 pm

Digging? I have known about this game before November of last year. I did not have to dig? I simply googled computer role playing games and Eschalon was one of the hits. Because it was using BlitzMax it also appeared on the Blitz Research website. The demo is right on the page you googled. The trailer and screenshots give you a taste of the game. If you read the address you knew the game was by Basilisk Games and if you missed the home menu item, you can just backspace over book1.htm in the address and hit enter and you are at the home page. Scroll down to November 17, 2007 and there is the item about the review. The game does need more promotion and advertisement, but that is where the early adopters come in. We can help promote the game to others. Word of mouth can be extremely powerful. No disrespect intended. But if you are like me and this is your type of game you do not mind doing a little digging to find a gem. This one is very close to the surface. Basilisk Games is an independent and does not have the bankroll that major commerical producers have. Basilisk Games I am sure will continue to seek avenues to promote their game. We are one of those avenues.

PhilosophiX · Post by **PhilosophiX** » November 27th, 2007, 11:21 pm

The game is awesome. Well there's a very long review already so I shall keep this short; as far as I am concerned this is one of the best games I've ever played. I'm still playing it. I'm just quickly checking my email and then I'll be rushing back to play it some more. It's just got tons of immersion, it sucks me in, and is beautifully designed, and has a great storyline.

Noceur · Post by **Noceur** » November 28th, 2007, 2:33 am

Even though I didn't have any problems myself finding the info I wanted, I do agree (that it can be made more accessible).

The RPGwatch article and demo, etc, should probably be visible from most pages on the website*. You should shamelessly flaunt any good articles about Eschalon as much as you can, so you get enough sales to make Book 2

*= For example, have a header (visible from all pages on the site) some place that says "Eschalon: Book 1 demo out now!" (with link) and a sentence from the rpgwatch article that you think both describes and sells the game, with a link to the article itself attached.

Aganazer · Post by **Aganazer** » November 28th, 2007, 8:45 am

quasius, get in with a good forum that has gamers of a like mind with you. I found out about this game on the Octopus Overlords site along with just about every other game that I have enjoyed for the last year. I heard about Eschalon there and bought it within days of its release. There are a ton of great indie games that most of the news sites will completely pass over. All you have to do is seek them out.

I don't know if its the quality of indie games that have improved or if its my tastes. Over half of the games I play anymore are from indie developers.

Aresius · Post by **Aresius** » November 28th, 2007, 11:23 am

I played several hours, and I am really convinced to buy the CD version, and buy it for my RPG-fan-friends too

I really-really want to support you, guys, this game is... waaaaagh, the best RPG since Wizardry 8 and Baldur's Gate 2

dak · Post by **dak** » November 28th, 2007, 11:30 am

Does Basilisk earn more if we buy the CD version??

macdude22 · Post by **macdude22** » November 28th, 2007, 11:46 am

Not really, the extra 10 bucks covers physical materials and shipping I think. It probably costs 3-5 bucks per disk for the materials cost and then a few more bones for shipping. Maybe they make an extra dollar but it's going to be pretty negligible. But I hear the disks, and cases are going to look pretty swanky.