I asked this same question recently up thread and the consensus seemed to be to start with Thea 1, so I got it on sale at GOG. Sounds like they are still working out the kinks on Thea 2.
Thanks, missed that. Sounds like its worth starting with the original.
Less than 20 for a pretty great, somewhat niche, game.
Additions:
Added characters’ current task icon to inventory and equip screens,
Show/hide resources and minimap toggle buttons should now work after one player ended their turn and is waiting for other players,
Switching pages on various screens can now be done using arrow keys,
Added tools filter to Inventory,
Added missing Ukrainian glyphs (ґ, Ґ, є, Є, і, І, ї, Ї) to the font atlas.
Fixes:
Fixed a problem where a Scavenger Volh would have no portrait and throw errors when starting a fight,
Fixed a crash on fight info screen when the joining player still has group info screen open when the fight begins,
Fixed challenge queue that would not let you switch to the previous page,
Fixed a bug with being able to select a gender for the chosen even if that gender should not have been allowed.
Events:
Changed the event ID 45 ‘nonhuman cabbage patch’ in Children module, so that any two adult characters of any race and gender can find a child in a cabbage patch when they have less than 4 characters in total,
Fix for Stingers, Army ID 5; Node 11 - wrong loyalty changed,
Change in Volh DLC module - changing the class of the chosen resets half of the character’s level,
Changed to Earthbound event - added Mental Return to the large village,
Fixed GroupTroll event (Generic module) - added group to end node that receives a blessing.
Emphasis mine. I haven’t bee able to play as of late. We have one member out of country, and my Go-Live, hopefully a short one, is the end of this week.
I probably should’ve posted this during the sale but hey… arise. Yes I, we, are still playing this. Finally got some Pangea magic which is a lot more like the original Thea experience which is generally a good thing until they beef up the events and reasons to want to be on the sea. On the negative side, Pangea does not mean there are no islands, and if you start off on one that really sucks and shouldn’t happen. If you’re picking the Pangea experience they really should code the groups show up on the large landmass otherwise you just wind up on a smaller island with less to do, fewer resources and wind up having to do boats even sooner.
The added events, new images and the like are still fun to see and easy to notice if you are familiar with the game too.
Been playing coop weekly for a few months. Great game. Super deep. It takes us an hour or so per season, we craft things for each other trade, go on joint combat missions. I think it’s even better coop than solo.
I keep looking at this one. How would you describe what appeals to you about the game?
my experience:
I refunded thea 1 due to the interface from hell
Thea 2 has a much better interface but I found the game boring…very subjective, mind you, and ended up refunding it
interestingly, I prefer watching someone play it then actually playing it…crazy huh
I like Thea 2 much better than Thea 1 but I do like the idea of not having to do all the island hopping. So the new Pangea option sounds great. I just started a new game to try it out.
Thea 2 isn’t boring to me but they do put a lot of the interesting game options behind unlocks. And I wish they hadn’t made everything take forever to unlock.
I love it coop too even though it is a lot, lot slower that way, at least the way we play.
It’s an awesome game solo or coop. There is really nothing out there like it. In a shortish summary you have the next turn addiction of the Civ games combined with an RPG / level up experience of one adventuring party, to start, and then you sort of merge with a sliver of a life / city stuff and because even that’s not enough you get the added element of a story (some legends/myths from a region we don’t see as often) all told through missions\quests and random events. And because it’s on PC, and they seem to know their audience could vary hugely, your starting options have enough variety where you can really tailor the experience to what you want, whether it’s hard rogue like do or die one shot type adventure or something where you would like a little leg up and save to your hear’s desire.
Yes, there are repeats, like Civ, but the randomness of the world, the fact that any given walk through only ever gives you a taste of the events available and in addition knowing that who you have in your party and what god you have can actually change those events, I don’t feel most events feel… tired outside of the beginning tutorial ones.
Longer version:
Gods (Story)
You only start with a limited selection and have to open up the rest. This choice is also the foundation of your story, guides you with how to respond to the various events, and as you add points this is also determines in what ways the game changes for you as you play again. For example, you are unlikely to survive to all or even some of the main ending story events through your first play through. So you quit or die, use your points earned to get a strong start or a stronger equipment, or easier gathering to get resources faster, or you get a kickass character and do it again. If you have a kind god, you tend to be a good group and do nice things for people. If you have one of the not so nice ones, well they want you to smite those wretches and smite you probably should do for those story quests or else the god might get a bit… pissy.
The World (Civ)
Thea 2 got dinged a little bit because they enforced an island mechanic, in that you start on a starter island, build a boat when it’s time, and then venture out to the other islands to get better resources and continue the quest. And boy had you better learn somewhat quickly what risks and advantages and levels those islands are. The problem was building the boat was a lot of down time and the sea ventures are one of the areas that became super repetitive. I think they’re working on that but we’re all in luck because Pangea not only addresses that, by not making you do that super heavy boat early on, but it also introduces an element of running into dangers outside their regions so… be cautious! If you want the island experience accidentally wondering too far is less of an issue.
**I think they screwed up the coding a bit because on Pangea we started on an island anyway, not the Pangea which really sucked. I think they need to fix that because it kind of defeats the point of picking Pangea. I’m stubborn. I forced the play through but given the choice again, I would start over if that happens again. It hindered us for the whole game.
Anyway, the world is randomized to the point with resources, dungeons, where things are make a difference and this gives it that sort of Civ vibe which some might find repetitive… but finding out where thing are, unlocking those higher tier resources and getting a lay of the land was always my favorite thing to do anyway. For a reference, even for Civ VI, which my sister begs me to play, I still like the start of the game for that reason.
Characters (RPG / Life Sim)
Characters have races and classes and abilities and traits, and all of it, and I do mean all of it, matters. I am not just talking about battle either. If you have an attractive or even beautiful person in your group, suddenly that event you’ve seen play out a dozen times becomes… different. I mean literally a new option shows up, and you’re wondering if you should try the new unknown branch or stick to your tried and true approach. There might even be an element of chance so those options you thought were a sure thing, maybe not so much.
Anyway, the classes and races make a big difference in what they can do in combat and also for those events/options. Like if you have an orc in your group, talking to this other group of orcs might be a little easier. Dwarves sometimes have neato options when something involve stone or is underground. Elves are beautiful and do nature so yeah… fun combos.
Did I mention there are children. Children! You live and die by children in this game. You want/need more people, kids! You need a strong and diverse group to do well with those later events/combats/story options well, and this is also where you gamble a bit, trying to make them strong and deciding if you will risk them being something cool almost game changing or decide mundane and safe is good enough and won’t likely screw you. Did I mention elves are awesome, some of the best characters in the game, but I am under the impression they won’t have kids with anyone who isn’t pretty which means… you can go a whole game and never see that character have a baby!
Equipment (Crafting)
You cannot possible open up every resource and get the “best” gear in this game. You have to pick a path get as high as you can with those resources and that equipment type and hope that you find the other stuff or, maybe, rely on a friend to do the other path. This isn’t your +1 type variety stuff either. Going from tier 1 to tier 2 to 3 and then the composites turns your ragtag I hope we can find food before winter (yeah there are seasons!) sets in group into hey guys do you think we can take out that pack of werewolves and hunt down those bandit that stole from us fighting champions.
Boy I could just keep going, but I will force myself to stop.
I will say that some people will definitely find this game boring, absolutely hate the randomness, not like the fact that you are really meant to keep playing and starting over and over again to build up those gods and open up new ones, but I suspect many will just love this mash-up of elements that creates a really unique experience, especially one that can be shared with friends (would definitely not recommend PUGs for this).
And yes, yes they are still adding, fixing and working on this game. I hope they do some paid DLC too because… I would totally pay. If it was something they’d actually call a full expansion… oh my gosh, gaming nirvana.
This really does sound intriguing. I think I’ll pick it up for PC and hope I can figure out what I’m doing! I really like the whole rogue/civ angle, I can’t think of many games that do that. Maybe conquest of Elysium and sorcerer king.
It’s probably a bit more Rogue like than Civ because you play the story not the map, but the map has a CIV feel.
I don’t refund my games very often, only like twice so far, but I think a good two hours of concentrating on it should give a pretty good feel of the game. The way it plays doesn’t change drastically as you play, just the options, the variety and the story… all that stuff opens up.
I picked up the first one during the sale but found that I really have no idea what the hell I’m doing it was the same when I played the demo but I thought that if I purchased the game, all the updates would have made things a bit easier to understand but not so much. I’m considering getting a refund but I just refunded the Witcher Thronebreaker game and don’t want Steam to cut me off.
Is there a rumor about this actually being a thing. I’ve heard for years Amazon will ditch you as a customer which is one reason I don’t do clothes via them. News flash Amazon, especially for women, sizes are not consistent so yeah, expect returns.
I think for clothes they have a specific policy about you being able to return them don’t they? I guess it is prime exclusive though, prime wardrobe.
They have complained to me before about refunding kindle titles, and will actually freeze the ability for a while if you do it too much.
They might but once they kind of got a rep for being dicks about returning, I decided not to risk it. Why should I risk my easy access to mundane and common things to so-so closes from either unknown brands or might even be straight-up knock-offs. I’d rather get my random ass parts I didn’t know I would suddenly need in two days and stick to stores that might bring a little more hassle to replacement and refunds but are certainly fine with it.
Hey maybe we’ll get a reason to actually get into those boats.
New race: Blue Orc Pirates (with corresponding new child growing up options)
There’s a list of new stuff with pics. Click the Link to see it all.
I’ve refunded loads of games over the years; never a problem with Steam.
But I have had Apple block me from refunding anything after the very first time I refunded an app that wasn’t working on my iPhone… and I had been buying apps and never refunding anything for years prior. I’ve mostly avoided buying from the Apple Store ever since.
Well this is good. I did my first one last year, my one and only so far.
But this is terrible. I mean dear lord even Amazon isn’t rumored to be that bad.