Tadpole timer?

[Swimfan]

So we all know how Larian has handled the fear of transformation during EA (by simply not handling it and making it a non-issue).

I'm one of those filthy casuals who love to explore and while the premise is interesting and I'm at least willing to try everything that Larian came up with, I'm just a bit worried about forced urgency because of fear of transformation.

The funny thing is that for this game this urgency makes sense and doesn't make sense at the same time. The abundance of food really helped me to ease into the game (as I rarely go through 2 more difficult encounters in a row without resting) but something tells me that this might be different with the full release (aside from Story Mode perhaps).

Then they unveiled the tadpole-passive skill system (in which you stick parasites into your brain for more power which I find cool but somehow really unlogical considering how much this game is trying to convince you that a tadpole in your brain is a bad thing) which makes me believe that there might not even be a "timer" in full release. I mean why would Swen emphasize that more parasites in your brain (power VS risk) is up to the player while at the same time telling a story that urges you to find a cure? They told press that the tadpole passive skill system was introduced to make you feel like growing stronger during the time when leveling slows down but the entire system from a story perspective seems to be geared only towards those who embrace their "Mindflayer"-side. Really strange. Of course we don't know half of it but I'm still a little unsure what to think.

What do you think? :-/

[katzenkrimis]

There will be no timers in this game.

The dialogue where companions tell you, "We don't have much time. We must hurry."

That's all fake hype. It's not real.

You can kick back, relax, and enjoy the ride at your own pace.

[Heu, Iterum Id Feci]

There hasn't been a timer from the very start. it was the number of uses of your tadpole powers that progressed you toward the true soul path.
In my eyes that would just be another way through the story. Additionally the tadbole skilltree is an additional way of character progression, as they said just using d&d levels felt slow for most testers, so they changed that up.
So there still will most likely be a disconnect between story and mechanical systems, though there most likely will be some overlap and interconnectivity.

[Heretical_Cactus]

I somewhat hope there still will be something like the tadpole power causing it to grow stronger (And being able to take more tadpoles would just speed up the process)

[Swimfan]

Yeah, using the tadpole during conversations is also what triggers those dream sequences, right?

I dunno ... I'm not per se afraid of a timer - I'm only wary because so far I have never experienced a game that does a good job of providing one that doesn't make you feel bad (FFXIII-3 is just the worst and even Majora's Mask I could never really enjoy because of it).

Even if there was a timer connected to resting (although I agree with you that the passive tadpole/conversation-systems seem to be much more likely to influence the story), I might actually like a timer mechanic when Larian carefully does it?! Who knows ;-)

[Lord Adorable]

Originally posted by Swimfan:

Yeah, using the tadpole during conversations is also what triggers those dream sequences, right?

That's correct. I actually did some testing with that myself by doing long rests after EVERY Illithid choice.

The dreams become both more erratic, strange and disturbing the more you use it. Eventually you 'become' a True Soul yourself and can reign supreme over the Cult of the Absolute without having to do a check.

How that will affect you in the release version is still unknown.

[Swimfan]

Originally posted by Lord Adorable:

Originally posted by Swimfan:

Yeah, using the tadpole during conversations is also what triggers those dream sequences, right?

That's correct. I actually did some testing with that myself by doing long rests after EVERY Illithid choice.

The dreams become both more erratic, strange and disturbing the more you use it. Eventually you 'become' a True Soul yourself and can reign supreme over the Cult of the Absolute without having to do a check.

How that will affect you in the release version is still unknown.

I'm actually really curious how the game handles this on top of the Dark Urge story. I mean what the actual hell is going to happen when a psychotic mass murderering character missuses the tadpole's powers and becomes a mindflayer?!
This game is truely something else.

[Lord Adorable]

Originally posted by Swimfan:

Originally posted by Lord Adorable:

That's correct. I actually did some testing with that myself by doing long rests after EVERY Illithid choice.

The dreams become both more erratic, strange and disturbing the more you use it. Eventually you 'become' a True Soul yourself and can reign supreme over the Cult of the Absolute without having to do a check.

How that will affect you in the release version is still unknown.

I'm actually really curious how the game handles this on top of the Dark Urge story. I mean what the actual hell is going to happen when a psychotic mass murderering character missuses the tadpole's powers and becomes a mindflayer?!
This game is truely something else.

If my theory about the tadpoles is correct-and some things from the full version seem to support it, not gonna say what- then by the end you might turn into something way, WAY worse than 'just' a Mind Flayer.

[Anna]

But.. do we have to use the illithid powers in dialogues? Except for my first run in the EA, I dont use these dialogue options at all, I avoid them. And I actually thought they removed the dream sequences because I no longer got them in my playthrough :D

So I guess Im playing it wrong by NOT using the illithid dialogue options?

[Lord Adorable]

Originally posted by Anna:

But.. do we have to use the illithid powers in dialogues? Except for my first run in the EA, I dont use these dialogue options at all, I avoid them. And I actually thought they removed the dream sequences because I no longer got them in my playthrough :D

So I guess Im playing it wrong by NOT using the illithid dialogue options?

There is no wrong way of playing this game. You don't have to use the tadpoles or pick the Illithid choices at all. Using them and getting the dream sequences is just one way of experiencing the game.

[Anna]

Originally posted by Lord Adorable:

Originally posted by Anna:

But.. do we have to use the illithid powers in dialogues? Except for my first run in the EA, I dont use these dialogue options at all, I avoid them. And I actually thought they removed the dream sequences because I no longer got them in my playthrough :D

So I guess Im playing it wrong by NOT using the illithid dialogue options?

There is no wrong way of playing this game. You don't have to use the tadpoles or pick the Illithid choices at all. Using them and getting the dream sequences is just one way of experiencing the game.

Thats good to hear, thank you. I dont want to use these powers even if it means my character will be somehow weaker. Im just a bit afraid that after 100 hours of playing I will find out - oops, I should have done that :)

[Lora Grim]

I could never finish pathfinder kingmaker cause the idea of a timer irritated me too much.
If it was not for that thing, i would've played it to completion.

Now, the thing is, i never came close to running out of time. But the fact that there was a timer stressed me out and i hate it.
IMO; rushing players to play your game is one of the worst game design decisions any game dev can make. It is dumb, arbitrary and unnecessary.

You can instill urgency through immersion into the story. You don't need an actual time limit.

[Count D'Cinamon]

Originally posted by Anna:

Originally posted by Lord Adorable:

There is no wrong way of playing this game. You don't have to use the tadpoles or pick the Illithid choices at all. Using them and getting the dream sequences is just one way of experiencing the game.

Thats good to hear, thank you. I dont want to use these powers even if it means my character will be somehow weaker. Im just a bit afraid that after 100 hours of playing I will find out - oops, I should have done that :)

i mean you can do and overcome checks just fine by using your own power as long as you know what you are doing. Its mostly there for an additional path the player can take, with of course some consequences in regard to the story plot.

but hey that's the beauty of this kind of game. lot's of choices on how you approach things.

[Lord Adorable]

Originally posted by Anna:

Originally posted by Lord Adorable:

There is no wrong way of playing this game. You don't have to use the tadpoles or pick the Illithid choices at all. Using them and getting the dream sequences is just one way of experiencing the game.

Thats good to hear, thank you. I dont want to use these powers even if it means my character will be somehow weaker. Im just a bit afraid that after 100 hours of playing I will find out - oops, I should have done that :)

Well if you do, just think of it as a "Oh.. crap."
Then do differently on another playthrough and see if it changes. This game is all about choice and consequence. You win some, you lose some, through action or inaction, through success or failure.

I myself fully expect-In fact, I demand- to pay the piper by the end due to using the tadpoles too much and then going "This probably wouldn't have happened if I didn't use them." :P

[Count D'Cinamon]

Originally posted by Lora Grim:

I could never finish pathfinder kingmaker cause the idea of a timer irritated me too much.
If it was not for that thing, i would've played it to completion.

Now, the thing is, i never came close to running out of time. But the fact that there was a timer stressed me out and i hate it.
IMO; rushing players to play your game is one of the worst game design decisions any game dev can make. It is dumb, arbitrary and unnecessary.

You can instill urgency through immersion into the story. You don't need an actual time limit.

thankfully im pretty sure there wont be like actual timer for the tadpole problem. im sure it is just a background plot condition that progress as you pass certain checkpoints in the story quests rather than a timer that's ticking. At least thats how it is in their past games.

as for time limit as game design, i think it works on certain scenario. because the idea of a time limit is to guide players to engage the game in ways that maybe they wont do otherwise. taking more risk for potential more reward. and overall giving more tension.

But yea, the drawback from that is that the player won't be able to truly enjoy the game scope and details. and so imo that sort of thing should only be used rarely and in short burst at best.

[Tomatokek]

first of all, I hate doom timers so thank god there wont be one. I heard by putting more tadpoles in your brain you might become stronger while at the same time at risk of becoming a mindflayer. Thats as far as i know.