Can someone compare this to Forsaken Isle?

[koholos]

Hi guys. I really like the trailers, and I’m a big roguelike player (currently playing a ton of Cataclysm DDA). So I’m fairly interested in the game.

But I can’t help but notice a similarity (certainly visually and thematically at least) to the game Forsaken Isle, which I already own and found... distracting but not compelling, let’s say. It’s a game I put on to just sort of kill time, rather than play seriously.

So I’m curious if someone with experience with both games could maybe break it down a bit. Or, at the very least, tell me which end of the “survival-roguelike” chain it falls - closer to something like Unreal Worlds or Cataclysm; or closer to something like Harvest Moon Rune Factory or Starbound?

Thanks.

[ChiriVulpes]

I know I'm a dev so for sure take my opinion with a grain of salt. (also, I don't own Forsaken Isle, but know of it)

Wayward is a challenging game, challenging enough that many new players have difficulty surviving even the first day. (Usually caused by trying to fight creatures with no gear). The game gets a lot of attention from people who are expecting casual top-down survival games (which is what Forsaken Isle seems to be), and Wayward is simply not that.

If you know of the Berlin Interpretation[www.roguebasin.com] of "roguelike", wayward meets 13/15 of the rules--the only two it doesn't meet are "ASCII display" and "dungeons", and dungeons are planned.

Wayward has a lot of complexity and a steep learning curve, but figuring things out and doing better each time you play feels very rewarding, in my opinion.

Anyway, again, take this with a grain of salt, as I am a dev. Thanks for your interest in the game. =)

[koholos]

You may have managed to write a pitch that I think would literally only work on me. So, congrats?

Originally posted by Yuudaari:

If you know of the Berlin Interpretation[www.roguebasin.com] of "roguelike", wayward meets 13/15 of the rules--the only two it doesn't meet are "ASCII display" and "dungeons", and dungeons are planned.

hahaaa! I've spent the last month recording podcasts about the Berlin Interpretation (mostly that I think it's a bit out-dated).

Certainly didn't expect to have a developer drop that one on me in a Steam forum, and I'm pretty sure I'm morally obligated to support anyone who would use that as a selling point.

Wayward has a lot of complexity and a steep learning curve, but figuring things out and doing better each time you play feels very rewarding, in my opinion.

Perfect, that's actually more what I'm looking for.

Anyway, again, take this with a grain of salt, as I am a dev. Thanks for your interest in the game. =)

I actually think that when devs are honest about things (as I find most indie devs to be) they're an excellent tool for getting a perspective on a game. Thanks for taking the time out to answer my question, and for not being the kind of dev who gets offended at people seeing similarities between designs.

[Occular Malice]

I'm a game developer and one project is similar to both of these games (I own Forsaken Isle but haven't puchased this one, just played the free one) so take that with a grain of salt ;)

The two games are similar but much like say any roguelike is or survival horror or FPS game. Both share a similar look (many comments in the FI discussions point to it's similarity to this game) but that's really just the pixel style art. Pretty much any game with that look is going to get comparisions at this level. Both take place on an island featuring crafting, survival (requiring you to eat/drink) and mild combat with passive or aggressive enemies.

Otherwise I find FI pretty thin as far as depth goes. As the developer said, there's a lot of complexity in the game because there are a lot of things to do. FI does have a bit of depth as you need to build some items (like a forge) to craft other items, you need to put down stairs in the underground to go deeper down, etc. but again, it's nothing compared to this.

Still both options are pretty much casual gaming. You're not going to need to spend hours grinding to get to some goal or need level X stuff to face an oncoming threat. You can just sit back, chill, and enjoy each game for what it is. I think the learning curve for FI is pretty simple but that stems from the fact the depth of the game itself is just that (other than the somewhat whacky crafting system) whereas Wayward is more on par with something like Terraria where there's a lot there and it'll take some time to discover it all.

The other thing that outshines this is the response of the dev. I see them posting replies here all the time vs. the FI one who sends tweets out every few weeks (or months) with "I'm working on it" and not really engaging with the community, but that's not a perspective on the game but rather the community. I find a responsive dev interested and responsive to be 10x value over any gameplay.

As for gameplay and depth I would compare the two, right or wrong, to be something like Forsaken Isle to be like the orginal Rogue game. Simple, basic, and fun and Wayward to be something like what NetHack has become. Deep, complex, and fun.

Enjoy!