A while back, our Paul wished for more indie RPGs. He did so quietly, in a corner of his weekly Spotlight on Greenlight, but Basilisk Games apparently heard the call and hurriedly assembled the pieces they might use to make a new isometric, turn-based RPG in the Old Way.
That’s not quite how it happened, of course. Basilisk have been making indie RPGs for a long while, and this is their third and final ‘book’ in the Eschalon series. Like its predecessors, it’s to be an RPG fuelled by ‘90s design ideology. An old BioWare game, if you like, and resolutely not a new one.
Yep – Eschalon is defined as whatever the contemporary RPG is not. Just take a look at its listed features:
• The end of a saga! The final Book in the Eschalon Trilogy brings the story to an epic conclusion and all your questions will be answered. Of course, we’ve made sure Book III can be fully enjoyed even if you’ve never played the previous games.
• Dozens of fan-requested features and updates to the engine and rule set.
• Hundreds of graphic updates including re-rendered tiles, new spell effects, and enhanced environment effects. New sound effects and music in crystal-clear HD audio via an updated sound engine.
• Expanded stats for creatures give them new abilities, defenses and vulnerabilities. Combat will require new levels of strategy.
• New spells and hundreds of new items for you to discover. A huge world filled with secrets, riddles, traps, treasure, and glory awaits you!
• Book III is not a dumbed-down “RPG for the masses”. Rapid button clicking won’t save you here. Eschalon pays honor to the greatest RPGs of the past, with unlimited character development options and freedom to explore the world as you wish. The difficulty of the game does not scale to your character.
• Developer tools to be released shortly after the availability of the game. Build your own maps and make your own adventures!
• Single player only, like a great RPG should be.
The game is still in alpha, and currently looks like this:
The first two Eschalons sit patiently in my Steam library, which I’m told is far less than they deserve. Are they any other indie RPGs you might recommend?
Thanks, RPG Codex.