For more information on the GWJ CRPG Club, go here.
Legend of Grimrock is the GWJ cRPG Club's 21st winner, running out just ahead of Wildermyth in yet another very closely fought contest, requiring a final Tiebreaker to decide on the game after the club took the decision to read it's own rules and actually follow them. Once again, Kenshi didn't get close.
Legend of Grimrock is a first-person action role-playing game with tile-based movement and realtime game mechanics. Players control a party of one to four characters which they move through a 3D rendered grid-based dungeon, a style of gameplay popular in RPG games from the 1990s such as Dungeon Master and Eye of the Beholder, from which Legend of Grimrock draws heavy inspiration.
Gameplay consists of a combination of puzzle solving and combat. Characters within the party gain experience for slaying creatures and beasts within the dungeon, allowing them to increase in level and progress skills which enhance combat abilities and allow the casting of new spells, and equipment is obtained through exploration and solving of puzzles throughout the dungeon. Many of the harder puzzles throughout the game are designed as bonuses, being optional to the progression through the dungeon but granting superior items and equipment for solving them.
In reference to its classic roots, the player has the option to switch on "old-school mode" when beginning a new game. In this mode the game's map system is deactivated, leaving navigation through the dungeon's grid down to the player alone; this references the 1990s games which Grimrock is based on, which left remembering routes and paths through the dungeon completely down to the player. The game's digital manual contains a printable grid sheet which encourages players to chart their course through the game to this end.
We'll be playing this game until June 30th, 2023. This thread is for friendly discussion as we play through the game. Share your reflections, successes, defeats, tactics, wishes, impressions, and whatever here! The more conversation the better, so post away.
For BIG spoilers, please use the spoiler tag. (No! I am your father!) Tactics, strategies, general story progression likely won't need them.
Anyone and everyone is welcome to participate, and can start at any time, so join the fun! One quick favor: If you decide to play, make a post here along the lines of "I'm in!" to let us know. If you start and finish the game before the end, you'll level up your GWJ CRPG Membership.
Links to the Game:
Steam - £2.74 / $3.74
GoG £2.79 / $3.79
Epic Game Store £2.99 / $3.99
Apple iOS £4.99 / $4.99
Metacritic
HowlongtoBeat - 20.5 hours
Gamepressure Walkthrough
Members Complete
Alien Love Gardener
Math
Sorbicol
Legion
Merphle
Ubrakto
kstress71
Redherring
Members Playing
LastSurprise
Sundown
BrokenClavicle
ZillaBlitz
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Isoceles
I guess I'll join for this one. 
I’ll give it a go. Played it a few years back, from memory it got seriously difficult if you didn’t find enough secrets. So look for secrets.
I’m in!
Sure, I’m in. I feel like I got it for free at some point, since it’s already in my steam library.
I might actually have the bandwidth to join for this one! Especially since I won't be doing the JRPG club's pick this time around.
Sorry everyone - due to my illness yesterday I made a slight hash of the end vote.
In the event, we have a tiebreaker between Wildermyth and Legend of Grimrock.
Can you please refer back to the MAIN THREAD and cast your tiebreaker vote there? I will not count any votes cast in this thread.
I will update this thread again when I know which game we are playing.
Right, tiebreaker resulted in Legend of Grimrock still being the winner, so this thread has been reactivated. Please let me know if you are playing below, and don't forget to post your thoughts for the game as you play!
I guess I'll join for this one. :)
In! Looking forward to this and getting back into some RPG gaming. This has such a cool old school touch to it.
Just remembered I have this on iOS, will start playing on the iPad and see how it goes.
I might join in for this one - I bounced off it a few years ago. Time for another try.
I’ll join in for this one.
I'm in. Never played a "blobber" before.
I'm in. Never played a "blobber" before.
Had to look up what a blobber was. On the other hand, today I learned I played what is considered the original blobber (Wizardry I) when it first came out.
Oh, also, I’m in.
I've messed around with it, but haven't gotten out of the first level. I had never played any of the old school first person dungeon crawlers (or any of the newer ones, I suppose), but I have a very general idea of what they are like and can also see how this is an updated version of those games. But movement and attacking does feel a little clunky so far.
I'm in as well!
This game stems from the Dungeon Master/Eye of the Beholder branch of dungeon crawlers. I always preferred the turn-based combat of Wizardry and, later, the Gold Box games. I was also never fond of the puzzles, which often felt like trial-and-error busy work, usually leaving rocks on various pressure plates. Pretty sure I owned all of the Eye of the Beholder games and only won the first, while I played through most of the Gold Box games multiple times.
Despite this, I had fun with Grimrock. Enough that I almost immediately played through the sequel, which was made significantly better by introducing outdoor environments and a more open map design. Puzzles were a lot harder though.
I wouldn't mind playing again, but the pile is just too big.
Quick tip: if you have a 2x2 square and are fighting one enemy then you can kite them endlessly while hitting them by sidestepping immediately after your attacks. This two-step definitely familiar to veterans of the genre or (like me) people who've read the CRPGAddict's blog.
This entry brings back fond (and sometimes jump scary) memories of Dungeon Master on my ST. Deal me in.
Deal me in, I've been eyeing this game for a good long time!
Deal me in, I've been eyeing this game for a good long time!
Welcome to the club. Consider yourself added!
I might join in for this one - I bounced off it a few years ago. Time for another try.
Well I've no idea why I bounced off it so hard, it's great. Really tickles my nostalgia bone for Bloodwych on the Speccy.
I'm in for this one as well, though I won't get to it til I finish up Baldur's Gate. I'm in chapter 5 now, so hopefully not too much longer.
I've put in about 4 hours and am on Floor 4. My party is a human fighter using swords, a minotaur fighter using maces, a lizard-guy rogue using dagger from the backrow, and an insect-bro wizard. I can't imagine having more than one wizard, with all the clicking that spellcasting requires.
So far I have been enjoying myself, though I have a premonition that there's not going to be a lot of gameplay change and so it will probably wear out its welcome.
Level one finished. I used a premade (default?) party. Will find out if that was a mistake or not, but I wanted to jump in without too much analysis. Can’t say I’m in love with the combat mechanics, but definitely enjoying the nostalgic feel of the game.
Went with the default party because who has time for character creation (not me.)
Currently somewhere in level 5, having a blast. I think I’ve found all or most of the secrets - look everywhere for switches, walk everywhere for hidden triggers, listen for doors opening in the distance. As I remembered, a lot of good equipment is hidden behind secret doors so you need to find plenty of them to make headway.
My only complaint with the iPad version is you can only see one active hand per character so you can’t easily equip a second weapon for the back row characters.
Spiders.... why did it haaaaave to be spiders.....
Can someone spoil something for me?
Is there any point in hanging onto equipment you're not going to use? Items don't degrade, right? And is there any shop that would make it worth pack-rat-ing my way through the dungeon?
Currently on Level 2 if that matters.
Can someone spoil something for me?
Is there any point in hanging onto equipment you're not going to use? Items don't degrade, right? And is there any shop that would make it worth pack-rat-ing my way through the dungeon?
Currently on Level 2 if that matters.
I do know that at some point, you'll need a few torches for some of the puzzles. Can't help on the broader point though, I'm still trying to figure out if I need a golden chalice or not.
There’s no shop and no money in the game. Sometimes you need to drop an item for a puzzle. Not sure about the “treasures” though.
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