Dungeon Master Forum

I just came across this cool looking dungeon crawler to be released later this year, "Dungeons of the Amber Griffin":
https://dungeons-griffin.com/

Lots of info on their website, or check out some gameplay videos on their Youtube channel:
https://www.youtube.com/@DungeonsoftheAmberGriffin

Also a very interesting interview here with the developer:
https://www.pcgamer.com/this-gorgeous-g ... -folklore/

I think this looks very nice, although clearly still rough around the edges. I do have mixed feelings about using a very realistic style like this for a dungeon crawler though, I always think these sorts of games need to be a bit removed from reality and have their own style. Grimrock did a really good job at that, while this game lacks its own style because of the very realistic approach.

Interested to see what others think?

The looks are awesome and I personally don't think the realism hurts, but then again to me those games all feel like "just another DM" (which is not a bad thing Also I never played Grimrock II).

BUT it's a bit weird with graphics like that to have grid-based movement, though I would be willing to take that as an hommage to the genre. What really puts me off are the close-up animations in the trailer: both the griffin and the zombie thing look awesome, but their animations creep me out and not in an intended way. So it seems they actually manage to hit the Uncanny Valley even with pure mythical creatures (in case if the griffin)...

Prince of Elves wrote: ↑Sun Jan 15, 2023 9:01 am BUT it's a bit weird with graphics like that to have grid-based movement, though I would be willing to take that as an hommage to the genre.

I do still have great fondness for grid-based dungeon games, and I will still play them because of my nostalgia for them.

But you are right: modern game engines with free-roaming 3D worlds are just much more natural to move around in. The old grid-based real-time combat was always pretty poor, and that has never really improved even in Grimrock and the like. No wonder many other modern grid-based games opted to use turn-based combat instead. And Grimrock 2 pushed a bit too far at the limits of the format, especially in the outdoor areas which just look ridiculous. Natural environments do not lend themselves to grid-based rendering.

The only good reason to still use grid-based movement in modern games is nostalgia. And clearly that's enough of a reason for people to still buy them!