Shroud of the Avatar is often the target of fierce criticism. But is this justified? Let’s take a closer look at the situation.
Shroud of the Avatar was announced in March 2013 as part of a Kickstarter campaign. The description was somewhat vague at that time. It was supposed to be a story-driven multiplayer role-playing game with an offline mode. This offline mode was aimed at single-player RPG fans and was supposed to provide a “true” single-player experience.
MMORPG with Offline Mode or Single-Player with Online Mode?
This was further explained in videos by Ultima creator and designer Richard “Lord British” Garriott. He stated that SotA is essentially a story-focused single-player RPG, but players would also have the option to play online with others.
However, the development team led by Portalarium did not intend to create an MMORPG, as explicitly stated in the FAQ of the Kickstarter campaign – the game was referred to as a selective multiplayer RPG, due to the different game modes like offline, single-player online, friends mode, and an open online mode where players can encounter other, foreign players.
Many fans of the single-player Ultima series as well as the MMORPG classic Ultima Online believed that Richard Garriott would create a spiritual successor to their favorite games. Therefore, funds were raised from single-player and MMORPG fans during the crowdfunding campaign. The game was expected to be released by the end of 2014.
Quote from the Kickstarter campaign: “Whether in Single-Player Offline mode or any of three online modes, the main quest line will provide greater than 40 hours of focused, story driven content.” – “Whether in Single-Player Offline mode or any of the other three modes, the main quest will deliver more than 40 hours of focused, story-driven content.”
But it turned out quite differently. The team was expanded after the success of the Kickstarter campaign, and the new producer Starr Long, who had previously been responsible for Ultima Online, took over the helm. He announced plans to first develop the multiplayer part, upon which the single-player part would ultimately build. However, the offline mode of SotA should still aim to provide the best possible single-player experience.
The Concept Changes, Housing Becomes the Focus
Over the months, Shroud of the Avatar increasingly evolved into an MMORPG. The housing system was very well received by players and continued to be expanded. Wealthier fans sensed profit in this matter, as building plots in the game world are limited.
This led players to hope to secure many building plots early on, so that they could eventually sell them profitably if the game succeeded. Since such interest in real-money transactions existed, this system was further developed. A player-driven economy found its way into the game, through which items can now also be traded for real money.
For this system to work well and yield significant profit, the social aspect of the game must continue to be developed. SotA thus increasingly transformed into an MMORPG – note that this was actually ruled out during the Kickstarter campaign. Single-player fans began to fear that they had invested money in vain and felt deceived. However, the developers repeatedly stated that they would address this aspect in due time.
Quote from the Kickstarter campaign: “Though Shroud of the Avatar won’t be a massively multiplayer online role-playing game, it will be a multiplayer game.” – “Though Shroud of the Avatar will not be a massively multiplayer online role-playing game, it is a multiplayer game.”
The Criticism Accumulates
As of now, it is late 2017, and SotA still hasn’t been released (it has been in early access for about three years now), and the single-player aspect has received little attention so far. The offline mode is nearly unplayable due to the balancing focused on MMORPG gameplay. Accordingly, the discontent among this group of players is very high. But there are more points of criticism:
- There is no open game world, only individual, instanced areas on a world map. In these areas, there is little to do aside from combat and resource gathering. The exploration aspect fades into the background.
- The PvP in the game offers PvP fans too little risk and also too few rewards. PvE fans feel forced into PvP because they are automatically assigned to PvP in certain playing areas – whether they want to or not.
- The combat system with card decks is too far removed from a classic tab-targeting system with hotbars for many.
- The focus is too heavily placed on the item shop, where houses, player cities, and decorations are sometimes offered for very high prices.
- The game has excessive grinding. Without grinding, nothing works, as this is the only way to cover the upkeep costs for a house and buy good equipment. During the Kickstarter campaign, it was still mentioned that there would be very little grinding.
Quote from the Kickstarter campaign: “Shroud of the Avatar is the first installment of Richard’s new vision and represents the reinvention of the classic, fantasy role-playing which he pioneered. A fantasy role-playing game that will focus more on player choices and discovery than on level grinding.” – “Shroud of the Avatar is the first game from Richard’s new vision and represents a reinvention of the classic fantasy role-playing game that paved the way. A fantasy RPG that focuses more on choices and exploration than on level grinding.”
The Story – A Major Problem
A particularly major point of criticism concerns the story along with the quests. Both during the Kickstarter campaign and during the subsequent Seed-Invest crowdfunding campaign, it was stated that SotA was heavily story-driven and would provide a single-player-like narrative structure.
Richard Garriott and story co-author Tracy Hickman even stated that they had developed a new style of storytelling. In SotA, players were not supposed to feel like everyone was completing the same quests and helping the same NPCs. However, how this was supposed to work was not disclosed yet.
Now that the story is fully implemented in the game and can be played from beginning to end, it has turned out that the quests actually unfold just like in countless other MMORPGs. Everyone saves the little girl from the burning house, everyone kills the same villain who then respawns, and everyone finds the unique magical artifact.
Quote from the official website: “Players will adventure through over 40 hours of story in an interactive world where their choices during ethical paradoxes have consequences.” – “Players experience adventures in a campaign of over 40 hours that takes place in an interactive world where decisions during ethical paradoxes have consequences.”
Additionally, there are no visible consequences to the actions and decisions of the players. For example, the rescued girl never falls into her mother’s arms, and the bandit king remains the ruler of the forest, terrorizing the small village forever. Both during the Kickstarter campaign and during Seed-Invest, consequences were heavily promoted. Even today, this is still stated on the official website of the game.
Persistent Game World, But No Launch Yet
Equally frustrating for many is that the game world has been persistent since summer 2016, even though SotA has not been officially launched yet. Therefore, those who purchase the unfinished early access version and currently play at full price will have significant advantages over those who join at the official launch. The best building plots have already been taken, and many players have reached the maximum level. Newcomers might feel discouraged by this.
Severe performance issues, especially affecting many players who are online per area, and graphics that already give a slightly outdated impression, add to the points of criticism.
Quote from the Seed-Invest campaign: “REAL Choices – No game by Lord British is complete without a deep narrative and difficult ethical dilemmas, and Shroud of the Avatar is no exception. Each choice made by a player (as minor as giving a beggar a coin or as significant as assassinating a lord) will change the response of the game-world to that player.” – “REAL Choices – No game by Lord British would be complete without a profound narrative structure and severe ethical dilemmas – here, Shroud of the Avatar is no exception. Every decision the player makes (as minor as giving a beggar gold or as significant as murdering a ruler) will change how the game world reacts to the player.”
In previous previews and also in reviews on Steam, the game has received anything but favorable feedback. The player numbers are also very low with just about 150 players online at the same time via Steam. According to the developers, however, this only accounts for about 20 percent of the total population, as most players do not play through Steam but through the SotA launcher. Nevertheless, the number of players is quite low.
Developers and Community Are Frustrated
The constant criticism directed at the team is now showing its effects. The developers are speaking less and less in the official forum and scarcely respond to critical questions. During the now monthly telethons, through which money is raised for further development of the game, the team mainly addresses questions about decorations and gameplay elements, while avoiding critical topics.
If the game is attacked in another community, the developers feel strongly offended and sometimes respond with comments below the belt. Criticism in the forum is often immediately stifled, and there is even a directive stating that only positive things should be posted, with some players having already withdrawn from the forum because they no longer feel comfortable expressing their opinion.
Players who have invested a lot of money in SotA to make profits with items and properties also feel immediately attacked by criticism and respond harshly, making the forum a less pleasant place for discussions. Moreover, critical contributions are reported immediately.
All of this casts Shroud of the Avatar’s overall development in a particularly poor light and makes much of the criticism directed towards the game more understandable.
