Good, almost great
The best parts of this experience is how it evokes the feeling of the original books. But that’s also probably it’s biggest drawback, too. Flipping pages is interesting to start, but grows tedious over time when I’m used to simply scrolling my text like I’ve done everywhere else for years. The stat sheet is interesting, but to have to “pull it out” to see more items like inventory took a while to figure out. Thankfully, the app does offer some interesting items like auto-map generation that you’d otherwise have to do manually. Having to create your character through the intro pages of the book is slow and unintuitive, probably best broken out into its own “character creation” screen per book. And I’m kinda shocked that the app doesn’t have ANY achievements, which take advantage of the digital format. Ex: Make it through a book successfully, unlock an alternate cover image. Make it through a book without rerolling your character, unlock new flair for you avatar. There’s a deep well here to draw from. The thing is I get that nostalgia and intricacy can make for a compelling download, but to have me coming back to look for new books to buy means I have to really enjoy the experience, and there are just a lot of modern niceties that a digital device allows for that this app doesn’t take advantage of, relying mostly on the “how can we make this look like a teenager trying to play this on their overcrowded desk in their room at home.” Which has its place, don’t get me wrong. I just wish there was a more modern mode too.
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