Browser

  News 
  Reviews
  Previews
  Hardware
  Interviews
  All Features

Areas

  3DS
  Android
  iPad
  iPhone
  Mac
  PC
  PlayStation 3
  PlayStation 4
  Switch
  Vita
  Wii U
  Xbox 360
  Xbox One
  Media
  Archives
  Search
  Contests

 

Misfortune

Score: 72%
ESRB: Not Rated
Publisher: LoadinGames
Developer: LoadinGames
Media: Download/1
Players: 1
Genre: Adventure/ RPG

Graphics & Sound:

Few games leave me as mixed as Misfortune. I think I may be one of the few people I know who actually enjoys playing browser-based games as much as console games, so I'll take any opportunity it play one if it interests me. Similarly, I love seeing what indie games have to offer. Misfortune was able to hit both of those interests, but as a game, it lacked the little something extra to really make it a stand-out title.

It is hard to not appreciate some of what Misfortune is doing with its visuals. It is illustrated like a storybook and immediately grabs your attention with its unique characters, including a group of rabid squirrels that will accost you in levels. At the same time, the game looks a bit too plain as you travel through each labyrinth. Except for a few piles of trash and enemies, there isn't much to see. It got to the point that, when I did see a window or manhole cover, I was convinced it was really important. This may have been a side effect of my wanting more from the gameplay as well.

Nothing really stood out about the audio, though I don't remember wanting to instantly hit my computer's speaker volume. Most of the soundtrack is made up of what I can only describe as "jaunty sea shanties." It's the sort of thing you would expect to hear in a pirate movie as a ship pulls into dock. It's fun, but nothing you'll hum after logging out.


Gameplay:

Misfortune puts you, playing as a nerdy wimp of a guy, into a strange island city. You have no friends, no home... nothing, not even a decent set of clothes. Your adventure starts after awakening on the shore. You set out to the town to figure out where you are, leading you to a series of quests around the city, which is full of mercenaries, thieves and the aforementioned rabid squirrels. Though the gameplay may not be enough to hold many players, Misfortune does a great job of giving players something to laugh about. The game's absurd storyline, quests, and dialogue choices are tops. There are a couple of groan-inducing jokes, though it definitely had me laughing, which is hard for a game to do.

Gameplay progresses in a fairly standard form. You are handed a selection of missions in the pub. Some are simple fetch-quests, while others have you searching for missing people or other plot-driven tasks. Whenever you take a quest, you're taking it on faith that something is happening rather than actually seeing something happen. Each level is a simple maze with a few barrels and piles of trash to search (for keys, usually) and a few randomly appearing enemies. The only time you know a mission is over is when a message says, "Quest Accomplished."Every few missions, a message will pop up, offering some bit of story. You're told something has happened, but don't see anything. The writing is good, but large blocks of text are no replacement for a character or other visual indicator.


Difficulty:

For whatever reason, Misfortune is stuffed with random events where you'll either lose money or instantly forfeit the quest. I figured out early on you want to go with whatever choice won't get you killed and never saw an advantage to doing otherwise. If I was earning something, it was never readily apparent. As a result, I lost interest in the pop-ups and story.

Misfortune does an okay job of drip-feeding you new items, though you need to spend way too much time to earn anything half-way decent. Although the game is targeted towards "casual play," the amount of work you need to put into quests adds a jarring "hardcore" feel. It's not terrible, but just looking at the amount of money needed to buy weapons or worse, stat training, is a bit deflating.


Game Mechanics:

In order to take on certain missions, you need mission credits, which you can earn by playing or purchase. More expensive quests come with more rewards, but are usually more difficult. There isn't a major difference in quest goals, though mazes are usually bigger and stuffed with larger numbers of powerful monsters. I ended up sticking to lower-level quests due to combat system woes.

Combat is based solely around clicking on an enemy once and watching an enemy's health drop. You can purchase new equipment to increase the amount of damage you do (or reduce the amount of damage you take), but getting better equipment means you'll either have to spend a lot of time grinding on low difficultly quests or braving high difficulty levels and hoping for the best. I can see the trade-off the system is trying for, though I think additional balancing wouldn't be a bad thing. The system is way too punishing to hook players.

New equipment can give you an edge, but you're still dealing with enemies that can easily get the jump on you for cheap hits. They'lll routinely out-flank you or get you in a position where you will take damage.

I like what Misfortune is attempting, but there isn't much going on, so I really couldn't get into things as much as I wanted. On the up side, I'm fairly certain Misfortune will find its audience with a few tweaks and feedback. Just playing is free, so it is a no-risk adventure, so I recommend at least giving the game a try to see if it is for you.


-Starscream, GameVortex Communications
AKA Ricky Tucker

Related Links:



Sony PlayStation 3 X-Men Destiny Microsoft Xbox 360 Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine

 
Game Vortex :: PSIllustrated