Brinks on great game mechanics

Bellwright, when I look at it objectively, is very close to an exact replica of one of my dream games that I would envision since I got into Ark: Survival Evolved. It has got the basic ideas there: a living world, exploration, survival, story, objectives/nemeses, village building, sim-management, basic RPG combat, and basic RTS or Total War style combat (by ordering around militias and your own guards to do battle). It is ambitious, but I feel like games like this have been inevitable. They will arrive, especially with large language models (AI). The types of game mechanics once unique to each genre will be able to blend into insane games that carry the best of all worlds, with infinite variability. So that being said, while I love the ideas behind the game and what they are trying to do, I think they are missing a crucial point about why it is ambitious to blend different genres like this. Stacking systems into a game so that players can "do everything" in it does not automatically make the game better. The systems have to be built well, and they have to be enjoyable for players. Bellwright has all these boxes checked as far as gameplay systems and mechanics go. However, it seems like they are just rushing to continue checking off the next box without actually perfecting any of the systems. This might not go so well for them. While it is interesting enough to keep my attention for a few days of grinding, the core gameplay needs loads of polish. Instead of adding expansion content, they need to perfect their basic systems/UX, remove AI voices and stuff like that, and streamline NPC and village and trade management, things like that. While this game and this type of game in general have lots of potential, the systems in this one are a bit too unpolished or simply "mid" for it to keep most people's attention for very long, I feel. Mid crafting, combat, exploration, NPC interactions, battles, story, village building, and management: it is all very "mid," not bad, not great. Wait for a sale, or just keep an eye on it and see what people are saying. If they polish it a bit, it would be a more worthwhile experience for players, if even just for the novelty of growing and managing a village and fighting force. Performance is fine, nothing stands out as horrible - though I will caution people against building close to cliffs, as the villagers will inevitably try to retrieve something they cant get to, and will stand around at the base of the cliff all day every day until you find what they are trying to reach and pick it up. That was annoying and took me a while to figure out.