Runesmith

martynas-dargis 2025-10-07 19:33

Hello. It took me way too long to figure out how to use the UI and how everything works. Once I did though, I think I can appreciate the visual way to upgrade items - it forces you to think deeply about the way to arrange runes to get the best outcome. I think the idea is solid, but it really needs to be put in a UI that is easier to use and understand. Would also be fun to be able to actually participate in fights, as opposed to them happening off-screen. Overall, this is a great scaffolding for a game

reivilibre 2025-10-07 21:54

I really like the underlying idea, but the UI is scary :D. I can easily see how this would take a whole weekend to put together, though — seems to be a really complex and developed mechanic.

As the other commenter noted, would be really nice to see this put on a game — as it is, feels like a game mechanic with a simulator for that game mechanic :). I would really like to see the result of that!

In the meantime, a walkthrough and/or a couple of examples would probably have been nice, to make this a little more approachable.

baturinsky 2025-10-08 00:06

@martynas-dargis @reivilibre

Thanks! I am goingto add a visual guide in the description and a more user-friendly post-compo version. Which part do you think was the most confusing? I assumed it's how you equip the item, and that you runes are carved in two steps (planning and the actual carving).

martynas-dargis 2025-10-08 18:40

For me it was not immediately obvious that 1 carving = 1 day. Also not sure what numbers mean next to item (Helmet 12, Shield 10, etc.). Equipping items seemed not that difficult at least to me. The list of rune phrases could have a better visual layout and maybe sorting (by first, second, third rune or by skill) so you could easily filter them out based on what runes you already have or skills you need.

(not UI improvement) would be really cool to fight step-by-step instead of seeing the potential battle laid out for you. I think there's a lot of gameplay satisfaction to capitalize on here by making this process slow instead of "cutting to the chase" - perhaps even adding some decision making element like special spells which you can choose to use during a fight (you could even tie them to the rune upgrading logic - certain rune words = some spell). I could even see this as a cool board game.

pastry-chef 2025-10-11 18:28

Cool idea! But it took too long to figure out what is asctually happening in the game. More thought to UI and player onboarding would be useful. Would love to see a more polished version

xsangyhix 2025-10-11 18:28

I like the idea of the game. I would immerse myself into it more if the UI was more inviting. I could not figure out how to earn money. I carved a couple of runes and ran out. Do I have a way of triggering combat? Do I have a way of purchase new items, or just sell them? Currently discovering new runes appears to be just a boring process of saving and loading. I would encourage either a full list available or other incentive to discover it via gameplay.

jawdan 2025-10-11 18:42

This is one of the coolest and most intricate games I've seen so far! It's a really good show of a cool mechanic thing,, However, ignoring the obviously jarring UI, the prices seem a bit harsh for a prototype and the underlying gameplay feels like it conflicts with how this wants to be played,, it feels like its waiting for you (which is kinda burdensome with this style of mechanic I think)! Something like an idle/incremental game with automatic repeating battle based on the items + runes earning you the funds so that you can focus your time on the rune-smithing aspect! Really cool nonetheless, good job!

vasea123 2025-10-11 20:01

Quite hard for a entry level, after spending a whole 30 minutes reading and trying again and again i started enjoying finding and carving runes. however restarting level everytime for this is quite harsh

good-enough 2025-10-11 20:10

So, I don't really get the game part, but I love the idea of getting into the nitty gritty of rune carving! The idea of the enchanter class is compelling to me, and I like getting into it a bit.

Still, this feels like more of a sandbox than a game, and while I enjoyed it, I just really want something like this in a full adventure game.

patuwu 2025-10-15 18:10

Very hard to understand but I tried my best. At the beginning I was an missed child but after some time I became an scientific

shaggy 2025-10-15 18:16

I really like it! Great job!

alpharius-003 2025-10-16 11:05

Really hard to start but still love it

sagan-rayner 2025-10-19 20:03

Neat idea, but the UI is really overwhelming. It's missing a way to easily explain the basics to the player

slay-a-stone 2025-10-21 19:37

I like that this is completely different than all the other games. Few pieces of feedback: - I think that it would have helped a lot of if the stats had a little spacing around them, it is really difficult to read right now - While I think having the combat being off screen is a good idea, it felt like I really missed something to have an idea of what is happening, everything feels like one big black box. Maybe some small flavor text log like "The wizard killed an enemy" would already help a lot.

Kudos for managing to create this idea in the short amount of time!

ophiene 2025-10-23 19:04

Amazing work! It’s super interesting and has a vert unique way to paraphrase the theme, good job! And welcome to give our game a try! :)

semenchk 2025-10-24 16:50

Oh no, how many letters, just not that!!!