Post by CharlesX on May 26, 2023 20:34:11 GMT
Posting here as Maelstrom contains a solo RPG, and meshes casual\student and fan RPG in the same way Timelord does, which is also in this section. The solo RPG is so short a short blog would give away the plot, so below is my nutshell blog of the solo RPG:
The writing is very short on description, clues, and puzzles - it's basically a bunch of mostly empty rooms with no sign of where to go - and contains some tough fights and one very unfair fight that is '100% off the true path'. It noticeably has a string of five or ten passages that can only be found via cheating, which seems pointless. As well, the climax involves picking between some bottles of wine with no clue which is the right bottle in the tradition of the worst kind of adventure gamebook. However, it does show how the rules work which I guess is more the standard we should judge it by. It's ages since I read Maelstrom so forgive me if any details are wrong or indeed you disagree with my view. Edit: What Greenspine says below is extremely true and I would say that I just could only remember bits of the ending having played Maelstrom solo RPG about 35 years ago. I don't remember for example whether you can get the clue about the correct bottle with ease or make the return trip to get another bottle with ease.
I have a more positive view of Maelstrom RPG system, the world is vivid, the generation and testing system simple, immersive, detailed and creative. The passion of the author shines through although the author's age does as well unfortunately (I feel Maelstrom emphasizes creating a beautiful world more than a good RPG one, although it is often distinctive). I particularly like the magic system where the more unlikely an event is to happen in reality, the harder it is to cast.