The new prototype is out. Thoughts/impressions:
First of all, this is massively improved since the December prototype. To the point of being barely recognizable. The graphics are a huge improvement, obviously, and I really do like the art style, but mechanically it feels a lot better too, and there's more of a sense that this is a game. The new prototype is not exactly a vertical slice, but it does have things to explore and puzzles to solve and even a little bit of story. You can get a sense for how the game is designed around systems rather than lock and key solutions.
Combat is now working, which was not the case in the previous proto. It's pretty basic, but functional. I wouldn't mind if they added some defensive moves like a dodge, parry, or block.
The magic system is already fairly robust. The proto has a bunch of runes to find, and doesn't spell out what spells to use, so you can just try different combinations and see what does interesting stuff. Some of these spells have effects that aren't very clear or useful, but it's still fun to just try things.
Physics are clearly going to be a big part of this game, which makes the various magic spells a bit more interesting as well.
Overall it left me feeling good about where this is heading. I wasn't so sure 6 months ago, but now I'm really looking forward to it.
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