I'm Jim, and I'm a roguelike addict.

(Hi Jim!)

It's been ten minutes since I last played a roguelike. I tried MageGuild and I was really impressed. It has a lot of polish and it's aesthetically pleasing, the latter being really important to me in an ascii game. Everything was clear and the colors were bright. I enjoyed the sense of personality that came with the choice between archmage patrons. Overall, I felt steeped in a sense of atmosphere from the very getgo, and that's a defining trait, I think, of an excellent roguelike game. I'm thinking of the new kids here... Legerdemain, Incursion, and DF all have that same virtue.

I'm going to give the game another go soon, but let me just say one thing... something about the premise feels kind of stingy. This is mostly because I don't feel like I can really gain power per se, but also because I know that once I finally reach that plateau of super-magedom, the game will be over. I feel like this whole game is a prelude to something that ought to be astonishing, something that I'll probably never see, but even as it exists, it's a great accomplishment.

So if that's a critique, there you have it. Just wanted to say thanks for the game.

Well, I'm glad you're enjoying it.

If it's massive ass-kickery as a master of the guild you're looking for, wait until the next release, with the level editor. I fully expect just that sort of scenario to be built by people.

I myself plan to make a "Winter's Soul" kind of scenario, you being a master mage that accidentally ended up on an unknown continent and given various benefits according to what school you choose.

Of course, that will happen when I could be bothered. I really need to learn how to focus my attention and time to one project.