up on mantis now.
'freeze time' (pause) is not essential - you can indeed learn everything from just shooting and interacting with all the different things in environ... but you die a lot more times in the early game if you do.
We are trying to create a side scrolling tactical shooter/adventure game and we have been open to the radical idea that not just death, but permadeath and character loss, can be a common occurrence in a game like this. I really like the way valley went in this direction it puts you on the edge all the time, just enough tension for cautious tactical play (a little bit UPLINK, but not to the same degree). Also, knowing the consequences of death (not terminal for your game) gives a measure of freedom at the same time. valley at its best (that is, at the right dif. setting for you) is also very hard - at least the early game and exploring new region types / mission types can be brutal but this is how environ needs to feel in my opinion for exploration to feel threatened and exciting. Also, think about the way the content unlocks overtime - the game is always introducing new enemies, resources and region types.
The point of the tactical pause as information gathering feature - is that it puts the glyph bearer in a slightly privileged position in the face of an endlessly new and challenging environment. It is this tactical insight (given by the illari?!) which helps to keep the ineviatable death toll down and safegaurd the life of the glyph bearer (just a little) as he struggles against the forces of the overlord to save the continent.
The information about resistances and weaknesses (for example) also emphasizes the need for tactical play (changeable spell use - customising your attack for region and enemy types) and gets this idea through to players very clearly. Again, think of pausing the game to readjust your enchant or spell inventory - we are once again given an edge (and a very useful one sometimes) by a mechanic of videogaming - the pause button - OR an illari granted power of the glyph bearer to freeze time.
The pause feature to examine and prepare for things you encounter is one thing that can help to keep new players alive, continues to provide old hands with information to help them handle the endless new content (said with great hope for three years of continued support!), and enables you to get more information on the world of environ (hooking you in during demo time so you get that key?!).
so why not promote the mechanic and integrate it properly into the lore at the same time? Seems to me to be one more way to give all those new 1.0 players every possible chance to get into the game!
