Review Warhammer 40000: Rogue Trader. The emperor will not protect against bugs

When a couple of years ago the creators of Pathfinder: Kingmaker and Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous announced Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader, fans of the gloomy universe really rejoiced. The joy was transmitted even to those who never (or almost) have encountered Warhammer 40k. In the end, this is OWLCAT! Yes, most likely there will be controversial moments. Yes, there will be almost a lot of bugs. Yes, not for everyone … but the role -playing game was definitely worth waiting.

And we were waiting. At the end of 2022, alpha was appreciated. In the summer we tried beta. And now, after the release, they began their way in the full version of the “free merchant”. And if briefly, the game turned out about the way we imagined it and imagined it. Large, insanely atmospheric, causing emotion (not always positive) and complete problems. Many OWLCAT have already got rid of. But how sad it was to face them during the passage!

There is a feeling that the developers were simply in a hurry to release a role -playing game quickly. After all, give the OWLCAT team for at least three or four months, the impressions of the “free merchant” would be much better. But about everything in order.

Welcome to Warhammer 40000!

The emperor of mankind and his loyal servants did not know about your existence yesterday. And if they knew, they hardly suspected that soon you have to believe the fate of numerous planets of the expanse Coronus. It is here, on the cosmic outskirts of the Imperium, that the action of Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader unfolds.

Our hero (or heroine) yesterday was just a distant relative of a powerful free merchant. But by the will of rock, a giant fortress and several inhabited and prosperous worlds passes under his command. However, there are their problems on each of them. And it’s good if they can be solved by a banal sweep of traitors or xenos (in other words, reasonable aliens, At least people who do not recognize the power).

However, Xenos Ksenos is different: it is better not to meddle with one without weapons, you can easily kill you and strangers for business with others, but some will agree to join the hero. Not everyone will like that the newly -made free merchant is hung with “others”, but in the battle and in the study of the world, skilled snipers and talented near -combat fighters will be useful.

Is it so important who fights on your side when you have a common formidable enemy?

In the Universe Warhammer 40k, a free merchant has many enemies: both obvious and hidden. If desired, you can try to make them friends (or at least provide neutrality). Or, for example, get rid of even the characters loyal to you.

In the end, the Inquisition works, and no one will forbid us to be fundamental Dogma. A person who makes difficult decisions (often resembling genocide), guided only by law. As an alternative, you can appreciate human life above, becoming Shism. Or choose a worldview Heretics and use chaos creations to achieve your own goals.

But even the path of the villain will not protect the hero from darkness, threatening to absorb the whole expanse of the coronus and his star systems. Hunger and problems with the economy, political intrigues, bandits, smugglers and xenos are just toys compared to a real threat. We will deal with all this in order to do it, guided by our ideas about the correct. Making a choice and trying not to fail checks that require a high level of personal characteristics.

And sometimes the narrative in Rogue Trader is on behalf of the approximate free merchant or even completely strangers. Looking at the situation, as it were, from the outside is really interesting!

Rogue Trader developers perfectly coped with the reconstruction of the dark and often oppressive atmosphere of the universe. In this regard, the game looks and sounds just amazing! Of course, by the end of Rogue Trader, solemn-suction melodies are boring, but during the passage you always feel the surrounding Greatness.

Yes, graphically this is far from perfect game. And the visual series can push away many gamers. But playing Pathfinder understand that the picture is by no means the most important thing in OWLCAT. “Free merchant” looks good, but the main thing is to preserve the style. And even if you are not a fan of Warhammer 40k, you will definitely appreciate the efforts of artists, designers and composers.

The holiday was a success!

Almost a purebred role -playing game

Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader is a role -playing game from beginning to end. Without impurities of action, shooter or walking simulator. But with a significant portion of tactics and a drop of puzzle. Developers around the world create such role -playing games annually, but so large -scale RPG can be counted on the fingers. If we talk about 2023, then on the fingers of one hand.

“Free merchant” after a choice of difficulty begins with the editor of the character and determining the basic characteristics of the hero. These are characteristics, that is, the foundation of skills, and skills (which affect the characteristics). In the course of the passage, we will be able to increase these indicators of both the protagonist and his companions. Forming the command in the desired way: for example, so that everyone has their own specialization. This will help both in battle and when performing actions requiring testing skills, or during dialogs and special situations.

During the passage, it may sometimes seem that almost all your companions are useful, but one specific as if extra. It seems to do something, but as if by the residual principle … Do not be afraid to click on all his abilities and check how the battles will unfold. And, perhaps, it is this strange companion that will become a real salvation in a seemingly hopeless situation!

The characteristics and skills of characters are affected by wearable things. Which in the game is very, very much (yes, in the inventory you will spend a lot of time). So get ready to store the excess in the cache on the ship. Or shift to cargo, then to get rid of the junk with benefit.

By a certain point, how to pump the characters, you will forever forget about increasing the level and new bonuses. When a working scheme for battles with any enemies was found, why waste time on the next secondary skills?

In Rogue Trader, a really huge character pumping system. Everything is built around several archetypes of three levels. Each archetype offers a set of the hero’s active and passive abilities (plus an increase in characteristics and skills). First we choose one of the first -order archetypes. Then, several times increasing the level of heroes, we choose one of the archetypes of the second, and then the third order.

Pathfinder fans understand that Owlcat loves diversity and murderous (in relation to the time of the player) variability. What build do we want to collect? Should you go to another style? How well my skills are combined with the skills of the Sopartians.

You should not go to the pumping menu of the heroes if you want to sleep. There is a sea of ​​text. With small percentage of improving certain indicators. Such attention to the details can be a plus and minus – depends on your desire to delve into Rogue Trader mechanics.

Fortunately, the game will tell you what abilities are recommended first of all, but closer to the end you just begin to choose random lines. All the same, you already have everything you need to win. If you do not like the progress achieved, you can always “re -translate” the hero.

A little earlier we wrote about three worldviews: dogma, schismatics and heretic. Passing Rogue Trader, the player will make decisions related to his subjects and companions. Sometimes the choice will be emotional, but often practical.

On the one hand, when dilemma occurs, they show direct consequences of the choice (for example, obtaining an artifact or profit increase). On the other hand, each worldview has its own levels. And the more often you make decisions of schismatics (dogma or heretic), the more schematic points (d or e) you will receive and rather reach the next stage. And with it you will open new branches of dialogs closed to those who have chosen another path.

In addition, Rogue Trader has fractions that are essentially flea markets who can throw valuable objects to the hero. Five organizations are interested in various cargoes. And if you deliver valuable goods to them, the respect of the fractions for the protagonist is growing.

The higher our reputation, the more items we can get (unless, of course, the factor of profit is quite high – the income level of a free merchant). At the first level, two items can be available (equipment, weapons, artifact or something for the ship), and each subsequent reveals additional things. Which can be obtained absolutely free.

In fact, we are offered to see what this or that fraction can offer. And, having outlined the path to the goal, we begin to reduce this particular group of our cargo. Moving that there is enough profit to get the desired prize. But to engage in all this at a certain stage also becomes unnecessary. In addition, you get good equipment and weapons for the ship and during the game.

Trade here is called the opportunity to get something for free. If the reputation and profit factor are high.

The choice matters?

Of course, RPG is notable Nokyccasinos.org.uk not only and not so much by what characters can possess and how to pump them. Much more important – the influence of the player’s choice on the plot and ending. And here the impressions are ambiguous.

First of all, whatever the global ending (it seems that only the latest solutions – alas), in Rogue Trader, many small epilogues affect it. Many stories that unfold during the passage are completed by the fact that we learn about the fate of the characters, as well as about the state of entire worlds. Information is traditionally submitted in the form of text – no videos. But reading even about secondary NPCs is insanely interesting!

All this, of course, is affected by the decisions adopted by the player during the passage. Even if you did not notice that you made at least any significant choice-the game will remember this.

You rejoice when you see that with loved ones you are all right. You are pleasantly surprised to learn that ambiguous characters, it turns out, is a golden heart. And you are amazed that it would seem like a good friend ..

When the next story comes to an end, you involuntarily ask: “”And that’s all?!“. Say goodbye to those who, after a long time of adventure, became for you so relatives, very sad. But this is a bright sadness. The developers were able to cause the player such feelings. And this is great.

Players’ decisions affect numerous mini-confusion-wonderful. It’s just that it doesn’t seem at all that the choice of the player during the passage really affects the path to the ultimate goal. You are walking along the road A or B, you agree to B or prefer to act by the G method-you still find yourself there and there with that and that and that and that. I note that all this is only impressions after one person (with small consultations with colleagues)

Similar sensations arise during dialogs. Most of them suggest a simple closing of all possible options. The first replica is the first – first, second, third. The first replica – the second – first, second, third. The second replica is the first, the first, the second, the third. And so on. Read the sea of ​​the text becomes tiring, no matter how much you love this universe. Especially when the choice of replica is not so important.

If every decision made in the conversation can lead to a unique outcome (albeit rather local), you treat read with the greatest attention. But when you understand that most dialogs are built on clicking for the sake of not particularly important (often) information, interest is noticeably reduced. Yes, the characters talk about the world, yes, we learn someone’s story … But all this is not so capturing.

When Rogue Trader offers a choice that can affect the near future, fatigue goes away (it is a pity that this happens not as often as we would like). You concentrate and choose the desired answer or action. And you sincerely rejoice that you finally allowed you to do something yourself!

But this is if they really give us a choice. And it does not come down only to the words to attack the enemy. With whom it is impossible to agree. Which cannot be convinced. Or make you kill your allies, and then make harakiri.

Just space

From the point of view of the Rogue Trader gaming process, it can be divided into peaceful and combat components. The former is the management of a spaceship-fever, its planets and detachment, travel and the study of the world, and the latter are step-by-step battles in space and on the surface of the planets (or on board the ship). Some situations, however, suggest a “text” solution to problems. For example, when you need to make decisions, guided only by a verbal description of the situation (and not forgetting about your characteristics).

The ship of the free merchant is our base, where the characters make up for health, are cured of injuries and “depart” from the current effects. In other words, after a heavy mission with injuries, bleeding and many others, the heroes will recover to begin to perform a new task in the best form. But at the right moments, the flying fortress becomes a combat unit or the battlefield itself.

Over time, we will be able to improve the strength of the ship, its shields and weapons. In addition, the main positions can be appointed officers from among the companions – they activate the special abilities of the ship.

The gameplay on the global map is reduced mainly to moving the ship between star systems, as well as visiting and studying the local planets (and all that can be found nearby). Perhaps we will meet a neutral ship, encounter pirates or xenos, see the consequences of a large -scale battle and so on. In general, we visit places, fight or decide the case with the world, and then fly to the next object.

Some planets may have points of interest: ancient ruins, a huge enterprise, a mysterious bunker or a settlement with primitive (by the standards of Imperium) inhabitants. Somewhere we just make decisions by choosing one of the lines of the text. And in other places we land on the surface and clean the territory (or, which happens much less often, we peacefully communicate with the natives).

A few seconds are spent on scanning of each planet, and closer to the end there is a feeling that they turn in total into hours spent. Of course this is not so. But for a while you just fall out of life and wait. Repeating the process n dozens of times.

Sometimes we can find resources on planets and start their prey. They are required for the development of settlements or the implementation of contracts, that is, concluding transactions. It is more important for a free merchant that the creation of new designs on his worlds. They increase production efficiency, residents loyalty and the safety of the planet. Also, buildings can give useful things or improve relations with fractions. Ultimately, they increase our influence in the expanse of the Coronus.

Engage in all this or not, whether to respond to the problems of the planets, your business. If you are hard, get important bonuses. No – this is your choice. This economic superstructure with resources, colonies management and profit factor is just additional fun. It will not interfere with those who are longing from Rogue Trader of History or Tactical battles.

Space battles at Rogue Trader turned out to be boring and not particularly interesting. The battles of fantastic and just giant ships with torpedoes, guns, lasers and a bunch of opportunities should not cause drowsiness or desire to turn the game. To, while opponents go, answer messages or read the news.

It’s good if during the study of the Universe you come across a single ship of the enemy. He will be able to release torpedoes or call for additional detachments, but the enemy will spend half a minute on all actions for all the actions during the course. If there are several enemies, and each of them also constantly shoots, uses torpedoes and simply moves, then stopping, then accelerating … In short, this is a long time.

Over time, your single ship will receive beneficial abilities (and more powerful weapons) that will make it possible to more effectively deal with opponents. And the battles will be faster. But space battles ideally should be just different. Perhaps you will not agree with me, and such a measured pace of battles you like. But for me they largely lost time lost. Not because of complexity. Due to protractedness.

They would learn from the battles with the participation of our heroes: with bolters and swords, runs and shelters, bloody murders and pleasant hits on several opponents with one action … about all this a little below.

First we must destroy the enemy shields, and then make sure that he explodes.

And one warrior in the field

Move between star systems in Rogue Trader to be on special routes. They pose a serious threat to travelers, and no matter how hard we try, the danger cannot be avoided. So players will often respond to emergency situations: sometimes you can get rid of a simple hull, but often the hero and his associates will have to personally deal with monsters or heretics on their own ship. And then we go into the “ground regime” of the battles.

Most often, the group management involves a calm study of the environment in real time. With communication with NPC, solid -haired, searching for secrets, skills checks, and so on. But sometimes traps are found in the way (we neutralize them or bypass) and enemies. In the latter case, a fight is coming.

Tactical battles, wherever they go, can begin suddenly if the heroes are ambushed. However, as a rule, players allow players to choose the starting position of the fighters within some territory around them. The choice of place may be due to the presence of shelters, proximity to enemies and just the position of protagonists about the enemy. In the end, I would like our attack/defense at the very beginning to allow the maximum damage, reducing our own losses.

Hero and companions can be pumped as you like, although satellites have the initially given abilities, properties or, say, the preferred weapon. For example, the Cassia will carry out attacks on the sector, as shown above. And IRLIET will not suit the weapon or armor of a free merchant and people in his environment. Over time, however, the characters will learn to use new weapons and equipment – if the player desired.

In addition to guns or cold weapons in their hands, grenades can use grenades to apply damage (some of them are needed to get a tactical advantage – for example, for the enemy to miss). In addition, even rings will be useful! And do not forget about the first -aid kits. After the battle, health is restored automatically, but during the battle it is better not to let the character “die”.

In battle, we should follow the glasses of actions and glasses of the characters. At first, you need to get used to the system, but in general everything is simple. Heroes have a potential for moving, attacking and applying abilities. Accordingly, you can act as long as there are a sufficient number of points.

Initially, the hero can attack once during the course, no matter how active he is, but over time this number will increase many times. Especially if you apply heroic acts that are available when filling out the momentum scale. Once taking advantage of this, you can forever forget about many problems. Especially if, having killed enemies, immediately fill out the scale again and apply the heroic act of another character (during the battle, each fighter uses his act only once).

It is also pleased that the characters can benefit at the end of the move. For example, a close combat fighter with high retorting and additional abilities, moving away from the enemy’s attack, hits in response and kills or simply seriously wounds the aggressor. When a beautiful dance of death begins on such a craftsman from all sides: the hero does not allow himself to hit, but cripples everyone around!

At such moments, you experience incredible pleasure from what is happening on the screen and awareness, how well a character has pumped. And now he, smart abeller, copes with a dozen alone predictable opponents. And enemies cannot be called stupid – just over time you understand who and what will most likely do. At the same time, various enemies are enough here. But there is a key to everyone, as it should be.

And forever sitting in shelters is not an option. Moreover, many of them break. And enemies can throw you grenades or scare you worse. Therefore, the tactics of fighting the battle will have to be changed more than once. Given the fact that the composition of our group from the task to the task may change.

The moves of opponents during such battles can also last quite a long time. But getting tired of them is noticeably more difficult than from space battles. And yet they can be extremely unpleasant to surprise. After all, Rogue Trader has a lot of problems.

This is how the pumping of the heroes looks like when receiving levels. We increase our characteristics, get additional opportunities and skills.

Heretical problems

Playing Rogue Trader after Alpha and Beta became much more pleasant. At first, passing the prologue and the first chapter, you seem to fly without meeting on your way practically No obstacles. But the further, the more fun.

Now, by the end of January, some problems of the “free merchant” that I personally faced, have already been resolved. And yet I will note everything that I encountered during the passage.

It is always a shame to see good games, the impressions of which spoil due to trifles. Which are many and from which you are now cursing, then you give up. And you just wait for the hotfix to come out.

But someone decided not to waste extra time polishing. To remove bugs. Improving the balance … Haste may have reasons. Alas, she also has consequences.

Looking back, I remember a couple Especially unpleasant bugs. These errors did not allow the game to go further, but one was able to fix one independently, and the developers got rid of the other.

The moments were very annoyed when after a relatively difficult battle … The battle continued! Usually At the end of the battle, we return to real time and move on. There were two situations right there. On the one hand, it happened that the game simply did not go out of the step -by -step mode, allowing you to manage the characters. On the other hand, everything is the same, but the heroes could not walk, in a circle endlessly passing through each other. And the slope of the priority moved up, not thinking of stopping.

And once, at the next launch of the game (with continuation or loading) from Rogue Trader, the text almost completely disappeared. That is, dialogs and descriptions have become empty. And when an important scene awaits you, I don’t want to click at random. The developers themselves corrected this mistake in December (although I had to stick in the settings and restart the game several times – perhaps the text returned thanks to this).

Developers actively produce hotfixes. And do it more often than some large companies.

Were and Difficulties with passing side quests. When Rogue Trader asks you to perform a certain action, you follow the instructions, but nothing happens then. Perhaps I am not the most attentive player, but, reading the reviews of other gamers, I see that not only my mistake.

Unpleasant bugs occurred during the chapter, where the player needs to act as a detective and figure out who set up our close associate. This quest contains problems in at least two places. At first, if you take one sequence of actions, in the game … Something broke. And when, according to the development of the developers, a certain character was supposed to say, nothing happened. Only the reboot helped. And all in a circle.

But if you reach the end, having done everything differently, you can find one of the NPC guilty. But whoever you choose, but, b or B (I checked all the options), the words of the death of B will be the reaction to the death of the convict. Who was actually the culprit of Chaos. But you didn’t know that. The character who talks about this could not know that. Being sincerely confident that the killer is Ah, I punished A, but in the end I see the words about B … Of course, after this I want to reboot and instead of A choose B, as the game says.

If you look at the story of the Rogue Trader patches, you can notice a number of other errors that the developers decided after the release.

But much more often there were just neutral bugs. The main character became invisible. Or NPC went endlessly, resting against an invisible or quite tangible wall. Or the characters talked to each other so that the dialogs are visible only among one of the interlocutors. And the dead came to life and turned into immovable statues.

There were many abnormal situations, but, fortunately, they did not affect the passage. Although sometimes it seemed that they could. For example, there is a fight that should not be (I chose to solve everything with the world). But after it the game continued – I did not have to reboot.

Alas, this is not the result of the use of invisibility potions.

Another problem of Rogue Trader was the balance of complexity. According to my sensations, most of the game is more or less normally, but in a pair of moments they just begin to tear you to pieces. In these two cases, I had to make a game easier to go further. Moreover, someone has the opposite: even at the “dishonest” level, Rogue Trader does not represent any problems. Apparently, it’s all about finding the right weapons and using the right skills. But such players also say that OWLCAT had to work on the balance.

And what is especially remembered is the final. More precisely, epilogues dedicated to the characters of the game. Above I wrote about bright sadness, but I was not completely honest. Reading these texts, you notice not only actual errors, but also internal inconsistencies. For example, here you can find out about the mysterious death of the NPC, which for very obvious reasons died during the passage.

I also met a mention two alternative stories one character. In the first case, he did this, being in such a position. And in another epilogue – otherwise, being in, let’s say, a friend of a friend. And you see that this is complete nonsense! That is, the first epilogue is logical and seems to correspond to my passage. And the second could become the result of the passage of another player. But together these endings do not combine in any way ..

It is a pity that the finale of the “free merchant” gave not only pleasant emotions, but also the opportunity to notice a couple of shortcomings.

Assurance of yourself with some characters is quite simple.

Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader – good role -playing game. Already now she looks and feels noticeably better than on the release. It still has enough problems that need to rule and rule. It is a pity that the developers did not release her a little later – the impressions would be much better. If you love the Warhammer 40,000 and good old RPG universe, this is a game for you. But be prepared for the fact that she can surprise you. Not always pleasant.

• Atmosphere
• Secondary endings
• Heroes development system
• All kinds of heretics
• “Terrestrial” battles
• Variety of weapons and equipment.

• Heretical bugs
• Internal contradictions
• Heroes development system and inventory
• Pluted space battles
• Dialogs could have a greater influence on what is happening
• Balance.

The author played PC for about 75 hours.

The text in the game is translated into Russian. Sometimes errors are found. But they got rid of critical shortcomings to the release of the review.