Info about The Bookwalker: Thief of Tales:

Official game description:
**Steal legendary artifacts to regain your freedom**
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Etienne Quist, a once-acclaimed writer, loses his ability to write after he is found guilty of an unspeakable crime. In an attempt to reclaim his lost status, he is approached by a criminal boss with a cunning offer. All he needs to do is locate and steal a series of legendary items from books. Delve into remarkable book worlds, each with its unique rules and challenges. Should anyone stand between you and the artifacts, be prepared to persuade, deceive, or even engage them in combat.  
**Explore different books and reshape their stories**
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Each quest thrusts you into an entirely new world: medieval prison, snow-capped mountain, futuristic spaceship and more. Meet the inhabitants of each book and use them to achieve your goals — after all, they are not really alive... or are they? In your quest, you will not be alone, as your paths cross with a sentient caged page, whom you adopt as your partner-in-crime and trusted advisor.  
**Solve unconventional puzzles across fiction and reality**
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Test your ingenuity with unique puzzles that encourage thinking outside the box, as you freely travel between fiction and reality, gathering valuable items to overcome obstacles. Using the mystical power of ink, you can manipulate objects within the books, adding depth to your interactions and unlocking new paths to explore.

Release date: 22 Jun, 2023

Categories: Single-player Story, Puzzle Solving, Turn-based Combat, Point-and-click Adventure, Exploration, Crafting, Resource Management, Choice-based Narrative


- Hardware Profile: No data
Feature extractions:
- Community Price: No data
- Playtime Metrics: No data
- Time-to-fun: No data
- Player Archetypes: No data


Below are summaries of things people say about the game per category.
Each point is assigned a weight that represents how often it is mentioned across all reviews.
What players like:
- Unique Concept & World Design (weight 0.98): The game's unique concept of 'bookwalking' and its execution are highly lauded. Players appreciate the distinct, beautifully designed book worlds, the seamless transition between 3D and isometric views, and the overall creative and atmospheric setting.
- Compelling & Thought-Provoking Story (weight 0.78): Players consistently praise the game's narrative, highlighting its originality, depth, and emotional impact. The story is well-written, engaging, and explores thought-provoking themes like creativity, morality, and censorship, making it feel like an interactive novel.
- Engaging & Accessible Gameplay (weight 0.62): The gameplay is noted for being engaging, intuitive, and well-paced. Players enjoy the simple yet effective puzzles and the relaxed turn-based combat, which complement the story without being overly challenging or tedious.
- Great Value & Optimal Length (weight 0.53): Many reviewers found the game to be an excellent value for its price, often citing its reasonable cost for the quality and unique experience it provides. Its manageable length is also seen as a positive, preventing boredom.
- Stunning Art & Atmosphere (weight 0.33): The game receives strong praise for its visual and audio presentation. The art style, particularly in the book worlds, is described as beautiful, stylish, and detailed, contributing significantly to the immersive and atmospheric experience.
- Memorable & Well-Developed Characters (weight 0.09): The characters, especially the main protagonist and Roderick, are well-written and endearing. Their interactions and development, particularly Roderick's surprising identity reveal, are highlighted as emotionally impactful and memorable.

Common complaints:
- Shallow and Unnecessary Combat (weight 0.56): The combat system is consistently described as simplistic, unengaging, and often unnecessary, feeling like filler rather than a meaningful gameplay element. Many players felt it could be removed without detriment to the experience.
- Rushed and Shallow Storylines (weight 0.34): The game's narrative, particularly individual story arcs and the overall plot, is frequently criticized for being too short, rushed, and lacking depth. Many players felt the stories ended abruptly, leaving them unsatisfied and wanting more.
- Overall Mediocre Experience (weight 0.31): Many aspects of the game, including overall gameplay, writing, and presentation, are frequently described as average, bland, or uninspired. This leads to a general sense of disappointment and a lack of engagement for players.
- Illusory Player Choices (weight 0.18): A major point of contention is the illusion of choice, where player decisions and dialogue options have little to no impact on the story's progression or ending. This linearity significantly reduces replayability and player agency.
- Underdeveloped World-Building (weight 0.16): The game's world-building, both within the 'real' world and the various book settings, is often found to be underdeveloped and lacking in detail or explanation. This superficiality hinders immersion and understanding of the game's lore.
- Weak Characters and Dialogue (weight 0.12): The protagonist's character and the overall dialogue quality are often criticized. Players found the protagonist annoying or inconsistent, and the dialogue itself was frequently described as poorly written, clunky, or lacking voice acting.
- Failed Disco Elysium Comparison (weight 0.08): Many players had expectations of a deep, choice-driven narrative experience akin to 'Disco Elysium' but were disappointed by the game's linear structure, lack of impactful choices, and less profound writing.
- Flawed Morality System (weight 0.05): The game's morality system is perceived as shallow, preachy, and often arbitrary. Players felt forced into moral dilemmas without sufficient context or impact, leading to frustration and a sense of being lectured.
- Repetitive Crafting/Looting (weight 0.04): The crafting and looting mechanics are seen as repetitive and unengaging busywork. Players felt these systems were rudimentary and primarily served to pad gameplay rather than offer meaningful interaction or rewards.
- Confusing/Unsatisfying Ending (weight 0.03): The ending of the game is frequently described as confusing, unsatisfying, or abrupt, leaving players with unresolved plot points and a sense of regret or disappointment.

Gameplay feedback:
- Simple, Low-Impact Combat (weight 0.3): The game features a simple, turn-based combat system that is not challenging and often feels secondary to the main gameplay. There are minimal penalties for losing battles, allowing for a smooth, narrative-focused experience.
- Dual Perspective Gameplay (weight 0.23): The game employs a dual perspective: first-person in the 'real world' hub and an isometric, top-down view within the 'book worlds'. This visual distinction reinforces the core mechanic of traversing different realities.
- Short, Linear Gameplay (weight 0.19): The game is relatively short, typically taking 5-7 hours to complete the main story. Its gameplay is linear, with simple puzzles and minimal challenge, making it a quick and straightforward experience.
- Simple, Intuitive Puzzles (weight 0.11): Puzzles in the game are generally straightforward and intuitive, requiring minimal effort to solve. They are integrated into the story progression rather than serving as significant challenges.
- Protagonist's Backstory & Goal (weight 0.07): The protagonist, Etienne Quist, is a disgraced writer sentenced to 30 years of servitude and prohibited from writing. He is forced into illegal 'bookwalking' to steal artifacts from books to reduce his sentence.
- Light RPG Elements (weight 0.06): The game incorporates light RPG elements, particularly in its dialogue system and isometric perspective within books, drawing comparisons to Disco Elysium. However, it lacks the deep choice-and-consequence mechanics of a full CRPG.
- Moral Choices & Dialogue (weight 0.04): Players are presented with moral choices and dialogue options that allow for interaction with characters and influence over minor narrative details. However, these choices often have limited impact on the main story progression.
- Ink Resource Mechanic (weight 0.04): A unique 'ink' mechanic serves as a resource for combat abilities and occasional dialogue options. Ink can be replenished by draining it from enemies or processing junk items.
- Basic Crafting System (weight 0.04): The game includes a basic crafting system, primarily used to create essential tools like lockpicks, crowbars, and wire cutters from abundant 'junk' resources. These tools help in exploration and resource gathering.
- Chapter Replayability (weight 0.03): The game is structured into multiple chapters, each representing a different book. Players can replay individual chapters after completing the campaign, which is useful for achievement hunting.
- Companion Character: Roderick (weight 0.03): Etienne is accompanied by Roderick, a character from another book trapped in a cage. Roderick acts as a guide and moral compass, providing hints and insights within the book worlds.

Performance notes:
- Performance issues in 3D view (weight 0.04): The game experiences significant performance issues, particularly in 3D first-person sections and the apartment area, leading to frame rate drops, stutters, and increased PC temperature. Players suggest capping framerates as a workaround.
- Excellent handheld performance (weight 0.03): Players report excellent performance on handheld devices like the Steam Deck and Legion Go, with stable framerates and good text readability, making it a highly recommended experience for portable gaming.
- Minimal bugs and crashes (weight 0.02): Most players experienced a largely bug-free game, with only minor issues like dialogue avatar misalignment or a rare game-freezing bug where worlds merged.
- Ambient music, slow transitions (weight 0.01): The game's music is described as ambient and lacking impact, with sound effects often taking precedence. Additionally, slow scene transitions contribute to a feeling of waiting more than playing.
- Startup and loading crashes (weight 0.01): Some users reported critical issues such as game crashes on startup or freezing during level loading, especially when alt-tabbing, indicating instability for certain setups.
- Good optimization for low-end PCs (weight 0.01): The game is well-optimized for lower-end PCs, with a small file size and graphics that allow it to run smoothly even on less powerful hardware.
- Slow loading and transitions (weight 0.01): Players found loading speeds for small areas to be unimpressive, and backtracking in book worlds, particularly the fifth, was made annoying by slow scene transitions.

Recommendations:
- Highly Recommended Game (weight 0.29): The game is widely recommended by players, often praised for its narrative, unique setting, and overall enjoyable experience. Many consider it a worthwhile purchase, especially for fans of story-driven games.
- Buy on Sale (weight 0.11): While generally recommended, many players suggest purchasing the game during a sale or at a discounted price. They feel the full price might be too high for the content offered, but it's a good value on sale.
- Desire for Sequel/DLC (weight 0.1): Players express a strong desire for a sequel, DLC, or further expansion of the game's universe and mechanics. They see significant potential for future titles from the developers.
- Niche Audience Game (weight 0.07): The game is not for everyone, particularly those seeking complex gameplay, deep puzzles, or significant plot variability. It's best suited for players who prioritize story and atmosphere over challenging mechanics.
- Great for Book Lovers (weight 0.02): The game is particularly appealing to book lovers, readers, and those who enjoy interactive fiction or choose-your-own-adventure style narratives. Its strong emphasis on story and dialogue resonates with this audience.

Other player notes:
- Isometric Point-and-Click (weight 0.04): The game is primarily an isometric point-and-click adventure, often compared to visual novels or Telltale-style linear story games. Players who typically dislike reading in games or isometric views found themselves enjoying 'Bookwalker' due to its unique plot and engaging narrative.
- Indie Russian Development (weight 0.02): Players noted that the game was developed by a small, three-person Russian studio, creators of 'The Final Station'. This information is often shared with a sense of support for indie and domestic projects.
- Lack of Voice Acting (weight 0.02): A common observation is the absence of full voice acting, with characters often speaking in muffled 'Sim-lish'. This, along with the game's point-and-click adventure style, contributes to a perception of it being a more budget-friendly or visual novel-like experience.
- Good Bundle Value (weight 0.02): Many players discovered the game through Humble Choice or other bundles, finding it to be a charming and enjoyable experience for its price point, despite some finding it 'kind of meh'.
- Accessible Achievements (weight 0.02): The game features 37 achievements, with a mix of story progression, challenges, side missions, and specific actions. Players noted that achieving 100% completion is relatively easy, often requiring a second playthrough for certain achievements.

Emotions:
- Satisfaction (weight 0.3): Players felt satisfied due to the game's high overall quality, particularly its engaging narrative, unique concept, and immersive world-building. The appealing visuals, well-written dialogues, and enjoyable puzzles also contributed to a positive and fulfilling experience.
- Disappointment (weight 0.21): Disappointment stemmed primarily from the game's unfulfilled potential, particularly regarding its short length, rushed ending, and lack of meaningful choices. Players also expressed dissatisfaction with the shallow combat system, limited gameplay variability, and underdeveloped book worlds.
- Frustration (weight 0.08): Frustration was caused by technical issues like crashes and UI problems, as well as gameplay elements such as repetitive combat and linear progression. Players also felt frustrated by the illusion of choice, inconsistent characterization, and plot holes.
- Enjoyment (weight 0.06): Players enjoyed the game for its creative concept, engaging narrative, and distinctive art style. The humor, well-written dialogues, and immersive atmosphere also contributed to a pleasant and entertaining experience.
- Excitement (weight 0.05): Excitement was generated by the game's unique concept of traveling through books, its innovative gameplay, and surprising plot twists. Players were also excited by the overall high quality and the potential for future content or sequels.
- Admiration (weight 0.03): Admiration arose from the game's unique concept, original narrative, and exceptional world-building. The distinctive art style, effective music, and overall high quality of execution also garnered significant praise.
- Joy (weight 0.03): Joy was experienced through the discovery of the game's high quality, its engaging plot twists, and immersive storytelling. The beautiful design, emotional impact, and overall positive experience of playing the game contributed to this feeling.
- Appreciation (weight 0.03): Players appreciated the game's creativity, unique concept, and intriguing missions, especially considering it came from a small studio. The distinctive art style, humor, and thematic depth also contributed to this sentiment.
- Surprise (weight 0.02): Surprise was primarily caused by the game's unexpected quality, unique genre, and surprising gameplay elements. The impactful ending twists also contributed to this feeling of pleasant astonishment.
- Engagement (weight 0.02): Players felt engaged by the game's captivating narrative, evolving story, and immersive worlds. The unique premise and well-developed characters also contributed to a strong sense of involvement.
- Boredom (weight 0.01): Boredom resulted from the game's repetitive gameplay, monotonous exploration, and lack of depth in puzzles and characters. The slow pace and lack of engaging music or dubbing also contributed to a feeling of disinterest.
- Confusion (weight 0.01): Confusion stemmed from unclear lore, unexplained mechanics, and inconsistencies in world-building. Players also expressed bewilderment regarding the abrupt ending, rushed pacing, and choices that did not affect outcomes.
- Hope (weight 0.01): Hope was expressed through a strong desire for a sequel, future improvements, and more content from the developers. Players saw significant potential for expansion and better works of this kind.
- Desire (weight 0.01): Players desired more content, particularly additional puzzles and a sequel, to further explore the game's world and narrative. They also wished for more impactful choices within the game.
- Sadness (weight 0.01): Sadness was caused by the game ending, the emotional impact of the story, and the fate of certain characters. The short duration of the game also contributed to this feeling.
- Interest (weight 0.01): Players found the game interesting due to its unique concept, intriguing worldview, and overall design. The engaging story, puzzles, and gameplay mechanics also captured their attention.
- Curiosity (weight 0.01): Curiosity was driven by the desire for more content, better explanations of the world's mysteries, and a deeper understanding of the book worlds. The intriguing story and novel setting also fueled this desire for exploration.
- Love (weight 0.01): Players expressed love for the game's story, settings, characters, and overall concept. The meditative conversations, beautiful ambiance, and combination of hobbies within the game also fostered strong affection.
- Anticipation (weight 0.01): Anticipation was generated by the potential for future content, sequels, and new games from the developer. The intriguing setting and plot also created a sense of looking forward to what comes next.
- Awe (weight 0.01): Awe was inspired by the game's unique style, captivating story, and stunning art. The overall quality, unique concept, and incredible visuals contributed to a sense of wonder and profound admiration.}