I put off getting Greedfall because I was unsure about the game, but later a friend who had played the game suggested I give it a chance because they felt it was definitely in my wheelhouse of games I enjoy. I picked up a copy of Greedfall and started my journey. Right away I noticed the art style in the starting screen and liked it a lot. Setting up the game is fairly straightforward with being able to set up the difficulty settings for the game ranging from easy to hard. I tend to prefer easy on games so I can enjoy the story and exploring the in game world.
The premise of Greedfall is it is set in the 18th century and it is a fantasy RPG. You play as De Sardet a noble of the Merchant Congregation. You can play as a male or female De Sardet. The character creation for Greedfall is diverse with a wide range of faces and hair styles. I was delighted to see I could play as an Asian character, but I was disappointed at the lack of long hair options for my female De Sardet. There were also a lot of choices for bald which made me think of Dragon Age and the many bald styles it had in character creation. I did find a hairstyle I liked and tinkered with the rest of the character creation settings picking eye color and De Sardet's voice.
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| Customizing my character. |
Once the character is created, you get an introduction to De Sardet. The setting for the world of Greedfall is the 18th century and the Merchant's Congregation wants De Sardet to go to the newly colonized island of Teer Fradee to act as their legate in the hopes that they can find a cure for a plague known as the malichor which is affecting many on the continent including De Sardet's mother. After De Sardet says goodbye to their mother, they get to start their journey.
There are side quests to do in the city before you leave. This gives a good introductory tutorial into how the combat system works as well as the inventory user menu. It's pretty easy to navigate and the flow of battle is smooth and fun. There is also a good user map showing you where undiscovered locations are as well as main quest and side quest markers.
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| The map is easy to use. |
As you do the side quests in the city, it introduces you to the other factions who have a stake in the colonization of Teer Fradee. There are quests you can do for these factions in the city and depending on the choices you make with these quests you get approval or disapproval with them. This is where De Sardet's powers as a legate come into play as they negotiate deals with others and do these favors for the factions. With my De Sardet I tended towards doing what I felt was right and kind rather than what the factions expected me to do. With some I got approval and some were not happy with my decisions. The game allows you that freedom to choose how you want your De Sardet to be and who you want them to be. Once the initial quests were done, we were ready to set sail for Teer Fradee.
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| De Sardet sets sail. |
Arriving at the island of Teer Fradee is impressive. De Sardet's cousin Constantin arrives with her as the new governor of the island. The relationship between De Sardet and Constantin is interesting because it seems that Constantin doesn't really have anyone in his corner except for his cousin. It's understandable why he acts as though he has something to prove and only seems to trust De Sardet. Constantin's first order as governor is sending De Sardet out to meet with the island natives and establish diplomatic relations with them as well as the two alliances from the continent, The Bridge Alliance and Theleme. There are other factions as well which are the mercenary sailors the Nauts, the Coinguard and the natives known as the Yecht Fradi.
Exploring the island is incredible because there are so many great views of the landscape as well as fascinating new creatures. This also shows the job classes that De Sardet can use of which there are three. You can choose Technical which is a rogue class, Warrior, and Magic. I personally like rogue classes so I went with Technical. The nice thing about the job classes is while you have a main class, you can unlock skills in the other job classes as you level up. There are certain skills you will need such as science, charisma, and intuition which help with various quests.
There are five companions that join you on your adventure as well. Four are romance options for De Sardet. You have two hetero romances with two companions and the other two you can play as a male or female De Sardet and romance the other two companions. My personal favorite was the Naut captain, Vasco. You can have conversations with your companions and do personal quests for them in order to gain their approval and help throughout your journey. As you explore the island, you unlock camp areas which are where you can organize your party, talk to your companions, craft items, and save your game.
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| Gathering everyone together at camp. |
Fights in Greedfall are fun. Whether it's fighting human enemies or the creatures of the island, dodging, rolling, and using all the weapons and magic in your arsenal make for some great swashbuckling battles. Level grinding in the game doesn't feel like a chore because the pacing of the battles is just right and adding to the sense of adventure. Taking down a giant creature definitely brought the thrill of the fight and added to the story as I learned more about them and got to know the island natives.
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| Giant creature defeated! |
You can customize your armor and weapons too. I was fascinated by the fact that you could buy armor from the native merchants and there were all kind of masks to choose from. I went with a giant bird skull mask to start and later switched to a very cool owl mask. Interacting with the natives was interesting and I found I liked the natives over the colonists. Greedfall is very much about colonialism in the fantasy setting. There were some conversations that bothered me because I didn't understand why my De Sardet couldn't stop things from happening like stopping a religious zealot from killing a native for not converting to their religion. It was frustrating and made De Sardet's mission of diplomacy feel hollow. Of course this was what the world was like in the 18th century. It was a messed up world where the colonists had no respect for each other or for the native people. I sided with the natives every time because I genuinely liked them and I knew that what had been done to them was wrong. Teer Fradee was their home and here came an entire continent of colonials that thought they were entitled to it. I made a lot of factions from the continent angry, but I did not care. My De Sardet was not there to do what the snooty nobles wanted. She was there to be a legate and diplomat, but she was also not going to let the island natives be bullied.
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| Wearing an awesome bird skull mask. |
The thing is, I loved Greedfall. I liked the main story and I liked the fact that the side quests went with the main story and affected it. It wasn't just random fetch quests. Each side quest served a purpose to the main story quest and added to the relationships between the companions and the various factions. Greedfall gave me a mix of Dragon Age and Fable vibes which I was all in for. I loved learning about the people of Teer Fradee and I enjoyed exploring the island. I had some issues with the protection of the status quo in the game. I rebelled wherever I could to help the natives and make sure they got a say in what happened to their home and that they got to keep their home. I know, I know. This was the 18th century and it was an ugly place often, but that didn't mean I was going to make the same poor choices that everyone else was. The ending to Greedfall is interesting with a good ending and a bad ending choice. Depending on which one you pick, there is a narration that sums up what happens to De Sardet and their companions. I was a little disappointed that once the game is over there's really nothing after the ending and it's just over because it feels a bit empty somehow. In spite of those two issues, I loved Greedfall. It brought a unique story and world to life as well as interesting characters. It definitely brought the thrill of adventure and lived up to my love of fantasy RPGs.
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| Enjoying a Teer Fradee sunrise. |
*Greedfall is available to play on the following platforms: PC, Playstation 4, and Xbox One
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