Celestian Tales: Realms Beyond
- May 7, 2020
- Ekuator Games
- 20h median play time
Get on Steam"Celestian Tales: Realms Beyond" is a hand-painted RPG set in a morally complex world. As a knight sworn to protect the heir of a noble house, you'll navigate intrigue and conflicting ideals in a tale without simple rights or wrongs. Nine years have passed since the previous game, making this a standalone entry for new players to explore.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game features better graphics and beautiful artwork compared to its predecessor.
- The story is engaging with mature character development and well-written dialogues.
- Combat is well-balanced, and the game offers a nostalgic feel reminiscent of classic RPGs.
- The game suffers from numerous bugs, glitches, and poor UI/UX, making it frustrating to play.
- Key quality of life features like a journal and mini-map are missing, which hampers navigation and quest tracking.
- Many players feel the game is a significant step down from the first installment, lacking polish and depth.
- story40 mentions
- 45 % positive mentions
- 48 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The story is highly praised for its depth and engaging narrative, with many reviewers noting its darker, more realistic themes and the impact of player choices on the storyline. Characters are well-developed and evolve throughout the game, contributing to a rich plot that avoids common tropes. However, some players express concern about the potential for an unfinished narrative, which diminishes their overall investment in the story.
“The story line in Old North was good enough to keep you interested, but in Realms Beyond, it takes a darker, more realistic turn.”
“Unlike the previous game, Realms Beyond allows you to make the hard choices and then you see the effect that those choices have on the game's overall story; some that have a serious and direct bearing on how the story plays out.”
“Overall: this is a fantastic RPG that has a strong story and doesn't rely on tired or overused tropes.”
“It doesn't look like they are going to finish the story, so why bother?”
“A lot of the time, you have to exit and re-enter an area to activate the storyline event to progress the story.”
“While the gameplay in both games is simplistic and the same, the visuals, music, and depth of story are worlds apart.”
- graphics22 mentions
- 55 % positive mentions
- 32 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game have received praise for their beautiful artwork and improved quality compared to the previous installment, featuring hand-painted environments and character portraits. However, some users noted that while the art style is captivating, the overall graphical presentation is basic and lacks essential quality-of-life features, which detracts from the overall experience. Despite these criticisms, the art style remains a highlight, contributing to a memorable visual experience.
“This game has an absolutely fantastic art style; the character portraits and environments are hand-painted with watercolor accents.”
“It's graphics are simple but pleasing to the eyes and have their own scattered amounts of detail and dedication.”
“While the gameplay in both games is simplistic and the same, the visuals, music, and depth of story are worlds apart.”
“Dialogue is tedious and slow, graphics are basic but passable, but the real kicker is that basic quality of life features such as showing where you are on the map, a journal to track your quests, and an in-game bestiary so you can see what you're fighting - all these features are missing completely from the game which frankly makes enjoyment impossible.”
“-art style.”
- music18 mentions
- 67 % positive mentions
- 22 % neutral mentions
- 11 % negative mentions
The music in the game is generally praised for its uniqueness and haunting beauty, blending classic fantasy and opera elements effectively. While some reviewers find it memorable and a highlight of the experience, others describe it as nice but not particularly standout. Overall, the music contributes positively to the game's atmosphere, despite some criticisms of the gameplay and overall execution.
“Realms Beyond had a great title screen and opening music.”
“The songs are very unique and stand out from each other, and they all have a nice mix of both classic fantasy and opera.”
“The potential is all there; incredible writing, beautiful artistry, and great music.”
“The music is nothing to write home about, but it is nice and calm.”
“While the gameplay in both games is simplistic and the same, the visuals, music, and depth of story are worlds apart.”
- gameplay10 mentions
- 20 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 30 % negative mentions
The gameplay is generally described as simplistic yet enjoyable, lacking depth in mechanics such as crafting, which is considered basic. While it evokes a nostalgic feel reminiscent of the early Suikoden games, it does not incorporate some of the more complex systems found in those titles. Overall, players find the gameplay fun but not particularly innovative.
“The gameplay is basic but fun.”
“While the gameplay in both games is simplistic and the same, the visuals, music, and depth of story are worlds apart.”
“The crafting mechanic is too basic and does not offer much to the game.”
“It does not have the Suikoden 108 Stars of Destiny system, but from gameplay to storytelling, the game has that Suikoden feeling of the first two games.”
- grinding6 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game frustrating due to the difficulty in farming materials and the absence of essential quality-of-life features like a map, quest journal, and bestiary. The slow-paced dialogue and awkward controls further detract from the experience, making it challenging to enjoy the game despite its potential. Overall, the grinding feels tedious and poorly supported by the game's design.
“Farming certain materials is very hard.”
“Dialogue is tedious and slow, graphics are basic but passable, but the real kicker is that basic quality of life features such as showing where you are on the map, a journal to track your quests, and an in-game bestiary to see what you're fighting - all these features are missing completely from the game, which frankly makes enjoyment impossible.”
“Its slow pace and tedious dialogue could be overlooked as a not-quite-on-target effort at world building, but the awkward keyboard controls that apparently can't be mapped to something less awkward, coupled with an excessively bouncy camera view in combat, undercuts the game's potential.”
- character development4 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Character development in the game is generally well-received, with several characters featuring engaging backstories and growth. Notably, the character Ylianee stands out for her particularly strong development.
“Some characters have a pretty interesting story and character development.”
“Ylianee's character development is especially good.”
- stability2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Overall, players report that while there are no game-breaking bugs, the game suffers from various stability issues, including character movement glitches and inconsistent frame rates, which detract from the overall experience.
“The bugs, well, I haven't seen any game-breaking ones, but issues like characters moving weirdly, glitches, and hiccuping frame rates all seemed to plague me when none of those ever appeared in Old North.”
“The bugs, well, I haven't seen any game-breaking ones, but issues like characters moving weirdly, glitches, and hiccuping frame rates all seemed to plague me when none of those ever appeared in Old North.”
