| The title screen has gotten an update to reflect the new emphasis on the characters of the game. Opening dialogue scene scrolls slower to let the main theme play more. There's nobody to select in the opening hall as the initial character, instead a cutscene occurs where Freki meets the Brigand (who steals a racy item from the wolf), who then becomes the the first hero. The second hero is encountered on a bridge outside of Valhalla. A short scene occurs where the Warrior expresses his frustration at a lack of direction, and joins the quest to prove his bravery. There is a second bridge north of the main building which will make walking around town faster. Unfortunately some jackass is fishing off it. He vanishes from it soon into the course of the game. Some tile changes to make the water animating around the bridges more continuous. The Inn's bookshelves are fixed. Each party member can only equip one TYPE of weapon, simplifying the weapon selection process. The Missionary is arguing with a townsperson at the village exit. He joins, more or less to prove his philosophical views are correct, something like "leading by example". The Shaman is encountered just as the party enters the forest, and joins because she shares the same mission of restoring the forest as the rest of the group. Freki shows up not long after and reminds the party to put the warrior in the lead, since enemies will target the party leader more often now. The trees have gotten an overhaul in their transparency layers. The cave at the eastern edge of the forest has new music, and shows better transparency layers along its walls. The encounter rate is GREATLY reduced. The Great Tree has a newer sprite. The Ranger encounters the party almost immediately after defeating Shub-Niggurath, which prompts a brief explaination on using the TEAM function to swap heroes in and out. She joins for her own reasons, which aren't immediately made clear. The ressurected forest has received a graphical and geographic overhaul. There's a new area to the north which is blocked by a wolfling who doesn't quite trust the party. There's another path over the west side of the lake so you don't have to go around it to the east and waste time. The trees also reflect the new transparency. You can access a brand new village by going east from Midgardsorm's beach. A cutscene occurs immediately after returning to town. The party fights and quells a Berseker from his rage, who then joins the party to avoid paying off a ludicrous debt. Freki shows up to remind the heroes to see Odin after getting each gemstone. The Skald joins after entering the new area of Nidavellir due south of Midgard. All of Nidavellir is new, though the Vanaheim Colliseum is off limits for now. The desert has received a graphical and geographic overhaul in some areas to make its navigation more efficient to get in and out. Surt's Temple has gotten an entirely new level, which ties in with "falling" through pitfalls to progress through it. The Valkyrie joins here, revealing she knows about the party's mission and wants to help too. After retrieving the gemstone, the party has to fight a new boss, and becomes aware their activities are being tracked. The wintery area has gotten a graphical and geographic overhaul as well, fixing most trees and moving Rinku's location MUCH closer to the dungeon. OHR House is accessible only when it stops snowing, but there's virtually nothing to do there YET. The Ice Cave has been totally remastered. A new boss shows up after retrieving the gemstone, and the party learns a little more about these ex-heroes. Freki shows up and tells the party to hurry up. The party splits after leaving the ice cave when they are practically begged to come help Thule. All of Thule is new, except for the interiors of some buildings. The party fights off the first Einherjar and wins the respect of the beastmen for beating their best warriors. Chewie runs off and isn't seen for a while. After Thule, the party changes members again to go aid the Ranger's hometown of Alfheim. Cthulhu and the Einherjar watch from not too far off and plot against them. Once Cthulhu leaves, the Einherjar apparently plot against him. The Ranger states that only the inhabitants of Alfheim will talk with her for any period of time. The party enters her house to rest, but the Shaman runs off, as if drawn by some force. The shaman goes to the eastern side of town where a spectral image of the lunar wolf Hati taunts her and calls her "avatar", then vanishes. The 3rd Einherjar shows up and attacks the Shaman, but Freki comes to her defense. They fight off the monster called by their enemy, then the Shaman returns to th Ranger's home. At the Ranger's home, she reveals a secret passage in the back with a cursed axe, then relates that she was the one responsible for the forest's initial decay. She's drawn out of her monologue by the Skald, who informs her the village is finally under attack. After fending off cultists, the previous Einherjar shows up and fights the party, first with a summoned monster, then personally when his mana power runs too low to resummon the monster. He is defeated, reveals some of the past of the Einherjar, then asks to be burned at sea. The party complies with his request and returns to Valhalla without distractions, reuniting the whole group. The second Einherjar stops the party's ascent up Mt. Jotun and attacks them, but flees. The party resolves to continue the fight. There is a new cave in the Mt.Jotun region, but it is of the "DNGN" variety (does nothing, goes nowhere). Jotunheim's Vile Castle has a graphical update inside and outside. A scene occurs on the outside with Cthulhu taunting the heroes, then the last Einherjar introduces himself - but doesn't attack. Two extra scenes occur inside the castle, both involving the other Einherjar and how they died. A hidden boss named Orlock can also be fought in a secret chamber. Retrieving the last Brising Gemstone triggers a sequence where the party and the Einherjar finally face-off against eachother. Chewie appears from his secret hiding place and steals the collected gemstones, prompting a chase sequence. Chewie runs all the way to the Gate to Helheim, where voices from beyond tempt him with power in exchange for the necklace. He agrees, and all the monsters the Gods ever feared are released into the world......... And the demo ends right about here. The ending scene at the end of the demo is somewhat glitchy on account of a bunch of mismatched script errors. This'll get fixed of course, but there's SO much that needs to be done. So what IS left? About 100+ subquests and extra events to give the party members their spells and abilities, along with several extra bosses for each region to be fought once the Astral Wargs and other sealed monsters escape from Helheim. |