Eternal Dreamers | Free Battle RPG | 91% Positive on Steam

Thank you! This patch made the game feel fresh again even to me. Now to wait for what @Jeremiah Eastman has in store for Gladatora. He promised big things!

Look at that, I go away for a little bit and come back to see this been taken to a whole new level! Nice job!

Thank you! Maybe I can get you to give the game a try someday!

Remember the Room system? Well, that's no more! Turns out development is an endless cycle of plans you'll dismiss and reimagine.

Cue the Coaching system, which will be implemented with the next patch, which should go live by the end of the week or a bit sooner. Here is a sneak peek of the interface of the Coaching system, work-in-progress!



Step 1 shows you Marlon's coaching status and available options. The Talk option will tell you more about the character, you can make gifts to increase the character's sympathy level, and once the sympathy level reaches 100%+, use ATTRIBUTE UP to permanently increase any of the stats shown in Step 2. Once selected, the sympathy level will decrease by 100% and the character's ranking increase by one star up to rank five as shown in Step 3. Every time a character's ranking increases, the Talk option will be expanded by an additional dialogue option. Once rank five has been reached, only the Talk option will remain available for the respective character.



Gifts, which make for the essential ingredient in the Coaching system, will be available through the new Gift Shop and the Spirit Hunt. Gifts are available in three tiers, and will add increasing amounts of sympathy. Whereas the Gift Shop will have a changing selection of character-exclusive gifts, the Spirit Hunt will drop so-called Sympathy Crystals, which are gifts you can use on any character.

The Coaching system will bring something brand new to the table for Eternal Dreamers, and we hope you are looking forward to it!

So long!

What had you change your mind on the room system?

Functionally, the Coaching system isn't really any different from the former Room system. The sympathy points, ranks and stat ups always were at the core of the addition. In its previous incarnation as the Room system, however, I had modeled an entire apartment complex and the unique room per character I showed off in a past dev log. It took me quite a lot of time to do so, but in the end I remained unsatisfied with the aesthetic of the rooms. Furthermore, testing the new area showed that finding the right room at any given time proved to be a hassle.

So the Coaching system is a more centralized approach to the same idea, where the mere click of a menu point brings you to the coaching scene - your very own office - where you can select which character to call in. Not only is that infinitely more convenient, I believe it is more in tune with the tone and the setting of the game as well. Not to mention it gives your own character a stronger sense of identity as the leader of the group.

Of course this will be the first public incarnation of the new system, so I will be open to feedback as always!

I just tried out your game for the first time and I like it! The concept is interesting and giving the game a hub world where exploration is mainly tied down to different battlebacks is a smart move. There's a lot of polish but the standout is definitely the music. I've only just did the first forest mission but I'll being playing some more once I'm through with my own updates.

Thanks for trying out my game, @alcreator440! I am glad you have been enjoying it so far. That means a lot coming from someone with a super interesting project themself. With the Coaching system arriving sometime later this week, waiting for the release of the new version might just be the right thing to do before you continue to play. Either way, I can't wait for your impressions!

I'm sorry if you already mentioned this but how many hours of playtime can one expect from your demo?

That's hard to gauge in that the difficulty will vary depending on your party composition and a bit of luck with the drops. Then the game also features a hard difficulty setting that unlocks after you clear the game on its first, with progress carrying straight over. I would say that clearing the first difficulty setting of the story will take you anywhere between 3-8 hours. And that's the main quest mode only; there are additional quest-types as well as the casino that unlock as you progress. So a lot of it is down to how much you want to play, really.

Oh wow that's a lot! I don't feel so bad about releasing so much content for my own demo now lol. Some of the demos on this forum will keep you entertained longer than some current AAA titles haha.

Yeah I'll definitely wait until your next update to continue since I didn't get that far. I wouldn't mind giving a full impression of the game once I've sunk the proper time into it but honestly judging by the little bit I played any critiques I have would probably be just nitpicks. Because of this I was never a fan of giving impressions to someone who really knows what they're doing, but at the same time I understand how precious it is to receive solid feedback from a peer.

I am likely to keep updating the game's demo on here until it is content complete. So in a sense it won't be a demo anymore at that point. As you will have noticed, though, a majority of party members have yet to receive a proper piece of artwork. Since I am not in charge of that aspect of the game and rely on commissions, the timeline for those additions will likely extend a lot further into the future than my own work on the game. I won't consider the game done until all art pieces have been implemented, however, meaning this demo will be available for some time to come.

Either way, I plan for the full version of Eternal Dreamers to be a free release. One of my core aims for the game is to be inclusive for all kinds of people, and so I would like for as many kinds of people to experience it as well. So a free release makes sense to me.

Nitpicks or not, your feedback will be invaluable for sure. Besides, you're a bit early to call those shots. The game is quite monotonous in a way, which is by design, but the weaknesses that come with that only become evident as you play. I'll do my best to release a good update later this week for you to put your claws in. In the meantime, best of luck on your own project.

Today’s patch introduces the all-new Coaching system to Eternal Dreamers. Talk to your companions, prepare and make gifts to raise their sympathy, and gain permanent stat boosts as well as new dialogue options for your efforts.

This new system coincides with the opening of the gift shop in the shopping mall. This store will offer a randomized selection of gifts for you to purchase every time you finish a mission. Every gift is exclusive to one specific character, and gifts as a whole come in three tiers. Depending on the tier of the gift you hand over to a character, their sympathy level will increase by a certain amount. Once sympathy reaches 100%, you will be able to increase one attribute of your choice between HP, ATK, MTK, DEF, MDF up to a total of five times.

The gift shop is not the only source of gifts, however, as defeating spirits in the Spirit Hunt will reward you with Sympathy Crystals, unique gifts that can be used on any character. We hope this will give players an additional incentive to play the Spirit Hunt more often.

The intention behind the introduction of the coaching system is to break up the monotony of constant fighting with some minor team building mechanics. Stat boni aside, this is a great way to learn more about your favorite characters and their take on the events that transpire.

Changes as well as bug fixes can be found in the patch notes below:

• Slightly altered appearance of the medical center

• Spirits will drop Sympathy Crystals upon defeat
  • Difficulty 1: 3x Small Sympathy Crystal
  • Difficulty 2: 5x Small Sympathy Crystal
  • Difficulty 3: 7x Small Sympathy Crystal
  • Difficulty 4: 4x Big Sympathy Crystal
  • Difficulty 5: 5x Big Sympathy Crystal
  • Difficulty 6: 6x Big Sympathy Crystal
  • Difficulty 7: 3x Large Sympathy Crystal
  • Difficulty 8: 4x Large Sympathy Crystal
• The type and tier of the element and sympathy crystal that drops from each difficulty level will be specified with icons
• When selecting the spirit to summon, they will display unique icons

• Increased the amount of Infection Fragments rewarded upon completion of an Urgent Mission
  • Normal: 1x -> 3x Infection Fragment
  • Hard: 1x -> 4x Infection Fragment

• The new system ‘Coaching’ has been implemented
  • See the introductory text for this patch for an explanation of this new system
• Coaching can be accessed anytime outside of battle by using the associated option in the party menu screen
• Once a character’s attributes have been increased 5 times, it will not be possible to hand them anymore gifts

• Added new item-type: Gifts
  • Gifts will be stored in their own category in the inventory
  • Gifts are available in three tiers
• The buy price and sale value of gifts vary per type and tier:
  • Small Sympathy Crystal: 700 Gold
  • Big Sympathy Crystal: 1000 Gold
  • Large Sympathy Crystal: 1200 Gold
  • Tier 1 character-specific gift: 700 Gold
  • Tier 2 character-specific gift: 1000 Gold
  • Tier 3 character-specific gift: 1200 Gold
• Changed the availability of Lv.2 ability books from the droptable
  • Before: Hard Mode Difficulty Forest and forward
  • After: Normal Mode Difficulty Crater and forward
• The ability books for Reaper Drive and SE Redirect have been removed from the droptable

Leader

• Renamed the class Captain -> Leader
  • We opted for this change as we felt the previous name did not match the skill set, design and personality of Forest. It will take some getting used to, but we hope you will grow to like the new name for his class
  • Please feel free to suggest alternate names if you think you have good ideas
• Changed the scope of Tactical Retreat from user -> 1 ally

Manipulator

• Changed Sakia’s pre-learned abilities at the start of the game
  • Before: SE Deductor
  • After: SE Deductor & SE Redirect

• Renamed the boss-type enemy Rotten Core -> Entropia
• Reduced the attack values of the boss-type enemy Entropia on the normal mode difficulty
• Changed the ability pool of the boss-type enemy Entropia

• Ability levels will be displayed as Lv.1-5 instead of I-MAX
• Abilities with just one set level will not have a level displayed at all

• The gift shop opens its doors
  • The selection of gifts available for sale refreshes every time an Investigation-type quest is completed

• Added new section to the guide: Gifts
• Adjusted pitch of the BGM playing when fighting Entropia

• Wrong drop quantities from boss-type enemies have been restored to their proper amount
• Fixed visual pricing error occurring for weapons added in the previous patch
• Fixed unintended passability in the lobby
• Fixed typos

• Removal of the Frozen state through combat has afflicted unable to move for an additional turn regardless

• Nightmare Difficulty

Thank you for your support! Download the new version here!

I'm nowhere near as good at critique when it comes to the technical aspect of things, but I'd say that overall this game is loads of fun! It sort of evokes that Enter the Gungeon feel, where you know you're in for a grind but thats the fun of it all! I love the character art and how much detail you've put into the menus/HUD. My only real complaint is that a lot of the game uses stock assets (tilesets, animations, etc.) because it sort of detracts from how unique and colorful everything else is, but obviously you've said that will change down the road so its not that big of a deal.
Side-bar: I think my favorite thing about this game, which is admittedly a very small detail in the grand scheme, is the ability to go and hear all of the music tracks whenever you want...because they are awesome!
Anyway, keep up the great work! Looking forward to seeing more!

@Korthulhu
Thank you so much for trying out Eternal Dreamers and the feedback! Having your game compared to one of the all-time indie greats is flattering for sure! I agree that the current aesthetic can make the game look a bit derivative. I will continue to gradually update assets with original material to increase the quality of that aspect of the game. Also, you are the first person to praise the music player, which is a nice if overdue surprise!

Again, thank you so much. I will be sure to make Eternal Dreamers even better in the future.

This is honestly a wonderful idea. Especially considering that your character is not exactly a proper character. I am looking forward to the next update

If you mean the update that introduces this system: that went live yesterday! Check above!

Oh, I definitely missed the post :o

I have updated the first post to reflect recent additions to the game. My next step will be to look for people willing to play the game and record. It's been something I've longed for for some time, and I think the game is in a good place.


The Coaching Feature



The mall with the gift store



The garden with newscaster Lucy reporting new developments from the real world

I just downloaded the latest version. I'll try to give you some feedback by next weekend.