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Game preview 04 March 2016, 13:48

author: Jakub Mirowski

Caravan Hands-on – Once upon a time in the Middle East

Caravan wants us to take up a life of a merchant in the Arabian Peninsula, and this doesn't sound bad. However, after my time spent with the game itself, I can’t help but wonder if the developers unwillingly compromised their game with half-baked ideas.

This article was written prior to the game's release.

This text was based on the PC version.

Caravan in a nutshell:
  1. An exploratory-economic roguelike with RPG elements, set in the Arabian Peninsula during the first centuries A.D. It also features fantastical elements from One thousand and one nights;
  2. A tale of a young merchant whose home village was razed to the ground;
  3. An opportunity to roam and trade in the Middle East;
  4. Random encounters during our travels, such as an attack of wild animals, or meeting a sage;
  5. Bargaining and combat as a mini-game combining rock-paper-scissors and dice mechanics.

The story of my affair with the Caravan began with great hopes. Then came the headlong collision with the concrete wall of reality, and, finally, disappointment. The idea of leading your own merchant caravan through the Arabian Peninsula in the first century A.D. appealed to me more than I’d ever imagine it would. If only it Matters Games provided the game with some clever, clear mechanics, they would have my axe and my bow. Unfortunately, the intriguing atmosphere of the Middle East combined with a mixture of different genres was weighed down by a painfully slow pace of play, and an absolute lack of transparency.

Let me begin with a disclaimer: the only reason I grew disappointed with Caravan is because I’d initially had such high hopes for this game. Its target is a microscopic niche of people to whom leading a trade operation in the Middle East and plunging into the Arabian culture would be a real and unique treat. In this respect, it Matters Games managed to pull it off: all the bigger cities, merchant settlements and oases were done with a great attention to detail – derived from letters and scripts of ancient travelers. On top of that, it all has a tint of the fantastical world as known from the Arabian Nights. The music accompanying our journey is amazing; it really brings about the atmosphere of the ancient Arabic world.

Thought that the Middle east was only sand, stones and some more sand? Surprise! - 2016-03-04
Thought that the Middle east was only sand, stones and some more sand? Surprise!

The thing is, nothing seems to be working the way it should, save for the music and the atmosphere. First contact with the interface can drive you insane. Much of the screen is stuffed with things that certainly are there for something, the game just doesn’t explain what it is, so we have to experiment. I believe that providing the icon of the world map with a texture saying that “this is the world map icon” wouldn’t be so hard. Of course, it’s a problem for the first half an hour, but from the very beginning, the obscurity of the game is challenging.

Trading the goods and trying to predict which will bring the biggest profit in the next town is the best aspect of this game. - 2016-03-04
Trading the goods and trying to predict which will bring the biggest profit in the next town is the best aspect of this game.

It gets somewhat better later on. As a son from a wealthy merchant family, we leave our palace to set out for our first trading journey to a nearby village. We refill our water supplies and sell the goods that are of highest demand in the region (depending on the region, we can encounter places where, e.g., spices can be bough for a song, but furs cost a fortune) and buy things that could be useful in our mansion. Yet, upon the return to our city, we find nothing there but smoke and corpses. So we wander away and embark on a journey during which we’ll lose a lot and earn as much again, while trying to find out who is responsible for burning down our home.

Developers assure us that the game world was based on legit historical sources. - 2016-03-04
Developers assure us that the game world was based on legit historical sources.

In reality, it looks like this: on the map screen, we choose our destination, and then watch the progress of our journey, which can be halted by random encounters. It could, e.g., be a skirmish with wild animals or bandits; we could meet a fellow merchant, or a sage who will allow the members of our party to acquire new skills. The dialogues and other actions are conducted within a 2D environment. It doesn’t sound bad, but the main issue is the pace. Now, I have nothing against games that require patience, but Caravan forced me to just sit and watch the cursor for a good half a minute. I was unable to do anything until a random event demanding my attention spared me the torture. You could get over that a couple of times, but imagine what happens after a couple of hours.

The graphics are fine. Too bad they are complemented by horribly slow animations. - 2016-03-04
The graphics are fine. Too bad they are complemented by horribly slow animations.

The combat and trading system are not the best things to happen to this game either. The fact that those two seemingly unrelated activities were merged into one mini-game seems bizarre. I wouldn’t utter a word of complaint if this was a mini-game based on some clear principles. Meanwhile, we get a sort of an intricate game of rock-paper-scissors: each side can develop one of the three attributes by choosing dice that provide different bonuses. The one who manages to gather more points in a duel comes out the winner. Don’t get me wrong here, this type of mechanics can work out pretty well even when it gets really complex (like Gwent in The Witcher 3). But we should bear in mind that it’s only a mini-game – as such, it ought to have a set of clear rules explained in an approachable manner. I’ve seen that mini-game two times during the presentation and then played three rounds myself and won each of them, but I still wonder whether it was due to my choices or some sort of divine intervention.

Definitely too many digits. My human brain gave up after the first five. - 2016-03-04
Definitely too many digits. My human brain gave up after the first five.

Bottom line? I was frustrated. There’s no doubt that it Matters Games’ production has the potential to attract a certain niche of players, but currently the developers are guilty of one of game dev’s capital offences – their game simply isn’t playable yet, in spite of having that competence in theory. Snail-paced gameplay, rather vague interface, and a couple of overdone ideas are not a good mix. There’s still hope, however faint. If much effort were to be put into polishing those elements, we would get a really good roguelike exploratory-economic RPG – and such a mix would be really impressive. Caravan will still blip on my radar, but I can’t help but feel skeptical after the first encounter with the game.

Jakub Mirowski

Jakub Mirowski

Associated with Gamepressure.com since 2012: he worked in news, editorials, columns, technology, and tvgry departments. Currently specializes in ambitious topics. Wrote both reviews of three installments of the FIFA series, and an article about a low-tech African refrigerator. Apart from GRYOnline.pl, his articles on refugees, migration, and climate change were published in, among others, Krytyka Polityczna, OKO.press, and Nowa Europa Wschodnia. When it comes to games, his scope of interest is a bit more narrow and is limited to whatever FromSoftware throws out, the more intriguing indie games and party-type titles.

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