Golden Treasure: The Great Green

 PC
Metascore
tbd

No score yet - based on 2 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1 out of 2
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 2
  3. Negative: 0 out of 2
  1. Adventure Gamers
    Aug 21, 2019
    70
    A lush, expansive, genre-bending adventure, Golden Treasure is worth seeking out for a fresh new experience, even if not all of the game’s ambitious elements fit together snugly.

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
tbd

No user score yet- Awaiting 1 more rating

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3 out of 3
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 3
  3. Negative: 0 out of 3
  1. Coconut-Tea
    Mar 22, 2021
    10
    A beautiful, educative game that is a masterpiece, whether you love to read or not. You do not have to read to play it properly. It isA beautiful, educative game that is a masterpiece, whether you love to read or not. You do not have to read to play it properly. It is beautiful, the sounds, the music, all of it, a symphonia. Very well thought out, replayable with value, an ultimate favourite of mine. Amazing, truly, amazing - that's all there is to say.… Full Review »
  2. dghenke
    Aug 1, 2019
    10
    Giving a 10/10 score to Golden Treasure: The Great Green seems contradictory when, considered purely as a video game, it is deeply flawed. ButGiving a 10/10 score to Golden Treasure: The Great Green seems contradictory when, considered purely as a video game, it is deeply flawed. But it earns every point of that score, as few other games I've played have been as potentially transformative an experience for me as a player, and few other games have stuck with me like this one has. If you have any interest at all in the subject matter, or if anything you've read about this game makes you curious: You owe it to yourself to play this.

    It's probably worth talking a little bit about what this game is not. It is not a hidden object game, a point-and-click adventure, nor an electronic choose-your-own-adventure book (though it owes more than a little to the latter). It isn't a dating sim. It also isn't an "otherkin" or furry game (though folks in those subcultures certainly might enjoy it). And it absolutely isn't an action game or something designed with short attention spans in mind. This is the slowest of slow boils. That's absolutely the right choice for the story the game's authors wanted to tell, but you have to be ready to enjoy that kind of ride.

    The core gameplay loop is that of a "visual novel". You are presented with a situation (via mostly static images and text), and then must decide -- from a limited list of options, with no time pressure -- how your character reacts. There are light RPG elements (stats and inventory). This is a roguelite; you get one save slot, and death deletes your save. (You do get three "do-overs" from the start of day when you die, but the third death is permanent.)

    You can also earn permanent buffs that carry over into all future games. While the game tutorializes this adequately, it fails to make clear the overwhelming importance of this mechanic. During your first few playthoughs, expect your dragon to have a brief and unhappy life. You won't be able to pass the stat checks you need to make headway, and will spend all your time fighting a losing battle against hunger and injury. Things open up dramatically after the first few plays. You also have the option to start a new game from any of the three parts of the game you've previously reached; that softens the impact of a single disastrous decision, while still keeping narrative tension high.

    If you want to experience all the content, you will absolutely need to make maps and notes. There's a "ticking clock" mechanic, in which you have a limited number of days to explore each of the game's three chapters, and you can't afford to waste moves if you are trying to reach certain outcomes.

    My biggest criticism of Golden Treasure: The Great Green is that I didn't much care for the handful of real-time arcade-y bits. While I like and play reflex-based games, some of the hunting minigames (the chase sequences in particular) seemed clunky, unresponsive and out-of-place in the larger context of the game as a whole.

    While the music and artwork (and especially some of the character designs) didn't really resonate with my personal aesthetic sense the way they apparently did for many others, I appreciate the passion and skill that went into both. They did grow on me a bit as I played.

    On the whole, Golden Treasure: The Great Green is a true diamond in the rough, and a whole far greater than the sum of its parts. I really hope Dreaming Door Studios gets the chance to develop more games building on this setting and these characters.    … Full Review »
See all user reviews »