Wow....
I am really surprised this game has a "Mixed" rating.
I had a blast playing through this game.
There is a kitchy style to everyhting.
No it is not perfect. Im ok with that.
It was different and fun.
There are some lingering bugs but nothing game breaking.
If you are on the fence, looking for something different to try, give it a shot.
This title deserves way more love.
On a side note! below is my review I tried to post immediately after release when I beat the game.
At the time of writing it it wouldn't post for some reason! Cheers!
----
Ho there, Spicer! 9.5/10 on this gem. Would spend many more emeralds for such fare.
Having just beat the game once I am already planning my next party and play-through.

Positive things that stood out:
-Ambiance: The art, lore, and music / sound really hold this game together. Everything from the equipment, towns, monsters, peasants, and natives. It all screams Staglands and I really enjoyed those screams.
I felt that essential desire to simply "explore". I did not complete quests for powerful items or EXP
but simply to see more of the Staglands. Once I became too powerful the game still held my interest with this aspect.
-Combat: A good bit of fun indeed. Not to many items, so you focus more on your skill builds and party
synergy. Enough to offer diversity though and even some magic ones here and there.
Character magic starts weak but becomes quickly powerful with proper planning / learning. You must play
around a bit when you level up to find what works for you and what you enjoy.
-Story: Not overly complicated and subtle but enjoyable. The story Intrigued me from the get go and I looked forward
to watching it play out. From the story setup at the beginning of the game to how those facts and seamlessly woven
into the narrative.
-Only a little hand holding: Honestly, I wished this game was a little harder. After the initial hurdle of learning it nuances manually through some small trial and error, you will become most competent in all manors of survival. Do not get me wrong! The tool tips offer you 90% of the information required to make intelligent decisions. You need to strive
for that other 10% though and therein lies some magic. The game could use a bit more stretch and longevity in some EXP pacing. You will speed through the middle levels of your characters, but boy what fun it was teaching yourself what works in getting there.

Aspects that need work:
-Bugs that are already being cleaned up but use multiple save files in case you run into one that is an issue.
-Storyline cohesiveness: multiple times I would find aspects of plot progression before or after I had interacted
with other story elements that were not progressively implemented. I.E. You already know "so and so" isn't really a
merchant because you have a journal entry in your inventory saying so that your characters are clueless about when you talk to so and so for the first time. It's news
to them. This is somewhat sloppy and could use some cleaning up.
-Rigid Ending(s): You're choices throughout the play-through affect how the ending turns out... regardless of
how you feel it should. You are not given a choice of how you respond to the final conflict, with a final choice that is chosen for you by the npc and you i.e. your main character based of of your actions throughout your journey. Personally, I do not like my characters descisions/ reactions chosen for me. This does encourage replaying the title in search of new endings but is a somewhat backhanded slap to this face after spending 30hours to get to the last moments of your epic struggle.

Overall Impression: 9.5/10
I was expecting this game to bring some of that Baldur's Gate magic but in a new setting that did not feel
like a cheap imitation. Serpent in the Staglands delivered the experience with more aplomb then expected. As you say.
-> [Walk away]

Wow.... I am really surprised this game has a "Mixed" rating. I had a blast playing through this game. There is a kitchy style to everyhting. No it is not perfect. Im ok with that. It was different and fun. There are some lingering bugs but nothing game breaking. If you are on the fence, looking for something different to try, give it a shot. This title deserves way more love. On a side note! below is my review I tried to post immediately after release when I beat the game. At the time of writing it it wouldn't post for some reason! Cheers! ---- Ho there, Spicer! 9.5/10 on this gem. Would spend many more emeralds for such fare. Having just beat the game once I am already planning my next party and play-through. Positive things that stood out: -Ambiance: The art, lore, and music / sound really hold this game together. Everything from the equipment, towns, monsters, peasants, and natives. It all screams Staglands and I really enjoyed those screams. I felt that essential desire to simply "explore". I did not complete quests for powerful items or EXP but simply to see more of the Staglands. Once I became too powerful the game still held my interest with this aspect. -Combat: A good bit of fun indeed. Not to many items, so you focus more on your skill builds and party synergy. Enough to offer diversity though and even some magic ones here and there. Character magic starts weak but becomes quickly powerful with proper planning / learning. You must play around a bit when you level up to find what works for you and what you enjoy. -Story: Not overly complicated and subtle but enjoyable. The story Intrigued me from the get go and I looked forward to watching it play out. From the story setup at the beginning of the game to how those facts and seamlessly woven into the narrative. -Only a little hand holding: Honestly, I wished this game was a little harder. After the initial hurdle of learning it nuances manually through some small trial and error, you will become most competent in all manors of survival. Do not get me wrong! The tool tips offer you 90% of the information required to make intelligent decisions. You need to strive for that other 10% though and therein lies some magic. The game could use a bit more stretch and longevity in some EXP pacing. You will speed through the middle levels of your characters, but boy what fun it was teaching yourself what works in getting there. Aspects that need work: -Bugs that are already being cleaned up but use multiple save files in case you run into one that is an issue. -Storyline cohesiveness: multiple times I would find aspects of plot progression before or after I had interacted with other story elements that were not progressively implemented. I.E. You already know "so and so" isn't really a merchant because you have a journal entry in your inventory saying so that your characters are clueless about when you talk to so and so for the first time. It's news to them. This is somewhat sloppy and could use some cleaning up. -Rigid Ending(s): You're choices throughout the play-through affect how the ending turns out... regardless of how you feel it should. You are not given a choice of how you respond to the final conflict, with a final choice that is chosen for you by the npc and you i.e. your main character based of of your actions throughout your journey. Personally, I do not like my characters descisions/ reactions chosen for me. This does encourage replaying the title in search of new endings but is a somewhat backhanded slap to this face after spending 30hours to get to the last moments of your epic struggle. Overall Impression: 9.5/10 I was expecting this game to bring some of that Baldur's Gate magic but in a new setting that did not feel like a cheap imitation. Serpent in the Staglands delivered the experience with more aplomb then expected. As you say. -> [Walk away]