Although I can not claim to be an expert when it comes to games that are text-based, with my only experience of it here on Steam with Zombie Exodus and a couple of Flash-based titles from back in the day, the type of game that primarily focuses on text lends itself well to storytelling and those who are less focused on the visuals than they are immersing themselves into a world that is as deep as it is wide.

That is to say Roadwarden has a lot to offer where the typical Roleplaying Game experience typically shines in, as you take the role of either a Fighter, Mage or Scholar acting as a 'free-roaming lawman' tasked with investigating the disappearance of a fellow roadwarden that previously visited the northern area some months prior, in which one has to explore the roads connecting the various villages and hamlets together alongside other places of interest.

How you go about this is a specialty of the RPG genre, seeing as just simply surviving can be quite a challenge depending on the difficulty chosen as I would personally recommend the Standard difficulty for starting off with to see how far you can go and if it's either too easy or perhaps too tough for you on your first go. (With the 40 days being the standard time limit for how long you are allowed to explore the region, as the Casual difficulty removes this time limit altogether and starts you off with increased resources whilst Restrictive reduces the time limit down to 30 days and makes roaming around in night time more dangerous and even possibly life-endangering!)

Though it should be noted that this is far from a hardcore RPG that punishes you whenever it can get the opportunity to, as any failed combat encounters resulting in your death will allow you to step back and try it again which, when combined with the ability to make upwards of several dozen save files, should allow a prepared player to not softlock themselves out of some better outcomes for particular quests or factions.

Touching briefly upon the three classes, each one has their own unique advantages that should come expected for anyone who knows their RPG games well, with Fighters having a better melee weapon and specific combat options that guarantee a good or advantageous result over the other two, Mages allow the usage of spells via 'Pneuma' which slowly restores itself each day alongside the use of Spirit Rocks to refill it that can aid you in certain situations where a Fighter would struggle whilst Scholars take a more passive role, choosing not to excel in anything combat-related in favour of using their vast knowledge of the lands and its mysteries to have a much easier time communicating with the local tribes and solving most puzzles and riddles easier than the other two classes.

As far as the survival aspect of this game goes, seeing as I did hint at earlier, the four core stats you have to pay attention to are Vitality, essentially your health that acts as how well you are currently doing that plays into a few physical and endurance-based encounters, Hunger, which primarily acts as what allows you to overcome physical struggles, Gambeson, which acts as your armour and protection from various strikes against both monsters and human enemies alike, and Appearance, which is a surprisingly important factor that many end up neglecting as this impacts not only the prices offered by various vendors (both goods you sell to them and their own goods bought by you) but also how must they trust you, which affects what services they offer to you as well as the quests they give to you. (A fifth does technically exist, but it's class-based and varies from one player to the next)

Now for a point of contention here, seeing as one may glance upon the game's description here on Steam and read that it is a 'Text RPG', giving them the vibes that this is some archaic and truly outdated artifact from the early 70s, and feel justified in dismissing this game outright.

I can happily confirm that Roadwarden is not THAT old as far as inspirations goes thankfully! Seeing as it offers various charming illustrations of each of the game's many areas that you are likely to be visiting on multiple occasions, which helps to contextualize where you are and give some nice 'flavour' of sorts to the well-written dialogue that you'll be reading throughout your adventures in the north, giving some much-needed background variety that such titles as Zork and Night House (does anyone remember these games truly?) lacked due to the technology being so limited at the time.

If there was any criticisms that I did have to raise, personally I would have liked more of an emphasis on the dangers of the north that you are tasked with exploring, seeing as you will rarely die on even the standard difficulty outside of certain battles where choosing the wrong action will guarantee death, (even with the upgraded gambeson and at full vitality + hunger!) since it would have made for a nice addition to throw into the Restrictive difficulty to make it even less forgiving for veterans who may know mostly how the game is played and desire some 'RNG' to a variety of possible encounters, most of whom are more dangerous and present some serious challenge to them!

Other than lacking a little of that juicy 'roguelite' spice that I feel would have complimented this otherwise excellent story-focused game and a problematic bug with a specific NPC (mainly Iason of Pelt of the North where, once you complete a certain quest, you are seemingly locked out of buying quarrels for your crossbow or a shield for protection) that made progression a tad more frustrating than necessary, I feel like this is an overall satisfying experience for those who are after this type of RPG here, given the sheer amount of endings one can experience depending on how much (or little!) they did during their time in the region!

In conclusion, for anyone who is after a medieval-themed RPG that takes homage from the likes of the Witcher series or Darkwood and puts the narrative in the limelight whilst gameplay takes second-stage and supports the wonderful storyline crafted by Moral Anxiety Studio, I would highly recommend giving Roadwarden a shot as it's the closest you will get to a modern text RPG that welcomes casual gamers who are willing to give this niche genre a shot which, given all of the effort put into this indie, is a journey that'll stand out from the crowd!

Arriving at the post-review section for those who made it this far, here's some tips that I'll put under as spoilers for those who would rather explore and work out the game's mechanics for themselves, however for those who need a helping hand here:

• Travelling to Creeks when it becomes night time without the shelter unlocked is a non-issue as the path linked to Foggy's Lake is the only one where you will not get attacked by creatures of the night
• Killing the spider in its cabin (an area you skip if you go north past the stone slab) will give you the opportunity to take some spider silk that will save you a lot of dragon coins early on with a free gambeson upgrade in Howler's Dell that fully restores your armour, even when fully damaged prior to being upgraded
• For Fighters, engaging with the guards outside Pelt of the North at a game of Axe Throwing is good for getting 3 dragon coins per day (not guaranteed, but a high chance!) whilst also being a cheap way of keeping fed and clean at the inn
• Buying certain goods from one place can easily net you a profit at another, a few examples being White Marshes that pays well for Iron scraps, Bronze Axe fetches a good price at Foggy's and exchanging a Fish Trap (sold at Creeks for 2 dragon coins) for a Seal's Skin at the Fishing Hermit and trading it in Howler's Dell for a much higher price, although some goods given to you that are worth a lot will affect quest progress and/or relationships with others if sold without the completion of said quest