"Do you guys use an xp system or milestone leveling?" "Actually our table has switched to a pure blue-skull approach"

This looks like a game from the alternate timeline where Bethesda took all the right lessons from Morrowind.

Thank you for explaining enough to get us excited, but not actually spoiling any of the mechanics you're supposed to discover on your own! It's much appreciated.

Thank you for reviewing this game. Honestly, it wasn't even on my radar. I hadn't even heard of Dread Delusion.

I misread the title as Bread Delusion, and now I'm imagining a game where you play as a baker making orders for Lovecraftian monsters. Cthulu demands more bagels!

I've really liked the Bytesized format where you can still have a shorter review without the constraints of the literal 3 mins allowed for the 3MR reviews. The extra wiggle room for a minute or 2 really helps the reviews.

I love bytesized indie reviews

@SecondWindGroup I'm a fan of the change you guys made in the credits. It's nice to have ad-libbed or barely-scripted dialogue from the writer / narrator rather than a-tune-I-will-just-skip. Thank-yous and elaboration on the review are nice. I especially liked the off-the-cuff recommendation Marty threw in at the end of his. TLDR: More dialogue during the credits is vastly better than "listen to song or skip."

Fun Fact! This was part of Haunted PS1's EEK3 2020 and later got featured in the 2023 presentation! So glad this got released!

Thank you Jesse, and thank you everyone at Second Wind and everyone that supports Second Wind😄💖

I really like the candid talking that happens during the credits. Please keep doing this, because it helps make the review feel personal.

This is what you call "sandbox open world RPG" where exploration is rewarding, meaningful and thoughtful. And not where you just mindlessly rolling around thru copy-pasted areas and bosses in order to get "rewarded" with a pile of stones, ashes and similar crap...

A very Jesse game! Loving those authentically pre-Voodoo graphics retro visuals! Good to see a Jesse review again! I like the post review talky bits you add now, and helps get folks to watch the entire video instead of closing it when the names fly by. Hope you can stream this on your personal channel Jesse! Deathtrap Dungeon vibes, but without polygonal butts or sassy walk.

God damn there are so many great indie games I have no idea how to handle all of them 😅

Another great review by Mr. Galena. The callback to Gothic, which brought us "Accept Bug Meat" made me smile ;)

I regularly use Steams Discovery queue, but this apparently received Ignore from me. Must be unfortunate combination of screenshots and tags... Thank you so much for the review, what an incredible miss this would have been for me! Tutorial in the style of "just do stuff until you learn" was my favorite way to play in the olden days of gaming, and this game looks like the culmination of Pixel art, exploration and just pure enjoyment of understanding new world.

I loved your review & it made me somewhat curious about a game I would otherwise have ignored. Your review was concise, informative and I listened to every word. ^_^ Seriously, sometimes comments by the reviewers as the credits roll are the best part.

I don't know if I have the time or patience for this game, but it does sound really neat and I"m glad you enjoyed your time with it. Nice to see a review from Jesse again!

Jesse you're too good 😊 Glad you got to enjoy a game for review again! Cheers and hope you're as well as can be 🍻🙏🏻

So awesome to see a game that my eyes would normally skip right over be highlighted so well, i kinda want to play this now

Nice to see you back, Jesse!

Really enjoying all of these Bytsized reviews! So happy to see these games I might otherwise miss out on.

I know it's been mentioned a few times on past videos, but will reiterate that the little banter over credits has been a nice addition to recent videos that I hope continues. Thanks for the review, found it very informative on a unique game!

ive been playing through it and im absolutely loving it, everyone who loves classic RPGs needs to give it a shot

Definitely worth the money, did two playthroughs myself in a week and still have a few more quest options/branches to explore. As long as you don't care about the lack of combat depth, it's a chill RPG/exploration experience with a lot to do off the beaten path on your own volition.

I'm genuinely loving these Bytesized reviews because I love great indie games but have trouble finding ones thats stand out. I think I've wishlisted or bought every game you've recommended so far!

the first 30 seconds of this review convinced me I need this game

These bytesized reviews for indies I might not have heard about are always appreciated keep it up

Love these short reviews, lots of cool indies lately

I bought this game as soon as it appeared on my steam recommendations at 10% off (if I'm not mistaken) and just started playing it to get a feel for the game, since I'd never heard about it before. It's still installed but I'm currently way too immersed in Outcast New Beginning and will have to finish it before I dive any deeper in this one. That was all a preamble to say that your review moved this one a few notches up my queue. I mean, once you compare it to Gothic (and Arx Fatalis to boot), the game instantly becomes even more interesting than it already was.

I played through this this game before I found your video. Playing this was a wonderful experience. I was looking for a game thats mystical and exploration heavy. This game delivered on all fronts. This is a game that rewards you for sticking to your exploration.. You will find many: ill fortunes, also: many good fortunes.

Fantastic, I was wanting a review of this game.

Nice video. Fun looking game. The Temu Elden Ring is something I will buy when building new pc. Looking forward to the next review. Keep up the good work.

I've almost completed the full release, I think... and my favourite part of the game is the story by far. Almost every quest, big and small, have a very morally grey or difficult decision. Most of the time you are left saddened by the outcome to some extent. Every decision you seem to make someone is left with the short end of the stick and it adds a lot to the atmosphere of the game. You get a real sense of the desperation and sadness of a dying world. It's weird the way this game can make you both hopeful and melancholic at the same time

this new series is awesome, keep this coming

You are a prisoner. That immediatley made me think of Gothic. Not that the game looks anything like it, despite the older looking graphics. Hmm this looks like something that could be up my alley.

"I seem to be falling to my death, again. It's a good thing I brought this book."

a bit surprised that game 'Outward' wasn't mentioned o.O I mean this seems to be in the same vein of thought. Thou a well done review of an interesting looking game concept. Bravo, man!

I love that PS1 style polygonal graphics are finally getting some love! It used to be a limitation of technology at the time, now it is a style choice and I couldn't be happier.

Love the art style to this one

I've been eager to see Lovely Hellplace's true potential after they made their debut in an earlier Dread X Collection (either 1 or 2), through their cyberpunk Brexit simulator "Shatter". Definitely going to have to dive into this Dread Delusion once I'm done with Islands of the Caliph. Which is a dungeon-crawler where you, and this might sound strange, roleplay as someone discovering how to be Muslim, in what seems to be post-apocalyptic Arabia after a Great Flood. It's a relatively simple blobber, but the Muslim role-play aspect has me VERY interested to see how things go. And I'm especially intrigued by some very out-of-place ruins on one of the islands, since said ruins remind me of Might & Magic.

Well presented, Jesse! This game looks pretty cool, I think I'll have to try it after it gets some fixes

I've only put two hours in but I'm super into it so far. Doesn't hold your hand and demands your attention, but is also crazy forgiving and doesn't at all seem interested in punishing you for doing the wrong thing.

Just when I thought the latest splurge of Indies would drown out this strange interesting world (they may still do but at least you guys gave it at least one video)

Now thats a good, old school, crunchy game review. Good job! Game looks cool too, I guess.

I bet some people already said it, but you DO gain XP from completing quests, same popup appears as when picking up XP skulls.

Wow, this looks pretty great!

I REALLY can't wait to play this game... When its just patched its last holes up. Beautiful so far ❣️

I remember Arx Fatalis backnin the day. You upset one person in a town the whole area is permanently hostile the rest of the game.

I bought this game a week ago based solely on the fact that it looks like Disco Morrowind. I haven't gotten to play it since then, but I'm glad to see that my instincts were correct.

I'm really enjoying it so far. My only complaint is that, at least early on, your only major reward for exploration is potions and the odd Delusion skull. Maybe the itemization gets better later on.

bytesized always giving me games to wishlist dayum

Apparently this has been in my steam library for a year? Must have been in a bundle or something. Either way, appreciate the review, it looks great! Any chance of a loose outline of how long I should expect to put into it? Just come off the back of a couple of BIG RPGs so I'm far more tempted to install now if we're talking 20 hours than 100.

I played a short game jam dread x game by this devs a few years ago called shattered and it showcased some really cool concepts and visuals despite it's short development. I'm looking forward to seeing what these devs can do with much more dev time. If it's atmosphere is anything like as strange as shattered then we are in for a treat.

This game sounds like a great change of pace, thanks I'll give it a whirl

This reminds me of Lunacid mixed with Morrowind. Will look forward to buying it in the future.

This looks great 👍

I've had it 4 over a year & love it. Morrowind acid trip. Plays great on Deck. Only thing I don't like is lock picking. It is chance based instead of skill with not enough lock picks.

I'll let this cook a tad longer. but i think ill get it.

Unfortunately, I don't care for the N64/Playstation/Pentium era of polygonal graphics, and I'm old enough to have lived through it. I'm sure it's nostalgic to some folks, but I feel it doesn't hold up as a modern-day aesthetic. Sprites are fine, but for polygons, it has to be PS2 era or newer in order for me to be able to engage with it.

I am eagerly awaiting a release on GOG. (a few other Dread games have popped up there, so I'm hoping.)

Can't wait to play this on Windows 97

Looks unique and interesting

This game might be a miss for me, or at least I'll see if I'm up for more of this type of throwback game after I get around to playing Lunacid. Anyway tho, this is the certainly the most useful series Second Wind does in my opinion, keep it up.

Another indie homerun, great to see

good review

Well this sounds very cool

can someone tell me where to get the compass

Wowzers! This looks like it's made for my demographic. Time to get this debit card rolling.

you do get exp for quests tho. Maybe not all of them, but most important ones.

I love this game (for what it cost). Not perfect, but really engaging.

Im really into this game, just really fun to get lost in

This looks and sounds like an episode of Behind Schedule lol.

Bigups

Indies: constant gems AAA: soil themselves and reach for your wallet

Played a demo of Dread Delusion previously, bouncing off of it pretty hard due to the complete lack of direction or any feeling of progress / progression. It is unfortunate to hear that the full product is kind of doubling down on the aimlessness; as while I explored plenty, it never felt like I was finding anything of value / context / direction.

"go to a forest to the east" >goes west Huh?

The music thing, is acaullty buged. The music isnt playing when its supposed to.

Indie Morrowind? Not for me, but I know there should be a ton of hype for this.

Name wise, I assumed it was another Dread X Collection thing. But seeing the review it seems to be an interesting fully thought out game. Might have to wishlist it, even if it might not be in my wheel house.

Oh boy i waited since the pandemic for the full release and i missed the day.

Dread Delusion is great. Probably my biggest gripe with it is the lockpicking """mechanic""". A dice roll that you have zero control over, that will just burn through your lockpicks. I sincerely hope it's a placeholder for the early access, because it just feels in no way rewarding or interesting - just a 'pray to RNGesus" moment. At least that was the way when I last played long ago. Maybe it has changed.

All the things said about it mechanically sounds pretty appealing, but it looks a little more gruesome than I think I personally would like? I hope it does well.

Sounds interesting but also makes my eyes hurt

Well, the fact that it's open world turns me away, but I also just finished platting Tunic with its "discover the mechanics yourself" gameplay and I'm more than a little curious about this game with the same process because of it.

This and lunacid are my two favorite modern kings field games. Of the two lunacid is probably more fun gameplay, but less story driven. I wish the two could be mixed.

The monsters look so skrunkly.

Reminds me somewhat of Morrowind and Baroque

This looks so wonderfully weird! Hopefully they can iron out the little issues.

Sounds kind of like Elder Scrolls back in the Morrowind days.

Wait 19.99 for a full blown Open World RPG? That seems like a steal!

Wish I had the capacity to play this.....sigh

There are a few things worth knowing before buying this game: Get it for vibes and lore. It does both pretty well with one caveat, which is that the music tends to play the same short track for literally several hours with no variation. I found it preferable to mute the music, sadly. But here are the bigger problems: Combat and general RPG systems are extremely shallow and undercooked. Most explorations rewards are combat related things you don't need because this game is the easiest game ever made. The starting weapon - a broken, rusty sword - is all you need. After a few hours, you're drowning in healing potions, mana potions and all sorts of other consumables that you will NEVER need. I think it's a huge shame. Exploration is severely undercut by how almost nothing you find is really needed at all - and therefore also not interesting. I'm not complaining it isn't Dark Souls. I'm complaining that this game is one of the most pointlessly trivial games I've ever played. My character has NO combat related stats above starting values and it's still a total walk-in-the-park experience. In other words, this game is BADLY in need of mods.

Wish the terrain looked better

This is exactly the kind of game where a Modern Gamer would get lost in the first 5 minutes, refund and write a bad review with stuff like: "not enough waypoints".

I wanted to love this game, I wish it was good - but it feels very hollow and stiff, with a bizarrely high run-speed to paper over the fact that huge swathes of the game world contain zero interactable elements. it's very pretty, but it falls flat upon deeper inspection.

Given its major bugs in the main features I find myself wondering if the lack of a proper in-game guidance is from poor development rather than a design choice

Nice Elder Scrolls 3 review lol

Combat is definitely not the point of this game, it's a very vibes-heavy and exploration-based game. It's also not anywhere near as "horror" as the adverts indicate. Altogether, I've loved the chill atmoshpere.