Sovereign Syndicate - Review After 100%

Talking about my experiences with Sovereign Syndicate after a thorough look at the title!
Timestamps
00:00 Intro
00:53 Spoiler Warning
01:23 Technical State
02:10 Story Set Up & Thoughts
03:51 Characters
07:00 Character Progression
09:59 Gameplay & World
11:51 Steam Deck
12:27 Positives/Negatives
13:56 Conclusion
14:28 Wrap Up
Intro Music By Juan Andrés Matos, www.juanmatosmusic.com/
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#gaming #gamereviews ##sovereignsyndicate

[@crimsonherringstudios]

Thanks so much for the coverage, glad you enjoyed it!

[@aclumsyspycrab5289]

Can't wait for the game, buying it first thing tomorrow!

[@crimsonherringstudios]

@@aclumsyspycrab5289 Thanks for your support!

[@skintxisu]

You guys have any plan for console releases?

[@IMBREISGAU]

Can’t wait for the game 🙏🏽 hope you all the success in the world. We need more game like this.

[@jackmalin2528]

Would love to get that london map from the game

[@chaidroid]

Oooh this was on my watchlist. Thanks for covering it!

[@sonarthecat17]

I was at their launch party yesterday. Wonderful devs and a phenomenal success for a first time studio.

[@Darkholow]

Been waiting on a review on this one ever since I enjoyed my time with the demo. Happy to hear that the writing is good which is what I value most. Can't wait to dive into this tomorrow! :D Thanks for the review Mort!

[@crimsonherringstudios]

Thanks for your support!

[@yorkipudd1728]

Same. 80%story with 20% jank is perfect for me. He loved the lore....Very intrigued by the setting and character choices. Wish listed. Glad Morty reviewed this one! Twas nowhere on my radar.

[@Pedone_Rosso]

Ok, I'm sold. Thanks for your reviews and videos!

[@torvalis1968]

A great steampunk game from back in the day was Arcanum. I wish they would do a remake or continuation of that.

[@CrazyxEnigma]

Here's hoping. Microsoft has two of the three leads Leonard Boyarsky is with Obsidian and Jason Anderson is with InXile and now with the Activision merger they have the rights to the IP.

[@jmmywyf4lyf]

Yeah I almost bought that game a few weeks ago myself. I never got to play it, but hearing it doesn't run very well modem systems is enough for me to not try. I still haven't been able to play the original Deus ex, the first and second fallout, and now with my newer computer can no longer play Knights of the Old republic.

[@arkamukherjee457]

​@@jmmywyf4lyfYou CAN play KOTOR on modern computers. You can emulate the Switch version which runs flawlessly.

[@jmmywyf4lyf]

@@arkamukherjee457 Let me rephrase. KOTOR will run. But you have to do alot of work to make it function properly. You are only goven the option for like 800x900 resolution, for example. On some rigs, it will outright refuse to boot up. So while I still have my pc with 7th gen hardware, and a 1070fe that will run it.. Newer hardware is becoming more difficult. You have to fix it, or it wont run. Emulating the switch version, is not the game running on modern hardware. And kindve makes my point. And console versions are rarely the same as pc versions.

[@arkamukherjee457]

@@jmmywyf4lyf I mean there is no point going through the difficulty if you can emulate and get a better experience. The Switch version has better textures, controls and scales well to 4k which the OG version can't without making text too small. Unfortunately, KOTOR 1 will not be updated anymore, and the best way going forward is emulating the newest version Aspyr ported.

[@guilbartt3006]

Sounds like something I’d enjoy a lot, hope I can find the time to try it out

[@coconutologist]

Thanks for the video. Steampunk worlds rarely disappoint. Onward to 300k. All glory to the algorithm.

[@m.o.x.d]

As a HUGE fan of Disco Elysium I am SO glad to see studios taking inspiration from it! Really hope to see more in this style, from both this studio and others.

[@yorkipudd1728]

Great review! Really glad you covered it. Happy to support this one, and ive enough accent's in my head to cover no VO.

[@Koshak87]

You are one of the best youtubers I know to give a copy of a game like this for a pre-launch review.

[@cmr2003]

Pretty interesting, I'll check it out sooner or later.

[@whocares3520]

Thank you, I am always interested in your take on your reviews. Was looking for this review, and agree the price point is what is going to convince me though

[@parkranga]

Looks amazing, I'll definitely try it when i clear out my backlog.

[@chriseggroll]

i just heard about this game so of course you've already reviewed it :D i picked it up on sale and looking forward to playing it soon

[@MTLGSE]

Will definitely check this out

[@arkamukherjee457]

Bought this immediately. Happy to support a small time studio with big dreams.

[@massbear]

This sounds really cool!

[@belugaabs]

i’ll be buying this after finishing bg3

[@goldfish1837]

Have my backlog /to play list already figured out for the next couple months but I was a big fan of Citizen sleeper & disco elysium so this one looks very promising and goes on the wishlist

[@crimsonherringstudios]

Thanks for your support!

[@FibbonachiCrusader]

Wil pick it up based on Mortismal's review. Nice work.

[@Jasta85]

That was fast, nice to have the review out before the game launches.

[@crimsonherringstudios]

Thanks! We sent the keys out early due to the holidays to give reviewers lots of time to play.

[@Brownaut1993]

I have never heard of this game but I will be buying it now thanks to Mortismal

[@crimsonherringstudios]

Thanks for your support!

[@bloodrunsclear]

In the art book the company said ‘we wear our influences, Disco Elysium and Shadowrun Returns on our sleeves’ And that’s the kind of open honesty I thought was gone from the industry. Inspiration is not ripping off if you innovate!

[@vvardenfellian]

The game is launching at $19.99 according to the FAQ on steam

[@Whiskeeyankee]

Hey Mort, Crimson Herring replied to my post on your first video saying the game would be $19.99 USD but also seeing a launch discount. On Steam right now until 1/22 it’s 17.99USD.

[@kaidorade1317]

It’s been on my wishlist for a while now. Kind of reminds me of Disco Elysium and that’s a positive

[@jimwu4579]

I did not know this game existed. Thank you for the video 😄

[@tymarshy5575]

Been looking for a game to scratch the Disco Elysium itch, so this has been on the watchlist for me. Hoping they have a final edition similar to DE (voice over, character voices etc).

[@dls3939]

Cool, Ill come back and watch after I've finished

[@thebarbaryghostsf]

Just picked this up tonight after I saw it pop up in my recommended list on Steam. Came to KZbin to see if any reviews had been posted yet, and of course, Mort already 100% it lol. I loved Disco Elysiumand I love the Steampunk aesthetic, so this really seems like a no-brainer. Kind of reminds me of the Sunless Seas/Skies series too..

[@TechnoLawyer]

I’ve been watching this one. Will buy.

[@crimsonherringstudios]

Thanks for your support!

[@gemodemplay415]

This really makes me think of Disco Elysium.

[@crimsonherringstudios]

Yep, a huge inspiration for us, along with the Shadowrun series and Arcanum of course.

[@MysticDragonRPG]

My first game of 2024

[@nemoralis4713]

Was already on my wish list, which is long, but after your review I will be buying it on day one(today), $AU26.55 here in Oz with the 10% discount. Keep up the good work, you are one of the few channels that I subscribe to where I watch EVERY video 👍

[@karohemd2426]

Excellent. And I won the Steam key giveaway from their mailing list! Edit: It doesn't look like the demo save game carries over. When I clicked Continue I was in the dream sequence but at the end I got the "thanks for playing" message again.

[@crimsonherringstudios]

Thanks for the bug report and congrats on winning the giveaway! Thought we fixed this issue, we're on it!

[@mjaehn]

The steampunk vibe brought this to my mind, and it’s not your usual style of game, but I recommend checking out Frostpunk ahead of the launch of Frostpunk 2 at some point this year

[@DrChaos-jb3sp]

Which would you reccomend playing first, Mortismal? Kind of torn between the dwarf and minotaur myself.

[@culbertmarquez3190]

Can you help me with clara's and jeremy battle? im failing her main quest. How can i past him without getting her money?

[@jimb2109]

I'm wondering what/if any history Mortym has with playing TTRPGs. The games he usually reviews are based around those kinds of systems so it would make sense for him to be into TTRPGs.

[@MortismalGaming]

I played them a lot in highschool when I didnt have the means to play video games, I still collect pathfinder books but rarely have time to play any sort of ttrpg these days.

[@dirtylittlefudger9504]

this game gives me sylver vibes and im all for it!

[@aureliodeprimus8018]

Found this game randomly while browsing steam. Sounded interesting from the look of it and i was not disappointed. I agree that the end of the story is a little bit abrupt, but it doesn`t detract from the characters and the world, though i hoped they would come together sooner. But who knows, maybe we get a sequel, because i can imagine that the four characters would make for interesting dialogue between them. There is one small point of criticism i would like to mention. The game is veeeeeeery generous with its autosaves, saving every time before you start a conversation and having up to four autosaves. It is practically an invitation to alter your skill checks through save scumming.

[@TechnoLawyer]

Hey Mort, how many hours to complete a playthrough of this? I’m closing in on the end of my first BG3 run and want something shorter as a next game. Not sure I want to immediately throw myself into another 200 hour game. How long for a playthrough of Lamplighter’s League for that matter? I purchased on the steam winter sale. Trying to plan the order of my next few.

[@WolfsGamingBlog]

A playthrough takes 8-12 hours, depending on whether you do everything and if you skip through a lot of dialogue etc

[@TechnoLawyer]

@@WolfsGamingBlog I wouldn’t play a narrative game to skip dialogue, and I’m a completionist. Sounds exactly what I’m looking for. Thanks!

[@bigcrazewolf]

Disco Elysium is not for everyone, but dang I loved it.

[@SimplexPL]

Great review. 11:28 One small nitpick. Disco Elysium was partly voiced on launch. First sentences of many conversations were voiced.

[@karohemd2426]

@MortismalGaming Was the moment the game didn't advance at the Crimson Herring in Chapter 4? I talked to Lionel Banbury and gave him his money back and now nothing happens...

[@charlesmccrea834]

For the algorithm! 😊

[@taomahNEGEV]

I'll pick it up once it's voiced.

[@stchrispl]

I am not able to watch it right now, but I am super interested in the conclusion - is it a good game? I would love it to be good.

[@crimsonherringstudios]

We think so! And it sounds like Jesse agrees! He had lots of positive things to say about it.

[@stchrispl]

@@crimsonherringstudios Thanks guys! I am very interested, but I am not native english speaker which may be an issue for such a heavy narrative game. Do you happen to already have or plan in the future polish localization?

[@crimsonherringstudios]

@@stchrispl We definitely want to localize to a number of languages, Polish being one for sure. It depends on how the game sells whether we will have the budget for more.

[@Olefurz]

How long can one expect a playthrough to be?

[@crimsonherringstudios]

It's about 8-12 hours for a single playthrough depending on how fast you read and how much side content you do. Multiple endings and lots of side quests so some replayability there as well.

[@Olefurz]

​@@crimsonherringstudios Nice, thanks, sounds perfect for a cozy indoors winter weekend. Best of luck with the release!

[@armelior4610]

I can deal with unsatisfying ending if the journey is good, I still love Mass effect 3. Another one on the wishlist ! Also with characters being low on the social ladder, it's nice to see a steampunk game being "punk" and not just a visual style

[@crimsonherringstudios]

Thanks! Was important to us to build a steampunk world that didn't gloss over the harsh realities of Victorian London life.

[@NotXsoXoptic]

real question, how do you avoid carpal tunnel

[@MortismalGaming]

stretching and ergonomic gear

[@modemuffel9911]

Does it have a PS5 version? I know you are on PC, but could you cover that in your videos?

[@WolfsGamingBlog]

Just PC

[@ansettaustralia]

For the record, Disco did have voice acting on launch. It was just for the first few sentences (I think)

[@Choteron3]

This game makes me appreciate even more Disco elysium art style. Is so cool and unique.

[@TheGronkus]

Gronk!

[@mister-hajime]

Me: I want to be like Mortismal and play every RPG on the market when I grow up Reality: 9-6 job

[@armagedonbe]

It's absolutely possible. If you don't have your own family or any extra obligations/comitments.

[@LuckyBear303]

go go algorithm

[@simonebonelli1831]

This vaguely reminds me of Disco Elysium. Might me be worth taking a look.

[@erikskoog8415]

Good show sir

[@ZugZug13]

I hope they add voice acting at some point. It doesn't have to be anything spectacular, just decent. For many players, the lack of voice acting is a big minus considering the nature of this game, especially in 2024.

[@crimsonherringstudios]

Yep, hope we can invest in localization, voice acting, and console porting to help bring it to a larger audience!

[@besnizec]

And for some, a big plus. So maybe some option in the future to toggle on and off, so both sides can be happy

[@Pedone_Rosso]

@@crimsonherringstudios I didn't play the demo, and I'll buy and play the full game. Yet I wanted to ask one question and to suggest one option, both related to the voice acting. 1) Disco Elysium (one of my favorite games ever) released with "a little bit" of voice acting, and later they added "full" voice acting: is it the same for Sovereign Syndicate at release, and some lines are voiced, or at the moment there is no voice acting at all? 2) I played DE at release, and I liked it immensely with the sparse voice acting it had. Then I replayed it when it was fully voice acted, and I loved the acting in on itself, but I noticed it made the game so much longer to play through that eventually it became somewhat tiresome: IF you manage to add full voice acting to the game (fingers crossed), could you please consider including an option for playing with "minimal" or "reduced" voice acting, when only some major and impactful voiced lines are used instead of them all? Thanks in advance for any answer to this message of mine!

[@mhjmstultiens]

@@besnizec I have to agree with this. Not everyone needs voice acting to be immersed in games.

[@crimsonherringstudios]

@@mhjmstultiens Yep, would definitely provide an on/off toggle.

[@AscendantStoic]

Feels like a cross between Shadowrun and Disco Elysium, could be interesting 🤔

[@joearnold6881]

On sale for $16 atm Im eyeing it… It then again, my adhd made me fall off Disco Elysium despite loving it, so if I’m gonna play a narrative isometric rpg without much (or any real) combat… maybe I ought to go back and start that one over. Maybe I’ll _totally_ stretch my roleplaying skills this time and have my guy be a communist! 😉 😂

[@mintraniz6694]

Comment!

[@onatgz]

and another free comment.

[@jmmywyf4lyf]

I've had this game on my wish list for several years. At one point I thought it had been abandoned. But hearing that it's more disco elysium, is kind of a downer. I can't really enjoy these games without combat.. It seems like they may have had to rein in their plans for the game, because this doesn't seem quite like what I was looking forward to, whenI was first looking into it. Many will enjoy it, Im sure.. But Ill be passing on it, unfortunately

[@travispierce4458]

While I still intend to buy this day one, I’m disappointed to hear about the third act story issues. I felt the same way about Disco Elysium, excellent game hobbled by its resolution, pity to see the same thing here.

[@crimsonherringstudios]

Appreciate the feedback. Tried to bring everything to a satisfying conclusion and set ourselves up for a sequel, but I can understand how leaving room for a sequel might make the ending dissatisfying for some? We really just want this to be the beginning of a larger game series and world.

[@travispierce4458]

@@crimsonherringstudios Well, let's be perfectly fair. I don't know that there are third act issues. I trust Mortym's opinion, and I find myself agreeing with him much more often than not, but I don't always agree. I could very well play through the game and find no issue at all, which I what I'm truly hoping for. In any case, I meant what I said above, this is a day one buy for me. It's obvious that your studio poured their hearts and souls into the title, and I love this genre. I saw in another comment that the launch price will be $20. This may be a minority opinion, but I think you are undervaluing what you have made. Leave the price as is of course, but please consider adding soundtrack purchases or other purely cosmetic things so we can support your hard work. Good luck tomorrow!

[@crimsonherringstudios]

@@travispierce4458 Thanks so much! Yes, we're also offering a Digital Deluxe Edition with a Soundtrack and Art Book included.

[@mortystraphouse5077]

bro why u worrying about 3rd act story issues before u even try the game. spoilers for yourself and what a pedantic personality lmao

[@Largecow_Moobeast]

Well, they're never making another disco Elysium so time for someone else to get that crown.

[@Qulize]

It's a bummer to hear that the game drop off in terms of quality towards the end there. I guess perfect game doesn't exist huh?

[@tuna5305]

4:45 😳

[@backpackingtony1779]

Great review! I’m really interested in the steampunk aesthetic. Sadly I didn’t like Disco Elysium. It wasn’t a CRPG at all. It was more in line with a visual novel or point and click adventure. No tactics, no combat or strategy. I didn’t understand why the game celebrates mental illness. The voices your character hears is similar to schizophrenia. I’m a few hours into my third attempt at the game but I’m really not enjoying it. It feels like doing homework. Your review is super helpful!