Review of Worlds of Aria

When I first dipped my toe into the world of tabletop RPGs, I was surprised at how minimal the learning curve was for a newcomer like me. With a skilled game master at the helm, guiding a group of novices through the story becomes a smooth ride. This is the kind of experience Worlds of Aria promises—a user-friendly and lighthearted approach to Dungeons and Dragons-style adventures.

Worlds of Aria is quite flexible in terms of player options. You can venture out solo or gather a party of up to four, either by sharing a screen at home or through online play. Should any spots remain empty, they’re picked up by computer characters who don’t operate independently; you essentially gain control of them. When my wife and I teamed up for a session, we each took charge of additional characters to keep the dynamics interesting.

The narrative unfolds in bite-sized scenes, peppered with opportunities for player choice that influence the storyline. You might find yourself negotiating with a guard, and the choice of whether to fight, bribe, sneak, or pacify with a drink is all yours. The cool part? Each player can make their own call without the need for unanimous decisions. Your character’s stats play a crucial role in these choices, with success chances neatly displayed as a percentage next to your character’s icon. Actions sometimes hinge on what other party members do, adding layers and permutations to the gameplay.

Skill checks here are straightforward, relying on percentile dice—two ten-sided dice, essentially. Higher skill stats mean higher success chances; if you have a 75% success rate, you’d need to roll 75 or under to pass the check. It’s all very intuitive. Each character also brings unique abilities to the table, which can sway your dice rolls but are limited in use. For instance, the wizard I picked could draw a card influencing my roll with either a bonus or a penalty. My wife’s pirate character had a similar mechanic, trading gold coins for extra power. Another party member had a once-per-campaign trump card guaranteeing success. There’s no deep combat system; everything boils down to these percentage rolls. While a part of me craved a bit more complexity, this simplicity makes the game approachable for everyone.

However, one snag lies in the user interface. Designed with a mouse and keyboard in mind, using a controller can feel awkward. Sometimes you have a free-moving cursor, at other times it locks awkwardly to UI elements. I found myself occasionally wrestling with this when trying to click on small buttons or align our characters during time-sensitive decision prompts, particularly tricky because we were juggling multiple characters. I also encountered moments where items dropped behind the UI, making retrieval impossible due to the overlay.

Despite its quirks, Worlds of Aria offers an accessible and engaging tabletop-esque journey. It’s a delightful outing for parties, whether seasoned pros or complete beginners. While die-hard RPG fans might find some mechanics simplistic, the game isn’t trying to be overly intricate. It truly shines with a full house of human players since those left unplayed morph into characters for the team to manage. Though getting accustomed to the UI takes time, Worlds of Aria ultimately delivers a charming experience, bridging the gap beautifully between traditional role-playing and party games.