The Eagle's Heir

Okay, this is negative for the sole reason that you can't vote mixed. This game is really quite enjoyable if short. It simply has one problem, sadly it's a rather big one, in the later chapters of the game it's rather easy to die... and this game doesn't have a save system. I have already played through the exact same fucking scenes 5 fucking times because I happened to pick the wrong choice, died, and had no choice but to go back. I get it with other decisions that don't prematurely end the story but just straight up end the story because you made a wrong choice and have to skip through all previous scenes again, that is plain and simply horrible game design. And I know that those things can easily implement a save system, both Choice by Gaslight and Vampire Regent have them.

The game is light on consequences, and therefor light on stakes. It's nearly impossible to mess up badly in the early game, but the late game pulls through.

Really good historical fiction. If you like European history, you will probably like this one a lot. It feels kind of weird that everyone in this book is a real human being that once actually existed, but it is so well researched that it does feel THAT weird. The 'world' is interesting... a steampunk-esque age where Napoleon won and the French Empire dominates, and perhaps that is how history should have gone down.

Anyway, this is not the time for my historical hot takes. The characters were lively, the world building was lovely, and the plot was magical and exciting. Would marry the prince and third wheel Queen Victoria again... 8/10 overall.

Not sure how I missed this one when it first came out, but glad i found it. I like the setting, and was really surprised at the end when I found out how close to historical reality the game setting was. I look forward to playing it again a few times and seeing if i can find my happy ending in it (my first was bitter sweet, but it played out exactly how it would have had it been me in that situation, Kudos!)

I love Napoleon and I really enjoyed playing this story and trying to find all of the endings! Highly recommend for people who also love Napoleonic history.

Another great story! Fulfilling characters and very well written. I will give this an 8/10 as I'm docking it a point for two things. 1. I didn't appreciate how often the narrative tried to question masculinity or heterosexuality. 2. The story did seem a tad rushed with many characters going very under developed.

Outside of those two things, this was definitely one of my favorites so far!

This game is a game of intrigues and wits, where your decision will change the fate of historical fantasy France.

I admit, this game is harder than I thought it'll be. You need to spread your stats accordingly to what you want to get the result of what you want. You will do a lot of trial and error as this game don't really hold your hands that much. But once you get through the frustation you'll be rewarded with the decisions you've made, bad or good.

This game is pretty similar to Choice of Alexandria, albeit a bit weaker in the ending department. But it's good enough to be satisfying.

A good game all in all.

my favourite choices of game, so much intrigue and suspense and many many MANY different endings.

I felt this one didn't develop the relationship between you and certain characters very well. Similar to what others have said, the game is too short. The ending should have had at least a third of it left. I will say, one thing I did like about the characters is they were real people from history, but with an alternative twist on them. There were things about the story that were interesting, but as an interactive novel it felt flat.

There were also a lot of scenes where it allowed you to try every possible solution, but everyone would fail and you'd have to give up. This happened more than once and was disheartening, as there was no clear reason as to why.

I'd recommend this game for anyone who likes history and intrigue. The story was fun: airship races, foiling assassination attempts, convincing various factions to support your agenda. It's really neat that you don't have to pursue the same goal everytime you play the game. You can try to make different characters emperor or make France a real republic, etc.

The only thing I didn't like about this game is the romance story. I was playing as a straight man, but kept getting hit on by the gay characters. I select the options that say 'not interested' or 'let's just be friends', and they keep hitting on me. Then at the very end of the game the ONLY woman i didn't hit on, avoided in all conversations, and never spoke to hits on me. WTF?

After the demo, I was in total hype to play this one. Especially when I saw it's 200k words.
Well, it took me just under 2 hours, which is less than it took me on 110k stories.
After the first 3 or 4 chapters (how surprising - the free demo, which convinces people to pay for the rest, is the only good part!) it becomes boring politics, no one dies (worse - I don't get to kill anyone), for those who care about romantic themes - there are a few choices, but they're very understated and unrelated to the story, not to mention that they just pop up occasionally out of nowhere.
The end was boring - I decided to be nice, tried to avoid civil war - and got a bad emperor as a result. So I was vicious next time - and of course, I earned a war.
For my brethren among comedy lovers, I'm most displeased to say - no. Not one funny bit, except MAYBE the first line you get to decide what to say - and calling that line a joke is streching it. Very, VERY far.
NOw, for parents - this is probably the ideal thing to buy your kid, from your point of view. Beacuse it's boring, not violent, no sex (there might have been oppurtunity once, but I picked prudence and patience, so I don't know where it leads), very political, polite, and it's even loosely based on history.
Well, I was actually going to recommend this one, but now I read al I've written and I realize I actually have nothing good to say.
So..... don't?

Well i do like this kind of games and i definetly liked this one aswell. I liked the theme and the backstory of the alternate history. I kinda liked the way they used clothing as a part of your character. And i definetly recommend the game. If you like this kind of games and the Napoleonic era give it a shot.

A game that hands you the destiny of Europe between your hands, as you face many challenges and gaining from them. From winning a race to getting your friend to become what he was destined to be, romance features in this game, which allows you the player to help your friend on courting one of the ladies, Eugine or/and Princess Victoria(Future Empress). Will you the person restore the Acient Regime of France, or Continue the Legacy of the empire, restore the republic, or maybe even be leave it all and enjoy your life with your friend(Alexandre)?

In my opinion, one of the best (if not the best) of Choice of Games' interactive novels. It was extremely well-written with tight, compelling prose. More than that, the characters each felt unique, vivid, and like actual people (maybe because they're based on real-life historical figures, though of course the story takes lots of liberties). The story, world, and characters just felt alive and authentic, unlike some interactive novels where the characters feel faceless and bland. Highly recommend, great read and experience! Replay value is high too: there are tons of divergent paths and decisions, and your choices make a real difference!

Recommended if you enjoy those choose your own adventure books and alternate history. The writing is decent, the story doesn't slow down, and lots of chance for replayability. 8/10.

Well, what can I say?

The story is most certainly entertaining, and I do enjoy the material they have gathered around the several historical characters that appear.
I suspect that alot of the inspiration and info from the English characters for instance comes from the movie "The young Victoria".

I got this game for a discount prize of roughly 3 euro.
And that's pretty much what i'd be willing to pay for for a game as simple and (unfortunately) short.
The biggest minus however is a mere personal one.

Im a historian, believe it or not.
And the "alternate history" in this game with airships for example didn't appeal to me very much.
It's just too much ^^

But like I said, that's personal, some of you might not care and some might like it.

Summary: I enjoyed this game. If the prize tag is low, buy it.

The story was interesting enough to keep me hooked until the end. Unfortunately, the story ended right when things were starting to pick up! Then the events are summarized which seemed like the author simply got tired of writing.

One of the major complaints I have is the choices you make in game don't have enough impact. In a given scenario, if you make a really poor choice then as a result some unfortunate occurences happen. In the next chapter it continues on without any real consequences which makes the decision making less impactful.

The romance options advertised in the trailer were definitely lacking. The lady I was trying to romance with had one small page of us flirting and that's it! I only saw her once in the entire story! And now that I've tried replaying this game several times and failing to find any more content with my lover is very depressing to say the least. The author needs to at least give us a chapter worth of content to spend with our lover (spread out through the story of course!)

In conclusion, the game is definitely worth the sale price. If I could give the game a score out of 10 I would have to give it 7/10 for some of the complains listed above.

If you can get it on sale it's decent enough for a playthrough. It's by no means one of the best that I've played but I enjoyed myself. Some comments:

- I think the steam punk setting is heavily underutilized. If you're going to make an alternate timeline where this is in the forefront of the marketting, it could have been more than just a side activity to the main plot and a mention here and there. Seems like it ultimately is a game about espionage, politics and discussion.

- On the other note, your traits and 'stats' seem like they are very much what determine what choice you make instead of adding more options. I chose to be a skilled duelist, and I can safely say that based off my choices I only possibly had like one chance at a duel. In the authors' attempt to give sensible options that a non-bloodthirsty individual would make, I was left with a meaningless skill. Choosing to focus on science in my studies, I had some unintended laughs with some of the options that seem like deus ex machina skills. It doesn't seem intended in tone either, so seems like a failure of the stats to explain what you are and what you know.

- It's a surprisingly tame choose your own adventure. I understand that there is a charm for everything going your way, but even when you choose something and it doesn't go your way it's quickly corrected in like the very next page making your decision obsolete in the long run. And when things go your way, they go your way a bit too perfectly which makes it a tad boring. 'Oh hey a bunch of enemies to my friend', 'let's talk to them about their goals', 'oh ok, maybe they aren't so bad'.

- The story ended before I thought it had a chance to start. It ends very abruptly with a very used mechanic that is used when the author doesn't want to write more and instead opts to show you the long term results of your choices. It was a shame as I would have been more than glad to continue with it. And considering the topic of romance came up in the trailer and in the game's description, I couldn't help but think 'that's it' at a moment in the story near the end. Seems like you must either deny the advances of a character from the start, or flirt with them awkwardly with no knowledge of their character beforehand. At the end of the novel the character I wanted to romance felt no interest towards me because apparently I wasn't an amazing dancer, so instead the novel throws me a pity romance from another character I hadn't romanced in the whole novel and who I didn't ever get to know.

Like I said it isn't without its faults, but if you enjoy fiction and can spare 2-3 hours of your time there are worst ways to pass the time. Particularly at the price I paid. I give it a 'Eh, why the heck not'

super fun, customizable. definitely a game you play over and over. so, so glad i got to play it. lots of possibilities and different endings!

Best interactive novel I've played. Highly recommended, even more so if you've any interest in Napoleonic France or Steampunk. Well-written, funny and even romantic.