16bit Trader

16bit Trader is an attempt at a modern take on retro trading games.

TL;DR at bottom.

Gameplay:

The main goal of 16bit Trader is to explore the world and eventually become the richest merchant in the kingdom by obtaining one million gold pieces. This can be reached by buying and selling goods, mining for diamonds, and completing quests for citizens of the kingdom. Prices rise and fall for goods, causing you to strategically buy and sell when you can make the most profit. Travelling around the kingdom also costs money, depending on the distance and how many carts or people you have in your caravan. There is a possibility that robbers will ambush you on your travels and steal some of your money and/or your cargo, adding risk to your travels that you must take into account.

Many other users have pointed out that this game is very buggy. While I didn’t encounter these issues in my own play time, it seems to be a major issue that was never addressed by the developers. This game is also incredibly difficult, where most playthroughs would end in failure quickly. In addition, a community guide to actually beating the game strongly suggests you completely ignore the main feature of the game, trading, and instead only mine for diamonds which fetch a very high price. This certainly says something about the possibility of actually beating the game in a way that doesn’t require you to basically cheese the mechanics in order to gain an advantage against the unfair systems in place. I personally could not get much farther than a month or two into the game before running out of money to be able to travel.

3/10

Graphics:

The graphics in 16bit Trader aren’t awful. They’re quite simplistic, especially when compared to its superior sibling, Merchants of Kaidan (explained later). However, they aren’t a deal breaker. The graphics seem to be fitting for a mobile game, which seems to be the intended platform for this particular game. The UI is large and simplified, as is typical with a mobile game. However, this makes everything somewhat clear as to its purpose.

6/10

Music/Audio:

The music is nothing special in this game. Strangely enough, there is no credit for the music so I can’t determine if it is royalty free music or original. Either way, it is decent music but it does get a little repetitive after a while. The sound effects are alright, although very sparse. There is also no voice acting, just written words.

7/10

Conclusion:

As implied in the description and pointed out by another user, 16bit Trader is a dumbed-down version of another game by this developer, Merchants of Kaidan. When comparing the two games, the similarities are very clear and Merchants of Kaidan is obviously the superior game. This may not be a bad thing as this may be for a different market (most notably, mobile) so a lesser version may have a place.

Overall: 5/10 – Not Recommended

TL;DR

Pros:

+Good concept

Cons:

-Unforgivingly difficult

-Mobile game ported to PC

-Buggy

Check out my gameplay of 16bit Trader below to get a better idea of the game.