Rate top gamesMARDEK
About
MARDEK is a retro-inspired RPG set in a lore-heavy world that blends together fantasy and sci-fi. Its initially lighthearted story soon evolves into a deeper exploration of moral ambiguity, told through a whole lot of dialogue both thought-provoking and ridiculously silly. Build your party from a wide cast of fleshed-out characters, each with their own stories, personalities, and unique skillsets, as you romp through vast elemental dungeons filled with hordes of monsters, oodles of equippable treasures, and huge, dramatic bosses.
The story follows a fairly ordinary young man called Mardek, whose fantasies of adventure begin to come true when he finds himself sharing his mind with the consciousness of a dead alien wizard, Rohoph. The three chapters follow Mardek's growth from his imaginative childhood, through his eventful training as a Royal Guard, and eventually to his missions as a full-fledged Royal Knight. Along the way, Mardek and his allies face off against members of a sinister council of Rohoph's alien allies, who Rohoph - being the being of light and good that he apparently is - claims are evil and must be stopped.
The game was originally released for browsers in three parts between 2007 and 2010. This version combines all three released chapters and presents them without the surrounding distractions common to playing on Flash portals, to increase immersion. The music is no longer compressed and as such sounds much clearer than in the browser versions, and there have been a few minor tweaks to rare item or skill acquisition costs - all requested by long-time fans - to aid in reaching 100% completion.
Other than that, this is a faithful port of the game as it was when originally released, for maximum nostalgia.
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It's important to note that the series was originally (and rather naively) intended to be eight chapters long, though only these three were produced due to serious behind-the-scenes issues. Even so, there are many dozens of hours of gameplay to be had, and many memories to nostalgically return to or to form anew!
A direct continuation of this series isn't going to happen - at least not from me (the developer) - but the optional "OST & Extras" package contains some old notes I managed to dig up with the (rather vague) plans I had for the rest of the chapters. I know it's not the same as producing them, but it's infinitely easier!
As of 2020, I have been working on a 3D 'Reimagining' of MARDEK called "Divine Dreams", which aims to retell the story using the more-than-a-decade of personal and skill growth since MARDEK was released. You can check my website for more info (check the external links).
The story follows a fairly ordinary young man called Mardek, whose fantasies of adventure begin to come true when he finds himself sharing his mind with the consciousness of a dead alien wizard, Rohoph. The three chapters follow Mardek's growth from his imaginative childhood, through his eventful training as a Royal Guard, and eventually to his missions as a full-fledged Royal Knight. Along the way, Mardek and his allies face off against members of a sinister council of Rohoph's alien allies, who Rohoph - being the being of light and good that he apparently is - claims are evil and must be stopped.
The game was originally released for browsers in three parts between 2007 and 2010. This version combines all three released chapters and presents them without the surrounding distractions common to playing on Flash portals, to increase immersion. The music is no longer compressed and as such sounds much clearer than in the browser versions, and there have been a few minor tweaks to rare item or skill acquisition costs - all requested by long-time fans - to aid in reaching 100% completion.
Other than that, this is a faithful port of the game as it was when originally released, for maximum nostalgia.
~
It's important to note that the series was originally (and rather naively) intended to be eight chapters long, though only these three were produced due to serious behind-the-scenes issues. Even so, there are many dozens of hours of gameplay to be had, and many memories to nostalgically return to or to form anew!
A direct continuation of this series isn't going to happen - at least not from me (the developer) - but the optional "OST & Extras" package contains some old notes I managed to dig up with the (rather vague) plans I had for the rest of the chapters. I know it's not the same as producing them, but it's infinitely easier!
As of 2020, I have been working on a 3D 'Reimagining' of MARDEK called "Divine Dreams", which aims to retell the story using the more-than-a-decade of personal and skill growth since MARDEK was released. You can check my website for more info (check the external links).
System requirements for PC
Minimum:
- OS: Windows 7
- Processor: Dual-core CPU @ 2.4 GHz
- Memory: 2 GB RAM
- Graphics: Integrated graphics or dedicated graphics card with 512 MB of VRAM
- Storage: 150 MB available space
- Additional Notes: .
MARDEK reviews and comments
I had discovered MARDEK around my 18th birthday. I'm 31 now. I had lots of fun with Chapters 1 and 2, even though the “immature” humor was getting on my nerves and many “plot points” were giving me many “WTF! That's bull!”. At that time, Chapter 3 was not released yet. While waiting for CH3, I moved on. I was not playing many Flash Games. However, when CH3 comes out, I had played it, hoping to have fun and rediscover MARDEK. Unfortunately, I hated chapter 3.
The random encounters seemed much harder than in the previous CH. Many new characters I was not interested in. Deugan and Emela are no longer in our party - I know there is a good reason because plot! - but I hated that. I remember Elwyen was getting on my nerves a lot. The humor seems to have been x1000 amplified, so I didn’t longer care about the story. It couldn’t take it seriously anymore. I never finished Chapter 3. Since the series was never completed, MARDEK, in my mind, went to “a pretty cool RPG” to a (sorry to say this) “crappy game”.
The French review on Steam also talks about Rohoph a lot. Maybe because he was one of my favorite characters back then, and what I feel like “his true colors” shown in CH3 was “too forced” and “too obvious”.
Anyway, I brought the game on Steam to support his creator, also hoping to have good memories, and maybe finish Chapter 3, and… NAH.
The dialogues are even more childish (for me) than they were 10+ years ago. The “immature” humor is still there. Still getting on my nerves. The characters are even more clichéd than I remember, even Deugan and Emela, who were my favorite characters back then with Rohoph! The battles. I liked them a lot 10+ years ago, but I feel they have aged very badly, and now they are meh.
That’s why I can't recommend MARDEK. 10+ years ago, for a flash game designed by one person, it was pretty cool, but compared to today’s games, and with my personal experience as a gamer, I say "no". The only moment I had fun replaying the game was during Moric’s final battle (phoenix down spam for the win!!!) and I stopped my playthrough after the Sun Temple. I was too bored to continue.
«Disappointment of the year»
«Waste of time»