Forteller Hack 2.0.7 + Redeem Codes

I want to like it but unfortunately I can’t even try it. I purchased the Bardsung audio but after twelve hours my content still doesn’t show up on the app. According to my order confirmation page it should have been available in minutes.

Edit: Foreteller customer support was very nice and quick to fix my issue once I got in contact with them. The production quality is quite nice. Only gripe is that I wish we could separately control voice volume and background volume.

I purchased the Above and Below narration for my daughter (6) and I to play together. The quality of the voice acting and SFX is very good. I’m a big fan. However, they skimped out on some very important parts of the narration. If you’ve every player above and below you know that each story is like a choose your own path kind of story. You could go left or you could go right. You could fight the monster or you run away. Each path has a requirement that needs to be hit in order to succeed. This narration does not provide that. My 6 year old daughter who can’t fully read yet would not be able to tell me what those requirements are. I feel like I paid for a whole pie, but a slice was taken out before I received it. And this is a very important slice.

As far as the app itself goes, it seems to be fine. Pretty simplistic. Nothing too outrageous. I’m not going to lie. I wish it had a store option so I didn’t have to return to the website to make future purchases.

We had high hopes for this app, but we were disappointed. While the production values are very high, there is a good deal too much noise compared with the voices. For older ears it can be hard to make out what the voices are saying.

We also found ourselves disappointed in the direction and the acting. The direction seems to disregard what’s written in the text. Characters who are said to “bellow” or to say something “triumphantly” talk just like all the other characters. And the acting is pretty good in the male parts, not so good in the female parts. For example, Hail is supposed to be powerful, mystical, and a bit intimidating, but she just comes off sweet and girly. I dunno if that’s the actor or the direction, but it was a real disappointment.

Finally, the technology of the app is not up to snuff. It takes 14 to 16 seconds to load an audio file. On a 2019 iPad Pro, that’s shockingly slow. Audio should load and play almost instantaneously. Moreover, the app won’t let the device go to sleep—it will happily sit on for an hour and drain the battery. And if you do tap the sleep button to put the poor iPad out of its misery, once it comes back and you’ve re-authenticated, the Forteller loses its place: instead of going on to the next clip of the scenario, it wants to replay the last one you’ve heard.

I love the concept of this app. But alas, the execution is wanting.

I have most of the Gloomhaven / Frosthaven related content. When I recently purchased Forgotten Circles, it doesn’t even show up in my list. Now I have to go figure out how to add it.

The app is pretty pathetic. It stops and starts content, so you frequently have to replay. No landscape mode, so those of you switching between X-HAVEN Helper and Forteller get a nice reminder each time you switch back and forth that Foreteller couldn’t care less about the user experience.

To top it off, the voice acting is pretty rough in most of the Gloomhaven content. The main narration is a ridiculous english accent obviously performed by an american. If you’re used to the Steam version of Gloomhaven’s voice acting, you will be sorely disappointed. Two stars is generous… I’m hoping they improve some day.

This iPad app needs to support landscape mode. Unless I’m doing something wrong, it’s always sideways on my iPad.

I run this app, play audio for frosthaven, then I’ll switch to another app to track my initiative, monsters, etc, and when I switch back to forteller for the next section, it fails to play any audio when the play button is tapped.

I have to then tap the back track button and then forward track button and the play button a few times before it will start playing audio again. It’s frustrating.

Also I’ve noticed some of the audio clips, upon tapping play, will cut off a tiny bit of the beginning and it’s odd. This can cut off part of the first word of a sentence sometimes.

I’d like an option to have the app download the data it needs for the entire mission in one go, instead of how it currently hour glasses on each section to dl each section individually.

Not sure if there’s an offline pc version with full data of this as that would solve most of my issues.

The voice work is great but the app needs work.

Definitely adds immersion and removes some downtime as setup can happen during narration. The interface is a bit clunky, swipe left to save but the playback speed seems the same wether or not you use this feature. I suppose it’s meant for offline play, why not an option to download the entire thing at once? Playback controls are fine but why no AirPlay button? Seems like a glaring omission since I’m guessing people using this at home would like the full audio experience.

There should be an option for an ambient track/timer. For a smoother flow, start playing the intro, move to ambient track, stop ambient track and proceed to next narrative.

The purchase system is pretty sketchy, I’m surprised Apple allows this in the App Store without in app purchases. As it stands, you must create an account and purchase the content from the website of the developer directly. There’s no instructions on how to do this but it’s incredibly easy to figure out. I’d prefer it following App Store guidelines for in app purchases though.

All in all it’s good, almost great, with a few outstanding issues.

Picked up Sleeping Gods to use with the start of a new campaign and while the voice acting a great, the app really seems to struggle with the multiple branching paths of some of the stories. Often I have to click through multiple times to get to the next selection and going back always results in a blank screen, requiring me to go all the way back to the beginning of the section. I found myself needing to consult the story book every time to make sure something wasn’t missed. I think the app needs an interface rework to function with more complex games like sleeping gods where it’s not just one segment to read at a time, but a branching narrative.

I was excited for this app but the app is garbage. They want you to purchase everything to the website but don’t send you to the browser from the app, you have to do it yourself. I purchased a game on the site and it won’t show up in the app.

Beyond that there are “planned features” all over this app that say coming soon, but the core functionality doesn’t even work well. The developer seriously needs to focus before trying to implement all these other features. Make the damned app do at least one thing well.

Being able to use your purchased content without failure or having to call support sounds like a good step one to me. Forget all the fluff and just make it work right.

We have really enjoyed most of the voice acting and it’s added to the depth our gloomhaven experience.
We found two voices to be really subpar. First, the voicing of the drake left a lot to be desired. It lacked depth and felt silly rather than cunning or vicious.
Hail is the worst. She isn’t crafty or fierce and the voice actor can’t seem to settle on a vaguely British accent or her American accent, which I’m guessing is her norm. It really makes it hard to suspend disbelief. We won’t even use the app if she is speaking because it’s so terrible.
That all being said, the app is well worth the money. We can’t wait to see future content from them. Help support them and add to your experience by buying this app.

Professional voice actors and top notch sound engineering has added some much needed immersion to Isaac’s already-amazing game. My Gloomhaven game just leveled-up! My friends and I will obviously be playing through it all again just to enjoy what this adds to experience. And 95 scenarios (73 so far) for only $15? It would be a bargain at twice the price. I already pre-ordered the Frosthaven narration pack. Keep up the good work!

P.S. I would happily pay for narrated event cards and the town records book... in case that’s ever on the table. :)