As lots of people have noted, this game is SLOW - it makes more sense when you realize this and SC were originally written as a single game, but even in that context, the game is SLOW. That said, the gameplay is a little simple, but very fun, and you get a good feeling of progression and depth as you can arrange your quartz to unlock new spells. It is unfortunate that this is a lot of people's introduction to the series as I can see why it might turn them off, but it's still a good experience as long as you are willing to sit back and just go with the flow.