Good RPG
This is a great RPG imo, and can stand with some of the best as far as i'm concerned. I actually long ago tried the demo for the original (non-remastered) version and promptly deleted after less than 20min of play due to graphical bugs, and poor animations that really put me off.
When i play an rpg I really like to try to get into the world mindset, try to believe the setting and characters, letting myself become more engaged in the experience. The original version did not do that for me, but this re-mastered version really did draw me in like almost no other RPG has done before. This game doesn't do anything "the best" but it does everything really good. By that I mean the entire package is very well rounded and well polished, I would break it down as follows..
Interface: 9/10 Simple and familiar with nice artistic touches that pull you in. Not a lot of slots on the quickbar but that is ok as combat is usually too frantic to be using more than the allowed 8. Good inventory system with item/equipped comparison and global stat change preview while scrolling over equipable items.
Graphics: 8.5/10 Not the fanciest engine or the newest effects but does hold its own very well, I was particularly impressed with the little details rendered at great distances (small campfires/waterfalls/structures visable at extreme distances.) The draw distance in general is very good with many epic views of the landscape, however the highres shadow update is visable, the distance could be twice as far out and would be less noticeable (didn't find anything in the ini.). Nice lighting effects and not overly (bloomy) with nice use of HDR, spell effects are nice and vibrant. The armor and weapons i have found are all well designed, detailed, and all unique. Would get a 9/10 if not for the small shadow complaint, even though it doesn't represent the newest in technology it makes up for it by running great on lower-end systems while retaining great visuals.
I had no idea there was a 30fps default cap till I ran fraps, I was very surprised I didn't notice it but somehow it looks like 40-60 to me so no complaints here.
Seems to be very well optimized running and looking great on both my higher-end system and my GF's lower-end pc -- E6750@2.5 (I know underclocked its the mobo
only $25 and it got my GF from a Athlon64 to my old C2d while retaining her ati3850 AGP card
. She is running on Medium to High at 1680x1050 with no slowdowns, I am running with everything maxed at 1920x1200 with no slowdowns.
Sound: 9/10 Great sound track that never seems to gets boring or bothersome, with unique tunes for dungeons, towns, bandit/goblin camps, and unique zones. All of the sound production seems top notch and never seems to use cheesy or overly epic tunes at inappropriate moments. It will even introduce several minutes of silence now and then and allow you to just sink into the great ambient sounds production. Combat and magic sound effects are all of high caliber as well and none sound misplaced or cheesy.
The game does include the typical grunts, taunts, and "hey I found something shiny!" blurb and I am glad to say that these are not overly used and the voice acting is done well enough to never grow tiring. When it comes to the voice acting in general I have to give this game a 9/10. Its not the best voice acting I have ever heard in a game but it is miles ahead of most in the open world RPG voice acting category, perhaps even one of the best.
Gameplay: 9/10 This is a very good open world RPG played in the 3rd person perspective. There is plenty of map to explore and plenty of dungeons to loot, it is for the most part a completely open world but they are a few area restrictions put upon you in the early game to help you learn the ropes without getting yourself slaughtered.
You can talk to most anyone either engaging in a full conversation (fully voiced) with many options or a quick one line response from the less important npcs. The more interesting part of these conversations is the fact that you are imbued with power to mind-read which in many cases presents an alternative way of finishing a quest, the location of treasure, passwords to storage areas, information that gives stat boosts, or just useless jabber running through someone's head. It's actually a fun an interesting twist to every social interaction and works not only in player initiated convos but also in main quest line story driven conversations. The only catch is that mind reading costs xp and the cost will vary based on the quality of information or the person's mental willpower.
The main quest storyline and even the majority of the side quests are very interesting and unique and for the most part IMO exceed the quality of most open world RPGS I have played especially those of the last decade. I have seen more intricate and better delivered storylines but only in linear RPGS. I am only lvl 20 with about 10 hours in so I cannot comment on the quality of the late game story or conclusion/ect.
I can only comment of the melee combat as I have kindof specialized in melee and ghost summoning, but as far as combat goes it is simple but not too shallow. There is not a whole lot of melee attacks besides the few skills u can aquire. Your basic attacks will include a several click basic combo, a forward lunge attack, and a jump attack. You will also have the ability to perform a leaping roll dodge maneuver by pressing jump and left or right directions. So i guess i should say that you can just button mash if you are facing lower lvl creatures but when you are in a real fight the action gameplay will get more interesting as you are forced to improve your dodge/attack/maneuvering skills to fight more effectively and save potions/food.
When spending your hard earned skill points you will have plenty of options as you are not restricted at all in your spending. You will slowly unlock the tiers of skills by level and your are free to take any unlocked skill in any order or combination. Most skills can receive a max of 5 points becoming more and more effective. This is a completely classless system with I really enjoy.
The loot in the game has so far made all the crawling worth it. Weapons and armor are broken down into classes such as magic, rare, heroic, set, unique, ect. With cool stories attached to unique and set items. All the items seem to have unique looks/styling keeping things fresh and interesting and really adding worth to the RP aspects and feeling personally customized. Some items will be enchant-able and charm-able but enchantments will require you find the appropriate materials to perform the ritual. You will have the ability to craft your own spells and enchantments but I am not yet versed in how to do so. My GF would also like to mention that a certain necromancer will help you resurrect an un-dead ally should you find enough severed body parts
I also want to mentioned that the dungeons don't feel completely copied and pasted, some although having similar attributes possess several touches that make them completely unique and memorable, I was very pleased about this as I have come to expect less.
I cannot comment on dragon combat or flying in general as I haven't reached that point in the story...
This is a single player only game but one well worth the play through, I am hooked at this point and have to say its the most fun i've had RPGing in a long time easily topping Fallout3,Risen,Gothic3/4, and Oblivion in my book. Hope more people hear about this excellent game it deserves to have a place on RPG fans harddrives.
I have already snatched up divine divinity and beyond divinity, just getting started
