Wheel of Time

Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: This game is great. Don't get me wrong: I'm not one of Jordan's fanatic cult members who would say this game was great if the graphics were stick figures and it was so buggy you can't run the game 3/4 of the time. The game really is good. The multiplayer is great, especially in Citadel games. In these, you summon creatures & lay traps to defend your area while trying to invade others. The only problem I have with the multiplayer are the creatures that you summon. Each of the four multiplayer characters (Aes Sedai, Whitecloak, Forsaken or the Hound) has a weak, a middling and a strong creature. Those for the Hound and for the Whitecloak are fine, but for the Forsaken and the Aes Sedai the strong creatures aren't very creative. The Aes Sedai's middling is another Aes Sedai and strong is an Aes Sedai Sitter, a higher ranked Aes Sedai. Couldn't they have spent a little more time on this? Maybe an Aes Sedai summoned from the Age of Legends or perhaps an Aes Sedai from the Green Ajah, with a band of Warders? Same thing with the Forsaken. The weak creature is a Trolloc, then the strong is a Trolloc Clan Chief. This is even worse because the middling is a Myrddraal (no Trolloc could ever defeat one of them) and because there are even more obvious choices for his strong creature: a Darkhound, a giant, evil dog that can only be killed by balefire, a Dreadlord, an evil wizard, or a Drahghar, a kind of bat-like flying thing. In the single-player mode, you play the part of Elayna Sedai attempting protect the four seals to the Dark One's prison. The various environments are amazing. In the haunted city of Shadar Logath, for example, creepy whispers swirl through the halls while red eye peer out of dark corners. In the Fortress of the Light, the guards curse at you as you fight them. One of the best levels is The Ways. The Ways were a system of swift transportation in an earlier time, until they were corrupted by a terrible evil. They crumble as you walk over them and Machin Shin, the Black Wind, threatens to destroy you as you flea through the final waygate. Other than the little problem with the multiplayer, the game was great. The visuals are stunning, the music is great, and the plot near Jordan's own. (I said I am not one of the fanatics, but that doesn't mean that I can't like the books.) I recommend the game highly.

Rating:
Summary: Again, it's NOT the books, people, think about it.
Review: It's a great game, from a visual and gameplay standpoint. It is beautifully crafted, with hands down the finest architecture I've ever seen (makes Quake 3 Arena look sad by comparison). The story is also well though-out, with awesome voice acting and great plot twists. Everyone complaining about this game not being like the books keep two things in mind: It's not SUPPOSED to be a book, and Robert Jordan himself loved the game, calling it true to his vision. There is no higher reccommendation, people it's HIS world not YOURS. I dinged it one star because, contrary to what the developers think, the music is pretty weak.

Rating:
Summary: So-So game
Review: I'll start with all the negative stuff, to get it out of the way, then try to salvage it.

Single player sucks. Big time. I died several times on the easiest setting on the first level. I eventually gave in and used cheat codes, all the while wondering how anybody could get through it without them. The devices at your disposal, while handy, are too numerous at times. By the time you realize, "hey, now would be a nice opportunity to try out such-and-such-terangreal", you're pretty much a goner. But that might just be me. There are also several technicalities between the books and game that, while they don't really detract from game play, are still annoying to deal with.

Now that that's done with, i can say good job on the graphics, music, and movies. They are all very well done, and the movies are a blast to watch. I also enjoyed playing citadel mode on multiplayer. Running around, yelling things at people (who have the same game-related handycaps you do, unlike the enemies from single player), and eventually killing them is a hoot. This one thing almost makes it worth the money. I know it definitely provides replay value.

Rating:
Summary: Certainly a big no-no for a Wot fan
Review: Well, I consider myself a WOT fan. I waited for this game with as much anticipation as I'm currently waiting for the 9th book. Finally, after eons of visiting the internet page and watching those pretty screenshots I managed to buy it. But, let's say it in four words: it wasn't worth it.

Of course it helped me to visualise the world a little bit, but at the same time the story and gameplay weren't what I had been expecting for so long. First the choice of places you visit. I guess those places (Shadar Logoth, White Tower, Mnts. Of Mist, Blight and an off the beat Whitecloak fortress) are there due to the fact that converting the whole Tear or Caemlyn for us would be a great work, but still this is not what I had been expecting.

Then the fact that you only use ter'angreal during the game. Leaving out channeling surely was a wise decision (consider the sight of a roomful of sisters weaving their patterns), but leaving out the system of angreal was a stupid mistake. I certainly don't think that the dart-thingy in the game is worth naming a ter'angreal. Even when I try to convince myself that in those places I visited there really weren't any sa'angreal the idea of wasting about two tons of cuendillar just for killing off some of those evil trollocs or whitecloaks seems disgusting to me. And I won't start telling you about all the things Balefire can do and what it can't do...

Then the storyline. It is too simple for me. It has got the neither overwhelming grab of the books nor the virtues of a simple adventure. It shows us one of the greatest stories in Randland's history as a mere trail that the protagonist had to follow (again I will not start talking about those "puzzles" you have to solve). I guess that an RPG-or-something would have had a better story than this mere Unreal child has. Of course there are people who waited for another hack-and-slash game but I wasn't one of them.

The beginning is not a bad one (for you still don't know the rest of the crap that's coming) and there are some funny levels ("Dungeons of the Forsaken") and the movie before the last level *evil grin*. But the rest is certainly something I was not waiting for (the horrible scene just after the credits was the peak). My opinion is that worth keeping is only the second CD that you get 'cause the story/movies and music (which is very good BTW) are on that one.

P.S. Does any of you who have played it already know, how the Portal Stone ended up in the WC's fortress's courtyard in the end?

Rating:
Summary: Great action game. Not for thinking gamers.
Review: This game was initally a let down. I was looking for the next generation of Tolkein type game: puzzles and logic mixed with sinister enemies and battles. Intead I found a world of amazing imagery and detail. The action is non-stop and the scenes were exactly as they were described in the books.

This is a Quake, or Doom, or Unreal type shoot'em up, but is superbly done and is much more detailed.

One thing to note is you must have lots of free space (500M MINIMUM! ) To run the game and more to run it effectivly.

A must buy for any who liked Unreal.

Rating:
Summary: Never read the books, but love the game
Review: I've never actually read the books, but a friend has, and has been telling me about the game for a while, so I decided to try it out. I was pleasantly surprised; some of the best graphics I've seen, creepy atmosphere, great monsters, great spells...my main reservation is the fact that choosing spells in the heat of battle can get tough...great stuff

Rating:
Summary: A Great Twist on a 1st Person Shooter
Review: I've enjoyed playing this game both in single player and multi-player mode. The graphics are great and it is very fun to play. As a reader of the WOT books, I've enjoyed fighting the monsters from the book, walking through the Ways, seeing the White Tower, and finding your way through Shadar Logoth.

Multi-player takes much more strategy than other 1st person shooters. You have a wide variety of offensive and defense ter'angreal. Using the right shield when being attacked can mean the difference between getting killed or not being hurt at all; such as a fire shield against fire balls. It is always fun to reflect a spell back at the caster, taint the ter'angreal of an opposing player, or call a minion to fight for you. Of course it is hard to beat tearing someone out of existence with balefire.

Rating:
Summary: Don't buy this for WoT. In fact, don't buy this at all.
Review: First of all, I'm a die-hard WoT fan, and was expecting MUCH more in terms of exploring the world of WoT. This didn't even come close to meeting those expectations.

Related to WoT by name only, this game is nothing more than another in a long line of shooters, with the clumsily implemented ter'angreal weapons. Come on! That's not Wheel of Time! It's Quake!

Wheel of Time STILL has tremendous potential to become an amazing game or series of games, but the implementation of such needs to be left to a software company that will bring something revolutionary to the table, such as Bungie Software.

There's nothing new in this game. If you disagree with me, I suggest trying the demo first. Then unlike me, you'll still have your $50 if you're disappointed.

Rating:
Summary: Not Jordan's "Wheel fo Time"
Review: While I have to agree that the graphics of the game are quite stunning, this world is not what I remember reading in the Wheel of Time series. Shooting people with "ter'angreal" that you pick up? Call it Hexen 3 or Quake - Medieval, but don't call it the Wheel of Time.

If you've never read the series you will probably love the game - well designed engine and the best graphics I have seen. I, however, was disappointed.

Rating:
Summary: Absolutely Fabulous!
Review: I was really impressed with this game! I have been an avid reader of Robert Jordan's series the Wheel of time for quite a while now, and was excited at the thought of a computer game.as soon as I got it home I began playing. The graphics were superb and the story paralled the books. Anyone can have a good time with this game - even those not familiar with the books. I strongly urge others to buy this game!