Rating: Summary: a warning to AD&D fans Review: Ok, the hype got me...but i should have asked a very important question before buying and anyone who is a serious AD&D fan should, does it follow the game rules??, i did not wonder about this and now i am in possession of a game with great graphics an lots of goodies like the reviews say, but it leaves me flat after playing it once, there are no sets or character classes, and the lack of the AD&D ruleset wich other games follow (Baldurs gate, etc) simply takes the fun out for me...guess i will be looking to exchange it with some other gamer.
Rating: Summary: Dungeon siege is great at first but then... Review: When i first started playing the game i was amazed the graphics were unbeleavable, they were detailed and were clear. As i went through the game iw as also amazed by the sound it was clear and it was amazing. After i made it 1/4 of the way through the game though i was dissapointed for one reason... the story. The plot in this game is very thin you have to find out why the things attacked and what is behind the attack, thats about it there aren't really any plot twists or anything just find out why this is happening. Another reason why it was a little dissapointing is that after a while the click and hack style of fighting gets a little old because there really isnt much to it. The only way i really enjoy playing this game anymore is when im playing online with my friends otehr then that the game gets incredibly boring. I would suggest this game to epople who dont really look for storylines in a game or those who have someone to play with online otherwise stay away from this game
Rating: Summary: The best of its kind Review: Dungeon Siege appealed to me on all the levels that the Diablo games failed to. My distaste for Blizzard's Diablo franchise ("Don't believe the hype") puts me in a minority of sorts, I'm sure - but I'm just not a fan of action-oriented RPGs that are more about clicking incessantly on monsters than about building character or storytelling. It is strange, then, that I should find Dungeon Siege so appealing. The Pros: · Graphics! Dungeon Siege has some beautiful graphics. On top of that, no two dungeons look alike. Repetitive textures have plagued these kinds of games for quite some time now (see Arcanum, Diablo, or Neverwinter Nights, for example), and it is wonderful that Siege manages to maintain a sense of wonder and fun while adventuring. Oh, and the outdoor vistas are staggering! · Solid, enjoyable gameplay. Siege doesn't exactly break any new ground, but in the world of action-RPGs, it takes the crown of all crowns. This lady is more style than substance, but that's not always a bad thing. · Like Neverwinter Nights and Baldur's Gate, Dungeon Siege allows you to create your own custom character, and then recruit other pre-made companions along the way. You can acquire quite a little miniature army if you have sufficient resources to do so. This keeps things lively. · Dungeon Siege may not be deep, but it's not entirely shallow either. You don't pick a class so much as find a style that you prefer, and the game will reward you for it. If you stick to melee fighting, you'll gradually become a warrior. If you tend to cast a lot of spells, you'll slowly evolve into a wizard. Or, of course, you can take that middle-road if both styles suit you. It's subtle, but it enhances gameplay tremendously. · The interface is a thing of beauty that can be customized as you see fit. · Despite the fact that the storyline is immensely thin, the Kingdom of Ehb (the setting for this game) is at least a unique setting. You won't find the usual assortment of orcs and kobolds, at least - and though the game has goblins, they aren't quite what you'd expect. The Cons: · Dungeon Siege isn't big on storytelling. The game is essentially just another tale of a fantasy world threatened by a Dark Lord who means to do all sorts of bad things to good people everywhere. Even this idea can be fresh if done properly, but Siege hardly bothers to shed any new light on the topic. · Dungeon Siege isn't the longest game, and its linear approach makes it even shorter. Unless you thoroughly enjoy the hacking and slashing, there probably won't be much of a reason to revisit the game once you've beaten it (unless, of course, you opt for the multiplayer mode). · Interaction with NPCs is basic to the extreme. You click on a character and some hasty dialogue ensues. NPCs are devoid of personality much of the time (despite some amusing voice-overs), and conversing usually just serves to get you embroiled in some uninspired fetch-and-carry qeust. · The more party members you recruit, the harder it gets to tend to them all in the midst of battle. This results in a lot of needless death and the inevitable reloads that follow. In the end, though, if the combat works, the game works. This is that kind of game, after all - and in this genre, I think it's hard to do better than Dungeon Siege. Final Grade: B+ (or 4 and a half stars curved to 5)
Rating: Summary: Best video game I've ever played. Review: This game is quite simply the best RPG and best video game I've ever played. I thought Eternal Darkness was my favorite game but I'm 3/4th of the way through Dungeon Siege and it has taken the top spot in my list of favorites. Playing this game is like stepping into another world. It's like being in Middle Earth or having Dungeons and Dragons made real. My only complaint is the interface being a bit clunky when I'm trying to move all 8 characters around in dungeons. However the graphics are nothing short of spectacular! The game is long too. I've already put in close to 30 hours worth of exploring and fighting into this game and I'm only 75% of the way through the game. I've read some reviews where people thought the game was boring after playing it for the first hour. This may be true early in the game when your characters can't do very much. However eventually when you have all kinds of spells available then battles become much more challenging. Many times you need to change from using archers to fighting with melee weapons or switching to spells depending on the enemies you're fighting and the environment. Later on it takes strategy to win battles. At least for me it does because I have a small party of 4 warriors and 4 pack mules. Once you've cleared an area it's also nice to zoom out, and walk around and just take in the beauty of this cyber world. :) Very fun game.
Rating: Summary: Great fantasy RPG Review: I must admit, I bought this game because of the beautiful screenshots on the back. Usually when I do this I'm disappointed with the game. Not this time, though. What I found was a story and game every bit as appealing as the graphics. Dungeon Siege was definitely worth the money. This is your typical farm-boy-to-hero scheme. Along the way, you find more weapons and encounter people willing to join you in your quest. You develop the character the way YOU want to, and there's no restraint on the way you develop him (unlike Diablo). This is a great aspect, because if you start a character and decide you don't like the way he's going, you don't have to start a new one--you just change gears and develop him another way. Another great part of this game is the enormous variety of weapons and spells. There is always something new to discover as you mercilessly slaughter every monster imaginable. Most notably are the summon spells, everything from a scorpion when you're weak to a drake or lava monster when you're strong. DS does very well in the single player department, and this because of its superb party control. You can have up to 8 in your party--mages, archers, melee fighters--even a donkey to haul your stuff (if you're a pack-rat like me). The first time you go through this game is incredible, and there's always the chance you can encounter (or hire) different characters the next time around. Multi-player is also great in DS. In this mode you only control one character, but you can join a party with up to 8. There are many bugs in MP, it is true (the foremost being that your game is paused every time a new player enters the game), but it is still very enjoyable. There is a different world to explore, and a lot of big creatures to fight. Speaking of the big creatures, they are worth mentioning. It is truly a lot of fun to go on a quest after one of these monsters. My favorite is the fury, the great, hovering demon that strikes terror into the heart of the stoutest warrior. The gigantic red dragon is also fun to defeat. So why 4 stars, why not 5? Well, the game does have some flaws. First, the single player campaign doesn't have a lot of replay ability. Once you've gone through a couple of times, its pretty much old news. Since the multi-player mode has only one other world (at least last I knew), it too can become a bore. Quests in MP are almost non-existent, and the game is reduced to killing stuff. Don't get me wrong, I like killing stuff. It's one of my favorite things to do in a fantasy game. But MP mode would benefit from more quests. Who knows, maybe in an expansion? All in all, this game is a must-have for anyone who loves RPGs. Buy this game, and you'll find yourself more involved then you know!
Rating: Summary: Awesome, really awesome graphics! Review: When I wrote my first review of this game I had only played the demo which is the first few levels. I knew I had to buy the game after playing the demo because the graphics were that good. Well now I'm much further into the game and I must say this is a awesome game. The attention to detail is amazing. You can zoom in and see the flowers and bushes and then zoom out and see the tops of the tree tops. You can zoom in and see the detail of a picture on the wall and then zoom out and see the whole house. Truly this is a graphic masterpiece of a video game! And it's fun to play! The sound effects are good and the music is very good but I wish the monsters made a wider variety of sounds. Hearing "Kurg!" gets very very boring. Gameplay is very nice. The interface can be a bit cumbersome at times but then in most games of this complexity it usually is. It's good that you can reprogram the hotkeys on the keyboard. This is definately not a game to be missed if you're into RPG's. This is a very good game. Note you need a good PC to run this game. On my Pentium 4 with 256megs of RAM it works wonderfully but on my 2 older PCs it didn't have the graphic detail that it had on my new PC.
Rating: Summary: What do people see in this game? Review: I bought this game because every web site and gaming magazine rated it extremely well. I played it for 10-15 hours trying to see what the allure was. I just don't get it. It just seems so stupid. Your fighters bang on the baddies while your magic users launch one of the same 3 or 4 spells over and over and over again. I play ALOT of games and this is one of the worst ones I have played.
Rating: Summary: Outstanding combat system but only average adventure Review: I guarantee that the initial rush and the first week addiction this game gives you will be satisfying. The graphics are almost flawless. The is a smooth transition from scene to scene without game stops for loading. The scenery is fantastic and some settings, for example the beaches, are superior to anything yet released. The greatest strength of the game is the combat system. First, it allows your party to operate in various formations such as line, double line, column, double column, wedge and circle. One can place weaker and stronger characters where they are best suited. Then one can give the entire party, or even each individual character, one of 27 different attitudes. Each attitude controls how freely that character will move, how aggressively they will attack, and wether they will target the nearest, strongest or weakest enemy. Finally, the system allows one to quickly and easily change from ranged to close combat weapons. The result of all this is that one can get quite involved in arranging one's party to maximize its performance depending on the current opponent. The best setup to fight a single very powerful opponent like a dragon will not be the best setup to fight a large group of goblins which would include goblins with ranged weapons. The second most enjoyable part of the game is shopping. After each stage, one finds a merchant from whom one can purchase improved armor, weapons, and spells to supplement what one finds. There is an almost endless number of magic items, each of which has slightly different bonuses. In the early stages of the game, when money is tight and one can only afford a few items, there is an interesting choice of which item is the best choice to enhance the party. To make the most of the excellent combat system, the designers put a huge number of bad guys in the adventure. One might slay perhaps 5,000 enemies completing the game. This is not an exaggeration. One will encounter new foes for every 30 seconds of travel. There are no lengthy mazes and empty wildernesses in this game and almost every cave or room in any dungeon is occupied. The combat is a challenge. One will find it necessary to flee on a number of occasions. Unless you watch your step, hold numerous healing potions, throw protection spells and fight like mad, your entire party can and will die in lots of nasty places in lots of nasty ways. The " Hard " difficulty setting is very very difficult. Dungeon Siege is fight a lot, move a little, fight a lot, move a little. If you love combat, this game is for you and you will love every minute of it. However, if you are looking for complex quests, NPC character development, tricky puzzles and difficult mazes, this game is not for you. The quests are straight forward and sometimes earn you an almost trivial reward. The NPC's are interchangeable parts and you will discard party members when a better character offers his or her service. Dungeon Siege is good value for the money. It will take 50+ hours to complete the " normal " difficulty level, even more for the " hard " level. Read the system requirments on the box before you buy. If your system is not up to date, the game may crawl. At times, one may have 8 characters and 20 monsters battling with arrows, spells and swords against a complex background. If you system is not fast with an up to date graphics capability, the action will slow. For the parents out there, one can set the game to exlcude blood, gore and dismemberment. As a final note, this combat system would make an excellent game if applied to post WWII to modern squad level combat. One of you wiz kid, gen X'ers out there adopt it for us and we old timers will be glad to buy it.
Rating: Summary: Hack'n Slay Role Playing at its best! Review: If you don't like killing things, this game isn't for you! Otherwise, you got a keeper! This is one of the most immersive, motivating, and graphically stunning game I have every played. The world is just fantastic. I could spend hours just wandering around looking at stuff. There is hardly any repetitiveness in this game. It is amazing. One of the most amazing features is the smooth, ongoing nature of the game. Never will it pause to reload more graphics. Never will it "cut" over into a new dungeon. It is just one continuous world! Excellent job! Playing the game means mostly killing monsters. For some reason, it never gets boring though. Last weekend, I sat down at 11am to play for "an hour or so", and finally managed to get away from the computer more than 12 hours later. And not because I was bored! I could have easily kept playing until dusk! Get this one. You won't be disappointed! (If you like RPG and killing monsters that is).
Rating: Summary: Too easy Review: This game was ok. There is really not all that much new here that has not been done by ID software. The camera-view system in my opinion did not work. There where definite times during the game when this view system made it very hard to move your party around and fight. However, I did like the fact that you were not forced to be a single class. Which ever skill you used is the one that you leveled up in. So you could be a combination of a magic user that could also carry a sword and fight very effectively. The main reason that I gave this game three stars is the view system. I just did not like it.
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