Darkstone

Rating:
Summary: This game is totally addictive - I highly recommend it
Review: If you're a fan of Diablo, you will love Darkstone. It takes the great interface of Diablo and adds great new features (like a bank), lots of quests that can be intellectually stimulating, and interesting levels, creatures, as well as beautiful graphics. It's very replayable, and the new patch from Gathering of Developers has a hero level, which is harder than the three difficulty levels the game comes with. I'm definitely enjoying this game while waiting for Diablo II to come out.

Rating:
Summary: Fair game, for a diablo clone. Gets dull VERY quickly
Review: If you've played Diablo through to the end so many times you begin to see the spiked monstrosity in your dreams, and STILL can't get enough - but really wish it could make use of your new 3D accelerator, this is the game for you! On the other hand, it's far more likely you'll play Darkstone for a few evenings, uninstall the game and begin having a blast playing Frisbee with the disc.

-Buy this game because you enjoy playing games with no particular point, because the only skill you wish to employ is marathon mouse-clicking, because you just can't get enough pointless quests for useless objects, or because you are completely indifferent to storyline 'Just point the way to the next monster! '

-DON'T buy this game if you're looking for a challenging fantasy game with an immersive storyline, or if you're looking for something new and interesting that will earn itself a place of honor on your hard drive.

Don't get me wrong, I loved Diablo, though it shared many of these shortcomings, it had a distinctly 'real' atmosphere. You felt a certain amount of immersion despite lack of an involved storyline. Perhaps had Darkstone been released years ago with Diablo it would have been a different story. Darkstone strikes me as being 'dated', and perhaps incomplete. Did the developer ship it out before it was complete? Who knows.

If you purchase this title, be sure it's from a place with a forgiving return policy. Speaking of which, anyone want to buy a copy? It's in perfect condition, barely used...

Rating:
Summary: A pretty good game, clearly worth this price.
Review: It has some flaws, you will have to run around a bit between play areas, but it plays well enough. The price is right, and it is worth the time you will spend on it. The learning curve is small, and there are music sound tracks buried deep in the CD if you look for them (a neat extra). It has been around a couple of years and there is nothing new (though you do have a "partner" you can exploint during battle), but it is a good change of sceenary. I liked it enough to want to finish it; I think you will too.

Rating:
Summary: A pretty good game, clearly worth this price.
Review: It has some flaws, you will have to run around a bit between play areas, but it plays well enough. The price is right, and it is worth the time you will spend on it. The learning curve is small, and there are music sound tracks buried deep in the CD if you look for them (a neat extra). It has been around a couple of years and there is nothing new (though you do have a "partner" you can exploint during battle), but it is a good change of sceenary. I liked it enough to want to finish it; I think you will too.

Rating:
Summary: Better than Diablo for kids.
Review: It's interesting to note, now that Diablo II has come out, how many of the improvements Darkstone incorporated into the Diablo play model are now found in Diablo II. Darkstone has a "previously visited locations" menu that allows you to reduce the tedium of having to navigate a lot of area you've cleaned out already; Diablo II has "waypoints". Darkstone had extra skills which you could customize classes with, as does Diablo II. Darkstone had a populated wilderness area, as does Diablo II.

Darkstone gives you two characters, one of which will contribute to battles when you're controlling the other, it can be a fun game for a younger child (who wouldn't be able to play Diablo). Even if he can't click fast enough to kill the monsters, he'll have backup. Also, the shops use pictures of items, which means a child who can't read or is just learning can still play, if he knows his numbers. The game generally seems less spooky and bloody.

With all due respect to T. Byrl, the voice acting is a bit strained, though not the worst we've heard.

The quests pile up a lot more quickly than in Diablo, as well. It's difficult to get through the first two villages without being accosted by half-a-dozen villagers needing tasks performed. That keeps things moving along.

Overall, the game seems a =lot= easier than Diablo. Spells cost less, gold is more plentiful, magical items easier to come by, resurrection spells allow one surviving character to bring bacak one that just died, etc. etc. etc. And you have to worry less about moving in combat rather than attacking, as would happen in Diablo quite a bit.

But the combat's a bit mushy relative to Diablo--a little too automatic feeling, perhaps, which is the only thing that keeps me from giving it the five stars. I killed the first "boss", losing one of my own characters, before I knew what happened. But then I could just resurrect him.

Overall, a worthwhile contribution to the genre.

Rating:
Summary: Better than Diablo for kids.
Review: It's interesting to note, now that Diablo II has come out, how many of the improvements Darkstone incorporated into the Diablo play model are now found in Diablo II. Darkstone has a "previously visited locations" menu that allows you to reduce the tedium of having to navigate a lot of area you've cleaned out already; Diablo II has "waypoints". Darkstone had extra skills which you could customize classes with, as does Diablo II. Darkstone had a populated wilderness area, as does Diablo II.

Darkstone gives you two characters, one of which will contribute to battles when you're controlling the other, it can be a fun game for a younger child (who wouldn't be able to play Diablo). Even if he can't click fast enough to kill the monsters, he'll have backup. Also, the shops use pictures of items, which means a child who can't read or is just learning can still play, if he knows his numbers. The game generally seems less spooky and bloody.

With all due respect to T. Byrl, the voice acting is a bit strained, though not the worst we've heard.

The quests pile up a lot more quickly than in Diablo, as well. It's difficult to get through the first two villages without being accosted by half-a-dozen villagers needing tasks performed. That keeps things moving along.

Overall, the game seems a =lot= easier than Diablo. Spells cost less, gold is more plentiful, magical items easier to come by, resurrection spells allow one surviving character to bring bacak one that just died, etc. etc. etc. And you have to worry less about moving in combat rather than attacking, as would happen in Diablo quite a bit.

But the combat's a bit mushy relative to Diablo--a little too automatic feeling, perhaps, which is the only thing that keeps me from giving it the five stars. I killed the first "boss", losing one of my own characters, before I knew what happened. But then I could just resurrect him.

Overall, a worthwhile contribution to the genre.

Rating:
Summary: Variation on a theme...
Review: Look, Darkstone is to Diablo what Hexen was to Doom. Or what Warcraft is to Command and Conquer. They share a lot of the same commands, and a good bit of the gameplay is the same. So if you're going to sit there and fault one game for following in the design footsteps of another, we're going to be here all day.

I recently purchased Darkstone for just twenty bucks. Twenty bucks! Too often I've spent twice as much and didn't receive half as much fun as Darkstone deliveres.

It boils down to this: If you already own Diablo and it satifies your need for hack and slash adventure, then by all means save your money. But if you're looking for a variation on a theme (and I think the 3D effects add a good bit to the gameplay), and you're looking for a new quality game at a budget price, then Darkstone is a great choice.

Rating:
Summary: Sure Its A Diablo Clone, But I'll Take Darkstone Any Day
Review: Many people are caught up in that fact that darkstone blatantly lifts many gameplay features from Diablo. However they faile to notice one fact, darkstone is better. Better gamplay, better charecters, better plot, much better graphics, more variety, and the list goes on and on. Kudos to Gathering Of Developers, with games like Darkstone and Age of Wonders now out we can be assured that quality fantasy games will still be around for quite some time.

Rating:
Summary: Tiding me over till Diablo II
Review: Not perfect by any means, but it has addicted me. Graphics are OK. Voice-overs are not the kind Blizzard has made us come to expect. Not the best story. But I am enjoying it- and for thirty bucks that says a lot.

True, they also won't win any points for originality... all though there are a number of game play innovations that I hope the staff at Diablo II won't ignore(upgrading weapons, skills, better mapping, running, and that feature that autopilots you to certain places you've been before). Single player was fun- featuring the ability to use two characters, but as with almost games I play nowadays- multiplayer is what I care about. And with two good friends- We had quite a blast romping through the dungeons at Heat.net, all though its difficult to get a game going there as it hasn't achieved a high level of popularity. What made it even better was that the three of us were using Roger Wilco to communicate. It felt like we were in our High school Dungeons and Dragons days even though we were in different states.

Well until Diablo II comes out (as many have said) you could do a lot worse than this game.

Rating:
Summary: Replay value higher than most
Review: Now that I've gone back and started replaying Diablo, I realize how spoiled I've become playing Darkstone. Major improvements were made the the Diablo engine by GOD when they put this game out, and Diablo actually feels somewhat kludgy in comparison. Ability to change camera angle, the Previously Visited Places menu, that sort of thing. GOD/Take 2 did a good job with the patches, as well, not only fixing some D3D problems in the original version but adding playability as well. A fine product overall that's still got me banging away at monsters after months of single-minded playing.