Posted on: February 26, 2021

fconstantino

Games: 353 Reviews: 6

Deserves a lot more attention.

I consider Arx Fatalis to be one of my all time favourite games. It seems as if it is still vastly underrated as most people I talk to about it aren't even aware of its existence. This game has an amazing setting and lore, the exploration of the various levels is fun and engaging, each level is its own thing and with its own environment and inhabitants. It has cool combat, using magic is amazing with all the different options available to you and the versatility of the spells themselves and even casting them is unique and immersive (another great thing about magic is that it exists not only for combat, it is also sometimes the key to figuring out a puzzle). Progressing through the game isn't simply moving forward and killing enemies but instead you are constantly challenged by the layout of the level itself, making you need to find different approaches to reach certain places and by puzzles which are very well made and always keep you interested in finding out more. Extra bonus points for the cooking system as though it may not be the most complex thing ever, the way it works just makes me feel all warm and cozy watching my fishy cook by the fire. If you are an RPG fan, and especially if you appreciate underground settings of caves and mines and the like, do yourself a favour and play this game.

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Posted on: December 5, 2008

SaunaChum

Verified owner

Games: 253 Reviews: 2

A bit different Dungeon

First time I played this game I didn't thought much of it. But when I started it again I got hooked. Though if I remember correctly I never finished the game but that proves there's lot to play at least. The puzzles give this dungeon adventure a certain taste than just mashing enemies and collecting stuff. The quests are also very varying from the good old mashing to negotiating and stealing. The spell system was very refreshing and when playing as mage, killing your enemies with spells the system adds it's own suspense to the game. The menu system is bit awkward but it doesn't ruin the game. Also possibility of making potions and other stuff is a good addition.

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Posted on: April 13, 2020

hjd1992

Verified owner

Games: 97 Reviews: 19

Great immersive sim [with tech issues]

If you have tried and liked System Shock, Deus Ex, Thief or Bioshock then this is a must try. I had my doubts before I tried it. Give it a go and you'll like it as much as I did. It really is a good immersive sim and definately a must on your immersive sim list of games. Nice and understandable story. Good character build up and how you play is up to you. Save or kill everyone. General rule for older games: Before you start playing any old game always remember to update the game and make use of all graphical mods available. Mods for Arx Fatalis: "Arx Libertatis" + "Arx Neuralis". Apply these and your game will surely be more enjoyable. Rule of thumb: Always make use of the manual save function on the in-game menu. I did a mistake on only relying on quick-saves. Near the end of the game all my quick-saves files in-game suddenly dissapeared. The local quick-save files were still available on my file drive though corrupted and not recognized by the game anymore. This was a big bummer for me as I had invested so much time to the game. Non the less I did experianced the ending through a Youtube-video walkthrough of the game. I don't want anyone to experiance such and technical issue, therefore ALWAYS make use of the MANUAL SAVE function while playing a game. Despite the quick-save game disaster still give tihs game a 5/5. It really deserves that in my opinion. A GREAT IMMERSIVE SIM [with some usual old-game technical issues].

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Posted on: September 13, 2011

nifehed

Verified owner

Games: 226 Reviews: 2

Love and Hate.

Good story. Alot like Ultima Underworld. Fun combat. Crafting. Interesting spell casting system. BUYER BEWARE!!! Towards the end of the game are some of the most infuriating puzzles I have ever had the misfortune of experiencing. It has been awile since i have played a game where the puzzles piss me off this much. It was so bad I nearly didn't finish. Even with a walkthrough handy, 90% of the end-game puzzles was just a pain in the @$$. Buy it if it goes on sale. The beginning and middle are great. the end is NOT.

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Posted on: October 3, 2021

Krasnoludek5

Verified owner

Games: 112 Reviews: 39

Great immersion and interaction

I’ve recently played Arx Fatalis for the first time and I must say – I absolutely loved it! Already from the intro I was intrigued. The setting of Arx Fatalis seems pretty original and interesting at first glance. The sun of Arx has died and disappeared from the skies, turning the world into an icy shell. All the sentient races of Arx had to retreat underground, into the old dwarven tunnels, and accomodate to the life with tonnes of rock above their heads and darkness everywhere around. The game indeed takes place entirely underground, and you’d think it would be boring from a design perspective. But I’m happy to say I think the developers made a good job of making each level of the dungeon distinct. While the setting is pretty great, the story is not particuarly mindblowing. It’s not to say that it’s bad – it’s just „okay” I would say. But what was so great about Arx Fatalis and what I loved about it was just the multitude of interactive elements and little immersive mechanics. You can bake bread in Arx Fatalis, for example. You have to get flour and you have to get water. Then, you have to mix them in your inventory to make bread dough. Then, you have to light a fire. And lay the bread near the fire. And the dough rises. In real time! Arx Fatalis is full of those little things. If you drop cheese on the ground, mice will gather to eat it. There’s even a very cool interaction with the stock market, where you can buy shares in a business and their price actually reflects what happens in the game. I personally loved it – I loved the little interactions, the exploration, the setting. I’m one of those people who can derive real joy from really small details, and Arx Fatalis seemed to be chokefull of those. I thoroughly enjoyed my time with it. If you want to see how I did playing the game for the first time, you can see it on my channel here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hW8vhDY0NQo&list=PLp4TpsJ7HUWUuMgPUrYxec8hKq0VqmeJa

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