Posted on: October 11, 2020

Delta Dagger

Games: 202 Reviews: 11

Patience required, but good reward.

So, Arx Fatalis shows its age not so much in visuals but in its controls. They can seem quite strange for someone unaccustomed to them. While WASD movement and mouse look is friendly, item usage and inventory management are a bit of a change up. Also, the game can be a bit unstable, so the Arx Libertatis mod is a must. However, once that's overcome? You will find Arx Fatalis to be a superbly fun dungeon crawl. It crafts an atmosphere that you soak up like a sponge and you find yourself wholly immersed in its game world. The world, while fantastical, is relatable and its inhabitants feel alive. The star here is the magic system. Casting spells is very enjoyable and I'm usually a fighter in these type of games. I'm using a lot more magic here than I normally would and not like in Skyrim aka just leveling it to get increase my character's level. It's genuinely enjoyable and fun to use. Unloading magic missiles and fireballs on Rat-men never gets old. Ranged and melee combat are simplistic, so be prepared for that. However, they definitely work and they won't enrage you like Morrowind's dice rolling. Expect no handholding; you must read journals, pick up on clues, and explore. The game rewards those who explore, I'm told. In reality, I think the game only progresses for those who explore. It rewards those who think creatively, more accurately. For what's being asked for in price, you cannot go wrong with Arx Fatalis. This is a must for RPG fans, for dungeon crawling fans, and for fans of the immersive sim.

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Posted on: May 2, 2009

ephaestos

Verified owner

Games: 406 Reviews: 3

Great game

I have played a lot of games on PC or console and this one belong to the few you can play many time and still discover things. This game looks like Might and Magic or Ishar except you only control one character and is in full 3D. Strangely this kind of game was very common in the 90's but there was just a few in the 2k's. There is a once very active forum on the developer's web site : Many hints, information or explanation. Can work in a very decent way on a 2004 PC under Windows XP. Almost works under Linux + wine : The game suffer massive slowdown when the book is openned.

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Posted on: September 2, 2013

B4PH0

Games: 432 Reviews: 10

A RPG for tunnelrats

I loved this game back in 2002 and still love it. What's so special about it is it's dense underground atmosphere combined with an UNIQUE spellcasting system that simply rocks! During my first playthrough I spent a major amount of time experimenting with the different spellcasting runes. Some of the possible combinations were noted in your journal but not *all* of them. Playing as a magetype class in this game is simply awesome! ('AAM - YOK - TAAR' - The Fireball spell. Still it instantly comes to my head whenever I remember this great game.) Also, enemydesign is sooo detailled, so loveable. I've never seen cuter goblins :D Especially the questline around the goblin-king was a great, absolutely hilarious experience. ANd the game had really creepy enemies, too: I still recall the fear in my eyes when fighting my first giantspider. And when it comes to undead... Oh dear. I nearly crapped my pants not only one time. o__O'' But there are also flaws. Yes. What i hated about the game was it's map. For some reason, one weren't able to make notes on the strangely blue-colored map and to make things worse: Some corners of the map always stayed in a 'unrevealed state'. Annoying. Cause one visited these spots over and over again in hopes that it might lead to a undetected spot...and then you bumped into a wall... again. But one gets used to it pretty quickly. Anyways. This game is definitely true old skool dungeon crawling fun which should be played if you're into RPG-kind of games. :)

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Posted on: April 14, 2019

Teskron

Verified owner

Games: Reviews: 54

Outstanding questdesign

This game deserved once 5 or 4 stars. In 2019 I thought about giving the game 3 stars, since the game has a lot of issues, which made me almost stop playing the game. Yet the questdesign is so good, that I wish Arkane and other developers would make more games like this (without it's issues). The outstanding questdesign allows the game to be played differently, like Ultima Underwold. Some say the warrior way is the only way, some say to play as magician is the only way, which means that both ways are viable. One can achieve goals peacefully or with violence. And the best thing about this game is that the non violent way does not depend on some obvious dialog choices but on solving puzzles, like in an adventure game. There is not one quest a simple fetch quest. Arx also has an excellent leveldesign (interlocked levels) and some unique features like the magic system. However, the game has also a lot of issues. - the game needs fan patch Arx Libertatis - even with the fan patch there are graphical glitches - the story is generic - human characters are boring - voice acting for humans is bad - a lot of skills are useless (stealth seems to be useless) - footsteps sound like high heels on marble even when crouching with some stealth skills - music is boring - graphics are a bit outdated and some things are hard to see - some corridors are so small that the player is blocked by another character - user interface is cumbersome - melee combat is simplistic - magic system can be frustrating - loading screens when transitioning - frustrating black monster in dwarven mines - no dialog choices - some unpolished mechanics leed to frustration (the right idea not working) So this game is ripe for a remake but it still deserves attention until some game do it better.

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Posted on: May 24, 2023

OctoberEclipse

Verified owner

Games: Reviews: 5

Hard To Master, But So Worth It

It's a good game with some interesting lore and gameplay. The spellcasting is unique, the gameplay is fun (for the time this game was released). We shouldn't judge it for it's flaws since this game is from 2002. The only thing I can say of for new players is to do some research on the gameplay, it can deter lot of the new players. But for the price, 1 dollar is a very good deal you should not miss out on. The story is great with some cool twist and turns, the sidequests are OK. Some are good, others feel "empty" in a way - like it's just there cause it can. In the end, great game with minor flaws.

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