Sacred Gold

First the bad news. There isn't a single way I can figure to fix this game on widescreen decently. The constant combat and respawning are so rapid one can either see it as very challenging or very annoying. Some of the minor respawning random characters are over-powered causing you to die. A lot. Some of the quests are just plain silly. The lack of ANY ability to _pause_ the game to get a cuppa or use the washroom without reloading is frustrating beyond belief and small as that may seem--it adds up to a game that can be irritating to play for extended periods of time. Now the good news. Loot is substantial. It isn't hard to get into the game at all. Fun thing with the skills is that you can set them up anyway you like if you collect enough runes [and the runes don't have to be the ones for the character you are playing--you can trade them in for what you *do* want] It seemed to me more like Divine Divinity than Diablo in it's vastness and outdoor world. The whole map is open to you from the start if you want to beat your way across the world. That's fun. There are buckets of hidden caves and areas to explore if you take your time and enjoy the ride. The ability to combine a bunch of skills into one big chain of events is loads of fun to mess around with to get the best combinations. The skill system is well-thought out and easy to learn. All in all, this is an entertaining game providing you are not looking for an in-depth rpg experience and just want an enjoyable hack n slash adventure without too much thinking.

Good game. I have spent hundreds of hours playing. The game world is huge with lots of side quests to get caught up in. Well worth checking out and playing.

If you are looking for a Planescape Torment or NWN style RPG with a compelling story, a lot of talking and one where your decisions actually have an impact on the outcome of the game (or for that matter one where you can make any decisions at all), then keep looking. If you enjoy micromanaging different characters and controlling each step of a battle, deciding on every spell and planning exact strategy for all of your characters, then again, Sacred is not for you - you can't even pause the game and plan your moves/spells ahead here. On the other hand, if you loved Diablo, like a simple gameplay, enjoy blasting, hacking and slashing enemies to pieces by the hundred and thousand, then this game should be on your list. The story is as linear as it gets, offering nothing much in terms of surprises or twists, and when finished leaves no lasting memory. In addition to the main quests you can get dozens of miniquests ranging from RPG classics on the lines of "rescue XY from a (band of) evil monster(s)" to somewhat silly ones like "find a rose bush for my garden." Again, contrary to what you would expect from for instance the aforementioned Planescape, "find" in the context of Sacred does not mean "Search for", but rather "Go to the indicated spot on the map and pick it up, killing some random bad guys along the way." So all in all, the quests offer little entertainment, but that does not matter much, because really the most fun part is exploring the huge world. And trust me, the map is *huge*. The monsters and environs change during the game, so it takes a while to get bored. To make a long story short, Sacred does not have an enthralling story, interesting lore, quests that you will be left pondering over for hours or characters you can develop any sort of affection for. On the other hand, the game is easy to play, although harder to master, and if you enjoy killing the bad guys en masse you can have a good few hours of fun with it.

Sacred is standard Diablo derivative ARPG fair with all the usual trappings, which is of course a totally awesome thing. Sacred brings a wide open world to the table, making it as much of an MMO as you'll get in a single player game. It is packed full of quests and dungeons and caverns to explore in a fully traversible world, and of course as much loot and endless experience as you can expect of any ARPG. Sacred executes all the standard ARPG trappings expertly, with intuitive mouse controls, easy to use menus, a simple yet brilliant presentation and no end of randomized loot. You are also freer to improve your character than in most ARPGs due to the plethora of character stats that players may invest in manually. Character unique combat arts appear as loot drops and quest rewards and are about the only thing differentiating the games generous offering of compelling character classes from each other. This allows players to freely invest in their own character by equiping loot, investing in attributes and assembling combat art combos largely unhindered. Combat is straightforward, visceral and satisfying. My only gripe would be that the game's inventory is rather limited for the sheer amount of loot you'll be carrying. If you plan to cash in your unwanted spoils of war with regularity, then you can expect frequent trips back to the nearest merchant. This is by no means necessary as the game will have you swimming in gold you'll seldom have reason to spend anyway. There are a lack of convenience options, such as the ability to auto-sell equipment or sort the inventory. Some quests are bugged The game's *ahem* 'retro' budget manifests itself with some rather entertaining quirks that keep the game from showing its age too badly, particularly in regards to voice work. The graphics are good looking. Small, careful features litter the environment for those with a keen eye for detail and exploration across Sacred's vast world is often a lucrative venture.

Without mod the definition is too low. I choose reborn to lower the grind. Story is bad, controls are not smooth. World is huge (too much imo) and enemies were quite repetitive. The world map is one of the best i ever found. Character development is ok, enough freedom and not over complicated. 2 problems: no explanation anywhere and increasing the power of a power also increase it's cooldown. So it can be very tedious to change gamestyle if your power is too high (you're stuck with using lots af specific cooldown reducing gear). Bronze is extra extra easy. Silver is a littel bit difficult and i think gold is where the fun start. I played bronze while exploring a lot and doing all the side quests i was able to find. Big mistake, as a seraphin, i was able to clean everything with one spell, an aura, area of effect damage: best gameplay ever. Rushed silver in 4 5 hours but couldn't find the will to continue with gold. I didn't try underworld (the expension) also. Conclusion: clunky but ok-ish gameplay quite repetitive big world to explore beware of overleveling (bronze 1 to 46, silver 47 to 90 gold start at 95 96) not the diablo like i would start with, but if it's your thing and it's the last you haven't done, sure, go.