I already knew what I was getting into when I bought DBTS during the Interplay weekend sale. Having played the demo on and off over a span of 7 years, I made up my mind that yeah, I was finally going to get this!
Firstly, this game is worth more than USD4.50. It is however, as fellow player xiani said, fundamentally flawed. The storyline is nearly non-existent - guy and girl are having a date at a campfire site, girl gets taken away by kobolds, guy has to smash through a whole army of weird monstrosities for her. But hey great games without good storylines do exist right?
I guess this is the category where DBTS falls into. Where the game lacks in storytelling, it more than makes up for with the unique control scheme. The first of it's kind (but certainly not the last), DBTS features VSIM, a system that feels like a very early version of ragdoll physics. VSIM allows you to move the character's arms independently, with either the keyboard, mouse or joystick. The control scheme is far from perfect, and this is where it's flawed. It's hideously difficult to control, and it will make you scream in frustration when you miss that finishing blow to the orc's head, but it's possible to overcome. My choice of control is mouse VSIM, and while others complain about it being very clunky - which I cannot deny is true for new players - it offers versatility rarely seen in games. Dismemberment is also present in this game, thus giving players more gameplay choices. For example, if you're fighting an enemy that keeps blocking its head, you would probably aim for the lower part of its torso, or better still, take out one of its legs
(note: if you want to buy the game but are hesitant to use mouse VSIM, I have started a thread in the forum that dissects this control scheme and shares tips)
Like I mentioned, the Quest part of the game isn't anything to boast about. In fact, it's VERY VERY hard. Don't be mistaken that the first level's always the easiest. In fact, it's just the opposite. Some early enemies deal a lot of damage, and you'll find yourself facing more than 1 at one go. Other times, during the later part of the game, you might just face off against one hard enemy, which is easier than it sounds. Be prepared to re-load your saved games a lot, especially when you cannot see your sword arm properly due to the camera suddenly stuck between Enric's head and the wall
It's not all bad, though. There are interesting moments, like fighting while hanging upside down from a rope in the early game; or having to cut down tentacles to make your way through. None of the enemies really make any sense in being there, except for being sword fodder, but hey, there's nothing wrong with having more enemies to cut down
The swordplay is also the most solid I've ever seen in a video game. Thanks to the freeform style of VSIM, swordfighting is as realistic as it gets in a video game. Are you sick of getting games like The Force Unleashed, where attacks are done by button mashing and look unrealistic in every sense? Well then, DBTS is for you! Whether you're attacking or parrying, it's all under your control. There's no "fixed" pattern for you to use. If you're feeling agile and alert, and that ogre is making life miserable for you, well parry his attack and quickly sidestep to inflict tons of damage on him without getting yourself hit. Or is the skeleton defending itself particularly well? Why not try your luck and see if your jump attack has enough momentum to break past its parry? When you use mouse VSIM, this is when you can be prepared for some really epic battles. If DBTS had modern graphics, I'll bet Youtube would be flooded with movies of "epic battles" in no time at all
Last but not least, the game's worth it's weight (or filesize) in money, thanks to the Arena mode. Here, you can pit yourself against the AI or other player opponents. You can select any character you want to be, from the default Enric to the mighty Ogre. You can even download custom maps online (though there aren't a lot) to play in. It's very fun to test your mettle and swordplay skills in custom arenas, and better still if you can get your friends to play too
DBTS is a game that is frustratingly hard, but that's no reason to avoid it. It's like playing your first RPG when you're a kid - difficult to learn, difficult to master, but once you get the hang of the controls, you're ready to tackle the game
As a final note, if you think the graphics really suck hard, and find yourself constantly nauseatic while playing the game, I suggest checking out the forum thread on DBTS mods. I've posted a way to get higher res graphics working. It won't have a magical effect, but at least it makes the game look somewhat better