It is a testament to the quality of Sacrifice that you can still install it on today's computers and it will not only run, it will run well. The graphics, while dated, are still pleasing to the eye, the gameplay is still fun while being challenging, and as for replayability, this title is bursting with it. Sacrifice uses an over-the-shoulder camera with limited zoom. Today's players might feel a bit limited, at first, but the fact is that the camera angle covers everything you would want and need to see during play. At times, you will want to pull back, to view everything in the near vicinity, and at other times, you will need to be up close and personal. A first-person view of the panoramic scenery is not necessary (although you'll be tempted to use a screenshot for your desktop wallpaper), so it is not included as an option. Nor is pulling so far back that you can't see what's going on. Like so much else in this game, the developers give you exactly what is needed for an excellent gaming experience. Make no mistake, this is an "old skool" game, and the difficulty ramps up, quickly. Just as your companion and advisor, Zzyzzyx, is beginning to annoy you with his free advice, you find yourself being blasted to pieces by enemy wizards and wishing he had survival tips for you. No such luck, however. You'll have to figure out winning strategies and tactics on your own. Players who are used to cheat codes and walk-throughs may not have the patience to succeed, but those who persevere and try alternative methods will surely find one of the many paths to victory. Just how many paths there are to victory may surprise you. It is possible to "beat" the single player campaign while sticking to any of the five gods' mission tracks, but you are not limited to only one. There is nothing preventing you from fighting for Persephone for your first mission, James for your second mission, and Stratos for your third. As you continue to favor particular gods, their opponents will become less and less open to accepting your service, but you are not limited to a particular path until late in the game. Which path that happens to be will depend upon what you have done, previously. If you are slaughtering Pyro's minions and razing his buildings to the ground during the first half of the game, you won't be earning favors from him, later. The spells you learn, the creatures you can summon, and the blessings you receive for a job well done, all of these are determined by which god you've hired yourself out to for that mission. That adds an edge of mercenary calculation to your choice of missions. Help Persephone and gain Dragon summoning? Or help Pyro and learn to cast Volcano? It is this mixing and matching which gives the game its longevity. Different combinations of spells and summoned creatures require different tactics and strategy to win. Some nay-sayers may claim otherwise, but it IS possible to "beat" the game with almost any combination of powers. Where Sacrifice really shines, however, is in multiplayer. The computer-controlled opponents may have some advantages over you, but you haven't really been challenged until you've gone up against an opponent as devious as you are. The effort required to connect to other players is really the only major drawback to an otherwise excellent game, but the guys at "Good Old Games" may have made adjustments, there. I wouldn't know as I still use my original Sacrifice CD. What I do know is that there were few things as fun as the dust-raising, spell-flinging, chaotic cloud of summoned carnage which was multiplayer Sacrifice. Assuming you could find other people to play with, a multiplayer game of Sacrifice offered almost unlimited fun. If you've never played Sacrifice, I highly recommend you give it a try. If you tried it but got discouraged, I suggest you look on YouTube for some examples of how to "stomp the comp." If you're one of those people that remembers the game fondly, here's your chance to snag a "modern update" to a great game for only $5.99. Even at ten times that price, Sacrifice would be a game worth owning.
