The most worst thing in this game is combat (and it will be a lot in this game) and how anything react to keyboard. It is slow and your enemies sometimes do too many damage, that it is critical when you miss right action, because your moves are like lags in online game. Change a damage type during combat? You have to do nothing (stay at place) and hit a button and wait, while you are attacked. Then enemy do some attack and you have to quickly move away. If you had low HP and you get a hit, you die. The another big problem is, enemies can make same damage to you as you to enemies. That means you can be killed with one hit if you are not careful. Another annoyuing thing is, fighting with bosses are too long. Sometimes it is long even with normal enemies. If you like games to attack with spoon, while enemies have weapons, and you will have to beat it to death with 1000x hits, go for it. another cons: - no real map (however there is one, but as decoration. Not useful. - Journal with haki-baki text, you have to allways hit space to reveal real text you will understand. - limited storage for HP and Mana potions. - skills are too underpowered and too long to cast and they become useless for some type of enemies. After cast a spell (or skill) the mana is not renewed, only when you fight with weapon. - staff as weapon, you can perform 4th attack, (if you spend atribute points into that) becomes useles because enemies are moving while you cast a powerfull spell, but when it arrive, enemy is away from the place where fireball should fall. What a miserable design. Not to mention that the previous attacks, you have to perform before the 4th attack, it force enemy to fight against you (it start moving).
First steps with this game was good and entertaiment. But in first track you found something strange with physics. I am not sure if it is intended, but speed is so hi that your ship start flying out of track. First two track are good in campaing then when you got track with green colors, you found that physics are very strange. Whatever you do, you allways hit ground on some "corners" which slow down you. Later there some track where are speed ups, where it slow down your ship drastically, because shape of track is designed strangelly(same as green one). Track design is not designed fot that hi speed i think. Also you have to be total perfect without hitting a side track because you got drasticall slow down. Some tracks are insane to get even second position, but possible to even get first position if you take a lot of time and practice. Font in game menu is bare readable, not that size is ok, but I sometimes have to decipher what a letter it is. If you think it is ok, you can try, if you can live with that thing I described above. For me it downgrade the whole game unfortunately.
It is not like King's Bounty as others wrote. The game is not bad at all. Problem is I bought this game to misleading rewiews where is written that is like Kings Bounty. No it is not. It is like HoMaM maybe, because in Kings Bounty, movement on world map is free (without turns), and your hero make progress on whole gameplay (you start as level one and it doesn't matter if map change, your hero keep earned levels and spells etc..). In this game enemies are static on map, until you click on them for fight, your movements on world map are by turns and your hero starts on level one on each map (this is most negative impact for me). If you like that gamplay you can give my review 3 - 4 starts.
While I agree with negative reviews, if you look at this game as completly new game (not tied to Gothic universe), it is not that bad (except the story and their dialogues). I played and finished game as Mage. And I have to write, magic is useless if you want to use it, until it is not maxed, it start to be powerfull, also as you level up it allwasy rise your magic power. Unfortunately your magic damage is hi depended on items you wear. In my opinion, whole game is unfinished and wants to be something more. There are lot of things you can interact (sit ont the chair, lie on the bed, read the books, even you can play on drums), but it does nothing only you can watch the animation. On whole game you not read single word from book or text, except the quests. Also there are locked locations that you never visit. I can imagine that when you interact with smyth tools you can create sword, but you can create any item by click on shortcut C. I think they was in rush and they make it action game.
While I had some fun, because I was able to maximaze my mage (all magic on full) and it was fun. But your mage is dpended on items he wear. That means items that add magic damage. Also you can find much more valuable items than you can create. Also you can import your old character from previous game, but beware, some items change their stats (unfortunately decreased or removed), and fortunately you find more powerful items. This expansion looks like they cut of it from base game and make it as DLC, therefore this low valuation.
This is best action racing game from Bugbear. It is pleasure control the car if know how to drive it. It is balance between arcade racing and simulation. I really enjoy it. The simulation is not only for your car but also for all items surrounding track. If you hit one of that item, you will feel how your car slow down rapidly. But when you know how to damage it properly you can get benefit like get nitro. For example hit a construction from side of your car instead of front, and when construction fall you get nitro. AI is balanced and compared to other Bugbear titles like Flatou 2 or Wreckfest they are more clean and mainly they don't cheat. If they are, it is balanced. That means once you master your car, and how to get corners etc. you can beat them easily. and you can play with AI and send their drivers out from front window. I just warn that if you are new, it can be hard, but once you get it, it will be pleasure. The tracks are very well designed, and I like them all. On tracks there are shortcuts, some are "hidden", unfortunately not every shortcut is shortcuts, I describe it later. The game had more ambition as racing game, you discover it from "behind scenes" video once you finish a career. Who knows what developers wanted to create originally. Also each tracks have depth and looks like you can go everywhere. And yes, you can, and you can explore whole track level, and you can discover some interesting shortcutsbut when you go there, you got warning that you are out of race track and you have to go back. It look like tracks was designed for more content purporses as racing. The downside is, once you finish a career, there is nothing to do. You cannot change laps or number of opponents for each race track. Also once you bought a car and you want change it, you have to sell the current. That means you will allways have only one car in garage. This is far more finished game opposed to Wreckfest and Flatout 2 which has horrible car control.
Little history: This game is recreation of old Kings Bounty from NWC (Jon Van Caneghem) (creators of Might and Magic games and then Heroes). And this game was creted first before HoMaM. I never played original but this game is very good, and you can do lot in game. The difference between HoMaM, you are playing only one hero whole game and as there are cities, you don't own any and can't build any. However, you can hire warriors to your army in cities, or buy some items, spells etc.. and can take quests. You can choose three type of heros, Fighter, Mage and Paladin? ( I can't remeber what was third, but you allways end up as Treasure Hunter, but with Mage, Fighter or Third class abilities. ) Also you are playing with one hero whole game, that means you can level it up. In the end you can end up with prety strong hero, I ended up as level 50 - 60+. (If I remember correctly). You are wandering on map freely, but once you fight, it is turn into turnbased compat system with grid. You have, and need army and first steps can be tough on first gameplay. After each win in fight you get a experiences. Later on game, you can upgrade your special item with interesting way. You have to fight with item. Also you get a experience from this fight. As Mage you get not only damaging spells but also many different spells which can make your steps to win. Also except spells / skills you got power item which you can improve (level up) and use it in combat. As you wander, you can found many friendly and unfriendly beings (animals, dragons, humans, elves, trees ...) which can join to you or hire them for gold. Each beings has good and bad things and even some can hate others and you have to build your army carefully. You can do a Quests and some can lead into interesting bonuses to your character. Story is basic, but as this game is oriented into gameplay instead reading lot of texts or watching video sequences, it is ok. In the end, you are not playing this game because the story.
If you like Neverwinter Nights games you can be dissapointed by this game. I like that developers come with own character stats based on percent instead on some rules from tabletop game. Also GUI is very nice done. The problem comes with combat and the level designs and magic system and overall gamedesign. 1. Combat system is turnbased, however it is in "realtime" (no waits for turns), but you can pause it anytime or set it up in each turn to autopause. It maybe sounds good, but in the end it feels bad. But maybe beacuse your characters are prety weak or you fight with too much enemies. 2. Mages (I like play with those characters therefore I'll write critique only for that characters as rewiew has restriction) feels wery weak. The problem is, they power is too low compared how they are weak on life and protection. Also you will have only few spells on the begining and later you don't get too much. Which make game less tactic. 3. Gameplay: For "turnbased" game it feels more like action game. For example: mage with few spells, makes your tactics simplified. I wonder why they not reduce a dialogs (equivalent to your skills / spells) , maybe my review will be less critique :). Another thing is game design is not well done. Once you enter into area and when fight begin (after long reading dialogs and doing quest without any fight) you found that this area is too strong at you and you cannot go back beacuse you are in the middle of the mission. Also your power not grows up very well with your level. As for mage surely not. 4. Story. (as it has StoryRich tag, I give some critique on that). Written it simply, story is very bad, and boring. I have to say, I don't mind very much about story in games, but if I have to watch long videosequences, and then ingame sequences, and then reading dialogs... If you like a story, it is maybe a good, but If you don't, it is trouble.
