The best thing about this game is also the worst. Combat is spectacular, until you hit the endgame. Why? Because the writing and story are sub-par. It's a generic tale. NPC's all have the exact same style of writing (they all feel like the same person). Quests are run here, get that, with a few secret ones. Without a compelling story, there is only one reason to play this game.... Combat. There is literally no other reason to play this game (no secrets, no items, no events). It dies out halfway through the game. I would consider myself a completion-ist. If you are like me, then by the time you get about halfway through the game, you will have every spell, the best items, and there is really no point in playing anymore. You will destroy every enemy, wipe out every boss, without thinking. This game is no challenge if you just try to complete all of the quests. I give it three stars, because I had fun for the first half (about five hours). When I realized the game was just repeating itself and I couldn't improve my characters, I gave up.
I must say, that it is a good thing this is a season pass. This game is short. By short I mean, two hours at tops. Yes, there is a lot of replay value, but please read what I have to say. I thoroughly enjoyed the previous two games of this saga. The second, though burdened by terrible controls and glitches, was my favorite. However, this game fails to follow through with any wonder; it fails to invoke any curiosity in the player. What is good? Sound. The sound in this game is absolutely amazing. The music and the voice-overs are beautiful. The story? It's okay. It's nothing spectacular. I found more enjoyment listening to the quips of each character than I did in the story (the knock knock joke was great). What is bad? Well, lets just say there is a LOT. The controls in this game are terrible. I could not find a way to change keybinds. Google resulted in a forum post by the devs that if you want to change keybinds you have to make registry changes. So, I tried my controller. Nope, same problem. Not all of the buttons function. No matter what I do, I cannot get my journal to open (among other necessary functions). Save? Save and exit features only (is this 1999?). Furthermore, the game offers no explanation for controls at all. The little option wheel? No explanations. You basically have to click every single button for every puzzle. Worse is sometimes items just disappear from your inventory. This game is a fine example of illogical puzzles in an adventure game. No puzzles make any sense, especially puzzles that involve using your "skills." After using the skills, you can see how they MIGHT be logical. However, before use, there is no way of knowing what each skill will do to an object. The mindreading skill? Can't use that on inanimate objects, yet at one point you can read a lightbulb. Each skill produces different effects and you never know which will do what. This game is a terrible adventure game. It's a good story, but a terrible game.
I must say that this game was a little... underwhelming. There isn't anything bad, per say, but there just isn't much good. It's hard to put my finger on why it wasn't good. It just felt like a cheap game and not a title worth its price. Probably the biggest selling point of this game, for me, was the promise of great tactical combat. I was so excited that I sat down and played this game for over 20 hours since I purchased it (what like a day ago?). Slow week, for me. Combat was fun, for the first little bit. Until you realize you will spend hours and hours fighting the same random battles. The same boring enemies over, and over, and over. Everything is so bland (well, it is post-apocalyptic after all). Each area in the game has a small pool (if even that) of random battles that you can run into. Which are BORING. You NEED these battles, because you need to grind, and you need money. They are EASY. However, knowing that this was just a mechanic made to solve a critical problem in the game, they created a skill that reduces random encounters. Talk about a cheap way out. Another sad part about the combat is that you don't need to specialize your characters. Certain weapons are just infinitely better than others and certain skills net you more. The higher difficulty wasn't a challenge. The voices are good, but limited. There is a lot of great story, but any of the side information is just lacking and unnecessary. At first it was great, but then every character started re-hashing the same lines in different ways. The game tends to make you "run errands." You spend a significant amount of time running back and forth between areas on the main map. The menu, while improved from EA, is still a nightmare. Often, you must click a skill multiple times, then click on the object for the game to register. Very glitchy controls. I just don't know how to best describe this game. It's not horrible, but it isn't good. It's not average. Watch a few videos before you purchase.
I must say that this game was a little... underwhelming. There isn't anything bad, per say, but there just isn't much good. It's hard to put my finger on why it wasn't good. It just felt like a cheap game and not a title worth its price. Probably the biggest selling point of this game, for me, was the promise of great tactical combat. I was so excited that I sat down and played this game for over 20 hours since I purchased it (what like a day ago?). Slow week, for me. Combat was fun, for the first little bit. Until you realize you will spend hours and hours fighting the same random battles. The same boring enemies over, and over, and over. Everything is so bland (well, it is post-apocalyptic after all). Each area in the game has a small pool (if even that) of random battles that you can run into. Which are BORING. You NEED these battles, because you need to grind, and you need money. They are EASY. However, knowing that this was just a mechanic made to solve a critical problem in the game, they created a skill that reduces random encounters. Talk about a cheap way out. Another sad part about the combat is that you don't need to specialize your characters. Certain weapons are just infinitely better than others and certain skills net you more. The higher difficulty wasn't a challenge. The voices are good, but limited. There is a lot of great story, but any of the side information is just lacking and unnecessary. At first it was great, but then every character started re-hashing the same lines in different ways. The game tends to make you "run errands." You spend a significant amount of time running back and forth between areas on the main map. The menu, while improved from EA, is still a nightmare. Often, you must click a skill multiple times, then click on the object for the game to register. Very glitchy controls. I just don't know how to best describe this game. It's not horrible, but it isn't good. It's not average. Watch a few videos before you purchase.
When released, I probably would have enjoyed this game. Yet today, it isn't enjoyable. It is bogged down by substandard controls and glitches. It is aggravating to run up and down stairs over and over because you accidentally get too close. The other bad thing about the game is the pixel hunting. There are a few puzzles... well not really even puzzles, that make you wander around and around looking for a stupid rock and a rope. A three pixel wide rope on the corner of the screen that is a shade or two of grey different than the background. Brilliant design. However, the best thing about the game is the story. I can almost forgive the game because the story is so intriguing. I didn't find the game creepy, or horrifying, but interesting. The second best thing is the voices. Yes, the entire game is fully voiced! The main character is the same guy who did the blackwell ghost. There are a few annoying crazies, but nothing that doesn't match the atmosphere. Get it on sale.
I've been craving a good old-school rpg for a few months. This satisfies all those desires. The game ports quite well, but there are some glaring issues. The controller scheme is a little messed up. You can use your mouse, but for some reason the keyboard didn't work (even after the patch and using the config.exe). It also failed to boot until I changed the resolution to something not quite right. However, this game is great. The graphics are sharp and the movement accurate (though a little fast). The translation is good, and there is a LOT of dialogue. If you want a game for story, this isn't it. The game leads you to like the NPC's and your characters, but it's a pretty generic idea (many of the mechanics feel ripped from other games). I enjoy the very thorough development of all the characters, but the main storyline is lacking. Gameplay is pretty good. It's a little tactical, but nothing too overbearing. You won't have any difficult breezing through the games combat system. You will however, need to dedicate about 70 hours if you want to read and do everything in this game. Is it worth it? For me yes, but I don't think many other people would enjoy it.
The controls in this game will drive you nuts. It is also a resource hog. Some people won't like the 3d nature. However, I don't mind the 3d aspect. It does detract from the charm, but I think it makes the world have more immersion. A lot of things would have not been possible with a 2d hand drawn and animated game. I thought the story was okay, and it was well worth picking up on sale. I'm a fan of the series so I enjoyed the game.
I've been eyeballing this game for a long time. It looked interesting and I really like the quirky type of top down games (like Dink Smallwood). I wasn't expecting to like this game, but I was completely blown away by how brilliant it plays. First, the combat is a little lackluster. It can be quite difficult if you build you character the wrong way, especially on harder difficulties. There are only a few skills, that aren't that cool. Second, the game is kind of short. Maybe ten hours if you do everything and read all of the text. Third, the writing in this game is superb. The story is a little meh, but each of the characters in this game has such... charm. I rarely like reading so much text in a such a simple game, yet I found myself wanting to search out and do as much as possible. This game won me over with it's quirky charm and if you like similar games, you will love Driftmoon.
