I'll be honest, I haven't purchased this from GOG, but I owned it quite a long time ago when it was released. Perhaps because I hadn't yet played AitD 1 or 2 yet (I was a console gamer until about 1997, when I finally began playing PC games as well), there wasn't a nostalgic yearning for a return to those games that I felt disappointed by. Instead, this being my first entry into the series, I was able to judge it on its own merits. This game did have a great deal of similarity to other games in the genre that were popular in that era, i.e. Resident Evil, but it had an eeriness and a mysteriousness that RE didn't have. This game was more supernatural and the puzzles felt a little more well done. RE and SH had puzzles I had to look up the answers for and still didn't understand even when I knew the steps I was supposed to take. I never got WHY those steps worked. They didn't always feel like they required logic, so much as persistence, which annoyed me. I'm logical, but I'm impatient. Though it's been a long time since I played this, I don't remember that frustration with the puzzles like I remember with RE and SH. Above all, though, is the atmosphere. I loved the atmosphere of this game. Later, Alan Wake captured a similar atmosphere and it was positive memories of this game that drew me to Alan Wake.
I missed this little gem when it came out. The first time I heard of it was about 2 months ago, when I bought it. I'm sad I missed it. It could have made my morose, pathetic college life a bit more entertaining.
My top five games, in no particular order are Morrowind, Skyrim, Civ IV, Maniac Mansion, and this game. Okay, so this game isn't as old as Maniac Mansion, but it's old enough that still being in the top five (AND I AM PICKY...I gave Krondor 4 stars), proves its lasting power.
Depth. That's it. That's all I need to tell you. This game has depth to it and you'll love it.
That it is slow paced is not necessarily a bad thing. Some can see it as so, which is why I pointed it out so prominently. However, I don't think it is at all. Many seem to have problems with Antara, but I don't. While it doesn't compare as well to Krondor, it is still a fun game. I have a minor problem with the clunky combat, though. It's nothing you can't get used to with time.
I meant to play this game when it came out, but never got around to it. I finally got the chance to play it when I found it here, on GOG. It didn't live up to my expectations of it and the controls are a bit iffy, but it is still a fun game.
