Having been convinced by Sseth to buy this Title, it is very good! I am about five Hours into it and until now, i like it, even if i am bad at real Time Strategy. + Hero Units that can Level + Search for Equipment for your Hero + Normal Units do also Level up and you can take some with you + Nice Soundtrack & Sound Design + I like the prerendered Graphics and their Design + Cool Factions, Dinosaurs included + Free roamable Map with Missions, Trade Posts and Factions to explore and Conquer + If you fail, it suggests the Easy Mode (thanks haha) Negatives: - Can't run in windowd Mode (Lossless Scaling makes a nice Picture of those old Games) - Tab out and the Game freezes
The Game is a Mix of Series as 24, NCIS, Bourne and also has a good amount of Metal Gear in it. Never really had it on my Radar, but this Game is more Fun than i did anticipate. It has its minor clunky Moments, but nothing gamebreaking or too annoying. The Skills you can set and the Interactions with the NPCs add a good Amount of Replayability. First, because it changes the Way you proceed through the Levels. Will you sneak around as Solid Snake or shoot your Way through like Rambo?.. Or use your Fists. The Way you talk to People will also lead into different Situations, treat them like an A-Hole, be cool or professional.
This game is a really nice grid and turn based RPG. The realistic artstyle is comparable to Might and Magic VI, but the combat is turned based and you never fight against hordes of monster, as you do in MMVI. Gameplay wise it is more comparable to Eye of the Beholder or Lands of Lore. You start in a city and do quests in dungeons, forests, swamps, just everywhere as it is a pretty open world map. You can craft your own poisons, repair your armor or just go to a shop to let it done. From magic casters to warriors is all the typical stuff included, the same for your enemies. The pacing of the game is pretty well done, it is not as hard as some of the classics, but never feels as you are invincible, so the small dev team did balance it good. The soundtrack is also more in the style of MMVI and the few tracks do their job pretty well, they are not bombastic, but it fits the game better and they'll float around your head a while. Quests can be failed and there are some you can solve in an evil or good way, that will change your reputation. Guards will stop you and throw you into jail, or ask for money. Some areas can than only be accsessed through back doors or bribe, but i can't say how deep that mechanic works, as i have a good character and only saw a couple of those entrances. The gog release includes the "original" handheld release. Also notable, the save games are interchangeable with the android version, so you can play whereever you want.
As the Title says, the new Visuals are really great, being inspired by the Model of the Cutscenes. The new Textures and added 3D Models for Plants, Objects and Details on Walls are implemented very well. Gameplaywise you can chose between the original and a more modern Control Scheme, i personally like the original Control Scheme, when learned, they give you a very good and rewarding Control over Lara. It just feels good shooting around in a very acrobatic Way or mastering the Level in such Way. As i recently played through the original TR1 and 2, i started here with the golden Mask and that alone took me around 7 Hours. Guessing from the percentage on the Archivment, i am one of the first to do so^^ The Framerate from the original Games feels sometimes a bit too stuttery, as i have very fresh Memory of the Games and also tested in on original Win98 Hardware, i don't think that my Brain is tricking me here while changing from the new to the old Graphics and its lower FPS. There seem also to be some other minor Issues, the "Crystal Key" on a Level in the Golden Mask in the Water wasn't visible with the new Graphics, TR2 has no Background in the Item Menu and there is no nice Way to make Screenshots at the Moment. But nothing Gamebreaking and you get a lot of Content with very nicely done Visuals for your Money. Netherless, for playing solely the originals, i would suggest Openlara or the 16:9 Patches for the other Games, as they seem to run better (at the Moment). A little Tip: Add -nolegal as starting Condition. It not only takes away the annoying and nonsenical Warnings, but also the Logos, you'll be instantly in the Game Menu to start your Journey!
The first Thing to have Fun with this Game, is to know at least something about Pen and Paper Games as Dungeons and Dragons, because you will fail miserably if not (as i did with my first Character). The second Thing is, take a Companion that covers the Weaknesses you have. You have a Mage or Ranger? Take a Companion that can tank and hit Enemies hard. Have a Warrior? Take a Thief or Mage with you. Graphicwise the Game is a Child of its Age, but it does look better than other older 3D Games and you can load in HD Stuff or make a 2D Comic like Effect with the newest Patch. I personally like the original Graphics, they have a nice Composition. Soundwise the english Version is far better than the german and i would recommend that one. Not only the Voice over, but also the overall Mix, it is just very very off in the german. The Game itself focuses much more on Quests in Dungeons and Combat than Baldur's Gate, but not as far as Icewind Dale. You do backtrack, identify Items, Manage your Ressources and talk to People, but you aren't really exploring Cities that much. I played through the original Campaign and the first Expansion so far and the Game delivers pretty good Stories, a lot of different Monsters and a Variety of Environments. Was surprised that there are even Connections to Baldur's Gate 3. I was also very surprised by some of the Mechanics, you can't picklock a Door or Chest? Destory it! Not as insanely deep as Stuff in BG3, but it allows you to overcome Situations in different Ways. I can't understand the bad Reviews, Neverwinter Nights has a nice Atmosphere, good gameplay Mechanics and has A LOT of Modules to play several houndred of Hours. There is many Fan Stuff out there that can extend the Game even further. The Diamond and Enhanced Edition also work very much better than the original Release. I played the most on the Enhanced, coming from the original.
I have absolutly no Nostalgia for this Game, but from those Silver Box Games i have played so far, it is the most fun of them. You are riding a Dragon and completing Objectives, typical Dog Fighting Stuff, the Controls that works best is with the Keyboard. I think it could work pretty good to remap those with the Help of Dosbox to a Controller. This Game would benefit from a Source Port that allows to enhance the Window with the actual Graphics, thats why i take away one Star. Midgame you get the Chance to change your Order, this also enhances the Difficulty.
More of one of the best Games that are out there.
