While I have yet to buy this specific version of the game, in the day I had this, finished it more than once on Gamecube, and I have the HD re-release on the Switch now. What's to say in brief about this? Do you like Diablo? This is Diablo meets D&D. Great spread of classic D&D tropes, enemies, and terrains. So much customizable weapons, magics, armor and more, that extra + something may be what saves you from the next encounter or mobbing. Lots of varied locations with some really solid detail that still even now fairly nicely holds up. The game isn't a push over, but also not as hard as the very very slow grind of the classic D&D style point and click on this site for some years now. Similar but not, played with a controller as it was designed as such, so it's faster, more precise control and attack, defense, and retreat. This is an understated game I loved on the old system in the day, even the crazy isometric lesser version GBA had too (yes it's a thing, an isometric thing.) Yes $30 seems a tad steep to start given the age, but that's what it goes for with the recent console re-releases too so I get it for parity sake. Maybe given its on PC it scaled well so the remade HD textures were less of a concern, or it's lazy? Either way the elements of this game are fantastic, and I hope the sequels appear as I was utterly disgusted and infuriated 20 years ago when the sequel hit everything BUT the cube which was so so wrong. Here's hoping this does well and the sequel arrives as I'll be on that out of the box.
The atmosphere, the story, the environment seem great, but this game fails pretty hard when it comes down to the control and design choices in how to handle combat. The game comes off as some half baked combo of almost a TRPG and an action title in how you handle it. Maybe better on a controller? But using the keyboard and mouse it's a muddled mess where you end up taking many unnecessary hits which if it were straight forward like their precursor Bastion would have been so so much better. I'm erasing this one now and hiding it, not wasting my time on a game being subpar where it hurts the most...in how to play it.
