So halfway through the opening act I found myself thinking maybe these games just aren't for me. I love TRPG's like D&D and Pathfinder but I dislike railroad adventures, and starting out that's what I thought this was, but after pushing forward a bit further the game opens up substantially. You have a map to explore with branching quests and hidden plothooks for the observant explorer that really make the adventure feel like your own. Still not fully through the main campaign but I'm already thinking of things to do in my next playthrough.
This is so much better than I expected. It feels like the original Diablo but with a greater emphasis on story, role play, and an open explorable world.
There are a few ARPG's attempting to have an open world, but they all end up being pretty linear. This, however, has me wondering around finding my own quests and paths, almost like I was playing Skyrim. It also has a number of innovations that you don't even see in modern ARPGs, like mounted combat, area auto-loot, and fully customizable combination skills. The one downside, is that that the UI isn't always self explanatory and there aren't a lot of guides for this old of a game so you may need to tinker with it a bit before everything really starts to click.
First time playing this in 2024 and it pulled me in right away. Still worth playing even all this time later.
It's a bit more grounded than most power fantasy ARPGs. You don't have 8 skills going off in quick rotations knocking out hordes of enemies. It's a bit more like Dark Souls combat, where you have a few key attacks, mostly based on what weapon you equip, with a few special abilities to compliment your combat style. Attacks are slow and deliberate, and healing takes a second so you have to chose the right moment to pop a potion. This is all very souls like. You block, roll, run, dodge, and parries, shield throws, etc. are also unlockable. Eventually you'll feel like a real warrior reading and countering your opponents with ease. The setting is very Titan's Quest. Also the somewhat linear progression is similar as well, with side objectives and quests to keep you busy along the way. It's not entirely what I expected, but I'm having a blast with what the game is. Do highly recommend if you are aware of what you are getting into.
I'm really happy with a lot of the updates that have come to NMS, and I'm super excited for VR, but I think it's important to warn anyone considering to purchase it here on GOG that although you will be able to play with friends on GOG Galaxy, as of now you will not be able to play with any friends you may have on Steam. No Cross-Platform play atm.
