A large, ambitious RPG that unfortunately suffers from lousy combat and many bugs.
Gameplay: 3.5/10
- The game would be SO much better if it weren't for the combat system. The game area is quite large with many quests (some of them really boring, though.) The good thing is, that if you do something, it affects the world around you. For example if you rid a town of Orcs, (your enemies... or your allies, depending on what you choose) the humans will eventually move back there. But still, the combat system pretty much destroys this game, since combat is a HUGE part of it. Though you have multiple strikes available, basically you cannot win most of the enemies if you don't keep clicking left mouse button (the normal attack.) It's quaranteed to hit the enemies, and the enemies simply cannot hit you while you do it, they just stand around you like they are paralyzed (unless they have bows or magic.) The other strikes are quick and power strike. The quick strike does very minimal damage and the enemy usually gets a combo of 5-10 strikes on you after you hit it. And then you die. The power strike does much damage, but it doesn't hit the targeted enemy for an unknown reason 60% of the time. So the combat system is just pure garbage.
Atmosphere & Immersion: 7/10
- The game is quite immersive for the reasons described above: The world is medium-large and the things you do actually affect it. The combat system unfortunately ruins immersion too.
Graphics: 6/10
- They are... decent. Not much else to say.
Sound: 4.5/10
- The voice acting is well... different. Quite horrible actually, ruins immersion, but still better than for example, in Two Worlds. The sound effects are run-of-the-mill. Music is quite good.
Physics: 4/10
- The ragdoll effect is WAY overused here. They sometimes literally fly 5 meters in air when simply hit by sword. Smaller animals fly even higher. I've seen a chicken fly over 20 meters, heh. There isn't really other physics than ragdoll, except that if you are on a steep surface (roof, hill eg.), the player actually SLIDES. I haven't seen that in other games so that's a little bonus. Small things like that add immersion.
Replay value: 6/10
- You could probably play this game twice or thrice, using a different type of character (warrior, mage, assassin...) or allying with the other side. But I really doubt that anyone has the nerves to finish this game twice... So few will even finish this game once.
Value for money: 3/10
- If you like buggy games with horrible combat, buy this. I really, really don't recommend buying it before testing it, since you will most likely be disappointed and/or angry. Luckily, I got this a gift.
Bugs, Stability & Performance: 1/10
- Just horrible. The game lags like hell, even on high end PCs. Sometimes it pauses for over 5 seconds. There are SO many bugs, the patches correct some of them but not nearly all.
Will this game be remembered by old school gamers as a classic after 10 years?:
- Not a chance.
Who would I recommend to buy the game?:
- Anyone who is REALLY desperate to play a new RPG. Though I recommend that you buy Oblivion or Two Worlds instead, if you haven't already.
Final score (not necessarily an average): 3/10