A true descendent of the great Might and Magic games, which were the watermark of RPGs.
The whole idea of roleplaying is to experience an alternate reality on a grand scale. You start with a group of characters who are basically rookies, and grow with them as the adventure proceeds. In Might and Magic VI, you have four characters (two less than previous Might and Magic installments) who can come from almost a dozen races and classes, with different attributes associated with each. Unlike single-player RPGs (like Daggerfall) one of the most important aspects of the party RPG is creating a balanced party, with the right mix of fighters, spellcasters, and thieves. Again, Might and Magic delivers here, with party balance one of the top priorities of the game.
Be warned, this is no casual game. It requires over a hundred hours to complete, and plenty of time will be spent reloading from a previous position because your party got wiped out by a seemingly invincible group of monsters. The payoff is big, however. There is no greater PC gaming experience than defeating the final monster in a true RPG; it is comparable to finishing a novel. Several quests abound in M&MVI, adding to the experience and adding time to the length of the game.
In the old days of RPGs, gameplay was first and graphics and sounds were second. Today, any game has to be graphically stimulating to make it in the marketplace and Might and Magic delivers, offering graphics well ahead of any other RPG to date. Missing, however, is any sort of 3D acceleration, and low framerates are the consequence. Sound is good by RPG standards, but lacking compared to the best 3D shooters and adventure games now available. Still, compared to such games as Battlespire and Descent to Undermountain, Might and Magic VI is head and shoulders above the RPG competition in both the graphic and sound fields. The sounds and visuals don't come at too steep a price either; a Pentium 133 can surely handle this game.
The ads for Might and Magic VI claim that the game is a rebirth of a legend, in a time when RPGs seem dead. Though the latter part of that statement is undoubtedly false (with games like Baldur's Gate and Fallout 2 coming out) it is undeniable that this game is a true descendent of the great Might and Magic games, which were the watermark of RPGs during their time. Anyone looking for something more than run and shoot should definitely give this game a try. There are plenty of worse things to do with 100 or so hours.