The Baldur saga, come for the artwork, stay for the fights.
User Rating: 4.5 | Too Human X360
IMMERSION: Too human attempts to immerse players in it's world seemingly more than in the plight of the character, which is slightly contradictory for a third person game. It provides strong visual models, a must read instruction manual, a hud toggle button, a gorgeous start screen, and more. The auditory design serves immersion, but it is a minor player in the actual game compared to the visuals. The story of Too Human is a greatest hits album of Norse mythology, including the Grendel Saga, and the prophecy of Ragnarok, it doesn't alienate, but it does presume at least a passing familiarity with the subject matter. Combat is the strongest element in Too Human, following the visuals, it flows quickly and easily. Given a little time, players will be hacking and slashing away at enemies, studying the manual reveals a deeper tactical game with more options. One side note, when Baldr is killed, a Valkyrie, takes his lifeless body to Valhala, and he almost instantly reincarnates. It's a reference to Norse myth, and an attractive scene, wholly appropriate. In my case, the scene took long enough and was attractive enough that I found myself not experiencing an urge to "rage quit." In fairness, this is a difficult game to review since receptiveness to the subject matter and quirks heavily influence scores. Having said that, for immersion (5/15) moderately successful, the burden being placed on the player to permit themselves to be immersed drags it down.
DIFFICULTY: Occasional difficulty spikes. Enemy AoE attacks can frustrate players. (5.5/15) all issues could be fixed.
LASTING APPEAL: Multiple classes offer some replay value, but not much. Inability to replay specific missions, or a horde mode also lets it down. (5/15)
OVERALL: (5/15) it's not a terrible game at all, in fact it's good. It has some issues, but the combat at least flows very well. It's for that reason that Too Human makes more sense as a spectacle fighter than a third person action adventure game.
