The presentation, however, can be Chaosbane’s bane at times. I ended up in the same exact sections of hallway in the Nuln sewers often enough that each expedition didn’t feel as much like a new adventure as I’d like. Expeditions take place on shuffled versions of maps used for the campaign, which can get a little old after a while. In the long run, I’ll probably spend more of my time in the post-story modes, like randomized Expeditions and Boss Rush, so a less than spectacular story can be forgiven. It was mostly what I would expect: not enough to keep me invested if the combat hadn’t been as fun as it is, but it didn’t get in the way of my enjoyment, either. Someone is probably going to try to sell you out to a demon lord at some point. There are some interesting twists and memorable side characters, too. You’ll journey from the burning streets of Praag to the frozen wastes of Norsca, where each map is full of personality accentuated by effective art, music, and sound design. You get to interact with some cool figures from the lore like Prince Teclis and Emperor Magnus the Pious, which is neat if you know who they are. take the stage, and things are quite bad as the forces of Chaos are mounting one of their greatest invasions ever. Set about 200 years before Karl Franz and co. There may well be more game-changers beyond my 25 or so hours of play on the harder, unlockable difficulties where Heroic-quality items really start to pop up, however. But the stat choices I got to make were interesting without being overwhelming, and the clean, readable UI makes it very easy to compare different pieces. I didn’t come across a lot of gear that totally opened up new playstyles or gave me that feeling of going immediately from zero to hero. The all-important itemization is pretty well done, though not anything close to revolutionary. Most nodes on the tree give a small stat boost, but some can totally change the way you play – I was able to turn Elessa into a summoner who relies on hordes of dryads to hold back the tide of enemies, which was a lot of fun. There’s also a God Skill Tree that functions more like a typical RPG talent tree, with each being based on the character’s patron god. Even in the late game, you won’t be able to equip maxed-out versions of everything, which incentivizes making meaningful choices between a more versatile character with a grab bag of lower-tier skills, or a specialist who focuses on the fully-upgraded versions of a smaller number of them. Dozens of active and passive skills can be mixed and matched to assemble a build, with higher-tier versions of abilities costing more of a character’s finite pool of skill points. Sorry, Vollen.Įach character has multiple progression paths that give them new and exciting combat options in addition to incremental increases in power. He’s just not anywhere near as fun as the other three classes, especially in solo play where his defensive and taunt abilities slow you down more than they help out like they do in co-op. Which is, you know, how playing as a damn sorcerer should feel! This trick is extremely powerful if you master it, but it’s a real mental exercise to maintain positioning of both a spell and yourself during a hectic brawl. Oh, Elontir! This High Elf Mage may be the most fun I’ve ever had with a magic-user in an ARPG, thanks to his ability to take direct control of his spells using the spacebar or the left stick. Bragi the Dwarf Slayer is the archetypical Berserker: he builds up stacks of fury the longer he stays in combat to boost his energy regeneration as he rips through crowds of baddies. Elessa the Wood Elf Archer nimbly leaps from place to place, always staying on the move and benefitting from an energy recovery mechanic that encourages you to find and tag your wandering spirit friend every time he lights up. Three of them are absolutely excellent, to the point that I had a really hard time picking a favorite. Taking on these hordes is a bloody, chaotic pleasure thanks to a choice of four very distinct and well-designed classes.
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