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| | Genre: Adventure & RPG | | Min OS X: 10.4  CPU: G4 @ 1500 MHz RAM: 128 MB Hard Disk: 150 MB |
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You know a game is hardcore when the first side quest is how to equip your weapon. I would definitely say that I was a pretty hardcore Role Playing Gamer. I put in numerous hours into numerous Japanese Role Playing Games on my Playstation. From the expected games (such as Final Fantasy) to more niche titles (Suikoden) I learned the intricacies of each games battle and equipment system to exploit the games I played. Eventually, I would move onto Western-style games, specifically fare from Bioware, have it be Neverwinter Nights or Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic. Recently, times have been-a-changin’ for me. I actually haven’t had the time to play the RPG’s I would like to recently. Not only have I not opened my copy of Mass Effect, I haven’t even opened my copy of Final Fantasy XII, when I bought that on the night it was released in 2006. Instead, I have mostly been playing casual games and Guitar Hero. So admittedly, I lost some hardcore Role Playing credentials. So when assigned Depths of Peril from Soldak Entertainment, I thought this could be the game to earn me back some gaming credentials. So how does this RPG add up? The Journey Begins The game starts off much like you would expect, choosing between four character classes, the staples of the genre (Warrior, Rogue, Mage or Priest.) After that, you can adjust the games difficulty. There is a surprising amount of adjustment, from setting the enemy levels and aggression to the overall difficulty. The game creates the world, and the journey begins. And yes, the first quest is a brief tutorial on how to equip your weapon, and that is actually more intimidating than it sounds. I have to admit, and I will probably loose my hardcore gaming card, but initially Depths of Peril was overwhelming to say the least. Menu after menu for customizing (accessible through keys or the in-game Heads Up Display) gave me some trouble for setting up my character. When it came to starting my journey, I got a bit lost and got flustered for reaching my objectives. I will admit that part of this may be my fault. I fear that (gasp!) I may not be as hardcore as I used to be. Then again, maybe it is the game too. It is definitely complex. There are tutorials as I mentioned, that guide you with setting up equipment and attacks, and explaining the game world to you. Honestly though, I think I a bit more handholding in the beginning would have been helpful. (Yeah, I guess that means I loose all hardcore Role Playing credibility…) However, once you get accustomed to the game’s rule set, there is a good deal to enjoy. The Journey (Really) Begins The best thing about the game is simply the game world. How often is that cited as a selling point in a Role Playing Game? Well, in this one the world is just alive. The whole game is based around covenants, and you represent one in a competing covenant. The game AI controls the competing covenants that start out like you. This makes for exciting challenges as you compete with these covenants for reputation. This is part of the difficulty that can be tweaked in the game outset to, depending on the challenge you would like. Furthermore, you can barter, ally or go to full conflict with the rival convenants. Even more on the game world and its evolving nature, if a threat arises, it doesn’t fester. It grows. If city is in danger, it will fall. If there are monster outbreaks growing, they will grow. The world does not wait for its hero. This gives immediate gravity to each and every situation, which is unfortunately uncommon for games like this, which is again, all the more reason Depths of Peril stands out.
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