Wizardry 8

"To end the series that ended the company, nothing was done wrong."

How do you go out with a bang? By giving people something to remember. That's exactly what Sir-Tech did with Wizardry 8.

Wizardry generally means this to gamers - 'a dungeon crawl that's usually very difficult to complete (let alone get half-way through)'. Any Wizardry fan expects to dump many hours/days into a game, and this one is no different.

You start out by choosing your party of six characters to venture out into the world of Dominus. The story is that you've crash-landed here and are looking for a certain item, which is amazingly the same item that the guy (the Dark Savant) is looking for -- you know, the guy who blasted you out of the sky, MAKING you crash-land. Yeah, he's your bad guy, but you'll learn that in the intro video anyway. Or, here's another way to start. If you've played Wizardry 7 or Wizardry Gold, you can import your party of characters from that game into this one. If you've completed the game, you'll actually get a different intro depending on who your allies/enemies were at the end of part 7/Gold. Or, another way to start (yes, another!) is to create your OWN six characters to venture out into the world of Dominus. It makes it a lot more enjoyable if you control everything, but at the same time, character creation does take a bit of time.

Now that we've started, let's get into the game. The landscape is as lush as a 3D engine gets - that is, when it only requires a 266 processor. Think of Quake 2/Hexen 2 graphics, with a little less jagged, and you'll get the picture. The game plays first-person style, just like every other game in the series. Your party, and the world, all move in real time, so you can see monsters on the screen, as well as villagers, aliens, and other inhabitants, all moving in real time. Talk with them, trade with them, fight with them, ally with them....it's all up to you. Of course, things you do WILL effect things later on, so killing off the only shopkeeper in a town may not be smart if you want the villagers to side with you. But, of course, if you kill the shopkeeper, you may just get that item you wanted for free! But then again, why don't you just take the risk and try to steal it from him...you might not get caught. Understand? This is how vast the game is, just on the interaction level!

Battles progress in phased-style combat. Each character's/enemy's speed is calculated and pitted against each other to find out who's turn is first, second, and so on. Of course, you won't know until you choose all of your actions and start the round of combat. Or you can choose continuous combat, which is basically the same as phased, except the round never ends! The fight continues on, with the basic attack being default, unless you tell each character what to do on their next action. It's for those who want the combat to be a little faster, but you have more time to think with phased combat. During the battle, you can attack, cast spells, use items, turn undead, defend, protect a character, breathe acid, or whatever else your character can do. It all depends on his race/class. Example: Your Priest is a not human, rather he is a Dracon, a somewhat half-Dragon/half-human race. Dracons half the ability to breathe acid breath at the enemies, although it does drain a good amount of stamina doing so. Since he is a priest, he may also pray to the gods for some help, once per battle. He may also cast divine spells, as well as attempt to turn undead. There are 15 different classes to choose from, as well as 11 different races. Each combination means something different in their style of fighting.

Something very unique was placed inside of this game -- personalities. I don't mean the personalities you'd find on a Final Fantasy game, either. I mean the fact that each character you have has their own personality. There are nine different personas to choose from, and two different voices for each. And if you count male/female voices, that makes 36 different personality combos! The real impressive part is that fact in where it takes place -- all of the time! During play, your characters will talk to you and the rest of their party members. They will tell you when they are ill, when they are tired, when they have leveled up, when they have found hidden items, etc. It may sound like it'd get annoying, but actually it's quite helpful. You can't see all 360 degrees, but they can. So, they'll tell you when something is approaching from any angle (as long as it's not camouflaged or invisible, obviously). Also, things are hidden everywhere on Dominus...literally! While you walk around, a character might exclaim 'Found something!' and an item will seemingly appear in front of you, when in all actuality, it was there the whole time, but hidden to your view...your character just 'made' it visible.

The music plays no integral part in the game, but it is perfectly made for each occasion. It sounds great, and has the right tone for each part, dramatic or not. It also doesn't drown out the important part - sound effects. You can hear things coming that you might not see, and it is done splendidly. Not to mention the fact that the battle effects and voices sound better than I would of imagined, since this game originates from a series that started with no sound what-so-ever!

Here's the part where the game shines; at least for me that is. It's a totally non-linear story line. Right in the beginning, you have a limited area to go through, but it only lasts for about an hour. After these 'training grounds', the rest of the world is yours, metaphorically speaking -- others seek to claim it too, you know. Yes, that's right; other characters in the game are always moving, just like you. They are trying to gain certain items and information as well, so don't just stand around -- do something! If you want to go to the swamp RIGHT away, go ahead. Go visit the mountains if you wish. Of course, monsters are harder in certain spots of the game, and might pose a threat, but if you know how to fight them, you might just make it through. Example: one section of the game had me go from normal monsters right to ones that could decimate me in one single thought. What did I do? I didn't chicken out -- I ran in REAL quick, grabbed a sparkly item, and THEN I ran! Yeah, they were hot on my trail, but I got away, and with a new treasure to boot! I'll go back later on, when I'm more prepared. That's just an example of how much diversity there is in story-line and gameplay.

The controls aren't confusing at all either, plus, it's standard mouse & keyboard, so most FPS players will get the hang of it quickly. The only difficulty lies within the game itself, which, even on novice settings, can pose a threat to any gamer. Or, if you're feeling lucky, you can start an Iron Man game. An Iron Man game is played the same way, except that when you save the game, you must quit, and when all of your characters die, the game erases your file! It's for veterans only, but then again, you might like the challenge.

All-in-all, this game rocks. On a scale of 1 - 10, I give it a straight 10! Sir-Tech released their last game with more fun and challenge than I expected, and I own every Wizardry game so far! If you like exploration, freedom of choice, and have days to spend, then this game is for you, hands down.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 02/05/02, Updated 02/05/02