Dungeon Siege

"A solid game with a slightly too simplistic gameplay..."

I remember waiting with baited breath for the release of Dungeon Siege. Next to Freedom Force, this game is the only PC game in the first half of the year that really got me excited. So was I disappointed or did the game meet my standards? Well, this game has actually confused me as the awe inspiring graphics and sound keep me playing while the gameplay is so mindless that I’m not really playing anything. In order to add a bit of structure and explain my feelings, I’ll explain my raves and rants in the following areas; Gameplay, Story, Graphics, Sound, and an all-inclusive Other category.

Gameplay (6/10): Of all the areas of Dungeon Siege the gameplay contains the most rants. Firstly, the game has all the complexity of Solitaire. Everything, and I do mean everything, is automated to the point where user interaction is minimal. Seriously, you click to attack, you click to move, you click to open items. That’s about it. One click does it all. The automated battle stances and pursuing options are nice, but really, do I need the computer to do everything for me? The only time the player really puts a whole lot of effort into the game is when you are on the item screens.

Things change slightly once you add characters to your party, but nonetheless you still don’t have much more to do than macro management of your party. Keeping everyone in a group and such, which can be a pain at times. The donkey is a blessing and a curse all at once as they tend to stay incredibly far away from the party. If you are ever ambushed from behind then prepare to run a ways back to save your ass, literally.

The only other rant I have is about leveling. Whoever created this idea of leveling should be shot, dragged into a busy intersection, and then shot some more. The idea is pretty basic, you level up in one area and your stats go up accordingly. If you are a melee fighter then your strength will go higher quicker than other abilities. The downside to this is that if you want a balanced character, or you want to “Multi-class” then you are screwed as your skills go up but your stats hardly budge.

While the gameplay is somewhat ridiculous, there are some shining spots. The item screens are nice and not cumbersome. The organize inventory button is ingenious and saves a lot of time. The potions are a life saver as when you drink them you don’t consume the whole potion and as such you will rarely ever run out of them even on hard level. The nearly complete automation does have one upside, it allows you to sit and stare at the beautiful graphics. Probably the best part about the engine used in the game is that there are no transitions. Everything is seamless. Going from surface to dungeon just means you walk down some stairs, no loading times, no waiting, just walk down steps and the surface disappears and the dungeon appears.

Story (4/10): Okay, am I the only one who went through this game and noticed that the story is so thin that its almost non-existent? If it weren’t for the narrator and a few of the quests, I would have never even known that the game had a plot. I mean bad games have bad plots, good games have good plots- but this game barely has a plot much less a cohesive story. I give the 4 points largely because as there is almost no plot you can create your own in your mind as you go along.

Graphics (10/10): From all the screenshots I saw before the game was released, I knew the graphics were going to be great. However, I was still blown away by the majestic views in most of the areas. While you spend a great deal of time underground running through dank and dark dungeons, the highlight of the games engine is when you step outside. Nothing is more extraordinary as being on a bring and seeing off into the distance and seeing the lands below. The scenery is really remarkable.

The people, monsters, and even animals are all nicely done, but to me they are nothing remarkable. Yes, this game actually has animals running around through the woods and such. The people are fully detailed and the skins change depending on what items you are wearing. The effects on weapons (such as ice and fire) are top notch and amazing. Water effects leave a little to be desired, but overall are nicely done.

Sound (9/10): Sound is another category where this game shines. With EAX capable sound settings are a nice touch and the 3D surround is brilliant. The base is balanced and not overpowering and the voices, ambient sounds, and monster screams are great. My only desire for sound is that the game needs a bit more diversity with monster sounds as they tend to make the same two or three sounds. When fighting the same enemies for several hours straight, this gets tedious. Also, some more sounds for characters while fighting and maybe some idle chit chat like that found in BG and BG II would have been nice and lead to a little more depth in character for NPCS.

Other (8/10): This game has lots of potential. Multi-player will be where most of the action takes place in the future, as the single-player campaign is long and rather boring except staring at the eye-candy. The release of the Siege Editor in a couple weeks will allow skilled people to create new worlds full of unique items, monsters, and settings. In recent times I don’t know of many games that go quite that far with allowing players to manipulate and create game files, but I have to admit I like the idea. Also in multiplayer the addition of host commands to boot people is nice and will hopefully help people stay away from cheating.

In the end Dungeon Siege is an engrossing game that is a bit too simplistic at times. The complete automation of tasks allows the player to look at the surroundings and revel in their beauty, but overall detracts from the game as the player doesn’t feel like he is playing anything. I highly recommend this game if you are a graphics nut, if you enjoyed either Diablo or Diablo II, or you want to check out the multiplayer portion of the game. Otherwise, I can’t fully recommend Dungeon Siege. If you are an RPG lover, beware, the story may have you hating this game from the very start, but the graphics will have you pushing onward to see what the designers have created.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 04/10/02, Updated 04/10/02