Champions: Return to Arms

"After playing the original game to death, Return to Arms is a breath of fresh air."

When I originally bought Champions of Norrath, I was a bit leery, as Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance had left a bad taste in my mouth. Once I settled in, however, I couldn't put it down. I didn't stop playing it on a daily basis until I had game saves with a member of each character class at the highest level. Since then, I haven't played it.

When I placed Champions: Return to Arms in the Playstation 2, I was expecting more of the same; an experience that was fun at first, but eventually became a dull, repetitive task to play.

Boy, was I wrong.

Story: 7/10

Save the world from impending evil. It's like this for many of these games (if not all). After defeating the main boss from Champions of Norrath, your goal now is to stop him from being revived (or aid that process, if you choose to be evil.)

Graphics: 10/10

From the moment I turned the game on and saw the main menu, I knew I was in for a treat. The graphics were a major step up from the original game, and looked stunning. The environments were much crisper, enemies more realistic, and the character models were a notch above what they had been before.

Sound/Music: 8/10

Possibly the only area in the game that falters a little bit is the sound. The attack sounds when using weapons sound exactly the same, and many of the same phrases from the original game were used again (especially in cases of being unable to carry anymore loot.) However, new and beautiful orchestral tracks quickly made up for the semi-lackluster voice acting.

Gameplay: 10/10

To know a dungeon crawler, you would have to play one. This one follows the suit as well as many of the other legendary dungeon crawlers. You get a mission, whether it be to rescue someone or kill some enemy. On the way, you kill other enemies, who often drop items. You take those items, and when you can carry no more, you work your way back to a shop and sell them. You then use the gold made to buy new, better equipment for your character. Wash, rinse, repeat. Also, the drop rate of items in the game has decreased, which, in my opinion, helps ease the pain of using Gate Scrolls to go back to a shop every 5 minutes, like in Champions of Norrath. Return to Arms has it down.

Difficulty: 9/10

Much, much more difficult than Champions of Norrath. This, however, is a good thing. In the original, bosses were a piece of cake to beat, even if you were underleveled. There were always plenty of places to hide and regain health in order to successfully (and easily) defeat any enemy, bosses included. In Return to Arms, if you are underleveled, kiss your life goodbye. Bosses were made harder as a challenge to the veteran gamers, but are still conceivably beatable by anyone with the correct strategy.

Replayability: 10/10

I played through Champions of Norrath 15 times. 3 times for each character class, and there were 5 character classes. In Return to Arms, there are 7 character classes, 5 difficulties (including one only unlockable online), and the choice of whether you wish to be good or evil. Using math, you can figure out that there are up to 70 different ways to play through Return to Arms, offering over 500 hours of gameplay in total. I just hope it won't consume you like it did me.

Overall rating: 10/10

A great sequel, a great game. The addition of player vs player competition, medal rounds, and The Arena are sure to add hours to your total time playing this game. If you asked me if you should rent this or buy it, buy it. You will not be disappointed.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 04/13/05