Two Worlds

"Mayhap You Will Enjoy This Game, Perchance!"

A review that does not use the 'O' word!

Introduction

Two Worlds has been in development for a long time and its release has been delayed several times. Was it worth the wait?

Gameplay

It is an action RPG where you explore a vast world, fight a wide range of different enemies and pick up huge quantities of loot (which you can use or sell for cash.) First you need to create a character. This is not difficult. You can only be a male bounty hunter (with a few cosmetic adjustments.) However the appearance of your character will change according to the items he is wearing.

Be warned that there is a period at the start of the game where your character is very weak and easily killed. Although I did not manage to be defeated by any of the rabbits hopping around in the grass, almost any other creature can wipe you out in a couple of hits. Dying has no great penalty, your character is revived at the nearest healing shrine, but it can become tedious until you go up a few levels.

Melee combat is fairly rudimentary - swing, then swing again. There is a 'jump back' button which comes in useful once you work out the attack patterns of the enemies. You can also fight with bows and use spells. You can wield single handed weapons with a shield, or two handed weapons, or 'dual wield' two weapons. There is no 'block' button but there is a parry skill which you can learn and develop.

Levelling up allows you to allocate points to the 4 attributes of strength, vitality, dexterity and willpower. You also get skill points which can be used to improve a range of active, passive and magic skills. A few skills come as defaults, otherwise you need to find trainers scattered across the landscape who will teach you skills for a price. So how your character develops is very much your choice.

As you travel around you can choose to do so by walking or mounted on a horse. You can also fight from horseback. In your travels you will find plants and other ingredients taken from vanquished creatures that you can use with alchemy to make potions, poisons and items which add additional damage effects (fire, ice, poison etc.) to your weapons. Some of these potions have permanent effects which can be used to 'buff up' your character, others have temporary improvements.

Another method of getting about is to use the teleport terminals scattered around the landscape. These provide instant transport to any other teleport you have activated.

There are lots of different types of armour, helmets, boots, gloves and robes that you can wear. As with weapons, if you have two similar items in your inventory you can combine them to produce a better item as a result.

All this stuff is displayed in your inventory screen, which is one of several screens used to show your attributes and skills. magic spells, map and quest log. There are some problems with these screens. The text and icons are often small and/or obscured by 'helpful' text. Important parts of the screen are not displayed on some television sets. The game is really designed to be played on a wide screen, high definition television. Many players have had problems using the quest log and linking it to the map. However once you have scaled the learning curve the controls are perfectly adequate. You can play in a number of 'views' - first person and a couple of variations on third person.

The game does not give you pinpoint guidance on where to go to complete or continue a quest. Opening up the quest log will display the general area of the map where you should go and hi-lite important locations.

If you really want a challenge you can use the settings to make the game harder (or easier if you are still dying all the time.) However once you reach levels in the double figures, things start to get a lot easier.

If you enjoy exploration and combat then the game is fun to play. If you want to cheat and play around with the parameters of the game, there is an extensive set of console commands that you can use to create items and boost your statistics. Since the game is open-ended you can decide whether to massacre all the citizens in a town and take the consequences, or behave honourably and carry out their tasks.

There is online play but, at the time of writing this review, the lag is so severe as to render it unplayable.

Story

There is a main quest which is outlined in the opening cut-scene. Your sister is kidnapped and it is your task to find and rescue her.

However the meat of the game is in the large number (I have heard 350) of side quests. There are various factions fighting for control of the kingdom and you can choose to aid them or oppose them. You get reputation points by helping a particular faction which makes their members look on you more favourably. The quests are not overcomplicated and most of them can be settled by finding an object or person (and maybe killing them.)

Graphics/Sound

The graphics are perfectly acceptable and there are no load times between outside and inside. However the game does lag every now and then during normal play. There are console commands you can use to reduce this.

The music is good and the ambient sounds are fine.

However! The voice acting and style of dialogue have come in for some criticism. Everyone seems to have gone to the Monty Python school of speaking medieval. So there are lots of Mayhaps and Perchances and Methinks. Also the characters make little asides which can grow tiresome over time. Either you will grow to love/ignore the voice acting or you will have to turn it off and rely on the sub-titles.

Play Time/Replayability

There have been claims of up to 100 hours of gameplay. I have not completed the game yet but a more realistic estimate seems to be 30-40 hours.

Although you can't choose a new character, you can replay the game and develop a different set of skills.

Final Recommendation

Because the game has fallen far short of its advertising claims and has attracted a good deal of harsh criticism, I would have to recommend that you rent it first. If after a few hours it appeals, then a purchase would be the best plan. There is a collectors edition that has a 'making of' DVD.' a well illustrated table top RPG book and an extensive (if somewhat inaccurate) map.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 09/13/07

Game Release: Two Worlds (Limited Edition) (EU, 09/07/07)