"Not too bad..."

Introduction:
Exile, Escape From the Pit, is the first game in the Exile Trilogy. It is an RPG.

Storyline: 8/10
The storyline is good: You are people who didn't socially fit in, so the evil Empire sent you underground.
The story does a good job in setting the scene for the next two games in the trilogy. It starts you in your first day in Exile until you...well, I'll let you find out for yourself. Anyway, the story has a great plot and the game sticks to it.

Graphics: 2/10
The game is 2-D, but the graphics aren't terrible. They're about on a level with the GameBoy Pokemon games. You can choose from several different-looking characters to jazz up the game, and the basic terrains aren't too bad. It does look like cave floor.
The graphics are something that you will be able to get around, though. They aren't the work of masters, but they are survivable.

Sounds and Music: 5/10
The sound isn't pro quality, but it will do. You can hear the sounds of basic swords, footsteps, and spells, but that's about all.
Exile has music, but its not the best thing the world has ever made. Fortunately, you can turn it off and pop in your own tunes instead.

Gameplay: 9/10
This is the reason this game is great. The game is easy to pickup on (at least for controls), and it is very addictive. When I first downloaded this game, I played it for hours on end.
The only problem is that it is a hard game to get started in. Fortunately, there is plenty of help on the Internet should you need it.

Play Time: 9/10
Exile took me three months to beat for the first time. I enjoyed every single moment of it, even the ones when I was stuck. As I said earlier, the game is very addictive. If that amount of time seems way too long for your attention span, then you can purchase the hint booklets or get help online.
But I think that you will enjoy playing this game fore three months straight.

How Re-playable? 9/10
After you beat Exile for the first time, you can always play it again. It is definitely a classic. It contains many side quests and missions to keep you busy. I have played and beaten this game at least ten times since I got it one year ago.

Overall Score: 7/10
The graphics and sounds are what really pulled this game down. The storyline and gameplay are excellent, and you can always play this game more than once. If you ask me, this game is at least as good as any Final Fantasy game.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 12/22/03