101 mb download!

Hmm. what the heck, I thought. Me and my newly acquired Sympatico high speed access have nothing better to do. Let's give it a whirl.

After a 20 minutes download and installation (you may want to rethink the download if you have dial-up access, unless you have the time to kill.) I started it up, and from the opening cinematic I was absolutely hooked!

This game looks incredible. It is a medieval dungeon romp, starting out in a prison cell of a run down keep. What makes this game look as promising as it does?

In a word, atmosphere.

The lighting is magnificently done, and so are the various dungeon sounds you hear as you move through the keep. I have quite literally never seen a game that offers so much immersion. At times I felt that I had been pulled through my screen and into this amazingly detailed world!

A few nice touches add to this effect. Shadows, for instance, that not only mirror your every movement (as a shadow should) but that are affected by the angle of the light source in relation to your character; if your shadow falls across both the floor and a wall, the shadow angles accordingly; if you pick up a lighted torch and throw it, as it flies down the hallway, the light reflects realistically off the wall in a completely realistic manner.

The combat is nicely done as well. Your abilities increase as you gain experience, allowing you to perform more and more intricate movements and attack sequences. Some weapons require more skill than others to use, and I found myself wanting to gain skill only to use that wicked looking axe I picked up. The foes you fight block and parry your attacks, and you can do the same in return. Bloody wounds appear realistically on you and your opponents, and nothing is as awe inspiring as watching your opponents shield shatter as you strike it with your sword.

The demo allows only one character type to be played, that of a swordsman, though four are available for the full version, whose release date is scheduled for 20-Feb-01.

To be honest, I enjoyed this demo more than I have many full version games I have played in the last long while. I played for better than an hour, non-stop, and still did not reach the end of the level contained in the demo.

Now, there are some anticipated drawbacks. Character advancement seems limited. You have only so much control over the skills your character gains. As well, there seems to be very little in the way of designed role playing in this one. It's pretty linear, but in this case, the magnificent presentation of the game forgives this usually unforgivable crime in a game.

All in all, this one looks like a winner, and I am waiting with baited breath for the full release version of the game. If it lives up to the promise of the demo, I may have to take a leave of absence from work.

Enjoy the demo. I sure am.

by Galen