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Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning (PC)

Screenshots | Videos February 12, 2012 By: Simon Edge

GAME DETAILS

Genre: Role-Playing
Published by: Electronic Arts
Developed by: 38 Studios / Big Huge Games
Release Date: February 10, 2012
Official Site: Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning
Multiplayer: No
List Price: R349.00
Also On: Xbox 360
PlayStation 3
PEGI 16
(Suitable for ages 16 and older)
WHERE TO BUY  (South Africa)
R317.00 (FREE Delivery)
R334.00 (FREE Delivery)
Not Available
Not Available
metacritic
81
Note: All prices include door-to-door delivery

DESCRIPTION

Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning is a new action role-playing game, set in the massive fantasy world of Amalur. The game promises to be something special with the lead designer being Ken Rolston (lead designer for Elder Scrolls III and Elder Scrolls IV), the story being written by renowned author R. A. Salvatore (22-times on the New York Times bestseller list), and the game artwork and animation under the direction of Todd McFarlane (Spider-Man artist and the creator of Spawn).

Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning is a huge open-world game, and the world of Amalur has five distinct regions. There are four playable races within the game comprising two human races and two races of elves. There are also three distinct class-trees (Might, Finesse, Sorcery), with 22 available abilities per class-tree. The dynamic combat system allows all characters to simultaneously use a primary and a secondary weapon, as well as a variety of magic spells - there are numerous melee-weapon and ranged-weapon classes, as well as dozens of spells to choose from.

This is a huge game, with a captivating storyline, a multitude of side-quests, and a enormous open-world to explore. With the main-quest taking an estimated 60 hours to complete, there is plenty of content in Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning to keep RPG fans entranced for many months to come.

FEATURES:
  • Fascinating Open-World to Explorer - The five regions of Amalur are brimming with spectacular landscapes, mysterious cities and towns, fantastic creatures, gruesome enemies as well as colourful characters to interact with. You can focus on completing only the main-quest, completing the various side-quests you uncover, or just go and explore the world - the choice is yours.
  • Flexible Character Development - Choose from four playable races, the Almain (noble humans), the Varani (nomadic humans), the Ljosalfar (light elves), and the Dokkalfar (dark elves). Players start the game as a 'blank slate', but can develop their chosen character along three different class-trees - Might (a fighter), Finesse (a rogue), and Sorcery (a mage). There are 22 abilities per class-tree and you can develop your character any way you want using a mixture of abilities and skills from any class-tree.
  • Dynamic Combat System - All characters can use a primary and a secondary weapon, as well as wield magic spells at the same time. Equip yourself for battle using melee-weapons (there are nine melee-weapon classes), ranged-weapons (such as bows), various types of armour, and dozens of available spells. Finish off your enemies using Fateshift kills, which are brutal slow-motion finishing-moves.
  • Collect and Craft Useful Items - With a large inventory limit, players can collect a large number of useful items as well as weapons as they journey through the game. Using items collected, players can use the ingenious item crafting system to create brand-new items.
IGN Reviews - Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning Review
Kingdoms of Amalur's combat and character advancement are fantastic enough to overshadow how bland everything else is.

The Good
  • Top-notch combat with a real punch
  • Fantastic, flexible character advancement
  • Some great-looking creatures
  • Extensive world with tons of stuff to do and lots of monsters to fight
The Bad
  • Generic story and characters
  • Generic world
  • Generic quests
How much you love Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning depends on what you look for in a role-playing game. Let's say you long for a pervasive sense of time and place, for a great story featuring memorable characters, or for varied quests given weight by superb context. If that's you, then Kingdoms of Amalur will disappoint. Then again, you might want wonderful battles against cool creatures, terrific looting and leveling, and lots of ways to customize your skills and equipment. If so, then this is the world you should inhabit. The context is hardly inspired, but you'll be having so much fun that you may not care.
No matter what you're looking for, whether it be amazing gameplay, immersive storytelling or perhaps a riveting new world to explore as you fully customize and re-customize your character at will, Reckoning has it all.

Presentation: 8.5
Amalur totes an impressive story penned by one of the great fantasy authors of our time, and it takes place in a fantastic fictional world. It’s complex and hard to follow at times, though.
Graphics: 8.0
Beautiful environments and solid animations are marred by fairly shoddy-looking character models. I wish lip-syncing was more on-point during dialogue.
Sound: 8.0
Music is sparse, but the voice-acting is well-executed and really adds a great deal to the story. Characters have a lot to say, and that’s a good thing.
Gameplay: 9.5
The bread and butter of the game. Reckoning sets the bar very high for other games moving forward, and is an absolute pleasure to play.
Lasting Appeal: 9.5
I hope you have a hell of a lot of time on your hands, because Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning will require all of it for the foreseeable future.
Action RPG fans can breathe a sigh of relief as Reckoning delivers on almost all fronts

Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning has a lot to prove. With the constant mentions of R.A. Salvatore and Todd McFarlane, prominent names in Fantasy, I wouldn't be surprised if you're expecting a Skyrim killer within KoA. Calling it a Skyrim killer might be a stretch, but Reckoning is an extremely enjoyable Action RPG.

. . .

Despite that, Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning is most definitely worthy of the hype it's been getting. If the Fable series had a baby with Skyrim, Reckoning might just be that end result - taking a little bit of gameplay mechanics from both, yet refining it into an extremely enjoyable, entertaining and challenging experience.
The result might be something lacking a certain flair for individuality, but in reality Reckoning is more a meditation on the genre. Like Blizzard, 38 Studios has a tendency to hunt and peck through the archives of various mechanics and apply what it's learned. In Reckoning's case this results in one of the most comprehensive RPG offerings from a single game.

. . .

Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning's wholly undiluted overview of Western RPGs often amounts to a beige concoction of a thousand blended fantasy worlds, but it's also a testament to 38 Studio's inherent knowledge of the genre. It's a workmanlike interpretation of what makes an RPG tick, placing a spotlight on all the right mechanics and features that most titles struggle to perfect. Regardless of the game's bland exterior, Reckoning is considerably well crafted.

A thorough knowledge of the genre
Massive explorable environment
x Struggles to develop its own identity
x Highly cliche'd
We’re happy that the game has created a world we actually cared about full of unique characters and interesting monsters. Though we didn’t fall in love with how the world looked or how we interacted with it, we bought into the world itself - which is undeniably more important.

GamesRadar Verdict

Amalur does a lot of things better than some of the best out there. The combat is stronger than Skyrim’s by a long shot, and the world feels more alive than games like Fable. It tells a good story well, and lays the foundation for a series we hope to see more of in the future, fate be damned.

You'll love
  • Fluid combat
  • Skill and leveling systems
  • Interesting, unique world
You'll hate
  • Graphics look dated
  • Grindy MMO quests
  • Exploration isn't great
It's an honest, undiluted acknowledgement of what Western RPGs are all about, and I can respect that. Rather than try to be too deep or too meaningful, Reckoning simply presents players with a direct feed into the vein of empowerment and expects you to gorge until you're bursting. While the combat can often undermine that feeling of acquired strength, there's still enough rousing success to be had that keeps one returning for more.

For anyone who needs little more than a sword, a shield, and some monsters to annihilate, there are few games more committed to delivery. For those addicted to looting dungeons and crafting increasingly arcane magic gloves, there are few games more willing to serve the goods. For those who want an RPG free of pretense and utterly devoted to indulgence, Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning is your game.
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