Computer AI is nominally better than similar games, but party members have a tendency to rush headlong into battle, requiring you to rescue them more than a hero should.Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura delves into the Victorian vault to posit a world where technology and magic vie for dominance in an archaic, yet sophisticated environment.Those wanting to take a break from the slew of fantasy games on the market will benefit by looking to the past and entering the world of Arcanum.
After surviving a horrific zephyr crash, the main character is proclaimed as The Living One, a holy reincarnate, by one of the first people he meets. It is a long and arduous journey, fraught with many perils ranging from exotic animals and expert assassins. In time, your character develops in strength and knowledge before finally facing the otherworldly enemy threatening the entire population. There are four categories in which to spend points: stats, skills, schematics, and spells. This breaks down into eight basic statistics, 16 skills, eight technical areas with seven schematics each, and 16 magical colleges with five spells apiece. Since characters are capped at level 50, earning a single point a level and two every fifth level, it becomes obvious fairly early that specialization is a must. The incredible number of choices available in designing a character may leave novice RPG players confused, but experienced players will relish the variety. Arcanum Editor For Steam Full Potential UntilUnfortunately, multi-faceted characters are hard to build, due to the scarcity of points; a gun-slinging gambler wont reach his full potential until too late into the game to fully enjoy either skill. The game rewards improving stats above all else, which isnt necessarily a bad thing, but it does limit experimentation somewhat. Also, the numerous unfriendly encounters means points spent on combat usually pay off more than skills spent in role-playing categories, such as haggling or persuasion. You may need to build several characters before finding the perfect fit. Fans of the Fallout series will recognize Tim Cains touch as project lead for Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura. Fights happen in conventional real-time or turn-based formats, although the later makes battles much more manageable. Travel across Arcanum takes place on a Fallout-styled map, standard fare that works well. The ability to combine found items into powerful weapons through the use of schematics is an example of the features that revolutionize gameplay. There are literally hundreds of magical, technical, and mundane items to aid you, almost to the point of sensory overload. Rather than a plot with entirely different paths to follow, Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura provides different ways to accomplish the same goal. Granted, actions and alignment change the NPC responses, but eventually you still battle the same end boss, be it with magic, technology, or words. The many side quests available add a bit of variety, but distract from the main story.
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