One of my all time favorite games, so I might be a wee bit biased. I happen to have a thing for Dungeon Crawling, Puzzles, and Character Roleplaying/Customization. So this was practically made for me.
[h3]So let's start out with why you'll probably bounce off.[/h3]
[b]Controls:[/b]
So what you need to understand, is that this game is a Blobber. (Which is a First Person Party based Dungeon Crawling cRPG w/ [b]Grid Based Movement[/b]) Specifically, a Real Time Blobber.
If you've never played one before, then you're going to have a rough time at first because the control scheme takes quite a bit of getting used to. You will need to be able to move and turn on a grid while enemies are trying to surround you and you are attempting to control the attacks/spells of four adventurers with your mouse/steamdeck trackpad. It can get awkward fast if you're not used to it.
However, contrary to popular belief, the Grid wasn't a technical limitation even when Dungeon Master first came out. The Grid does two things, incentivizes character positioning/awareness, and allows the player to chart out the Dungeon using graph paper (can be turned on/off with Old School Mode).
[b]Puzzles[/b]
If you hate using your brain, then this isn't for you. All the puzzles are solvable without a guide, but there are a number of them that will halt your progress. Furthermore, several will have answers in a separate area so you need to think of the whole island as a giant puzzle.
If you thought going in that you were going to have a nice relaxing guided adventure w/ minimal analytical thinking, then you can go ahead and unthink that. The game world is, canonically, trying to test your wits, and you need to know that going in.
[b]Lack of Character Customization[/b]
Compared to most Turn Based Blobbers, this game doesn't focus on your characters class/progression as much. It's still important, but the focus is more on the execution. The Real Time element opens up fun things like environmental damage, True Ranged Attacks, Stealth/Backstabs, Force Field tactics, and yes, Square Dancing.
That said, the character classes/customization is nowhere near as interesting as something like Wizardry 7 or 8. We lack things like Summoning magic, trapped chest minigames countered by your rogue/bard/ranger/ninja's Disable skill, multiclassing, persuasion/hide/identification/climbing/swimming skills, or Item based classes like Bard.
Enough backhanded compliments, time for normal compliments.
[h3]So what's to like?[/h3]
[b]Level Design and Environmental Interaction[/b]
Switches, pressure plates, traps, hidden buttons, secrets, buried chests, underwater paths, galore!~ Of the classics, we're only really missing Illusory walls.
Dense areas with interactable objects really helps the experience. Even if this hadn't been a RPG it would have made a good Adventure game with the amount of exploration and traversal challenges present.
[b]Engaging systems[/b]
Combat is difficult enough, enemy variety is high enough, magic is useful/interesting, character build matters but still offers player freedom, narrative/story/worldbuilding are subtle but present, etc.
This is just generally a well made game.
[b]Extensive content[/b]
Weird section that I'd usually not bring up, but this game includes a level editor and workshop support. And so my fellow grognards have created a bunch of new dungeons, sometimes with new magics and mechanics, and they're as easy to download as hitting subscribe on the workshop and then clicking it from the in game "Custom Dungeon" tab on the menu.
There's all kinds of dungeons/adventures out there with different design philosophies and styles. Magic system overhauls, Endless Roguelike mode, Quest based Adventures, Survival focused, etc.
It's not quite Neverwinter Nights level, but there's some high quality stuff there. Think of it as a very in depth and extensive Post game.
Overall, 9/10 for me. Probably a bit lower for most people, as this just so happens to hit a niche that I love.
