REVIEW : Arcanium: Rise of Akhan (PC)
Arcanium has a lot going on and can initially seem quite overwhelming. There are 18+ schools of magic, 8 tech schools, and 4 skill bars, and each of these has 4–5 (in the case of technology skills) skills/tiers. A moral code and a scale that measures your propensity for magic or technology? It’s a lot, that. Fortunately, the game contains built-in tooltips that can be accessed by hovering over a stat or bar to reveal some information.
So let’s review a few of the game’s best points.
1. Your actions throughout the game, no matter how little they may appear, can have a significant impact on how the tale ends. This is especially true for people who have played games like Dragon Age Origins.
2. Inventory – Inventory is something you need to consider. For instance, in the later Mass Effect game, the number of weapons you carried had an impact on how your skills and abilities were used. The same rules apply; you have a weight cap and, like in Diablo and the early Fallout games, a certain amount of inventory space. Carrying more weight can limit your options in battle and, in some situations, make you less prepared. Although you have up to two party members who can assist with carrying stuff, overall it’s something you may easily forget about until you’re in a tight spot.
3. Allies React -This can be interpreted in several ways. For example, if you have a poor IQ or come from a background that makes you seem stupid, your friends and the people you meet will react to that. They will also react to the moral decisions you make while playing the game. With a group of noble characters, commit too many bad deeds and they’ll turn against you. Conversely, with a party of villainous individuals, committing too many good deeds and only Virgil (the first party member) and the Dog remain.
4. Magic vs Technology – The game has a lot to offer in terms of playtime, replay value, and general ways to do stuff. The main debate, though, is magic against technology. Tech shops will ask you to leave if you are too closely associated with magic (and sometimes assault you to make you leave) Similar to entering a tech store or a magic shop, things become more difficult when you learn that there are four potions, two technologies, and two magic items (your cursor changes to show which type is being used and they are different) Spend the appropriate tools for the job. Avoid using Salves (a tech potion) on a mage, as you may need to use 6–10 before you receive single healing.
5. Combat -The settings allow you to adjust the fighting to be turn-based or free-flowing. Because it allows me time to plan, I like turn-based. Spells, melee, innovations, and firearms are just a few of the many options you have when fighting. The two key indicators to keep an eye on are, of course, your HP (if companions die, they’re dead unless you have a talent or technology that can revive them) and the blue bar; this bar represents your fatigue, which causes you to faint in battle if it reaches zero. There is a 100% probability of getting free hits on the character; it’s not like Pokemon where you have to return to the inn. However, it can be helpful because weapons have HP damage and a fatigue damage stat, and you can exploit your opponent’s exhaustion to your advantage.
6. The world -The map is incredibly large, and you can either run from place to place taking a long way or, when you get close to an area’s boundary, click the map button (which changes to a blue globe) and click points to travel quickly. Obstacles will still stand in your path, so if a mountain stands between you and your destination, you will need to plot a route around it. There are many locations to visit on the map, and they become active just by passing them. Along the road, you may encounter monsters or wild animals, and bears will detest you. This makes the journey challenging because it’s not always a stroll in the park. Remember that even though you can access locations like the last dungeon from the start, the game will penalise you in the battle for it.
7. Character Creation – I maybe ought to have started with this, but whatever. Before boarding the Zephyr, you choose how your character is introduced. You choose a portrait first (that’s the simple part), then your gender, race, and background. All of these have an impact on how your party and NPCs respond to you. While males get those, as well as dwarf, halfling, and gnome, females get Human, Elf, Half-Elf, and Half-Orc. Each race has distinct histories, aptitudes, and reactions, and each history influences reactions as well. If you choose the Idiot Savant background, for instance, you will receive a significant boost to your intelligence, a penalty to your strength, and everyone will refer to you as having an intelligence score of 2. (which leads to some entertaining commentary).
Following that, you have 8 stats, 5 points to level up, and a tonne of the aforementioned skills. Everything levels up with just 1 point, however, learning ability has an impact. tech tree schematics You must have a comparable degree of intelligence (or be lucky and find the blueprint for sale in a store) All magic is taught in these schools (no buying spells, sorry fellow mages) So planning a bit is a good idea, but not mandatory. Then you have the option to buy some gear (background effects starting coin) be it some bullets, a gun (you get one fairly early) or just some fair armour/sword to make things a bit easier at the start.
8. Critics Affect nearly EVERYTHING! – Yes, from bartering to lockpicking. There is a crit chance that affects shooting to pickpocketing. In combat, you can kill yourself with a critical failure, and lockpicks can jam the door or chest (don’t worry, you can just break it open) But if you don’t have the skills, you can ask a party member to do it (or they’ll volunteer) for you. Some aren’t that bad on a failure, like haggling and you might just have to pay a little bit higher price.
9. Leveling – There are two red bars in the centre of the screen, as you may have observed in the images. Those are your experience bars (yep, bars). Fill up the top, thick segmented bar to advance a level and get a point to spend on talent or stat. To obtain a piece of the other experience bar, maximise the narrow, little red bar that is directly underneath it. How are you going to fill the tiny red one? You’ll fill it if you don’t walk. Everything you do will add points to that metre, including innovations, combat hits and misses (yes, even self-crit failures contribute experience points). Your HP and Fatigue are restored as you level up; as long as a failed crit didn’t result in your death, you can level up in the middle of a battle.
10. One member’s trash is another’s treasure – The game doesn’t have any “vendor garbage” items. There are some things you’ll probably never use, such as old rags or coal, which are useless to mages. However, if you know the formula, a tech character can use those items to create bombs and bullets. But didn’t you say before that tech merchants wouldn’t sell to mages? That’s true, however, whether you chose technology or magic, there are also general stores that sell the miscellaneous parts of technological inventions like rags, fuel, and batteries. The game doesn’t have any “vendor garbage” items. There are some things you’ll probably never use, such as old rags or coal, which are useless to mages. However, if you know the formula, a tech character can use those items to create bombs and bullets. But didn’t you say before that tech merchants wouldn’t sell to mages? That’s true, however, whether you chose technology or magic, there are also general stores that sell the miscellaneous parts of technological inventions like rags, fuel, and batteries.
REVIEW : Midnight Fight Express (PC)
