The camera can zoom in just close enough so that you are looking directly behind your character but it won't put you directly inside your character's head. So, if one gets the drop on you from behind, you'll need to swing the camera around just to stick your sword in his gut. Combat is incredibly frustrating since you have to constantly adjust the camera angle while beating off throngs of orcs. Usually, developers implement a bit of AI so that the camera's vantage follows a specific point of view and dislodges itself when stuck.
There's a reason why free cameras are often decried: they often saddle with double duty as both hero and cameraman. The 3-D skies and varying elevations are countered by the simple fact that characters can neither climb nor jump. Don't let the 3-D environs fool you: Mage Knight is a Diablo-esque 2-D scroller masquerading as a current-gen RPG. Then there's Mage Knight's innovative free camera system, which sounds great until you actually have to use it. And people thought Everquest had pathing issues. On occasion, we were forced to complete an entire level solo when our two computerised comrades became stuck in a maze somewhere. Allies constantly become stuck behind walls and pillars, enemies lose track of you when you walk out of their line of sight, and glitches allow you to hurl spells at blissfully unaware boss mobs. So anyone hoping for a little character in their characters will be disappointed by the rigid system imposed on your allies' behavior.Įven worse are the pathing issues associated with this faux-party system. The only difference between the three iterations is the weapons they carry. For example, when you meet up with Janos Freeborn, you may choose either Janos the Warrior (axe), Janos the Marksman (rifle), or Janos the Gadgeteer (bombs). The ability to lose yourself in the world is almost non-existent.Īlso problematic is Mage Knight's attempts to replicate the multiplayer party experience in a single-player game, an experiment that's derailed by your party members' uniformly generic personalities.
Mage Knight, however, offers only rigid quests that end with dry, uninspired cut scenes. In an RPG like Oblivion, one has the option of exploring a huge world complete with side quests and bonus missions.
The game's single player campaign follows a series of loosely connected skirmishes with the common themes of attack, rescue and invasion. For instance, we once received a wisdom increase for smashing open a wine barrel, an experience that was hardly educational or thought-provoking in any way.Īnd as far as the plot goes, Mage Knight is linear like water is wet. In reality, however, all that clicking really amounts to little more than arbitrary skill increases that are minimally associated with your play style. You want to be a better spellcaster? Then toss off spells left and right.Īll this is will presumably lead to you gaining experience through practice. If you want to be a better fighter, then get out there and swing your sword around. Levels and experience points have been completely done away with in favour of a system where every action defines your character. For example, the game proudly promises that there is no level grinding and at first glance, this appears to be true. But like a politician who quickly changes his tune after getting elected, Mage Knight left us disappointed. It's pretty standard RPG fare but we had high hopes that Mage Knight would deliver on some of its promises.