Последние обзоры yellowskyray

Just like the rest of the original BG games, this too will be played for many years to come, and in time will be considered a classic. Not just in CRPGs, but in the huge library of games.

Amazing crisp gameplay, engaging character development, interesting villains, and an unprecedented freedom of choice given to the player. The fights in this game are incredible and I thoroughly recommend anyone to play it on Tactical Mode to have the best experience.

This game has one of the most wonderful written characters. Its animation is also top notch and never loses its charm. Platforming and jumping around is smooth and very fun. While you spend a lot of time juggling requests and tasks, you will come to slow down and learn to say goodbye. Some characters may not connect to you as much, but I'm sure one or two will. After playing some time, I also realise this is not quite the game for children. Its writing was mature and personal. Heartwarming and fuzzy, its characters and their journey in life stayed long after I completed the game.

Many years ago, when I was but a kid, one of my game CDs didn't work. So you could bring it back to the shop to exchange it for four other really old retro CD games that no one wants anymore. They were not originals of course, no one could ever afford them in my country.

That was how I stumbled upon Shadows Over Riva.

This was possibly the most complex game I've ever played at the time. Words like tinderbox or whetstone were not in my vocabulary. But somehow I had some fun making my party spend all day at the bathhouse and improving their swimming. Here I am now, after many years, reading through manuals and embarking on this journey from the first game.

Of the three games, Shadows Over Riva is the one shining above them. What previous games has done faithful to the tabletop experience is abandoned for a deeper, more engaging story. Gone is the overworld travel of the previous games for a more linear story, which is actually better. You do not venture far out of the city of Riva, in fact you do not visit any other towns at all. It does make the city full of surprises and you don't feel as if you are noble heroes saving the world but instead just so happen to be in a bustling city with all their dirt, grime and sinister things waiting to happen.

Learning to play Realms of Arkania is hard. It has a steep learning curve, weird names for spells, and sometimes very boring fights. However, what you will find is something very unique that lots of CRPG do not have, such as negative attributes. In this game you learn things the hard way, through trial and error. Like how I discovered having a witch in my party is totally useless and created a new character halfway through the second game. How weapons break and you should have a spare for each character. How some monsters can only be killed by magic or magic weapons. This game expects you to be smart, and it expects you to act so. If something doesn't work, try, try something else.

The visuals in this game have definitely improved by strides compared to the predecessors. As I suspect that a lot of NPC art have been converted from a photo or directly traced. Pierce Brosnan, or Björk makes a cameo. A bit of a pop culture 'time capsule', so to say. Generally it was a nice experience talking to NPCs and getting tidbits of information about the comings and goings in the city. Strange events, mysterious developments, are abound in the city of Riva and it's up to your party to find out how each are inexplicably linked. Even if the story is not a masterpiece, seeing two of my fighters raiding and killing scores of orcs was still enjoyable.

Overall, if you have the time, and the patience; because you will need some for progressing in the quest sometimes - You will find SoR not just a challenging RPG, but a very satisfying one. Read the manuals before you play, and if you get stuck, just look up online for a guide!