Apart from a brief moment on PSP in 2006, Dungeon Siege has lived mainly on PC, so the world of Aranna may have passed you by.
It's a fantastical place in which giants forge magical shields, wizards attempt to resurrect demons and shops sell hats with increasing stat bonuses as you approach the final boss. Novel, eh?
Dungeon Siege III follows the story of several heroes. Obsidian are saying there's no class system, but that's a bit of a fib - what they mean is, there's no class selection screen, and character development isn't as flexible as it is in their most recent game, Fallout: New Vegas.
Lucas is the guy we're allowed to take for a test drive. He's the son of a member of the tenth legion, a group of legendary soldiers who played a noble part in Aranna's history in previous games.
However, as they got involved in politics, they found themselves slightly out of their depth. Their actions led to the death of the king - at least, they did in the eyes of his daughter. And she's the one bearing the grudge and controlling the armies, so that's all that really matters.
FIGHTING CHANCES
So, the tenth legion have been hunted down, decimated and spread across the land. Lucas has lived as a fugitive, combat training in anticipation of the day when the army are needed again.
Luckily for our sense of drama, that day arrives at the beginning of the game, with the scattered descendants of the legion being summoned together by the mysterious Odo.
A close-range fighter, Lucas has a few skills to make him flexible. Every hero has three combat stances, but they're not all the same. For example, Lucas has the one-handed weapon position, which leaves a limb free to hold a shield, and the damage-dealing two-handed option.
Finally, he can focus on healing. You'll swap quickly between these in even the shortest battle, giving Dungeon Siege III a much more action-packed feel than the previous game.
It's no God Of War, but it's a happy mile away from the genre's 'click on a guy until he dies' roots.
Each of the stances has a set of special powers. Your range will grow, but early on, Lucas has access to a one-handed skill called Shield Bash, an instant attack that stuns an enemy and helps with tackling mobs.
Over the course of the game, you'll build a party who'll help out in combat and judge your moral decisions. It's more like a simplified version of Mass Effect's squad loyalty than Dragon Age's management.
Players won't leave the group in a huff if you start acting up, but loyalty does earn you character-related advantages. Dungeon Siege III doesn't have competitive multi-player, but Obsidian have confirmed a local sofa co-op mode for two players, in which a second player can piggy-back your storyline, help out and have access to your inventory for as long as they're there.
Comments
10 comments so far...
metallicorphan on 18 Feb '11 said:
as much as i am excited about a Dungeon siege game,as its Obsidian it means it certainly isn't a day one game...maybe a month after release game at earliest..sorry Obsidian,but you know why
sleazeboy on 19 Feb '11 said:
I know what you mean. I find it odd that this studio gets so many high-profile titles to work on when they almost always end up releasing a semi-complete mess. especially annoying when a studio which made quality games closed today (Bizarre). I'll be waiting for the probable quick post-release price drop, as has happened with their last two games.
jimsondanet on 19 Feb '11 said:
I only know Obsidian for New Vegas, which was already based on a buggy engine. But yea il take the advice of above users and wait a bit till after release.
divinebeetle on 19 Feb '11 said:
I'll be looking forward to this,
Will be interesting to see how this new Onyx engine performs
budge on 19 Feb '11 said:
Co-op in the same room with another pad......ahhh, the good old days.
Legrasse on 19 Feb '11 said:
I'll be picking this up day one, just because it's Obsidian. Plus the Dungeon Siege games usually make for fairly fun multiplayer, in my experience.
metallicorphan on 19 Feb '11 said:
Obsidian are also known for Star Wars:Knights of the Old Republic II,which was very buggy,especially the end,although i heard Lucasarts were pressuring them to hurry up...they also did Alpha Protocol which i have not played but i have heard its again a buggy mess,and of course you know about Fallout:New Vegas
those 3 games are currently the only games they have done for consoles,they also did Neverwinter Nights 2 for PC which i have not played
EDIT:just found this interview on Eurogamer,where they say it will be more stable than New Vegas
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2011-02-07-dungeon-siege-iii-more-stable-than-new-vegas-interview
jimsondanet on 19 Feb '11 said:
I like this director.
Cheerz metallic.
Legrasse on 19 Feb '11 said:
Obsidian's games definitely suffer from a lot of bugs, thankfully their narrative is often quite strong and the bugs usually get worked out in time. I seem to be quite lucky and rarely run into problems, but I know people have in the past, with Obsidian games.
On a side note, I'm sure most older gamers know who Black Isle Studios are, and what they're capable of - Obsidian Entertainment pretty much is Black Isle Studios, besides the few that left to form Troika.
splitter on 19 Feb '11 said:
Obsidian are consistent in two areas: One, buggy games, and two, only putting out buggy games because of pressure from publishers. Alpha Protocol and Fallout: New Vegas were both fantastic games. This looks very different from their normal product but the more I see, the more I like the sound of it.