Hack. Slash. Grab loot. Repeat. That formula is followed to a tee in Sacred 2: Fallen Angel, another action-first RPG you can toss onto the pile atop Diablo, Titan Quest, and the first Sacred, now more than four years old. But this isn't just another paint-by-numbers take on the fast-clicking genre that gave too many of us carpal tunnel syndrome. While the new game hews closely to the modus operandi of traditional hack-and-slash role-players, it offsets the lack of innovation with a monster-slaying rhythm guaranteed to hook you so thoroughly that you might as well have been hypnotized. This, plus a decidedly offbeat sense of humor and great multiplayer support, makes the game stand apart from the pack.​

The opening hour ranks amongst one of the worst I've ever played in a high-profile title. Sacred 2 doesn't bother to get bogged down with the story until far beyond most players have lost hope of ever enjoying the thing, which isn't the best way to plan an opening. After your companion is ridiculously murdered by the weakling swing of a couple of enemy sword blades, it's your job to continue your friend's quest ¨C whatever that may be.

The game's mechanics are dated at best, plain awful at worst. I appreciate what Sacred 2 is trying to do: it's a throwback to a more simplistic era of RPGs, an era when the fun came from a combination of frantic slashing and exploration of exciting, well-written characters. But when it becomes apparent that the characters are neither exciting nor well-written at all, the clunky action becomes the game's sole focal point.​