Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning?

[Metro]

I don't have a problem with an ActionRPG that basically plays like a single player MMO... I just have a problem with paying $60 for it.

 

[Heresiarch]

Heh, personally I won't bother to shell out money for it...because frankly, one of the main reason I'm liking this is, there no good game out in February, as this is a good time killing game. It may sound crazy, but I'm willing to shelf it as soon as Mass Effect 3 (March) or Super Robot Wars Z3 (April) is out.

Only thing is, respecs are so cheap as to basically be free, so you can dump all your points in crafting, make uber gear, then respec and keep it. Kinda devalues the non-combat skills in my opinion, though at least it means you aren't stuck for a 200 hour game with a build or gear you don't like.

I don't really find it cheap at all - the first two respec cost around 75 gold PER SKILL POINT, and the price increases with another ~70 with every respec. And so far the game really eats gold like cookies - healing costs over 200 gold, repairing stuff cost thousands, while training in skill cost over 15,000. So I don't really think you can exploit the respec system like crazy (in theory you can, but then there's a limit to it, and you won't have enough money to spend on other things).

 

[Wirdschowerdn]

Tons of reviews are up:

Destructoid (8.0)
1Up
Eurogamer (8.0)
Joystiq (5/5)
Gameinformer (8.0)
Gametrailers video review (8.2)

 

[Shannow]

If respeccing one skill-point costs 75 vs. 15000 for increasing one, it's dirt cheap.
Sounds like it's perfectly viable to run around with an super-awesome combat char, to then respec late in the game, craft some super-awesome equipment and then spec back to super-awesome combat char...
*shrug*
Lost interest with Zed's desciption

 

[pocahaunted]

5/5? Oh wow. Some people just love to shovel shit down their throats.

 

[Heresiarch]

If respeccing one skill-point costs 75 vs. 15000 for increasing one, it's dirt cheap.
Sounds like it's perfectly viable to run around with an super-awesome combat char, to then respec late in the game, craft some super-awesome equipment and then spec back to super-awesome combat char...
*shrug*
Lost interest with Zed's desciption

No no. Respeccing is one-shot-all-points, which means if you're level 20 (60 skill points), then you must pay ~4500 (then it's 9000, 13500, etc) in one go. You cannot respec one point by one.

Dunno why you guys say it's shit, for a low profile game made by a new game studio (I haven't even heard of it before the demo was out) popping out right in the middle of AAA RPG like Skyrim, Twitcher 2 EE, Mass Effect 3 etc, I find it a pretty well made game with very few technical issues and many fresh attempts and features.

 

[MetalCraze]

So basically this game is a primitive singleplayer MMO shit even drawn in the same style as WoW/SWTOR?

Where is that retard who claimed it had combos like DMC4?

 

[Infinitron]

 

[Stereotypical Villain]

In my gas chambers, Skyway.

 

[Zed]

and you level up slowly (I've played for 8 hours and got only to level 6)

I don't agree with that. I'm the same level after half the time.
Just fight mobs, skip quests. Use minor experience bonus potions when fighting high exp gain enemies (like trolls) and use your purple bar shit whenever you can (kill as many enemies you can before using the execution bonus experience thing).

 

[Spectacle]

I don't have a problem with an ActionRPG that basically plays like a single player MMO... I just have a problem with paying $60 for it.

I dunno. KoA:R is supposed to be a 100+ hour game, which at a $60 price clocks in to about 50 kwacents per hour. If the entertainment you get from the game isn't worth that much monies then I can't see how it's worth to spend your time playing it either.

 

[Palikka]

If you fancy watching others play shit for you, a group of casters/players/whatever are gonna do a KoA stream marathon today. Included are people such as Day9, TotalBiscuit, JP McDaniel, DJWheat, EG.Incontrol and others I forgot. You can find them all from http://www.twitch.tv/team/reckoning .

 

[potatojohn]

Watched some of the stream and it looks like crap.

 

[Infinitron]

http://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2012/02/04/did-piracy-kill-exclusive-pc-games/

 

[Shannow]

http://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2012/02/04/did-piracy-kill-exclusive-pc-games/

ROFL, Fraziers claims were nonsense then, they're even worse now.

My first game was Titan Quest, a hack ‘n’ slash RPG, which was PC only, but the amount that it was pirated was the difference between us staying in business and going out of business.”

Aha, so it wasn't lacking sales. Must mean a game that's not pirated (and not sold) makes the most money of all. Hey, I'm rich, since this game I didn't make wasn't pirated once...

Titan Quest, an action-RPG released in 2006 by Iron Lore Entertainment, debuted to critical acclaim.

More like, Titan Quest was so bland, it made virtually no impression, but sold well enough to warrant an expansion...

But when the Diablo-like hack-and-slash was hit hard with pre-release piracy, the developer included a security check that kicked gamers out of illegal copies of the game.

Uhuh. That makes like total sense...

Won't bother reading more of that nonsense. Won't bother repeating what I said about Frazier's whines the first time either
But nice to to what will be the "cause" if Reckoning fails.
There are xbox torrents up for the game, btw. Just saying because console games don't get pirated.

 

[Monocause]

Gave KoA an illegal spin, impressions are as follows:

- It is correct to name it a 'single player MMO'. Quests can be a diversion but they are usually bland "go to X, kill Y". There are some bonuses for investing in the persuasion skill but make no mistake - this is a very diablo-like ARPG, or, should I say, a mixture of Diablo, WoW and TES games.
- The combat system is fun, character builds vary much and you get rewarded for playing upon your strengths. For instance, using a proper combo to stagger/stun someone, blinking behind him and applying stealth damage works wonders. I'd prefer a system based on switching weapon types more, as in Borderlands - as it is now it is much better to invest in, say, two proficiencies and vendor everything else.
- The difficulty curve worries me a bit as the game seems too easy most of the time and I'm playing on hard. Mobs are mobs, sure, but an occasional challenge requiring the use of optional resources such as potion buffs should be there. Still, the game does seem to get progressively harder as you level up and explore other regions (the trolls in Haxhi did whack my ass a couple of times) so I'm reserving judgement.
- A short sidenote here - fateshift is godmode so far. Should be nerfed.
- The UI needs some work. Inventory management seems to be a PITA at the start but you soon get a knack for knowing which stuff you should quickly sell and which weapon do you want to use limiting the need for inventory management. Still, could be much better. Also there are some strange design choices - why can't we assign a weapon to a quickslot? I read somewhere that they're looking to fine-tune the UI for the PC so that might (and should) be added.
- To enjoy this game you must contain your inner completionist, unless you're that kind of a completionist who enjoyed getting 100% in GTA:SA, ie. a masochist. Much like in Beth games there are dozens of filler quests in each area and you'll have more fun if you're able to skip most of them.
- I don't really like respec mechanics but I guess it suits this kind of game pretty well. At least it comes to be a significant drain on your cashpurse as each subsequent respec increases the rate twice so you still have a serious enough incentive to think your choices through.

My final verdict is that I like it and I will buy it. It's a nice enough game to put a couple of hours into when you're bored. If you like the Diablo games and enjoyed Borderlands give it a try, if you'd like a more serious RPG experience then demo it but you'll probably give it a pass.

 

[shihonage]

Their review of this game makes me remember why I like Ars Technica.

Oh look, its some guy who's going to prattle on about fate for a while. *snore*

 

[Elrond Hubbard]

Stabwound

how easy was it to get working with the playstation gamepad?

 

[DraQ]

Thus, you are the only one who can do anything meaningful to change the fate of the world, which is convenient, since no one else seems willing to even try without your help.
Fated to be hated

You'd think this would make all your in-game decisions feel really important, but your role in the main storyline feels as preordained as everything else in the world.

 

[Infinitron]

Maybe Tibby should have hired Michael Hilborn to work on Amalur too.

 

[Roguey]

So basically this game is a primitive singleplayer MMO shit even drawn in the same style as WoW/SWTOR?

Where is that retard who claimed it had combos like DMC4?

I thought you liked Lestat?
On the last page he admitted he was fooled into thinking it had more complexity than it does but still liked it.

 

[Metro]

I don't have a problem with an ActionRPG that basically plays like a single player MMO... I just have a problem with paying $60 for it.

I dunno. KoA:R is supposed to be a 100+ hour game, which at a $60 price clocks in to about 50 kwacents per hour. If the entertainment you get from the game isn't worth that much monies then I can't see how it's worth to spend your time playing it either.

It's not so much quantity of content as it is quality of content. Let's take two recent AAA games I played for examples: Deus Ex HR and Dead Island. Both deliver about 30ish hours of game play for one play through yet the content in Dead Island is so tedious and generic I don't see myself playing through it ever again. If it had 100+ hours of game play I doubt I would ever finish. I can play World of Warcraft up to a certain low level cap for free on various characters with no time limit... but... I still don't play it.

 

[anus_pounder]

Anyone know what the maximum level is ? Since level 6 Destinies (classes) need 102 or so points to unlock, I'm guessing around 35 ?

 

[Zlaja]

Anyone know what the maximum level is ? Since level 6 Destinies (classes) need 102 or so points to unlock, I'm guessing around 35 ?

It's 40.

 

[MetalCraze]

I thought you liked Lestat?
On the last page he admitted he was fooled into thinking it had more complexity than it does but still liked it.

So a dude that actually played the game got fooled into thinking it has more complexity in contrast to a dude who didn't?
What's going on in this place?