Captures all the feel and more of a D&D classic, but misses the Massively Multiplayer mark in a big and terrible way.
There are many great things about this title, straight away. It stays true to the Dungeons and Dragons formula which has kept many tied to their coffee tables with friends, or their computers, pounding away at those dastardly kobolds. It's character creation follows the tried and true method of the newest edition of D&D, allowing you to customize nearly every aspect, from Strength to Charisma, and from weapon specializations to intimidation skills. What's more, there are all the classes a D&D fan would expect: Paladin's, Clerics, Rangers and Rogues, just to name a few. What it is lacking however, is the ability to select all of the classic D&D races. Sure, it has humans, and elves, and dwarfs, but it's mysteriously lacking Gnomes and Halflings, instead opting for a new almost robotic-golem race known as "The Warforged". The absence of some races is understandable, as the game is looking to create its own world and own story to add to the archives of D&D, and as such, in no way does it really harm the overall experience.
The physical (or appearance section) of the character creation is far less time consuming than the ability section, and is fairly well done, though it offers nothing that you couldn't find elsewhere. That said, upon creating your character you're likely to feel satisfied, and eager to jump into the fray.
Upon entering the game, then the world you're greeted with two fairly engaging opening film, which do their best to pull you into what's to come, and they do a fairly good job, getting you ready to slice through hordes of enemies. Upon truly entering the playing world, however, your character is simply standing there, waiting for you to direct him… There's no real introduction or sense of tutorial other than a few annoying pop up windows as you mouse over things. These things can be overlooked, however.
What simply cannot be overlooked is the total lack of NPC voiceovers. In this silent endeavour there is simply text on top of text, with not even an acknowledgement voice to tide you over. That's right, no "Hello's", no "Whadda ya want's"; nothing, just silent text windows. That said, the text that is there is written very well, and, as such you may actually find yourself sticking to the story…Unless you're really dying to kill something.
"Killing something" is really where the game shines. Boasting a new MMORPG combat style which allows you to swing your blade, fire your arrows, throw your axes and launch your magic missiles, freely, with a simple click of the right mouse button. This really helps get you into the adventuring mode. Of course, there is an option for auto attacks, but who wants to do that when you can almost feel the force behind your mace as it fractures the skull of Goblin who's more than sorry he picked a fight with your mouse finger. This said, although the fighting is engaging and innovative, its often very awkward. Or rather, the AI is very awkward, choosing to run circles around you and only occasionally hit you. As well, you'll often find yourself swinging like a mad man just trying to get a hit in, as you watch the kobold, blessed with rag-doll physics, be blown of his feet in response to a thundering blow from a large axe. So although the AI can really be questionable on the default , "normal or solo" difficulty setting, it sure as hell is fun to give it a beatdown. What's more, traversing a dungeon or, any quest, is made all the more intense by the expertly voiced digital dungeon master, who makes sure he tells you what it sounds like behind the door, or how the room is laid out. Like a true dungeon master in the pen and paper version, he sets the stage very well, and, makes you really move forward with caution, fearing any sudden movements, gripping your mouse tightly, waiting, dodging traps and solving deadly puzzles. Much of the great experience in "questing" is derived from such an immersive atmosphere.
Wait a minute! Did I say Settings? You bet I did. This is when things get odd. You can choose the difficulty for every quest in the game, from solo to elite, and, whether or not you have a party with you will influence this fact. But Being able to determine how hard the task will be, is certainly not a feature found in any other MMORPG to date, and it doesn't make a good transition here. Some may say it's for the best, but being able to decide your fate decidedly brings you back down to earth, and uproots you from the games immersion. Suddenly, you realize that for all the gold you've gathered and the skulls you've crushed, that you're playing a game, and, that you're not really at any risk. This difficulty implementation was a real shame, as they attempted to add "replay" value also allowing you to take quests multiple times over. Again, the ability to customize your adventure or repeat things you may have missed makes you lose your sense of a persistent, dangerous world. What also contributes to this lost feeling of persistence, is the fact that, on any given session, you're only likely to come across one or two other players, most of whom are already well leveled. This means that for most of the quests you'll be solo'ing, and although the Looking For Group feature is very well done, and leads to some good party moments, the game is certainly very sparse in terms of other players.
Despite the great atmosphere, excellent dungeon narration, intense sword-play and great D&D roots, this game really falls short of MMORPG quality, and, were it instead a game like Neverwinter Nights, where one can major in single player and also go online for free, it would be far better. As it stands, it's an MMORPG with a failing grade in the "Massive and Multiplayer portions of this Online RPG.
For all its great innovations and intense moments, those moments are usually by yourself, and easily snuffed out by the fact that you've been paying a monthly fee for a game which is closely reminiscent of other, single player RPG games before it.
I suggest that another company should create a game that utilizes the great, free-swinging combat, and the intense questing narration, while staying true to the great atmosphere and character roots of D&D without the monthly fee. The bottom line, sees a game that would have great potential and worthiness as a single-player experience, but instead, it is literally forced into the MMORPG category. When it really isn't an MMO, at all.
Final Score: 6.5 out of 10
The Rundown:
+ Great Atmosphere, Sword-fighting, and Narration, as well as an intriguing storyline and true to D&D character generation
- Very sparse player base, an almost non-existent community, sub-par AI, adjustable difficulty settings and (apart from the narration) zero voice work leads to a game which isn't deserving of its MMO classification, and certainly, unworthy of a subscription fee, unless you're truly dying to have some great sword play and a decent story line, with one or two friends.