8th time's the charm!
- GAMEPLAY/DIFFICULTY
Big change: you only create ONE character in the game (with the option to having up to four characters join your party). Gone are the optional NPC with useful skills such as ID-item and XP-bonuses. It takes awhile to get used to (its annoying not being able to identify items until a while in the game), but it allows you to try out different combinations throughout the game which is nice.
The game is somewhat easier than before because a) you start out of dark magic depending on the class you chose (!) and b) the ability to have dragons (!!) join your party. I still enjoyed the balance though (the game is a serious challenge in the beginning). THis game is highly addictive, and you will be enjoying grinding XP to increase your skills.
- INTERFACE
Seems just right: I look the "smooth" look, and the character portraits strike the perfect balance between computer-animated and realistic looking (the two extremes from MM7 and MM6, respectively).
Also, teacher are now clearly marked on the (yes!) and each one will tell you where the respective other teacher can be found (yes! yes!). This makes sense and makes exploring more smooth.
- ITEMS
There is just ALOT more loot in MM8 than in previous instalment. Make no mistake: this is not a Diablo-style loot-fest, but you will get GREAT loot (and even unique items) while actually playing the game - a huge improvement of 6 + 7, where I would either find a few good items at the very end (where I had no use for them) or just be stuck with average gear.
The Bad:
- ENGINE
I do not care about graphics - I really dont. But this game almost manages to look worse than previous games. Colours seems washed out and fade into each other. When walking the lands it is hard to distinguish rocks/items in the land, due to their over-pixelated graphics. While some new enemies look quite nice (like the orcs) many are just washed-out looking.
- STORY
The story lacks complexity and intrigue. Not much will happen before a (to be expected conclusion). Part of this is due to lack of moral choices (from MM7). Moreover, the amount of busy-work goes up towards the end (get 4 items x, go to five place y etc.). Also, some areas seems kind of thrown-together and last-minute, without anything interesting to contribute.
Bottom line:
I cannot help but appreciate the incremental improvements which took place from MM6 to MM7 to MM8. While six was definitely an enjoyable game (many would say the best in the series), I find that the game only got better with each instalment after: With each game adding more depth and complexity to the gameplay.
Admitted: MM8 is the weaker game when you compare it to the other two. Yes, it carries on alot of the good things from the previous game, but even as a hard-core fan I must say that the game does feel lazy in some respects. The town seems to "conveniently" placed, areas to not really connect, the story is only knee-deep (without the good vs. evil choice we had in 7) and the game engine is just barely passable.
Nevertheless: the game's addictive formula had me hooked, and I enjoyed most of the time I spend completing the game. Definitely a must-have for MM fans!