First impressions....I'm having a great time with Amalur. The best part is the combat, levelling, and exploration. There is a lot (really a lot) to do in this game. I've already created gems and slotted them in items. Alchemy is fantastic - you can buy recipes, but the most fun is experimenting to see what recipes you can discover on your own. If you combine reagents correctly, a new recipe is added to your knowledge base. You also earn an achievement for this, and if I told you the name of it, you would laugh, but I don't want to say it if you think it would be a spoiler. Your armor and weapons will wear down with use during melee, and will need repairs...you can keep Repair Kits in your inventory, and purchase repairs at certain vendors. Fast Travel is tremendous, and works without a hitch. I have used it to my advantage, it came in handy when my character became affected by a curse. I'm working on a character path combining Finesse (rogue) and Sorcery (mage). Playing the demo paid huge dividends, as the fate weapons give you the added punch you need in the early going. They don't make it easier, it makes melee more enjoyable because you can give as good as you get. In-game physics are beautiful - if you get hit, your player reels back, you make the right moves, enemies go airborne...there are combo moves you can unlock, and going into Reckoning Mode in melee is as much fun as when Nero did his similar thing in DMC4. Also you have a dodge capability, where you can tumble in any of four directions away from an enemy, which gives you time to down a potion if need be. You have a Radial Menu where you can place items for quick use, and one keypress brings it up. Keyboard and mouse bindings work very well, and they use all of the mouse. Decisions play out with great import, and one thing that's so cool is if you have a persuasion option in dialog, it even tells you the percentage of success before you choose it.:o Making a correct decision pays you in huge bonuses, and I've already collected some. What do you think so far? Amalur Launch Trailer here.