Author Topic: [Video Game] Sacred 2: Fallen Angel  (Read 3091 times)

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Offline setrataeso

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[Video Game] Sacred 2: Fallen Angel
« on: May 25, 2009, 11:20:00 PM »
Name: Sacred 2: Fallen Angel
Publisher: cdv Software Entertainment
Developer: Ascaron Entertainment
Genre: Realtime RPG

I have grown in and out of video game genres quite a bit over the years. From strategy to puzzle to shooter, I’ve experienced a healthy cornucopia of what the industry has to offer. The action RPG genre is one I have not explored since my Diablo II days. Not being a crazy Blizzard fanboy, I was never into Diablo and WoW the same way everyone else seemed to be. Simply speaking; I found them boring. Diablo II was to dark-looking a game for me to stick with for too long and I didn’t want my soul to be absorbed with World of Warcraft. Though both failed to keep me addicted, my experiences with them helped me locate what was good and bad in the action RPG genre. It’s since been a long time since my ventures into those mystical lands of questing, so I was oddly excited to get back to it with Sacred 2: Fallen Angel. Did Sacred 2 re-ignite the action RPG spark in my cold, dead heart? Read on…

Sacred 2: Fallen Angel is an action RPG published by cdv Software Entertainment and developed by Ascaron Entertainment. Having not played the first Sacred, I was not knowledgeable in the backstory to the Sacred universe. Unfortunately, neither was the game. Despite a nice looking opening cinematic, the game tossed me into the game with little story or anything to paint a picture of the setting. Sacred 2 follows the choose-your-own-destiny format that fantasy RPGs are used to doing, so the backstory may not be necessary for everyone. However, I like to have at least some idea of what kind of world I’ll be exploring for the next while. In addition, once you begin the game, you will find that the game suffers from the RPG disease, otherwise known as complex-inventory-itus. Every menu is designed to be as complicated and as cluttered as possible for the player. While RPG fans may just be accustomed to this quirk, the presentation can be overwhelming for those just visiting.

The world is very big, as is the game. After playing for 12-13 hours, I had still not gotten out of the first realm (out of 4, I believe). In that one little area I had explored, I had done numerous side quests, killed many monsters, and looted their bodies. And that’s basically the game. It’s grind from start to finish, and that’s looking at a good 40-50 hours. Grind is not a bad thing in games, in fact it can be very addictive, but something about the long RPG hiatus I had taken caused me to be turned off by the repeated questing. The questing is actually quite varied, providing a nice selection of kill, fetch, and escort missions. The quests all are given by people in the town giving you the standard WoW question mark or exclamation mark above their head. They are all introduced by a long box explaining why they lost their wallet or whatever, and then tell you where to find it, and how much they will pay you. The problem is there are no voiceovers for these quest boxes, making for an awful lot of reading if you’re the kind of player who cares.

Despite the lack of VO in the quests info boxes, the remaining sound is very good. The game seems to have a bit of a sense of humour in the audio department, as some creatures have very creative quips to say. Little green goblins will attack you when you’re out in the wild, and when slain will sometimes say “I should have listened to my wife!” The villagers will spew lines as you walk by, which gives more life to the individual towns. The music is varied and suitable, giving different towns different styles.

The game really jumps off the screen at some moments. The large map is coupled with a beautiful tapestry of colours featured everywhere in the game, as well a stunning variety of characters and environments. The designers really got creative when coming up characters, so you will be fighting ghouls, or midgets, or skeletons. These graphics occasionally hit some rough patches, though. The draw-in distance is extremely short, so the developers relied on using the fog trick, but it’s poorly implemented, and very obvious. Also, there is a good deal of slowdown when the action heats up, so while the animations to the characters may look nice, the player will never see them how the developers intended, as it will simply looked chopped up.

The game earns its stars in variety. The gameplay may not innovate terribly, but it’s solid and varied. From sound to graphics, and characters to quests, the game gives players a tapestry of options on how they want to play the game. With 6 classes to choose from, and a light/dark path choice, the world is really their playground. With the length as a major bullet point for the game, those who enjoy this genre will find a lot to like here.

Sacred 2: Fallen Angel is not the perfect hack-and-slash by any means. Its production values are not up to par with Diablo or Baldur’s Gate, but they hold their own. Those not into lots of grind may be turned off, as will those who find the menus and story just too difficult to comprehend. However, if you can get into the game, you will find a long and varied game that can get quite addicting. The game feels somewhat closed off to the casual audience, and I didn’t love the game either. But, it was an ok playthrough, and there is still more to do afterwards. For those who will let themselves be taken by it, Sacred 2: Fallen Angel will last you a while.

6.5/10
« Last Edit: September 19, 2009, 07:33:49 PM by setrataeso »
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https://www.dreamtheaterforums.org/boards/index.php?topic=25343.0

Setra, I think that is the best statement I have read on this forum.  Very well said.

Offline JRT

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Re: [Video Game] Sacred 2: Fallen Angel
« Reply #1 on: May 26, 2009, 05:12:01 PM »
Nice review. Based on your review it sounds like the game is for serious fans of the first only though. Am I correct?

Offline setrataeso

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Re: [Video Game] Sacred 2: Fallen Angel
« Reply #2 on: May 27, 2009, 12:20:13 AM »
Nice review. Based on your review it sounds like the game is for serious fans of the first only though. Am I correct?

Thanks, man.
Not having played the first game, it is hard to say from my experience, but from the way they designed the game, I would say you would be correct.
NEW REVIEW: Lady Gaga - Born This Way
https://www.dreamtheaterforums.org/boards/index.php?topic=25343.0

Setra, I think that is the best statement I have read on this forum.  Very well said.

Online SeRoX

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Re: [Video Game] Sacred 2: Fallen Angel
« Reply #3 on: May 27, 2009, 10:59:07 AM »
I played the first part of this game. Hımm, it's just like Diablo much more but Sacred's graphic is more quality than Diablo but I can't see Diablo III yet so these kind of RPG games always pull me themselves.
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