Reviews

Review: Two Worlds II

March 25, 2011, Author: Trent Pyro

Magic rounds out the trinity of killing methods and my God is it confusing. First you need a staff, which is easy. Most staffs have elemental leanings which grant bonuses to spells cast of that element. Simple. Then you get into spell crafting. You have amulets in which you put an element card, a spell type card and numerous modifiers to determine what spell the amulet will activate. So, for instance, a Fire card and a Missile card will make a Fire Missile spell and adding a Homing modifier will make the bolt zero in on a target. Considering that’s only a very basic example and almost none of this is explained to you, I fully expect expert RPG mages to be scratching their heads and seriously considering downing the staff and cloak and donning some armour. Then again, the system is very intuitive and may be what budding wizards across the land have been wishing for. Most RPG’s, let’s be honest, focus on flashy sword moves and crushing hammer blows, leaving magic to play second fiddle. Two Worlds II’s system is a double-edged sword; it gives enthusiasts the most customisable magic system I’ve ever seen, but alienates those who just want to dabble. It’s the most prominent example of the game’s way of making you choose a solid path and stick with it.

Much of your effectiveness in combat, whichever discipline you choose, comes down to having the right kit. Two Worlds II offers a mind-boggling array of swords, hammers, axes, spears, bows, staffs, armour, robes and accessories. Mainly stat based, it’ll alienate newcomers and cause even seasoned RPG veterans to spend hours carefully comparing the benefits of rival pieces of armour and weapons. There are two main types of damage; slashing and bludgeoning. Most weapons only deal one type, with some (like the great axe) dealing a bit of both. Armour protects against both types to an extent, but almost all pieces favour one damage type. So it’s always a toss-up between protecting against slashing or bludgeoning. There seems to be no point in the dual damage system other than to confuse the player and force them to use varied equipment.

I opted for mainly slashing protection for the duration of my play through and noticed only negligible weakness when facing enemies with bludgeoning weapons, so what’s the point? Choosing which type of damage to deal however, is paramount. Many baddies are resistant against one type, so having a weapon of each type on hand at all times is a must. Hit a skeleton with a sword for example and you’ll be there all day. Whip out a tasty mace and it’ll be bone-meal in no time. This doesn’t become too much of a bind as many foes are resistant to neither damage type, leaving your choice of weapon up to personal preference. The range of options is fantastic here and really allows you to sink your teeth into creating your character and playing the game your way. My only issue is with how the stats are displayed; kooky icons litter the inventory screen and no explanation is given anywhere as to what they mean. There’s an option in the menu to switch the icons to text tags, but this shouldn’t really have to be done.

Upgrading your stuff and looking after yourself is essential in this mammoth game, and this is where the Crafting skills come into play. Covering basic smithing and alchemy as well as skills for crafting and upgrading specific types of kit, what initially seems like a geeky pastime soon becomes your crutch. The vendors and shop owners in Antaloor are unscrupulous crooks who will rob you blind if you let them. Something just bought for 1000 Auras (the Antaloorian currency of choice) can be sold back for no more than a couple of hundred if you’re lucky. Potions cost extortionate amounts of cash for the short time they’re useful. For this reason, DIY is the only logical way to get on.

Thankfully, the crafting system is a master stroke and shows many other games in the genre how it’s done. Every piece of kit, from weapons to armour, can be broken down into their aggregate parts. So a leather cuirass would break down into a couple of bits of leather and so on. You then use these elements to upgrade other items. It’s a brilliant way of allowing you to bolster your favourite sword or pair of boots and make use of the myriad of other junk you pick up on your travels. For this reason I bought almost nothing from the shops, although at some point you will have to say a teary goodbye to your trusty old sabre and buy a new one as each weapon can only be upgraded a certain number of times. As you progress through the game, enemies get tougher and you’ll need to keep snatching up better kit to stay on top. That said, I managed to get through the game having only use a few different swords and changing my armour only three times, which compared to Oblivion’s constant swapping out was great.

Alchemy is also fantastic, although maybe a little complex for some. You receive a cauldron during an early quest and you can use it to boil up the smorgasbord of ingredients you find in chests, pick from the wide-open fields and cut out of dead animals. The sheer number of combinations on offer is staggering, and each one can be saved and brewed again with ease. Each item lends an attribute to the potion. The most basic of these include replenishing health or boosting your Endurance, and adding modifier ingredients can increase the effectiveness or length of the concoction. Some special bits and pieces even let you walk on water and turn invisible! It’s depth will most likely be bewildering for some, and it took me a while to get into it but when you’re stuck in a cave with no potions and a pack of hungry scorpions between you and the exit, you’ll thank your lucky star for those herbs and giblets!

Two Worlds II is massive, gargantuan, huge. It is as big as all of its rivals and actually bigger than some. There is so much gameplay, intuition and creativity packed in that it’s entirely possible you won’t see half of it during your first play through. The presence of so much stuff is only offset by the occasional shoddy execution. While crashes and game-breakers are few and far between, glitches during combat and frame rate issues riddle the game like arrows in a battlefield corpse. Even just dashing across a fully loaded, empty field can sometimes prompt a series of freezes and loud chugging sounds from the disc drive. Much of the time it feels like the game is working itself too hard, which doesn’t bode well for its technical lifespan. Combat can become a mess of unanimated blows and dodgy misses, especially when more than a few bodies are involved.

Many a time my counter-attacks hit, were counted and did damage, but were not animated; my character just stood there still blocking. These are minor niggles however; Two Worlds II is largely bug free and loads extremely quickly compared to its peers. It’s an astounding feat of technicality that a game this big can be so smooth and well presented and have so few technical issues. When a master studio can’t even put out a game half this size without it being broken (*cough* New Vegas *cough*) it’s inspiring to see a lesser known, European developer pull it off with aplomb. It doesn’t look half bad, either…

Over the hills and dales we go…
Two Worlds II looks lush and dull at the same time. How, you may ask? Well, while it’s all rendered well enough, the graphics are technically nothing special. Considering the size of the game it’s amazing that it looks this good throughout, but on sheer lush factor it rates pretty average. What really makes it stand out is the production design, or for those not into media lingo, the way stuff is designed to look.

Antaloor comprises one huge landmass and three smaller islands, each with its own style and people. Notice I said smaller, not small. Eollas, the third largest, is about the size of the entirety of the Nevada Wasteland! Unlike other games with vast expanses, you rarely run for a few minutes without hitting something interesting or important.

The lushness comes from the huge amount of work done on making the differing regions of Antaloor look and feel distinctly different. From the Medieval castles and stone houses of Hatmandor, to the Japanese-style pagodas of New Ashos, to the overgrown, poisonous wastelands of The Swallows; each area has its own unique design, people and cultures. It’s obvious Reality Pump have spent a massive amount of time getting it all right and it pays dividends. Rarely do you get bored of seeing the same scenery, so often it changes. Just as you get used to one style, the story moves you swiftly to a new location and you’re hit with an entirely new view, able to drink it in afresh and discover its quirks and elements. Rarely have I experienced a game with such distinct locales; some distance from the comparatively similar regions of other games in the genre.

What the f*ck is that?! And that?! AND THAT?! Oh, it's a Taedium, a Mortifier and a Droser apparently...

What makes each area even more interesting is the bestiary on offer. Each land is packed with its own brand of wildlife, bandits and monsters. You’ll go from hunting panthers and boars in relatively Savannah-looking plains to battling dinosaurs (!) and mutated plants in the crushing Swallows. The evil creatures vary widely too, from zombies and skeletons to more unconventional designs and races. There is some repetition, but that is to be expected in a game of this size and never, ever feels lazy.

The people of each region are replete with style, customs and traditions unique to their locale. Knights, wizards, scholars, ancient immortals, elf-like beings and the softly spoken Scavengers are just a few of the myriad human-type races you’ll meet. Far from the standard humans/elves/dwarves patter wheeled out by so many other titles, the smorgasbord of cultures, lingoes and tastes overwhelm you in such a way you truly feel like a traveller, trekking the world soaking up its delicacies.

Now for the dull. While the design is second to none (and I do mean that), it’s terribly unfortunate that the engine isn’t up to much. As mentioned before, the actual graphical fidelity isn’t top-notch and Two Worlds II presents few jaw-dropping vistas. Texture pop-in is common, especially after using one of the many teleporters and animations can sometimes be skipped in an attempt to preserve frame rate, I presume. Although these may sound like big problems, in the grand scheme of things they do little to dampen the overall good vibes garnered from the look and feel of the game.

In summary, Two Worlds II has some of the best, most dedicated and detailed design I’ve ever seen. Reality Pump obviously understands better than most that a great story is only as good as the world it’s set in. Middle Earth is almost as famous as Frodo and the Fellowship for good reason; it was lovingly, meticulously crafted. The same is true of Antaloor. While it may not conjure the same misty-eyed nostalgia as Sera or Tamriel (yet…) I can assure you that it’s a fantastic place to explore and one you’ll want to spend a hell of a lot of time in.

Someone’s been eating gravel again…
Sound-wise, Two Worlds II is a heady mix of the stereotypically comfortable and the downright bizarrely random. While most animals make their usual noises, for some reason the rhinos sound like cows with some sort of lung disease. The other creatures emit sounds common of their design, although kudos to Reality Pump for getting creative with the guttural squeaks and squeals of the more bizarre monsters.

While most of the voice acting is of an acceptable standard, it rarely steps out of its fantasy-RPG comfort zone. More often it descends into hammy lunacy. While many characters are voiced with honesty and a professionalism expected in a game where conversation is so paramount, some are downright awful. The Orcs present at the beginning of the game sound like callous pub thugs doing distasteful impressions of people with Down’s Syndrome. The aforementioned Scavengers, while voiced well, have an annoying habit of speaking in slow phrases of two or three words. So you have… to listen… to every conversation… like this… with big gaps…. where there… shouldn’t be; and it’s bloody tedious. These moments are, again, small flecks on the big picture and don’t grate too much, although why they’re there at all is a mystery.

Your character’s tone is unusual to say the least. If Tom Waits ate a barrel-load of gravel, smoked 500 fags and washed it all down with some rubbing alcohol, he might reach the level of ultra-gruffness exhibited here. I still can’t decide if it’s meant to be a sly poke at the myriad of tough, gravel-throated heroes in todays games or a real, serious attempt at making your leading man seem like a hard case. He just sounds like he’s trying really, really hard to sound tough. Recently we’ve seen a spate of more varied leading characters, from the college-boy tones of Nathan Drake to the smooth Italian patter of Ezio Auditore. We no longer need our champion to be grunting his way nonchalantly through every exchange for us to think he’s up to scratch. Seems Reality Pump didn’t get the memo.

Music-wise, the score varies with the ever-changing landscape and for the most part it works. While it won’t win any awards for the soundtrack, the music permeates each area and event, always fitting and never becoming too intrusive. In short, the composer and soundtrack mixers have done their job very, very well. It lacks a compelling theme tune or overall melody, but considering the hugely different areas this is no surprise. A good job done by all involved.

Two Worlds II sounds no better or worse than its peers, aside from the hilarious lead character and one shockingly bad attempt at Sean Connery’s trademark Scotch slur; even I can do a better impression! The monsters and creatures have fitting grunts and squeals and the score works in tandem with the environment to do its job; inform the action but never overtake it.

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