When Elder Scrolls IV:
Oblivion was released on the Xbox 360, it not only gave fans of the role-playing
game genre a true free-roaming classic but it succeeded in immersing players
into its deep, massive world and epic quests. It is certainly a game worth
imitating and Reality Pump and South Peak Games does exactly that with Two
Worlds, an RPG set in another massive universe. Two Worlds: Collector’s Edition
is a complete package crammed with extras but the game itself is an entertaining
yet flawed experience fans of the genre might want to consider playing.
Taking place in a huge
open-world environment, Two Worlds tells the tale of a world called Antaloor
that has been ravaged by war between the good kingdoms and a dark god of
destruction named Aziraal and his army of Orcs. Aziraal’s rebellion comes to a
halt when the god is killed in battle and his body placed in a magic tomb and
hidden in a secret location. Fast forward 300 years later as a young man and his
sister Kyra are traveling on a road when fate would step in and separate them.
The young man becomes a bounty hunter who takes on odd jobs for money in hopes
that his assignments might bring him closer to learning the whereabouts of his
sister. Oh, and somehow the fate of the world falls on his shoulders and he
becomes wrapped up in the conflict between the Orcs and free kingdoms as well as
linked to the secret of the dead god.
At the start of the game’s
main single-player mode, you begin by “creating” your main character. Well, it’s
not exactly a deep process filled with options so all you’ll be doing is
deciding what type of hair and hair color your male hero will have and what
color eyes he’ll have. That is right, you won’t have all the cool little options
Oblivion gives you and you cannot even change your character’s gender, race or
occupation. You might as well not have been given the chance to change your
character at all. What you end up with is a generic-looking character that has
the personality of a block of ice. Believe me when I say that you won’t find
much to like about this bounty hunter except for the fact that you can change
his armor (everything from his boots to his helmet) and that his skills can be
upgraded.
As a bounty hunter, you’re
free to take on a number of tasks given to you by the people that fill the world
of Antaloor. You’re not forced to walk a linear line where you must finish a
particular quest and you can forget the quests altogether and simply explore the
huge map and discovering the many towns, camps, villages, cities, dungeons and
outposts. Antaloor is an immense world so you’ll be glad that the Collector’s
Edition comes with an exclusive world map. You’ll find numerous NPC characters
who will offer side quests and, like Oblivion, find yourself attacked by bandits
hiding near the main road as well as a number of other beasts that roam the
countryside. The map is so huge that you’ll be glad the game includes horses to
make traveling a lot easier.
Unfortunately, the game
lacks the charm of Oblivion’s world and the little touches that might seem
insignificant but make the difference between traveling in a world filled with
interesting spots and traveling in a world that can seem a bit barren at times.
Really, there are times in Two Worlds where you’ll see nothing but green grass
and tall tress for miles. When it comes to the quests and side quests, there are
no intricate side stories that have you attempting to cure yourself of a vampire
curse, you won’t be joining an assassin or thieves’ guild and you certainly
won’t be attempting to rescue a floating ship/inn from pirates. These little
surprising elements that made Oblivion such a treat to play are missing in Two
Worlds.
What you will find,
however, is the ability to upgrade your character’s skills, abilities and even
spells. You can even put your alchemy skills to use by creating your own potions
you can name yourself. There are also a number of quests and side quests to
complete and while they never get as deep as the ones in Oblivion, many of the
quests range from pretty dull to pretty fun. You’ll rid a stable of bandits that
come often to threaten the stable owner and you’ll cast a summon spell in the
house of an astronomer whose rival is jealous of his research. You will attempt
to infiltrate an Orc’s camp by disguising yourself as one and you’ll do deep
into the tunnels of a major city to look for a rare artifact. In short, there’s
no shortage of things to do in this game.
Sadly, combat is one of
the weakest aspects of Two Worlds. Outfitting the bounty hunter with powerful
weapons and armor is up to the gamer and you can even dual wield two swords for
some extra damage but somehow it takes about fifty swings to bring down the
weakest monsters or wild beasts. I tend to lean more to the bow and arrow seeing
as you have better control over the damage you can dish out and you can always
run and shoot. Unlike Oblivion, you can also attack while riding a horse so you
can swing or shoot arrows while riding. Death comes quickly for you in this game
but thanks to some magic tomes scattered throughout the land, you will respawn
at the last tome you passed and the best part is that you lose nothing if you
die. You will always start again without missing weapons or money.
Two Worlds just doesn’t
offer a lengthy single-player mode but it also contains an online multiplayer
mode that can be played through the Xbox Live service. Up to eight players can
take each another on or join forces to form a team in a few game modes that put
you in a large arena. There’s Team Deathmatch, Team Assault, Team Monster Hunt,
Team Horse Racing and Horse Stealing. These are actually pretty decent
multiplayer games if you find a few friends willing to join you in a game or
two. At the time of this writing I found a very limited number of players to
compete with but what I’ve experienced wasn’t bad at all.
As a gamer who fancies
Collector’s Editions, Two Worlds packages an extra disk that includes the game’s
soundtrack (which is good), some concept art (equally good) and some video (just
so-so). The real treat comes in the form of the map and a hardcover tabletop RPG
book that requires playing dice, pen and paper. The book itself lists some
helpful information that makes perfect sense to the single-player game.
Visually, the game doesn’t
take advantage of the graphical capabilities of the Xbox 360 and oftentimes the
game takes on an original Xbox appearance. Some backgrounds look good from afar
while others look very dull. Clones of other NPCs are scattered throughout the
map and the facial expressions are just plain horrible. For some reason, no
matter how you create your own character, your bounty hunter will always seem
cross-eyed. There are some decent visual effects, especially when it comes to
your spell casting; the cities look impressively grand in scale.
The sound is a sore spot
in the game it would have been a complete disaster if it were not for the great
soundtrack that plays throughout the game. Two Worlds features the most
horrendous voice acting in games this year that makes the game’s characters
sound like they’re performing an embarrassingly weak rendition of a Shakespeare
play. “Mayhap we find the lost gold or mayhap we don’t,” the main character will
say. “Does dost road take me to Brumhill, pray?” He says in another instance.
Every character sounds this way and it gets worst along the way. Unintentionally
funny voice acting aside, the sound effects is actually nicely handled.
Two Worlds: Collector’s
Edition manages to create a vast world with a deep storyline that gives gamers
plenty to see and do but sadly, the game’s major flaws will disappoint those who
were looking for an amazing RPG. It’s not to say that it’s a bad game – it
certainly has its appealing moments – but it’s far from unseating Oblivion from
its throne. Still, this is a decent role-playing game worthy of a Collector’s
Edition chock full of extras that shouldn’t be missed by fans of the genre.
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Gameplay: 6.9
Combat is both hit and miss seeing
as your character will oftentimes swing at nothing or aim his bow at the enemy
farthest from you. You’ll be able to upgrade a number of attributes, skills and
specialties to help you in combat and spell casting and alchemy is a major plus.
There’s a lot of ground to cover but, alas, there are very few hidden extras
like a certain similar RPG.
Graphics: 7.5
The game’s visuals range from
beautiful to very ugly and the character models look like they belong on the
original Xbox 360. There are way too many generic NPCs that fill the world and
some that are actual clones of your character. Still, some of the effects are
amazing and there are environments that are filled with detail. There’s also pop
up and sometimes body parts disappear while you’re talking to somebody.
Sound: 6.0
There’s some great music in the game
and the sound effects are wonderfully detailed but what will give you plenty of
laughs is the game’s voice acting and dialogue … it’s unintentionally funny.
Also, your character sounds so pompous that you won’t find much to like about
him.
Difficulty: Medium/Hard
When a wounded boar can kill you and
a half dead bandit can get the upper hand in battle you’ll know this game has a
serious problem with the difficulty setting. Yes, upgrading your character’s
skills helps a lot but you will be killed quite a lot in this game.
Concept: 7.0
The Collector’s Edition comes packed
with a second disk filled with bonuses such as the game’s great soundtrack,
artwork and short video clips. The best extras come in the form of a world map
you can unfold and use along with the game’s map screen and a small hardcover
tabletop RPG book (all you need is a pencil, paper and role-playing game dice).
It also comes with a 48-hour Xbox Live trial so gamers can try out the game’s
multiplayer mode.
Multiplayer: 8.0
Online the game allows you to play
with up to eight players (if you can find eight players) using any of the five
multiplayer game modes and cooperative play. You will have to create a new
character from scratch first then you can compete in horse races, a team
deathmatch in an arena, go on a monster hunt and steal horses. It’s good stuff,
indeed.
Overall: 7.0
Mayhap it’s the Oblivion fan in me
that feels that no similar RPG can compete with it but this game makes a
worthwhile attempt that gives gamers enough to see and do. Two Worlds:
Collector’s Edition aims high and delivers a flawed yet decent role-playing game
that is lengthy and occasionally fun. If you’re a devoted fan of open-world RPGS,
a deep story and customizing your character anyway you like then you might just
want to consider buying the Collector’s Edition.
