Two Worlds II Review

By Al Bickham Published 31 January, 2011

Crafty.

Version tested: PC

As fantasy action-RPGs go, 2007's Two Worlds may have been a bit shonky, but it certainly had a lot of heart. The sequel goes one better: it's got a lot of lung.

Loot a slain animal and, with a squelchy audio cue, you'll fish out one of its meaty gasbags and flop it into your backpack. But even the gizzards of a lowly hyena are worth collecting in Two Worlds II. In fact, absolutely everything is worth looting, as the game's superb crafting systems enable you to repurpose every piece of trash in your backpack to useful ends. It's almost a meta-commentary on recycling.

Basic alchemy is available pretty early on, and lets you combine reagents into healing, mana, and stat-buff or resistance potions. The entire process is affably simple, too. Looting can be done from a distance, and a single click sucks everything into your backpack. You find yourself running at breakneck speed through the countryside, snatching indigenous herbs without pause and emptying foes' pockets, post-massacre, with Dyson-like efficiency.

A similarly elegant system applies to weapon-modding. A bag bursting with looted weapons doesn't necessarily mean a trip back to town to offload at the vendor, as any weapon or item of apparel can be broken down on the fly to its base components. Through the metallurgy skill, these can be used to improve the stats of your favourite weapons and armour so they grow with you.

When I learned that Two Worlds II did away with the first game's item-stacking mechanic, I was dismayed; it was one of the things that kept me playing. But this new system, which turns the useless into the useful, is a considerable improvement.

More on Two Worlds II

Spell-crafting is the most intriguing of Two Worlds II's crafting systems. While you need to pour skill-points into specific schools of magic – Fire, Necromancy, Air, for example – to improve your abilities, mastery of the schools doesn't actually unlock spells. The spells themselves appear as cards, and can be bought or looted just like any other item.

To create a castable spell, it needs to be combined with carrier and modifier cards in the spell-crafting interface. Combine a Fire spell-card with a Missile carrier-card and an Increased Damage modifier-card, and you have you a tasty, direct-damage fire-bolt. You can then stack more of these combos together within the spell, depending on your mastery of specific magic schools.

Why not add an area poison-burst to it? And an icy damage-over-time effect? The combinations are mind-boggling. One early NPC actually mentioned a rain of anvils, which I haven't seen – but, given how outlandish and versatile the system is, I firmly believe it's in there.

It's difficult to get as excited about the game's storyline, which follows on from Two Worlds, and once again sees the hero's sexy sister (yeah, that always was a bit weird) in thrall to the evil Gandohar and in need of rescue. The narrative arc isn't the pay-off, though. It simply forms a backdrop for the game's myriad smaller tales. In both content and geographical terms, Two Worlds II is enormous; if you're after an absorbing time-sink of an RPG, here it is.

It's bulging with off-piste quests, and many of them are agreeably potty. At one stage, in the beautiful, Feudal Japan-themed city of New Ashos, I found myself assisting an umbrella-vendor whose latest inventory had been cursed by a jealous shopkeeper, and was now flapping around her customers' houses munching on them. The quest concluded at a songbird exhibition. I walked in and was confronted with a scene of comical avian carnage. I set to dispatching the rogue brollies... before picking over the parrot carcasses for eggs and feathers. Alchemy never sleeps.

Two Worlds II also features a number of multiplayer modes, the most expansive of which is the Adventure mode. It's like a second campaign, in which you start a new character and fight your way through a series of linear maps to earn XP and gain levels.

Like the single-player game, there are no set character classes; you just spend your skill-points where you want. My current multiplayer character is a necromantic archer who also dabbles in healing; my conjured hounds keep the mobs at bay while I aim for the head, and if anything gets a blow in, I can pull out some heal-over-time spells.

The difference, of course, is that you can do the whole thing co-operatively. However, there's no level cap on co-op play, and no XP modifier for partying with higher-level players, which is an unbalancing factor. It means that a level 1 character can run through all seven of the Adventure maps behind a level 50 behemoth with no XP penalty, and level up in no time. But it's still a lot of fun, and involves all the crafting and character-progression detail of the single-player game. Like MMO instances, it's best played with a group of similar-level pals on Skype.

Using the same character, you can also start your own settlement in Village mode, the world's first FarmVille for hardcore RPG gamers. It's essentially a management game in which you build structures – farms, ranches, guard-houses and so forth – to attract settlers, improve trade and build a booming economy. It's surprisingly detailed, remarkably compelling and needs regular check-ups, since once you start a village, it's persistent. If there's not enough bread in the shops, villager happiness drops; if there aren't enough guards recruited, monster attacks will whittle the population. And woe betide any tavern that runs short of ale.

Every six hours, a complete stock-take is performed automatically, and your overall villager happiness is calculated. The more contented the populace, the more money they spend, and bigger revenues mean more upgrade-investment possibilities. It's very cute, and you can invite other players to your village to buy and sell supplies, or help you beat off marauding mobs. The multiplayer modes are rounded out with a bit of player-versus-player via Duel and Crystal Capture (essentially capture the flag).

All of this is enormously entertaining. Even when Two Worlds II isn't innovating, it displays a keen understanding of constant player reward. That makes the game's failings difficult to swallow, and while each irritation is relatively minor in itself, they aggregate into a noticeable and chronic series.

The inventory is pretty awful. Items are displayed too large, in a grid format, upon a translucent background, and the whole thing is just a confusing mess. Considering the sublime crafting system and the amount of time you consequently spend tinkering on the inventory screen, functional design isn't just a luxury, it's a necessity. While picking through your assorted swords and staffs, you find yourself longing for Bethesda's simple lists.

The map follows suit, and the way it tracks quests is next to useless. Click on a quest in the log (which doesn't visually distinguish ongoing from completed quests, annoyingly) and it brings up the map, but doesn't give you a nice clear marker, just a bunch of identical points of interest. You find yourself scouring it continuously, looking for the relevant marker by its hover-over tooltip. It can be infuriating.

The dialogue shows a marked improvement from Two Worlds, and many of the key characters' voiceovers are perfectly professional and well-delivered. It's still hammy though, and some of the small NPC parts are voiced pretty poorly. The vendor-barks are a particular low-point.

Perhaps the worst aspect is the sense of feedback in combat, which is largely non-existent. Melee players will feel this more than bow-users or spellcasters, as none of the weapons feel like they have any real weight or impact.

Certain foes will block endlessly as well, which is rage-inducing. One of the melee skills, Block Breaker, crashes straight through their defences, but it fails to open them up. Follow the strike with another, and their guard is right back up up again. You flail uselessly against them like John Inman pattering ineffectually at a window-pane – hardly conducive to feeling like a war-god.

It's galling, because Reality Pump clearly knows what makes an RPG tick. I sincerely hope these problems are recognised because a patch could fix them all and elevate Two Worlds II above the budget effort it currently resembles. It deserves more. [Editor's note: Indeed, Topware Interactive has been in touch to let us know that a patch is in the works which fixes some combat issues, including blocking, as well as the levelling in multiplayer. It should be ready for the game's UK launch.]

There is real innovation here, and there are some ballsy forays into game-styles that are way outside the standard tick-list of features for the genre, both online and off. There's also a great deal of absorbing content to enjoy, not to mention consistent, meaningful progression, creative quests, and empowering customisation systems that let you craft your own rewards form a plethora of resources. If you can live with the lo-fi elements, there's an awful lot to enjoy.

I sincerely hope it does well enough to fund a bigger-budget sequel. Because at this rate of improvement, Reality Pump could be snapping at the heels of the big RPG developers next time.

7 / 10

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Comments (76) Latest comment 1 year ago

Comments for this article are now closed, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Big-Swiss #1 1 year ago

    delay review?

  • DUFFMAN5 #2 1 year ago

    Compleated it and I give it 5 Duffman thrusts...
    OH YEAH.

  • midnight_walker #3 1 year ago

    Although I thought the first one was utter, utter gash, I've been looking forward to this for a while, and I'm glad to see it's got a good review. But I'll still rent it. Just in case o_O

  • Ninja_Tino #4 1 year ago

    I'm most disappointed about the mundane storyline. Developers always let loose in the side-quests and they end up being the most memorable parts of the game, while the main-quest is handled conservatively with a dash of clich้.

  • _LarZen_ #5 1 year ago

    Nice review, heres hoping for a patch fixing the issues you mentioned!

  • berelain #6 1 year ago

    7? Seems harsh. I bloody loved it.

  • Tricky_Rich #7 1 year ago

    Nice review...now, where's the review for Dragon Knight Saga!?
    Edited by Tricky_Rich at 31/01/11 @ 11:01

  • levitate #8 1 year ago

    If they can patch in a more useful map and inventory interface I think this can be an instant classic. The review suggests there are enough interesting aspects in the game to warrant a buy, but I won't touch it until a few patches are released.

  • UncleLou #9 1 year ago

    Perhaps the worst aspect is the sense of feedback in combat, which is largely non-existent. Melee players will feel this more than bow-users or spellcasters, as none of the weapons feel like they have any real weight or impact.

    Yes, spot on. That's pretty much what ruins the game for me, and why I stopped playing somewhere in chapter 2.

    Dear developers: take a look at Demon's Souls, and please, even if you do a different RPG when it comes to everything else, just copy the melee system.
    Edited by UncleLou at 31/01/11 @ 09:18

  • ZizouFC #10 1 year ago

    Ugh. I'm not sure if 7/10 is good enough for me. Especially with Dragon Age 2 out in a couple of months.

  • Goodfella #11 1 year ago

    @UncleLou

    Oh dear does the combat feel that bad?

    Spot on about Demon's Souls, the feedback you get from fighting feels superb and is what kept me playing, it just feels so right!

  • menage #12 1 year ago

    This has more green in one screen shot than DA in the whole game combined, so I'm interested:p

    Will wait for it to drop to 20 though

  • UncleLou #13 1 year ago

    @ UncleLou

    Oh dear does the combat feel that bad?

    Yeah, it really is. Makes absolutely no difference whatsoever (apart from the number-crunching in the background regarding different damage types) whether you use a nimble Japanese sword or a huge club. Blocking is also downright silly. While they have patched in an alibi (ridiculously looking) animation for the shield in the meantime, you basically only block with your weapon. The shield is, more or less, just for number-crunching as well, but not a "gameplay element", so to speak. Even Oblivion felt infinitely more visceral than TWII, let alone DS.
    Edited by UncleLou at 31/01/11 @ 09:27

  • HL706 #14 1 year ago

    The review definately reads like an 8. It does sound like it's worth picking this up - sounds epic enough to keep me going until Dragon Age 2.

  • YenooR #15 1 year ago

    7 I was expecting a 4 or 5. Think i'l pick this up.

  • Goodfella #16 1 year ago

    @UncleLou

    That's sounds awful, I was really interested in the game but that's put me right off, I can deal with other dodgy gameplay elements but not the combat.

  • Haloboy #17 1 year ago

    No mention of how controlling horses can literally send you insane? Well here it is. I was given a horse, I tried to ride over a hill into the gloriously inviting sunset. I went insane.

  • Xboxfanuk #18 1 year ago

    Through in some flying mounts and this sounds alot like Vanguard: Saga of Heroes the MMO that Microsoft dropped and SOE picked up. The art style really reminds me of Vanguard.

  • mkreku #19 1 year ago

    I think I would have scored this 8/10 myself. It starts off sooo good, but for some reason it just isn't keeping my interest up. I still enjoy it immensely, except for the main quest which I've forgotten almost all of.

  • Haloboy #20 1 year ago

    There's also very little mention of the new graphics engine. Which incidentally looks amazing if you knock down both the blur and bloom by about 90% (you too can go blind whilst feeling sick as a parrot). Thanks to the much improved character models also my character looks just like Rico from Just Cause 2, which I found highly amusing.

    I'm only level 20 but I'm loving it to bits. Best rpg in a long time in my opinion. DO NOT OVERLOOK.

  • Goodfella #21 1 year ago

    I'm confused, this game is already out then?

    It says released in 11 days on ShopTo!

  • Haloboy #22 1 year ago

    Many including myself simply downloaded the english language version that's been available for a while from zuxxez.com.

  • Anciegher #23 1 year ago

    From what I....ahem....played 2-3 months ago I wouldn't give this more than a 5. The story was atrocious at best and the combat feel wasn't there. The graphics looked good except the models. I got tired after 1,5 hours and haven't touched it since.

  • Haloboy #24 1 year ago

    @James Hall.

    Don't let it go to your head old chap but I actually bought the game based on your review. You did me proud as I love it also, thanks.

  • Old_Books #25 1 year ago

    I would disagree with the reviewer when he says it is difficult to follow quests. All completed ones are noticeably faded out and whichever quest you are following has a clear map marker. Or they do in my opinion. And it is worlds apart (no pun intended) from the first one.

    It is incredible how much better this is than the first game bit I fear all the confusion with the release date means it is going to pass a lot of people by.
    Edited by Old_Books at 31/01/11 @ 10:09

  • _tangent #26 1 year ago

    I was tempted by this 'til i read about the melee combat. That's a real shame. Personally, unconvincing combat really compromises the sense of immersion. It's the reason i stopped playing Morrowind, an otherwise great game. It's all very well having really nice crafting systems and interesting mini games like village management, but ultimately the underlying game mechanics have to be right. I'll keep my eye on it though; maybe it'll get a patch.

  • Haloboy #27 1 year ago

    You can place your own blue flag marker on the map at any time. I find that helps. But I do agree the little samey coloured blue pins are confusing as hell when you first start playing. I'm still hoping a future patch will make it much more intuitive as right now it's often a needlessly time consuming pain in the arse.

  • Ternon #28 1 year ago

    Since in every RPG I only play as a spellcaster, the melee combat is a non-issue for me.

    Definitely getting it.

  • Darren #29 1 year ago

    Seems to be a fair score based on having played seven hours of the PC version across the weekend.

    Now before I say anything else I thought the original game, which I made the mistake of buying for the Xbox 360, was absolutely atrocious; easily the worst game I've ever played on the format. As such the sequel needed to be a huge improvement to justify me buying it.

    Fortunately, it is.

    In fact, it is surprisingly decent and only suffers from being unoriginal and having a dull start, which leads you to think the game is smaller and far more linear than the first game. It isn't as it opens up after the first couple of hours. Reached level 13 and have to say that it is annoyingly addictive and difficult to stop playing so that is a very good sign! :)

    Apart from some generic fantasy art/level design and a slightly soulless feel to the whole experience (IMO mostly due to the fact that there's a lot of emptiness in the game's large open areas populated by the same types of enemies over and over plus me-too cut 'n' paste towns/villages) the game is very enjoyable. Compared with the first broken game, the sequel is a classic even if it does have flaws e.g. almost every chest and cupboard is locked which requires you to do a tedious and simple lockpicking mini-game and that is made worst by the fact that you then have to manually open them, they don't open automatically. Also if you loot corpses then you automatically pick everything up from them whether you want to or not and it's only when your inventory is full that you can pick and choose (that said extra items come in handy as components for weapon/equipment upgrades anyway).

    Voice-acting is better than the dire original but still only competent/pretty average overall, depending on your tolerance level. The script is a vast improvement though as the embarrassing Olde Englishe has gone for good. The graphics are technically excellent (it even supports DX10 and anti-aliasing) with some nice lighting effects and reasonable textures (all the more surprising considering the game install is only 3.5 GB!). There's a lot of pop up and the game does pause for a split second every now and then to cache data but apart from two second loads when using the teleport there is very little loading which helps maintain the immersion. The music is very fitting and atmospheric, reminiscent of Oblivion in a good way, but it does repeat too quickly. I'm playing it with the Xbox 360 controller and it works beautifully but there is a bug which prevents the use of the mouse if you have the controller plugged in: you have to unplug the controller to get it to work.

    So if you hated the original game for all its bugs and sheer shonkiness but liked the core gameplay elements then Two Worlds II is a worthy buy if you're in the mood for an RPG right now and can't wait for Dragon Age 2 or The Witcher 2, two games which will undoubtedly be superior.
    Edited by Darren at 31/01/11 @ 14:00

  • DUFFMAN5 #30 1 year ago

    Just a word or two on the melee combat, I have maxed 99% of stats in this area (360 version,using a pad of course) and it is not as bad as you are being led to believe. I'm lvl 39 and have use it for nearly all of my combat within the game. It starts off a bit rubbish and can still be hit and miss, but no way would I let that stop you getting the game.

    Much as people have complained about Alpha Protocol (fookin excellent action rpg) being a bit pants with the shooting early doors, but getting better once you feed some points into that spec, TWII is the same.

  • Haloboy #31 1 year ago

    The game truly clicked with me when I had a quest given to go on an ostrich killing frenzy. Baboons soon entered the fray and I just went kill crazy after they started lobbing shit at my head. And there was me thinking I'd be slaying dragons.

  • Darren #32 1 year ago

    P.S. The inventory icons can be made smaller in the PC version which is the only real concession to the fact that the whole game has been clearly designed with the consoles in mind. That said, the game has had three patches so far, one of which added DirectX 10 support for the graphics, so the game may have a few more tweaks in time so we can, say, reduce the size of the interface and on-screen text.

  • Darren #33 1 year ago

    @Haloboy! - Apart from the reversed triggers which means LT 'accelerates' the horse instead of RT, I have had no problems controlling it myself in the PC version. The horse doesn't feel as agile as the ones in Red Dead Redemption but it is a vast improvement on the original game, which was genuinely annoying.

    Sadly though you cannot fight on horseback nor can you teleport your horse so there use is very limited IMO. In fact there are so many teleports and your character can run so fast that you don't need to use horses at all really apart from where quests require you to (such as a race). You can also pick flowers and herbs from horseback though.

  • FortysixterUK #34 1 year ago

    That's a very reasonable review, and I'd agree with it, as I've been playing it on and off on PC for a few weeks between WOW and DCUO sessions. I'm really waiting for the Xbox 360 release.

    About the melee combat criticism. It's a little lacking, but you can still win through, but for me, I chose an Archer. Level those bow skills and see the XP fly in.

    Another accurate and well written review. Well done EG.

  • darkmorgado #35 1 year ago

    Oh christ, thats another game I need to buy.

  • AdamAsunder #36 1 year ago

    I'm interested in this I have to say. The fact that melee combat seems a bit poor is a concern but if archery is good then I may make a class of that. Being as Oblivions's bow and arrow combat was so bad maybe I can truly make a proper 'Robin Hood' character and feel like I can win some fights?

    I'll be looking out for this once it's come down to ฃ25 new.

  • Darren #37 1 year ago

    I think the melee combat is fine, although I do agree that the weapons lack 'bite' and it's only because I have the hit stats enabled that I know my 100 HP lance is doing more damage than my 50 HP sword. I have upgraded my combat skills though to the point where most enemies can be easily dispatched even when four or six attack at once; the B button 'power' attack is especially effective against groups. I've hardly used magic or the bow yet as I don't find them powerful enough and the truth is they felt clunky when I tried them initially. However, I plan on working on my magic skills now though as I've got a lot of cards and upgrades.

  • berelain #38 1 year ago

    I really didn't find the melee combat that disappointing at all - and I did play as a polearm wielding warrior for most of it. Yeah, so its not the most visceral combat around, but its on par with most other western RPGs. I never found it much of a distraction at all - I quite liked the flow of it, to be honest, as it forces you to use different skills and abilities a bit more (like counter attacks via dodges).

    Storyline.. I quite enjoyed it. Thought the characters were (mostly) well rounded and the Orcs you spend a lot of the early game with are just great. The finale quite surprised me as well, even if the final boss battle was a bit of an arse.

  • dispostableatheist #39 1 year ago

    I'd like to suggest the huge playlist of 40+ YouTube videos of Two Worlds 2 gameplay: http://www.youtube.com/user/McAkomx#grid...

    Anyway I agree with the review and its score. The most annoying thing in this game are those....bland....dialogues. They go like "Today's a great day." "...yeah..." "Tomorrow we'll kill some stuff" "...riiiight..."
    Edited by dispostableatheist at 31/01/11 @ 12:01

  • PoundHound #40 1 year ago

    That'll do me. Already pre-ordered it for ฃ29.99 from Gameplay as I'm on holibags next week and wanted something long to see me through. (Stop it.)



  • Stratix #41 1 year ago

    I really enjoyed reading that review.

    I might consider picking this up, I hadn't known about the village mode.

  • Oli Verified Reviews Editor, Eurogamer.net #42 1 year ago

    This just in from the publisher: a patch is in the works which fixes some combat issues, including the blocking problem Al mentions, and the multiplayer levelling imbalance. It should be ready for UK release. I've added a note to the review.

    There's some confusion over the date of UK launch and I'm trying to clear this up currently.

  • Chupakun #43 1 year ago

    @Duffman5: WOOF!

  • UncleLou #44 1 year ago

    Much as people have complained about Alpha Protocol (fookin excellent action rpg) being a bit pants with the shooting early doors, but getting better once you feed some points into that spec, TWII is the same.

    I respectfully disagree - I am level 27 and bar a few extra tricks you learn, nothing happens. Melee combat is just lacking punch (and strategy) on a very fundamental level, and it never felt satisfying at all to me.

  • Darren #45 1 year ago

    @SirFuzzyDunlop - I believe the UK version is officially released on 11th February, according to the email I received from GAME last week, having been put back a week from its original date of 4th.

    However, the PC version can be bought now as a digital download from the likes of GamersGate and a few others for ฃ29.99.

  • AlistairUK #46 1 year ago

    I played and finished the import version pre patch. I thought melee was rather good actually, with each hand having its own weapon/shield/torch with its own special attack. I thought that was a nice system.

    The only real downer for me were some stumbles in pacing around the main plot. It also seemed like the system design guys didn't work in the same office as the quest design guys. So you can sail a boat... but not really to anywhere useful. And ride a horse, but only in one part of the story. And the stealth system seemed to lacking many applications...though to be fair I only made a few robbery attempts and was spotted straight away. These aren't problems, just a little surprising.

    I didn't have any major problem with the inventory... and don't recognise the reviewer's blocking issue at all. He couldn't just level up the block breaking skill? Or shoot them?

    Overall I'd say 7 is maybe a touch low, with the weakest element being the delivery of the main plot, rather than some of the clunky bits. The settings are quite original - no idea what that other commenter is referring to with me-too towns - and there are a lot of interesting game systems. Recommended.

  • Haloboy #47 1 year ago

    The must know fact here is that Two worlds 2 is not just a baby step or so ahead of the first. It's more a gigantic stride by a very large ogre who is in a rush type step ahead of the first. It still has that somewhat quirky feel to it the first had but overall that's where the comparisons stop. The last time I was this much into an RPG was when I played the Witcher. Got that? Get this.
    Edited by Haloboy at 31/01/11 @ 15:28

  • uk_john #48 1 year ago

    I do not take seriously any review that calls a game an "action-RPG". What is an Action-RPG? I always ask the same question and never get an answer, "please name a simple 'ol RPG if this is an "Action-RPG""!

    I also worry how many reviewers, like this, calls for more money to be spent, when over 80% of all releases already do not make a profit not because of poor sales necessarily, but because of high production costs! Morrowind $12 million, Oblivion $30 million, Skyrim over $35 million. Mass Effect 1 $22 million, Mass Effect 3 $38 million. Bioshock 1 $16 million, Bioshock 3 projected to be $30 million. If something doesn't give, we will either be paying $100 for a game, or we will see the end of the AAA market.

  • uk_john #49 1 year ago

    ...Oh, and you know what's funny? The German Eurogamer site gave this game 9/10! Maybe German reviewers haven't been dumbed down so much by the console market, as it is still a very strong PC market!So that's why we get silly reviews like this.

  • Stranded87 #50 1 year ago

    @uk_john

    An action RPG to my understanding is one which is more combat focussed than average and/or has more visceral combat. It's a fairly vague term I admit, but games such as Diablo, Sacred or Demons Souls could I believe be classed as an action rpg (or a hack'n'slash), something like Dragon Age or Planescape Torment meanwhile would probably not be, as although fairly heavy in combat it also features many other styles of gameplay.

    As another example, taking two superficially similar RPG's- Baldurs Gate and Icewind Dale (same engine, same universe, same basic gameplay etc), I would say Icewind Dale is an action RPG, as it is very combat heavy with little else to it, while Baldurs Gate is not, as much of the combat is avoidable and it has many non combat oriented quests and areas.

  • _Zero_ #51 1 year ago

    Love this game. 7/10 is fair. I'd say for me personally it's closer to an 8 but hey... 7/10 means worth playing!

  • Scimarad #52 1 year ago

    I'll mark this one with "Buy it when it's cheap".

  • UncleLou #53 1 year ago

    I do not take seriously any review that calls a game an "action-RPG". What is an Action-RPG? I always ask the same question and never get an answer, "please name a simple 'ol RPG if this is an "Action-RPG""!

    Focus on real-time combat, where you control your character more like in an action-adventure. The term comes from a time where most RPGs weren't action-RPGs, but rather turn-based games, where you usually controlled a party, with tactical combat. Not quite sure what bothers you so much about the term, but it's certainly not a tautology, if that's what you're implying.

  • Lin #54 1 year ago

    That read a lot better than 7/10. I'm not sure a combat issue that will probably be fixed, and some clunky usability deserve punishing so harshly.

    Or is it just the fact that this isn't by Bethesda or Bioware, and is thus incapable of receiving acclaim, just like Gothic?

  • TRUTH #55 1 year ago

    I always thought Mass Effect 2, was way overrated in all areas...Best surprise was Demon's Souls for PS3 - best use of skill for attacking and defence, and feeling character upgrading with RPG elements, also the atmosphere and fear created. Also Majin The Foresaken Kingdom - not a true rpg but good use of elements of rpg, adventure, action, characters, discovery.

    Will wait for the patch to see if the fighting improves, and AI.

    Rpg must have adventure, problem solving, management, good attack and defence, good AI...and a sense of discovery and achievement - only Demon's Souls has come close and Oblivion.

  • FortysixterUK #56 1 year ago

    LOL...I've just seen that GAME are trying to flog the royal edition on consoles for ฃ69.99, that, as far as I'm concerned is a tad outrageous, when you consider I got the Royal edition of Two Worlds 1 for PC , shipped from germany for ฃ37.99 when it first got released over there...and that's the version with the 9" ceremonial dagger!

    The suits at Game are truly cunts.

  • Darren #57 1 year ago

    According to GAME, Two Worlds II has been put another week, now to the 18th February 2011.

  • KDR_11k #58 1 year ago

    Considering how tarnished the Two Worlds name was after the first I have to wonder why they decided to even keep the name.

  • man.the.king #59 1 year ago

    darkmorgado

    "Oh christ, thats another game I need to buy. "

    That's how I feel when I read a good review.

    Last few months, along with the 3DTV, Blu-ray player, I bought a significant number of movies and games (even in January, I bought 4 - DS2 CE, LBP2 CE, ME2 and AC2 Brotherhood CE). Recently my wife asked me that since I had bought so much, would I would now be cutting down significantly this year?

    In the interests of harmony, I kept my mouth shut :D
    Edited by man.the.king at 31/01/11 @ 22:50

  • Harmonica #60 1 year ago

    >> Considering how tarnished the Two Worlds name was after the first I have to wonder why they decided to even keep the name.

    It's got a pretty devoted fan-base. Even if the first one was objectively crappy, there were elements of it that obviously showed promise. And so the developers stuck with the name because they wanted to reclaim it by improving the game around it. Looks like they succeeded.

    It's only tarnished amongst the people who read a lot of games reviews and keep up with these kind of things, which is a small percentage of the target market. Relaunching a new franchise under a different name would cost more and look dubious.
    Edited by Harmonica at 01/02/11 @ 02:16

  • peppergomez #61 1 year ago

    3rd person only, or is there a 1st person POV option?

  • SlackMaster #62 1 year ago

    Have they improved the voice acting in this game? I got the first one on the 360 after recommendations from people on the forum and apart from it being a very unpolished game I just couldn't get into it as the voice acting was terrible.

  • Harmonica #63 1 year ago

    Er, from the review itself... "The dialogue shows a marked improvement from Two Worlds, and many of the key characters' voiceovers are perfectly professional and well-delivered. It's still hammy though, and some of the small NPC parts are voiced pretty poorly. The vendor-barks are a particular low-point."

  • Nameless-001 #64 1 year ago

    It's a shame how the acronym "RPG" continue to be used.
    At least put a fucking "a" ahead of it.

  • actionfitz #65 1 year ago

    I returned The first on the same day i bought it. even though it was a 30 min walk back into town...
    nearly an hour of play convinced me I had just blown my monthly wage allowance for games.
    Gash. Total gash.
    Flame me if you like, but there it is.

    Reading the review it sounds like they've put the effort in this time around though, so I'll happily give it a go... as a rental.

  • Haloboy #66 1 year ago

    Completely disagree with everything you said there Red. I'm currently level 27 and I just can't pull myself away from playing. Two Worlds 2 deserves some positiveness after the slating the first received, and muchly asked for. When a developer digs deep and pretty much puts right everything they got wrong in their prior game they should be highly commended. It's still not perfect you understand but there's nothing present a patch or two wont mend. The first Two Worlds had seven patches in total. This could be sorted in about three or four quite easily. I'd say that's a step forwards.

  • TRUTH #67 1 year ago

    Split about getting this ?

    Is the combat and defense good ?...If Demon's Souls was 10 (top mark, 1 lowest) - what would Two Worlds rate ?
    Is the progress of your character skills any good ?
    Do quests have variety or to repetitive ?

  • uk_john #68 1 year ago

    @Stranded87 and @UncleLou, I am sorry, but Two Worlds or The Witcher or Risen are any more 'combat heavy' than Oblivion or Morrowind or Wizardry, etc and there have been plenty of real-time combat cRPG's over the last 20+ years that were quite happily called cRPG's!

    I think games that are obviously real cRPG's like Two Worlds II or Fallout 3 are called "Action-RPG's" to give credence to the games that have hardly any RPG elements but can still have RPG in the genre name to attract as many gamers as possible. If you call the game an Action-RPG you think it will attract action gamers like FPS fans AND cRPG fans.

    This is done because the AAA games from the big U.S. companies are costing so much to develop, in many cases they need to sell 5 million and have a big hit just to break even! For example between Morrowind and Skyrim developmen costs have increased from $12 million to $40 million a 300%+ increase. It's the same sort of increase with Bioshock 1 to 3 and Mass Effect 1 to 3. At this rate, Elder Scrolls VIII will cost over $100 million to bring to market! It's unsustainable! So in the short term they are trying to persuade gamers that their game has everything, it's a shooter, it's a cRPG, it's a platform game, it's adventure game, it's a puzzle game. This is the marketing message for Mass Effect for example. It shows in other ways; the first DLC for a cRPG, Fallout 3, was a third person shooter and had nothing to do with roleplaying!

    So we are left with having to decide ourselves, as a shooter fan or cRPG fan to decide if a game fits with what we want, because the media and gaming industry work together nowadays to get us to buy their games, even if it means creating new genres that don't actually mean anything, like "Action-RPG's!

    To me, if you have deep character stats, a large open world to explore, a main quest and plenty of side quests, all with 100's of NPC's and 1,000's of armour and weapon items, along with a deep spellcasting/alchemy (if fantasy based) system and some sort of crafting system, it is a cRPG. To me Dragon Age isn't a cRPG as it doesn't have a world to explore, just an enforced fast travel to quest locations. jade Empire, Mass Effect and Bioshock aren't because they don't have enough character stats and/or side quests.

    One thing for sure, if it wasn't for the Europeans we wouldn't have had any fantasy cRPG's since Oblivion, 5 years ago! In the U.S. there is only one company still doing cRPG's, and that's Bethesda with the Elder Scrolls and Fallout cRPG's. Even there, there is talk of Skyrim having some cRPG elements "streamlined". We certainly know Dragon Age 2 is going to be much more action based and much less cRPG based. So the trends are still there outside of Europe!

    So I say thank god for Two Worlds 1 and 2, because without them, I would have been struggling finding real PC cRPG's to play this last couple of years!!
    Edited by uk_john at 01/02/11 @ 22:42

  • drhappy #69 1 year ago

    this review was poorly written, there was little to no transition between paragraphs.

  • TRUTH #70 1 year ago

    Cheers - think I'll give this a miss!....I'll wait for the next game from the makers of Demons Souls, coming in March, should be awesome as it's expanded on the brilliant Demons Souls.

  • UncleLou #71 1 year ago

    To me, if you have deep character stats, a large open world to explore, a main quest and plenty of side quests, all with 100's of NPC's and 1,000's of armour and weapon items, along with a deep spellcasting/alchemy (if fantasy based) system and some sort of crafting system, it is a cRPG.

    "cRPG" or "RPG" is the general genre, surely? I am really not sure what your point is. According to your definition, Diablo 2 is a cRPG, but not an action-RPG, while Dragon Age is ... what, neither, because there's no open world? Gothic is not a RPG at all because it doesn't have 1000s of weapons and armour? Baldur's Gate isn't a cRPG because there's no open world?

    Sounds to me like you picked one (sub-)genre, namely a certain type of - yes, open-world action-RPG, and exclude everything else from the genre "RPG". That really doens't make much sense to me I am afraid.

  • Harmonica #72 1 year ago

    Back to basics, if you can roleplay to decent degree, it's a role playing game. The trouble is how the term got bastardised to mean 'anything with a D&D ruleset', and then simply 'anything with goblins and fairies and really big swords'.

    It's a bit pedantic, really, since Diablo falls into the former category, but would anyone really deny it the RPG tag? The words 'seminal' and 'RPG' could not really be used in a better context.

    Usually when the action tag is (badly) applied, the game is an action adventure, and doesn't really allow any role playing, like Fable (prancing around in a skirt does not count as roleplaying - at least in the game).

    So there's two schools of thought: the RPG is a game with attributes and stats and leveling up and looting weapons and optionally dice rolls, OR it's more about the freedom in the game to do what you want how you want - whether it be choosing that really dickish dialogue choice, stealing everything that isn't tied down, or dancing with hookers (hello Deus Ex).
    Edited by Harmonica at 02/02/11 @ 14:09

  • TRUTH #73 1 year ago

    ...It's called Dark Souls (I remember now, from the makers of Demon's Souls), also Dragon Age II (though I thought the 1st one was crap) - this looks more fluid and much more better looking. Also Skyrim (Oblivion II) and Dungeon Siege III all appearing this year.

    A great year for Rpg/adventure.

    Not really bothered about Mass Effect 3; I always thought ME2 was overrated and hate the si-fi universe setting.

  • bonker #74 1 year ago

    Getting back to the game and away from the combat pedantry (I'm surprised none's complaining about the lack of a rocket launcher in the game):

    I imported this (XBOX 360 version) from Germany before Xmas.

    If you're looking to get your RPG back on then this is very much worth a look. Sure it's weaker in some areas than others but ultimately, if you want to play a new and very large RPG then this is well worth sniffing and it's probably more like an 8/10 game for you as there's everything you would expect and, to be fair to TWII, quite a few things that will be new to you (none of which are mentioned in this pretty thin review BTW) ...

  • apoc_reg #75 1 year ago

    Its an 8 in my eyes, think like usual EG's scoring of non bioware RPGs is harsh.

  • Mashum #76 1 year ago

    The horse riding nearly meant a trip to the trade in counter. Pressing the trigger to spur the horse just makes the bugger run off in any direction - once I realised that you also need to hold forward on the 'move' stick and steer with the camera, similar to the Halo warthog I guess, the horse riding became bearable.