Dungeon Siege III Review (X360)

• Publisher: Square Enix
• Developer: Obsidian
• ESRB Rating: “T" for Teen
• Genre: Action RPG
• Pros: Fun, simple gameplay; lots of loot; couch co-op; decent presentation
• Cons: Clunky online co-op; camera; boring dialogue; bit linear and simple

In the Kingdom of Ehb the once great Legion, protectors of the land for more than 400 years, have been almost completely wiped out by the evil Jeyne Kassynder. Your role, as a descendant of the Legion, is to try to regroup the Legion and take out Kassynder.

The setup is definitely interesting, but the story is told through exceedingly long exchanges of dialogue that are just plain boring. We lost interest in the story pretty quickly. Some choices you make through dialogue do affect what happens later in the game, though, so be wary of what you're skipping and ignoring because it can have consequences later.

You choose one of four characters at the start of the game - melee, a couple of mages, and a ranged character - and each has a slightly different path through the main story. To see the complete story and do everything the game offers, multiple playthroughs are necessary. It only takes 12 hours or so to play through a story, though, so it isn't as big as some recent action RPGs. It is a bit of a downer you can't make a custom character, but this game has a story to tell and custom characters wouldn't work.

First, the progression system is more limited than most other ARPGs. You don't have dozens of skills and perks and other stuff to level up. Instead, you can assign 9 powers (6 offensive - 3 each for your two different attack stances - and 3 defensive) and you improve those abilities with points when you level up. There are also passive traits that you earn that give you attack / defense / crit / etc. bonuses. There is still quite a bit of customization, but not nearly as much as most other games in the genre.

Also interesting is that there aren't healing items here. Instead you collect instant health pickups dropped by enemies, or use a defensive skill to slowly recharge your health. It makes for some interesting battles as you barely squeak by with a sliver of health. Your A.I. companions can also revive you if / when you die. Another neat gameplay component is that your MP points recharge as you use your normal attacks, so by changing up your attacks between your normal and special abilities you can pretty much use your more powerful stuff all you want.

All in all, the gameplay is fun. The progression system is a bit limited, but is also more straightforward and easier to get into. It is just a solid loot game.

Action RPGs are usually made to be played in co-op, and Dungeon Siege III is no different. It isn't implemented terribly well, unfortunately. The game doesn't let you bring your own character into someone else's game - you just take over one of their A.I. companions - and you can't take any loot or XP you earn back to your own game which means there isn't really any incentive to play online co-op. On the other hand, local couch co-op is also available, and makes a lot more sense. Since, you know, if you're playing local co-op your partner(s) probably don't mind not being able to take their characters back home. One additional problem with both local and online co-op, however, is that the camera forces the whole group (up to 4 players) to stay fairly close together. And when everyone is casting spells and fighting dozens of enemies, the screen is far too chaotic to actually see anything.

Graphics

Graphically, Dungeon Siege III is a nice looking game. The characters are fairly detailed and it is fun to see how they change as you equip different weapons and armor. The environments are usually pretty dark and dungeon-y, but they are usually fairly detailed and occasionally you'll come across some particularly good lighting and effects that really make things pop. The camera sometimes causes problems in single-player, too, as it never quite lets you see as much as you'd like. That is more a symptom of the genre, though, than a problem specific to this game.

The sound is only okay. The dialogue is bland and boring and the voice actors sound like they are phoning it in. The sound effects are typical metal clashing, grunts and groans, and other typical fantasy world stuff. Not spectacular, but certainly not bad. The music is also pretty much what you'd expect from a fantasy game. Again, decent.

Bottom Line

In the end, Dungeon Siege III won't set the loot-whoring world on fire, but it is a solid entry in the genre that console fans will enjoy. It actually feels like a game designed for console players - the solid controls, more linear story, simpler progression system -, which won't endear it to PC gamers much, but for newcomers to the genre it is welcome. I'm not saying longtime genre vets won't find a lot to like, I'm just saying it is a lot simpler than, say, Sacred 2 (also on Xbox 360) which was pretty overwhelming. Basically, if you like action RPGs and don't already play them on PC, Dungeon Siege III is a solid game. It isn't very long, and the clunky co-op doesn't help (though couch co-op is still fun), so it is hard to fully endorse it for a purchase. It'll make a fantastic rental, though, and a good post price drop purchase.