Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning

If you were to design the perfect fantasy computer game, you would want to start with a good story. Hmm... well, for fantasy, how about R.A.Salvatore, one of the greats at telling this kind of story? You'd want one of the best designers in the RPG genre, too, right? You can't go past Ken Rolston, lead designer of The Elder Scrolls Morrowind and Oblivion, can you? It's gotta look right, too, but let's go for something out of the box - say... Todd McFarlane - the creator of Spawn.

Check, check, and check - that's exactly the team EA has assembled for Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning. It's one hell of a team, and one that will either deliver a magnificent masterpiece or result in a disjointed mess.

But which option is looking more likely?

Well, we got our hands on a full pre-release copy of the game and - after 30 hours plus of play, very little sleep, and empty pizza boxes galore - we still can't put it down. This singleplayer RPG combines its three strong elements in a remarkably compelling way.

First of all, there is the core story. Having woken from the dead, you are a person without a destiny. Your fate, as they say, is in your hands. As you play through the game and make choices - both good and bad - you write your own destiny, and that of those around you.

Secondly, there is the quest system. Love or hate questing, it is the meat of any RPG game. What strikes you very early on in this game is that the quest lines - whether it's the main one, the faction quests, or the side quests - are different to what you may be used to, have twists and turns, and are well thought-out. After the basic tutorial quest line where you try out the game basics, you can pretty much pick up quests as you want across a vast an open world. It's your fate, and you write the story as you play. Side with differing factions, mire yourself in petty village politics, or undertake great deeds that will result in new songs being written.

The combat is all action-packed. Be prepared to give your controller a thorough work out as you deliver killer moves to a vast array of different monsters. All have their own abilities and vulnerabilities for you to discover - and overcome. As you would expect, progression and experience result in new moves and abilities. There is a comprehensive set of skill trees and, invariably, not enough skill points to get everything you want.

There are three basic fates you can follow - that of the warrior, the rogue, and the mage. Where this game departs from the norm, however, is in the way in which you can mix and match skills between fates, to develop a character that suits your play style. Take a rogue, but specialise in bows, traps, and magic, and you have a lethal ranged character. There are tons of different combinations you can make and change on a whim.

Graphically the game delivers a wonderful array of different environments, that are all logically linked. As you explore you unravel more of the map and thankfully more fast travel points. Thankfully? because areas previously cleared have a nasty way of repopulating.

A lot of the game elements are animated, while others change as a result of your actions. Weapon and spell effects are fantastic, with lots of glitz and gore. Special moves are particularly innovative in their kill shots.

Like all good RPGs, the land is populated by a wonderful array of characters. The quality voice acting serves the game well, and you will find yourself smirking at some of the character, while others... let's just say you will want to make sure your next conversation is through a seance.

There are 4 playable races and each is woven into the story, including their likes (and dislikes), their politics, and those of the other races you discover.

We're not sure what will change prior to release, however the only little niggle we had was with the inventory and menu systems. It can be quite convoluted to access items you need, having to step down three layers of menu and then scroll through a long list of items to identify what you want. Some attempt has been made to logically group them, however the sheer number of items you gather up can be overwhelming at times.

From what we've seen of it so far, this game deserves to be a massive hit. From our (extensive) hands-on, it has all the makings of a masterpiece. Be sure to check out part two of our preview on Friday, when we'll explore some of the deeper aspects of gameplay - like crafting, some of the weapons, and the combat styles.

Be sure to check out our 2nd Hands On Preview of Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning early next week.