» Review: Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning

Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning is in the unenviable position of being the first major role-playing game to be released after November’s award-winning The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, which won numerous game of the year awards and set the bar for RPGs from this point on.

The game is the first for 38 Studios, the brainchild of former major league baseball player Curt Schilling, who has gathered some fantasy luminaries to craft the game.

Design of the game was helmed by Ken Rolston, who was lead designer on RPGs Morrowind and Oblivion.

The story was written by scifi and fantasy author R.A. Salvatore, with art direction by Todd McFarlane, creator of the Spawn comic books.

With this stable of talent, does Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning measure up?

For the most part, yes.

First of all, the game leans more toward the style of games like the Fable series – a lighter, more colorful look combined with a more closed off world. In Skyrim, you could literally go almost anywhere, even straight up mountainsides.

Roaming is possible and encouraged in Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, but only in certain areas. Much of the travel between settlements is confined to narrow pathways, often with divergent paths to different settlements. There are open areas, but they are more the exception than the rule.

On the plus side, the combat is more refined and visually more interesting than Skyrim‘s hack and slash. The variety of weapons is also a key selling point, especially the numerous magic-infused weapons. The throwable Chakrams, the sceptres and the magic staffs offer many ways to deal destruction.

The richly-drawn landscapes are relentlessly cheery – even at night – with quests bathed in soft glow and dazzling colors.

You begin the game by dying.

A great battle has raged between humans and the Fae – beings with mystical powers. After you are killed in a battle in this war, you find yourself resurrected – a first for humans. This action upsets the natural order of things, causing what had been destined to suddenly not be as certain to occur.

This fundamental shift in the order of things has caused repercussions throughout the land, with some camps opposed to the changes and out to kill you.

In your role as the “fateless hero,” you travel the expansive lands and engage in quests.

In initial setup, you select from four player types, tailoring your look down to jewelry and tattoos.

Inventory management – like most RPGs – is a key component of Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning. Besides weapons and armor, you deal with accessories like rings and necklaces; consumables like potions and prisms and items like gems and books. You also have a junk category, since you can’t drop things like in most RPGs. You must either sell or destroy items to make room for more items.

Quests are categorized, with the main quest foremost and always in play. Faction quests are secondary. These help you to join forces with different groups in the game. Numerous side quests are always available as a diversion and to earn experience and gold.

Abilities are divided among three categories – Sorcery, Might and Finesse – the traditional categories of magic, strength and stealth. As you level up, you are given points that can be applied to specific skills within each.

In Sorcery, you can level up your mastery of magic weapons such as scepters and staffs.

For the Might abilities, you can hone your hammer skills or add abilities such as Harpoon, which allows you to snag an enemy with a hook.

Finesse focuses on fighting from afar (longbows) or up close and personal (daggers).

Besides your abilities, the game charges you with selecting a Destiny, letting you either further narrow your specialty, choosing for instance a Fighter destiny over a Brawler one, or you can leave your options open, selecting a broader destiny, such as the Duelist, who can leverage both Might and Finesse skills for a more balanced attack. If at any point, you wish to change your Destiny, you can.

Leveling up your character also makes better armor and weapons available. Individual weapons and armor can be upgraded through sagecraft – adding gems that enhance power or defensive capabilities.

Battling enemies gradually fill up your fate meter that, when full, allows you to unleash a devastating multi-kill “Fateshift” attack. During this attack, weakening several enemies at once and then performing an execution on one causes the whole group to die.

Most of this follows the standard RPG playbook. Where Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning adds a little spice toe mix is with the ability to wipe your destiny clean and start over.

Say you’ve been a longsword-swinging brute for the past 20 hours of gameplay and you need a change. Visit a Fateweaver and pay to have your slate wiped clean. All of your points are returned to you to reallocate as you see fit. In seconds, you can now be a magic-dealing, longbow-firing Mage. The game changes, with the world more alive in response to your magic abilities.

Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning is an enjoyable lark. It’s not as open or as sprawling as Skyrim, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing, especially if you’re occasionally given to just wandering the landscape in that game. Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning does a better job of keeping you on task if you have trouble focusing.

The combat in Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning makes the game a slick pleasure to play. Controls are responsive and perform as expected, with nary a hitch.

Being a first offering out of the gate from 38 Studios, however, there were a few hiccups along the way. At least twice in game, glitches forced workarounds to complete missions.

In one, a fellow combatant was killed in the course of battle, as planned. But the resurrection potion I was supposed to administer was not an option until I completely left the dungeon I was in and returned. The second time, a companion was killed in action, but I was still able to talk to him. It was amusing, but not very useful.

The camera positioning was, at times contrary, leading to some frustration.

None of these drawbacks are game breakers, but hopefully the kinks can be worked out in future games. And based on this first effort, 38 Studios should spawn more sagas.

Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning is an impressive debut for the studio. The innovation of allowing you to change your destiny mid-game is a unique twist that can add hours of enjoyment to your journey.

Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning is a winner and should be played by fans of the genre.

Platform: PlayStation3/Xbox 360

Manufacturer: Electronic Arts

Rating: Mature

Score: 8.5 chilies