| System: X360, PS3, PC | Review Rating Legend | |
| Dev: Ascaron Entertainment | 1.0 - 1.9 = Avoid | 4.0 - 4.4 = Great |
| Pub: cdv Software | 2.0 - 2.4 = Poor | 4.5 - 4.9 = Must Buy |
| Release: May 12, 2009 | 2.5 - 2.9 = Average | 5.0 = The Best |
| Players: 1-4 | 3.0 - 3.4 = Fair | |
| ESRB Rating: Mature | 3.5 - 3.9 = Good | |
In addition to varied enemies, players will also find great power progression tools and a ton of loot. Advancing in levels, opening up combat abilities, and generally making your character badass is both intuitive and rewarding. Also, the number of items found in Sacred 2 is outstanding. Even at the lowest levels, players will find lots of goodies that will buff their character.
I loved the fact there were so many body slots with which to deck out my characters; from rings and helms to gauntlets, mail, and weaponry, Sacred 2 is a loot-junky's paradise. Furthermore, rather than having to sell off unusable rare items for a pittance in comparison to the value of their utility, players can drop goods into chests located in convenient places around the realm. Later, you can roll up a second, third, or fourth character, hop into the campaign, and get access to the items with a class that can make use of them. This leads to another of the game's great strengths.
Hopping in and out of the single-player campaign with different characters is a breeze. It also lets you see the game from all of the faction perspectives and adds additional replay value to a game that is already hundreds of hours in length. Taking it to the next level, multiplayer support is every bit as well implemented. Players from all around the world can easily jump in and out of each other's games. The system for filtering who can join is a snap, and venturing with a party of four into scaled campaign quests is a ton of fun. Also, if you die, you'll be able to quickly warp to where you last left your party. While this may not seem realistic, it gets you back into the action with your buddies in no time - a smart design move that keeps the fun going.
Presentation in Sacred 2 is truly a mixed bag. The environments, for example, are beautiful. However, the cinematics are crude, the action often drags with multiple enemies on screen, and screen-tearing is a persistent problem. As with the initial launch of the PC version, Sacred 2: Fallen Angel is plagued by a host of technical issues out of the box. Furthermore, voice over work is quite poor. This is less to do with actor performance (though it is overly dramatic) and more a problem with horrendous lip syncing, repetitive catchphrases, and poorly written dialogue. Graciously, the background and theme music is very good. German fantasy metal band Blind Guardian lend their stylings to the title, which fit perfectly with the mood and atmosphere of the game.
Is Sacred 2: Fallen Angel for home consoles the definitive version of the game? I guess that depends on whether you consider yourself a PC or console gamer. Though the console version seems to generally improve upon the game's controls, it also is visually less impressive than the PC title and is technically behind the curve - loads of patches have fixed a lot of problems with the PC outing. Nonetheless, whichever platform you choose, you won't be disappointed with the hack 'n slash goodness the game provides - even if you've done it all before.
By
Jonathan Marx
CCC Editor / News Director
Game Features:
