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Eragon
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Graphics & Sound:
Eragon comes to us from Vivendi Games, and crafted by Stormfront Studios, makers of the eerily similar Lord of the Rings: The Twin Towers for multiple platforms back in Fall 2002. The game itself is based upon the novel by Christopher Paolini, from the popular Inheritance Trilogy. It harkens back to many Tolkein-esque themes such as dragons, magic and other fantasy elements. Does Eragon improve upon this solid model of hack-n-slash goodness? Or does it try to limply cash in on the LOTR fantasy craze?
Graphically, Eragon sports some solid visuals. Characters' models show off some respectable details, complete with authentic looking swords, armor and other medieval fare, but look a tad muddled at times. The dragon is a little better off, with a truly impressive physique, with sprawling wings and a fierce maw agape with rows of gigantic teeth. The environments consist mainly of alpine, coniferous locales, usually mountainous and often snow-covered, but also stretch indoors to mighty castles and more. Some of the special magical effects are also quite good, as well as some decent lighting and fog touches. Still, the overall game engine just looks too dated for me to really rave about it, but for many gamers out there (including myself), graphics aren’t the deal breaker most of the time.
On the sound side, there is a wealth of voice acting from many of the actual actors, save John Malkovich and Jeremy Irons. Eragon himself, voiced by Edward Speelers, does a nice job of bringing home the emotion of his pivotal role, while other notable actors include Sienna Guillory, Garret Hedlund and Trainspotting's Robert Carlyle. However, some of the dialogue sequences sound trite and awkward, and since I haven’t seen the movie yet, I can’t say for sure if it follows suit from the latter, or from the book, or just from a poorly written game script. Thankfully, the musical score kicks things up a notch, and is quite grand in many instances, with sweeping orchestral numbers and rousing chants. A mildly exciting host of sound effects rounds out this category, complete with your standard assortment of clangs, grunts and other sounds of pitched battle versus all type of man and beast.
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Gameplay:
First, the main story of Eragon is that of a young boy who mistakenly grabs a dragon’s egg (phat loot!) and hopes to sell it, only to discover that he is now bound to this new hatchling dragon, and is under the wrath of the evil king Galbatorix. What the hell kind of name is that? Are Optimus Prime and Galvatron going to pop out of the woodwork now too?
Regardless of the bizarre names contained within, the basic gameplay consists of a series of missions strung together by brief cut scenes that help to fill in backstory, and other dramatic elements. Surprisingly - especially since this was based on a book - the plotlines are hard to follow at times. I mean I knew there was this evil king out to get me and anyone who I befriended, and…. some other folks get in the way, I have to chop a bunch up and use freaky magic on them…ok? Thankfully, the game is pretty dang linear, leading you along with numerous hints, that you would have to be blind not to see and respond to. And let me get this out of the way now, many have accused the book and movie for ripping off not only the classic LOTR series, but also another set of epic movies - Star Wars. The magical effects look mysteriously like the force, there are mentors galore, a villainous dark side he must face alone, and Eragon just happens to be the last member in a long line of “epic warriors.”
Most of the core gameplay is composed of on-foot melee combat and that of dragon riding, the latter coming across better than the mind-numbing, boring hack-n-slash action. You can block, leap about and throw in some bow attacks (auto aim), and finish them off with your uber powerful magic/force powers. Along with this, you can pull off some nifty combo moves, complete with cool looking finishing moves. However, you won’t learn much of anything new during your adventure, and what you do learn, most notably an overpowered fire spell, will be more than enough to obliterate your I.Q. challenged foes. The brief aerial segments from your dragon pal, Saphira, only offset this relentless grind. You basically sit atop your winged mount, and rain death and destruction upon thine enemy. Sounds pretty awesome right? Sadly, this ain’t so hot either. You basically traverse the same spot, mashing some buttons and watching the fireworks take care of the rest. Saphira also makes a few appearances for some well-timed air strikes, but for a game so dragon-centric, you would think she would be around more. Fans of the movie may be interested in the hidden dragon eggs (them are some Easter eggs!) that can unlock various goodies related to said cinematic experience. Are you ready for 10-12 hours of this?
Lastly, you can hop into a nice co-op mode, something that should be in more games in my humble opinion. You play through the same singleplayer game, and can leave and come back at any time, so your buddy won’t leave you hanging while he has to go mow the lawn or whatnot. Unfortunately, this is the same crummy gameplay, so I guess the adage “misery loves company” would fit well here. |
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Difficulty:
Eragon, as I have already hinted at above, is pretty straightforward and simple. This is mainly due the moronic enemy A.I., simplified combos and special moves that are quite effective against all manner of foe.The lack of tactical strategy isn't surprising given the nature of this formula, but it just doesn't sit well with this gamer.
Honestly, by mashing a few button combinations over and over and following the onscreen cues, you should breeze right through this title in a day or two.
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Game Mechanics:
Initially, you begin to notice the controls are fairly responsive, and what can be easier than riding a dragon on an invisible rail, launching auto-targeting arrows? However, the sense of depth in said dragon sequences is pretty unbearable. The camera also is a bit funky in the co-op modes, obscuring gameplay from time to time.
Overall, Eragon just stinks to high heaven as a knock-off of the Tolkien and Star Wars series, and even the previously mentioned LOTR: TT by Stormfront, that swaps “Aragorn the stud”, for “Eragon the dud.” It has subpar graphics, monotonous gameplay, and lackluster replay value - three strikes you're out! I can only recommend this title for fans of the book and movie. Everyone else should continue to have fun with your Wiis and PS3s and whatnot, and avoid this title like a dragon with a bad case of morning breath. |
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-Tybo, GameVortex Communications AKA Tyler Whitney |
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