Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning Previews

38 Studios’ Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning has once again been given the preview treatment from a couple of websites, with the first article appearing over at Xbox360Achievements.org:

Reckoning kicks off in a cavernous environment with our character being the first to rise from the dead thanks to something called the Well of Souls. According to 38 Studios, your fate in the title is not set as a result and you’ll spend your time changing not only your fate, but the fate of the people you interact with. As I stressed originally, this is a traditional old-skool RPG, so expect the usual RPG staples such as XP systems; damage floaties; alchemy; sage-crafting; blacksmithing; and even an unlevelled world, meaning that you need to be careful you don’t stumble into the wrong dungeon at the wrong time. There will be visual signposts though so this won’t happen too often, but honestly, that’s how we like our RPGs anyway. Accessible-schmacksessible.

Boasting 5 regions and a night/day cycle, which gives each environment a new look and feel, Reckoning, like Fable, takes the day/night cycle and incorporates that into the combat. That means some weapons will work better at certain times of the day and others will be stronger against certain foes and whatnot. From an environment standpoint though, Reckoning seems to be heading in the right direction drawing inspiration from Oblivion’s Imperial City and Fable’s green pastures of Albion, which is abundantly clear from the offset. With medieval-esque British settlements, misty caverns, awe-inspiring dungeons, murky swamps and crystalised jungles, variety seems to be the spice of life in Reckoning.

And the other is up at Mash Those Buttons:

The standout gameplay element showcased in the demo was definitely combat. There is a concerted effort to break from the relatively sedate approach of other open world titles such as the Elder Scrolls series. Fighting in Reckoning is a decidedly 3rd-person affair, with multiple enemies employing impressive AI to harry and surround the player. Each archetype shown employed a number of stun, evasion, and other techniques to manage the battle, leaving room for personal preference in strategy. Also on display were dramatic, slow-motion finishing move techniques that elicited satisfied (oohs) and a few cheers from the panel audience. Combat moves were also accented with colorful lighting and blur effects to enhance the visual style.

The only flaw amongst all the sumptuous action and eye-candy was the blatant abuse of so-called (hammerspace). The player can simultaneously equip a primary and secondary weapon, as well as a shield. However, only the last-used weapon is ever shown on the player character out of combat, and the player can seamlessly switch between all three mid-combat! Yes, while swinging away with your sword you can instantaneously pull a shield out of nowhere to block, and then just as quickly produce a giant two-handed hammer and start smashing. This capability was actually touted as an innovative feature, but I imagine a lot of players (myself included) will find it silly and distracting.