Kingdoms of Amalur, Re-Reckoning, Re-view
Kingdoms of Amalur on the xbox360 was a cult hit before it stopped being mainstream. Action RPG fans loved it and even with rough edges, it had popular appeal. There weren’t many gamers of that age that didn’t glass over and have nice things to say about it. There’s always a game you regret selling or trading, for me this was it.
When I heard that KoA: Reckoning was getting the HD treatment, I was over the moon. One of those games that guided us out of the last generation with fond memories. I thought I knew it fairly well, but the first couple of hours were not lodged in my memory. I selected my character, for some reason a shapely dark elf (again) and set off.
The first encounters are learning and instruction of course, then after that you are free to roam. By roam I mean engage in a huge amount of fetch quests that will enhance your understanding of the world.
Kingdoms of Old School
The format of the game is very last Gen in its feel and approach, the sheer amount of fetch quests can be overwhelming. That said, the mechanics work and it is still fun to play. The combat can either be a button mashing frenzy or if you’re canny a subtle mix of combos. The skill trees are daunting with their options, they certainly give you the ability to hone a character to a favoured play style.
One of my most favourite aspects of the game is the ability to scale out the camera. You can play it up close and third person or out as far as Diablo, or anywhere in between. This is a big win for accessibility and should be the norm. Being a Dark Alliance convert of old, I love playing Amalur at a distance. It helps with ranged combat and continuous dodge rolls.
Amalur-king the HD overhaul?
Look, it hasn’t been rebuilt from the ground up. The eye candy is absolutely sharper than it was, but the models are still pretty chonky. What matters is that it’s been long enough for you to go back and relive the adventure. The original sortie into Amalur was a big, sprawling and playable adventure – that’s what you get here. It looks good enough to play now, but the fun is in the dungeons and the loot, it’ll be sat on my PS4 well into the next Generation for the times I need to scratch that itch.
Are you Re-Reckoning there’s enough loot?
The game is literally drowning in loot and equipment, early on you will be swapping weapons and armour after every skirmish. Loot is everywhere, chests in the world, drops from mobs. In fact there’s enough to leave you not wanting to steal from NPCs. For an in-game kleptomaniac like myself that’s a big statement. Even the DLC armour sets are available from the start, it’s Amalur, but a cruisy run through.
Kingdoms of Amalur has a special place in my memory and I’m glad to go back. I may not devour it all in one sitting now, but I will be coming back from more over the next few years.
