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Just finished ARX, Great game but ...
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RPGDot Forums > Arx Fatalis

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Mad Mike
Village Dweller
Village Dweller




Joined: 04 Feb 2004
Posts: 19
Location: Dublin
Just finished ARX, Great game but ...
   

Spoilers below - be warned

Finished ARX on Saturday morning. I was level 8 with about 80 points in close combat and 65 or so in Casting. During the game I did most of my killing with fireballs - I always kept three equipped for quick release. As an example I managed to clean out the Yllsid bunker fairly early on in the game (I think I was level 5) with a combination of fireballs and careful use of cover. I chose the meteor sabre rather than sword so I could equip a good shield. I also figured I'd get more hits in with the sabre because of its speed.

I found Iserbius tough enough to beat - probably because I spread my skill points around a bit. In the end I used the HARM spell, backed him up against a pillar and kept whacking away till he keeled over. I only used the harm spell twice in the game - against the liches in Poxsellis's Tomb and against Isebius at the end. It always felt a bit like cheatng becaue HARM was so powerful and I didn't actually discover it myself.

Which brings me to my main point - A very enjoyable game in many respects and interesting enough to absorb all of my spare time (2 to 3 hours per day) over a period of about three weeks. BUT - I can honestly say I could not have finished this game without Garrett's excellent guide. This to me is a failure of game design. Why did they not put better clues in the game itself? Why indeed was the journal so bad? I don't mind using a FAQ to get useful background info on strategy and I will admit to sometimes using FAQs to get me through tough spots. In this game however I found that from about half way through I had to use the guide constantly.

Am I just bad at RPGs or does anyone else agree with me?

PS: Just picked up a secondhand Gothic II for €10 (about $13). Looks good so far. There goes all my spare time for the next month. When will I ever learn?
Post Mon Feb 23, 2004 10:55 am
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Cm
Sentinel of Light
Sentinel of Light




Joined: 26 Jan 2003
Posts: 5209
Location: Missouri USA
   

I think 99% of us have said the same thing. I know the dev. know this as well and plan to make adjustments for A2 to solve the ingame direction problem. Still for a first time game they did a great job and I see great potential for A2 to blow us away, as long as they keep the good and fix the bad. I recommend to every new player they download the PDF. It is as you said almost a must to be able to finish this game. If you have any other wishes for A2 there is a thread here I know the dev. have been reading so add to that. Try replay on the game and use some of the other spells and new tactics. I went through as fighter, mage, theif, and mixes of them and it was a different experience each time. I also found new stuff in the chests each time. Fun, fun, fun.
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Post Mon Feb 23, 2004 2:59 pm
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