[u][b]Initial Thoughts:[/b][/u] I have just completed Dark Messiah of Might and Magic. It is a quirky, flawed, yet a fun experience. This game hates modern Windows OS’s. You will run into frequent crashes, without following a guide it’s pretty much unplayable. I used this guide to minimize the issues, it helped; pay close attention to your graphics settings, as some will directly affect your crash rate.
https://www.reddit.com/r/darkmessiah/comments/jqixcy/fixing_crashes_for_dark_messiah/
[u][b]Story:[/b][/u] The storyline is fairly simple. It has evil undertones and a couple suspicious mentors who slowly reveal themselves over time. It isn't going to win any writing awards, but it does feature alternate endings, so your decisions actually matter, which is a nice touch.
[u][b]Characters:[/b][/u] The characters serve the plot well enough, but you aren't playing this for a deep character study. The interactions are serviceable, though the real "character" here is the physics engine and the enemies, which are what you would expect, this game runs on the source engine as seen in Half Life 2, albeit a very old version of it, it has all those fun physics as seen in valve titles from that era. Oh, and Medieval Cortana, that’s a thing.
[u][b]Gameplay & Mechanics:[/b][/u] Movement feels like I'm gliding on a bar of soap. I’m not sure why this wasn’t more polished, but this feature will get you into a lot of trouble. I cannot count the number of times I accidentally fell to my death when attempting to lean off an edge due to an extra push by the "soapy" feet or the turn radius mechanics. The level design is quite tasteful most of the time, but sometimes it is a total mess, specifically the final level, which I did not particularly enjoy. You have to be careful with navigation; if you miss a step or forget a key, it sends you into a spiral of frustrating backtracking. Try not to move too fast.
Additionally, if you are playing as a warrior, do not use fast attacks; they are the equivalent of trying to kill someone with a Wii controller. You need to charge your swings to actually be effective. The game can be very difficult, and the ghouls are genuinely unfair. The crafting system is a cool concept, but it is half-baked, like many features in this game; you rarely find the necessary resources for this feature until the end game. However, once you actually create a weapon, wow, it makes a world of difference, the game becomes significantly easier.
Also, a major quality-of-life warning: whatever you do, don't shoot two ropes too close together, or you'll never be able to get off them. Oh, and it’s basically a "Kicking Simulator." If you aren't kicking people into spikes, you're missing the point. The level design literally encourages this in almost every encounter; spike traps and ledges are everywhere for this very reason.
[u][b]Graphics:[/b][/u] The graphics are fun, but nothing to write home about; as stated it is a very dated version of the Source engine. The skybox is literally a static picture that doesn't move. The lighting effects are weird in general, and there are levels where the wind literally blinds you as if you’ve been flash banged. That said, I enjoy the aesthetic, and if you’re a fan of that era of Source engine games, you likely will as well.
[u][b]Final Thoughts:[/b][/u] This game is a 6.5 out of 10. Despite its flaws, it it’s still a fun game. It’s not even close to the same level as its era-peer Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion, but you could say it’s as fun if not more fun than Two Worlds or Gothic 3. It is worth a playthrough, especially if you catch it on sale.
[b]Score: 6.5/10[/b]
