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Dark Messiah of Might & Magic Preview

Writer: R J Gaffney » Blog
Posted: 6th Sep, 2006

Publisher: Ubisoft
Developer: Arkane Studios
Release: TBA

Might and Magic was born twenty years ago as a PC title and has seen no less than more than a dozen games set in its universe since then. Dark Messiah offers yet another way to experience the universe as a first person fantasy action title.

Dark Messiah tells the story of young Sareth, that would be you, and his master Phenrig, a suspicious looking and sounding bloke if ever there was one. The prologue has you “recovering” the sarathi crystal as Phenrig guides you through the basics.

If that doesn't get you interested, how about the opening movie, showing a red armour clad figure standing at the edge of a great, fiery abyss, summoning forth a great, scary looking demon. The red figure is the titular Dark Messiah.

Comparisons are bound to be made comparing Dark Messiah to Oblivion, but the simple truth is that, while cosmetically alike, the two games have two very different goals in mind. Dark Messiah is, at heart, an action game.

The single player demo allows you to tackle the specific portion any way you choose, which bodes well for the rest of the game. The biggest challenge facing an action game is staying fresh over long periods of time and, if this first glimpse is anything to go by, there will be plenty of fresh air to breathe when Dark Messiah is launched.

You can barge through levels, swinging your sword in broad arcs, decapitating foes and running them through, accompanied with brutal animations and some wonderful special effects. When your adrenaline gauge fills, you are granted a finishing move, a one hit kill with your weapon of choice.

Depending on how you attack, determined by the direction you're travelling when you press and hold the attack button to charge, you can amputate your enemy's sword arm, run them through and push them off your blade with one booted foot or decapitate them, watching their head spin through the air in slow motion.

Magic users are also well catered for. There are spells to launch fireballs, setting enemies and surrounding alike to burn them alive. Ice spells to freeze them, allowing you to boot them with one foot to shatter them.

Stealth also has a major role. One hit kills when you sneak up from behind, turning invisible for a limited time to sneak past encampments, skulking in shadows, waiting for them to pass, using your acrobatics to reach forbidden areas and tricky, secret paths.

If you like to keep your distance, there is the bow, letting you fire arrows (which can be ignited on torches hanging on walls about the levels for some fire damage) at your enemies from afar. You can also use arrows to trigger traps, severing the ropes that suspend weights from the ceiling.

Physics plays a big part in Dark Messiah, which isn't surprising considering it is based on Valve's Source engine. Objects have weight, allowing you (continued next page)