For the last ten years a release of a new franchise has been quite a responsible and high-profile mission reminding of a space probe launch somewhere to Saturn – much investment, long flight and no guaranty of finding anything useful on the planet. New universes are reluctant to take roots, are often whimsical and naughty, and it takes a long way for them to rise from the dunghill. One can just look at the bunch of sequels and prequels released this year so as to realize this simple truth. So a postapocalyptic shooter with cel-shaded graphics (hey, comics!) and RPG elements like in Diablo couldn’t be more unexpected. One can only envy courage of 2K Games sponsoring the project. Welcome the winner of the Innovation Award!
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Saga’s laws are immutable. Science-fiction saga’s laws are irreversible, cruel and merciless.. but so very very epic and spectacular! And a soft, magic and natural first part is always followed by some dark, complex and bringing suspense second one. This is the way the ideal movie sequel to
Star Wars «The Empire Strikes Back» was created, the same is true of the perfect second part of the Mass Effect game. Moreover, if to take into account the fact that vector of setting has greatly changed its direction towards noir, darkness and epos, the heritage of Mass Effect hasn’t been lost. You can import save files from the previous title; familiar design, favorite characters and music recognizable from the first chords – all can be found here. Of course the music has changed so as to match the grown sequel but it hasn’t lost its charm and a slight flavor of space naiveté.
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It so happened that in Dragon Age’s universe, mechanics and design there’s absolutely nothing new. Besides that, all the elements of the universe, the game itself and all accompanying things are designed on such a high level that the Witcher’s developers will have to work hard when making a sequel. But they are not the only one who will have to do their best; the bar has been raised for all the genre of CRPGs. Music is not an exception either in an overall happy picture. Inon Zur who earlier fabricated rather than wriote music seems to have found his way under the vigilant canadian governance.
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