 |
 |
 |
|
Rainbow Six 3: BA
......................... |
|
Pub.: Ubisoft
......................... |
Dev.:
Ubisoft
......................... |
|
Score: 8.0 |
|
|
|
|
Enclave Review
by aircobra
Enclave is a unique title that blends different genres of gaming together and gets away with it. The game definitely has an RPG feel with its deep, enthralling story, and wide-exploration. Other elements like action/adventure, and hack n' slash blend in to create a game that not only captivates and challenges you, but also entertains you as well. However, with this entertainment, comes a high degree of difficulty and frustration, which will have some gamers looking elsewhere for their action needs.
Gameplay:
The game play of Enclave has its positives and its negatives. For the most part the positives out weigh the negatives, which is why Enclave is enjoyable. One of the positives things regarding game play is the single player option. Although Enclave is only a solo adventure, there are many things included to keep gamers enthused for hours. The first right move made was having different playable characters, 12 in all. These characters range from Knight, to Huntress, each with their own set of strengths and weaknesses. While this innovation not only adds some variety to things, it also adds strategy into the mix of things. Knowing when to use a certain character becomes a necessity to your survival.
Another great idea that adds to the replay value of the game is the ability to play through the game as either a hero or a villain. To play through on the dark side you must first complete the light side adventure. This encourages gamers to finish each level, knowing more is in store for them at the end. Saying that, I must also add that to reach the end of the game requires not only exceptional skill, but a large amount of patience as well. If you are one of those people who wants to pass a level on the first try, then Enclave will not be to your liking. I often found myself having to attempt some missions literally dozens of times before I finally triumphed over them.
One of the other things I admired about the game play of Enclave was how the combat system was delivered. I am not a fan of turn-based combat to say the least, and having the ability to attack your enemies freely adds to the frenzy of battle. Although hack n' slash style combat can sometimes feel shallow, I really enjoy the freedom to attack or withdraw at will. I only wish there would be a little more variety in the way your character could attack and defend against opponents. It seems that every time you are in a battle (no matter who you are facing) your warrior takes a lot of damage. Add in the fact that healing potions are often hard to come by, and save points don’t exist, and this can become an irritating problem.
The only problems Enclave encountered were really in its difficulty level. Some may call it challenging, while others may call it very hard. It is not so much that the missions themselves are hard to cipher, but the enemy A.I. becomes so hard sometimes you need many healing potions to stand any chance of surviving. No matter how good you get at combat it always seems like your enemies take huge chunks of life away from you in combat. This becomes all the more frustrating when you reach the end of a level and die because you have no life left. Also it is very hard to keep life, because healing potions are very difficult to come by. There are times when you will be screaming for a save point as you progress through a level and sadly they do not exist.
Graphics
The graphics for the most part are very gorgeous. Conspiracy made sure the game had a definite Middle Ages feel. The first time I played the game I thought the environments were almost influenced by the Lord of the Rings. Everything about your surroundings is perfected, right down to little things like realistic looking bricks, and sidewalks. The interiors of buildings are modeled very nicely as well. Much like Morrowind, Enclave achieved an accurate representation of the period they were trying to create.
Enclave also featured other graphical triumphs such as the character models. All the playable characters and even the non-playable ones (enemies) are all marvelously presented. Each playable character has his or her unique look that includes things like hair, clothing, armor, facial features, and more. The enemies too look fantastic. Snortlings, which are some of the weaker villains, are small and ugly looking (ugly in a good way). Orcs on the other hand are bigger and more vicious looking. It’s easy to tell who is a bigger threat to your survival just by looking at your enemies.
The only problem I had with the graphics and it was a minor one, was the every once in a while the camera angles got confusing and it was hard to see where I was going. This problem usually only occurred when battling smaller foes like snortlings, or goblins. The camera would try to shift to give you a better look at the battle, but in doing so your character almost seemed to disappear and it was hard to see what was going on. This problem was very minor, and not much of a set back to the great looking graphics Enclave has.
Sound:
The sound in Enclave is average. It is nothing great but it doesn't take away from the game either. The noises you weapons make are pretty much the same all the way through. The music that plays during the game also remains constantly the same, but the music is pretty good so it isn't really a downfall. Some of the characters have voices, however if you aren't standing right beside them it is nearly impossible to make out what they are saying. Like I said the sound didn't add much to the overall appeal of Enclave, but it is satisfactory, which in this case in good enough.
Verdict:
In the overall scope of things I must admit Enclave surprised me. I didn't know much about the game before I played it, and as such I wasn't expecting much. However once I popped the disc in and started playing for a while I got really into the game and couldn't seem to leave. The difficulty can be frustrating, which for some will be enough to keep them away, but for me it wasn’t enough to stop me from wanting to play again. It would have been nice to see some multiplayer options, or online support (Enclave originally was planned to be a huge multiplayer game), but Conspiracy did a good job of perfecting the solo options. If you are the type of gamer in need of a solid single player adventure, Enclave will have you occupied for hours. If you need multiplayer to keep your blood flowing then this game probably isn't your best choice. Enclave is a title with made with the solo player in mind. It is an epic tale that has furious action, great characters, and a nice battle system. With a few tweaks such as save points, and perhaps some more game play options, Enclave could have been sensational. Instead it was merely good.
|
| Rating |
| Gameplay: | 7 |
| Graphics: | 8 |
| Sound: | 7 |
| Value: | 8 |
| Tilt: | 7 |
| Overall: 7.4 |
|
|
|
Login - Register
|
|
These websites might have link exchange forums or link exchange directories where webmasters can request link exchanges from a specific category or have open requests to allow any website to exchange a link.
|
|
|
