Dark Messiah of Might & Magic (2006) (PC) (Arkane Studios)
13Dark Messiah is a weird little game. On the one hand, this gritty action game from underrated French developer Arkane Studios is just about as far as you could possible get from the endearing high fantasy traditionalism of the latest mainline Might & Magic games (with which DM, despite its title, shares no continuity whatsoever). It's also neither a party-based game nor a turn-based one and, as such, the whole thing can't help but leave M&M fans like me puzzled and a bit sad.
On the other hand...this is a pretty decent title in its own right. A melee-based first person action game with some neat RPG elements is not something you see every day, after all, and the linear levels are nicely detailed with an often impressive sense of scale. Equally important is that the methodical hack'n slash combat is satisfyingly gruesome and clearly designed to reward inventive use of the environment. The story and dialogue are unfortunately more than little cringe-inducing (and I really wish those medieval-ish knights would stop using words like "bitch") but with the exception of an annoyingly talkative sidekick, the poor quality of the writing doesn't detract significantly from the overall gameplay experience.
Dark Messiah received mixed reviews upon release - and very harsh things indeed have been said about it by many longtime M&M fans - but personally I'd say the game is well worth picking up; at least by people who are willing and able to approach it with an open mind and accept the obvious fact that this isn't a Might & Magic game at all and was never intended to be.
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