We’ve seen what Take-Two have done here and we approve. That is, release Throne of Agony well before Uwe Boll’s silver screen take on Dungeon Siege comes out. If you’re thinking, “But why do that and miss out on the extra publicity?†then you obvious don’t know who Uwe Boll is.
We’re in RPG hack ‘n’ slash territory again, which makes this comparable to the established Untold Legends series. At the start you’re presented with three types of character to choose from – Shadow Elf, Warlord and Battle Mage – each of which is joined by a non-playable follower. You can’t kit out your follower with new armour, but you can teach them new moves in the various villages dotted around the map. Later it’s possible to get a pet too, options including a lap dragon and a hawk. And a mule called Ol’ Bessie.
The characters level up surprisingly quickly, although it makes sense given that this isn’t quite as epic as its PC brethren, clocking in at around 15 hours. It’s a respectable length, but there’s a lightweight feel to it evident in the pace, and the skill required during combat.
It moves at a fair old pace, and should your follower ever get lost they warp back to where they should be in an instant. The variety of enemies is commendable, in that you’re not just beating up the same old faces again and again; a prehistoric realm packed full of raptors and other dinosaurs is a particular highlight.
Things do get repetitive after a few hours, and the loading times – and frequency – frustrate, but its fair to say that the developers have achieved what they set out to do: create a console friendly version of the PC originals.
