[Computer Game]: The Dark Eye: Drakensang, reviewed by wljohnso (4/3)

[RPGnet Reviews]

http://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/14/14329.phtml

Wes Johnson's Summary:

Drakensang will not redefine the CRPG experience, nor is it without flaws. It is a solid entry into the genre and most importantly offers a good blend of fun and challenge wrapped in a game engine that is not based on D&D.

Go to the full review (http://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/14/14329.phtml) for more information.

[The Pat]

One aspect was missing from the otherwise very informative review:

Drakensang is based on a German Pen&Paper RPG ("Das Schwarze Auge" - The Dark Eye), which has been around for 25 years now.

Both the overall setting (races, cultures, locations) as well as individual NPCs have been taken over from the Pen&paper setting. If you are familiar with the Pen&Paper RPG you might benefit from additional "immersion" into the storyline.

The Drakensang storyline actually ties in with some Pen&Paper modules/adventures and is a prequel to a forthcoming campaign. Interesting approach for cross-selling ...

As a German resident (and long time player/gamemaster of "Das Schwarze Auge") I am interested if the tie-in with the existing Pen&Paper RPG has been advertised for the US release of Drakensang.

For those who are interested in the Pen&Paper version let me give you some strength&weaknesses:
+ Very detailed setting
+ Ongoing developing world with several metaplots running for 20+ years now (both ingame time as well as real time - they even have a quarterly "ingame" newspaper)
+ 100+ modules/adventures

- Too crunchy rules engine (not the same as in Drakensang btw)
- Sometimes too detailed setting (i guess every hamlet with 50+ residents is described somewhere in the very extensive setting material)


--- The Pat

[wljohnso]

One aspect was missing from the otherwise very informative review:

Drakensang is based on a German Pen&Paper RPG ("Das Schwarze Auge" - The Dark Eye), which has been around for 25 years now.

Both the overall setting (races, cultures, locations) as well as individual NPCs have been taken over from the Pen&paper setting. If you are familiar with the Pen&Paper RPG you might benefit from additional "immersion" into the storyline.

The Drakensang storyline actually ties in with some Pen&Paper modules/adventures and is a prequel to a forthcoming campaign. Interesting approach for cross-selling ...

As a German resident (and long time player/gamemaster of "Das Schwarze Auge") I am interested if the tie-in with the existing Pen&Paper RPG has been advertised for the US release of Drakensang.

For those who are interested in the Pen&Paper version let me give you some strength&weaknesses:
+ Very detailed setting
+ Ongoing developing world with several metaplots running for 20+ years now (both ingame time as well as real time - they even have a quarterly "ingame" newspaper)
+ 100+ modules/adventures

- Too crunchy rules engine (not the same as in Drakensang btw)
- Sometimes too detailed setting (i guess every hamlet with 50+ residents is described somewhere in the very extensive setting material)


--- The Pat



Very cool to hear from someone who actually knows the pen and paper origins of the game (which I do not).

Drakensang sort of snuck under the radar in the states, there was pretty much no serious marketing of it (but at 29.99 it is a discount title and those are have little budget). There was no tie in to The Dark Eye RPG.

Heck even as someone who is well storied in RPG's I had never heard of the game before.

Probably my biggest gripe about the game was that there were too many templates that deeply resembled one another. I would have rather seen fewer templates with more customization... than and the ability to tweak you character model... but once you play you can largely tweak a pc as you need so it was not that big of a deal.

-_W

[Riggswolfe]

Your review pushed me over the fence and I bought this for my next CRPG. Right now I'm finishing Gothic 3 and then I'm into Drakensang. I've heard that the run speed is slow but have already found an editor to fix that if that turns out to truly be the case.

[wljohnso]

Your review pushed me over the fence and I bought this for my next CRPG. Right now I'm finishing Gothic 3 and then I'm into Drakensang. I've heard that the run speed is slow but have already found an editor to fix that if that turns out to truly be the case.

I have found the run speed to be okay, it is the camera controls that irked me a little (but not as much as some of the "pro" reviews).

I hope you enjoy it and I would really like to see someone else tackle a review for Drakensang.