Role playing mediocrity

All games add something to the genre they are from whether it’s good or bad. When a game is an unquestionable success it is almost certain that many other companies will rip it off based on the idea that the masses want to consume more of the same. Other times, they try to improve over the first game, still based on the same thing, but adding some unique elements of their own.
As Diablo was a good thing for many, then it come Darkstone, a nerve rip off of the first one, but presenting an unique twist: it was completely in 3D.

Well, Clans is both of the above at the same time.

It’s a classical role playing game in the sense that it is Middle Ages oriented, there are four different character classes to choose from, you go by the world taking on quests, killing monsters and taking their gold, etc. Also the game is in 3D, but here we find the first problem. It’s not “truly” in three dimensions like Darkstone (I don’t like this game either, but it’s the best thing I have to make comparisons right now) where you can change camera angles at will, but a more static, a bit claustrophobic view. This is not the real problem, the big annoyance here is that you can’t go back and forth between levels, instead, the map is divided into many square “rooms”, each room has some arrows which indicate the possible other rooms to go. And this can become frustrating, believe me. For instance, the enemies can surround you and cut you in pieces too many times, in Darkstone instead, you could stay in front of a door and deal with them one by one.

The other major inconvenience is the interface itself. It’s composed by two big, (lets stress this word, they aren’t beautiful or too pixelated, they are just too BIG) skulls which indicate your mana (right hand) and your health (left hand). The inventory (where you put your items) and the different menu options occupy their precious space as well. As if this things were not enough, the place to put weapons, spells and clothes (just armor and a shield) take their good space too. And the last sentence is a good connector to this one, for the weaponry is truly uninspiring. In Darkstone you had many weapons that graphically looked alike but with different names and characteristics. That at least gave you an excuse to go to the dungeon once again (may be you could find a new interesting sword inside that crypt, who knows). Unfortunately in Clans you have just sword, axe, armor, etc and a few rings, all of them with creative characteristics like +1, +2 and +3.

The helpful and secure town, where you can go to buy items, increase your skills or be healed for free is not present in Clans, instead, there are certain people inside the dungeons and caves that can sell you some items. But what the hell is a blacksmith doing 3 kilometers below the surface? Or a gentle old woman throwing healing potions at you in the Chambers of Torment? Besides, there is no place to put all your useless items, or your tons of gold, as it was in, yes you guessed it, in Darkstone.

But not everything is bad in the land of the Clans. The graphics are nicely rendered in 16 bit color, nothing superb, they get too pixelated from a distance but it’s still better than a mere isometric perspective.

Besides, the enemies die in very cool, sometimes funny ways, the sound effects do a good job on immersing you in the environments and the dialogs are hilarious in certain parts, though they get too repetitive after awhile.

On the replay side, firstly I have to say the game finishes too soon, and the main boss is a pathetic Diablo wannabe. And you won’t find many reasons to start again just because the four different characters say different funny phrases while killing baddies. Also, there are no randomized levels, so you will face the same challenges again, the same puzzles, the same enemies placed exactly in the same area as before, etc.

Conclusion

All in all, despite it may appear as a tempting offer, Clans is just another mediocre RPG trying to enter an already overcrowded market.


Graphics: 7/10 Enemies die in cool ways. Many areas are very detailed (for me they were drawn by hand).

Sound: 6/10 Hilarious dialogs, sound effects are good but some tunes have nothing to do with the environments.

Controls: 4/10 Annoying “arrows system”, enemies surround you and kill you too often, interface occupies half of the screen.

Fun Factor: 5/10 The last boss is a Diablo rip-off, uninspiring weapons and clothes.

Replay Value: 2/10 No randomized levels, quests are equal for the four characters.