Magicka is a new title, it’s almost genre defining and could pave the way for a new way to control magic titles and spell based combat, but will it survive RipTen’s excruciating review process?

Developed by Arrowhead Game Studios, Magicka is a new way to play both games and Action RPG titles, however whilst it has innovative moves forward it’s also severely hampered by a number of pesky glitches and a poor storyline – but I’ll get to that later.

The main focal point of Magicka is the extremely innovative and interactive spell system that allows players a wealth of experimentation and exploration within the simple game mechanic.  Within the game are a number of ‘elements’, and each of those core elements is bound to a certain key – for example Fire is bound to F, Shield on E, Water on Q and so on.  Up to five of these core elements can be queued at once before casting a devastating spell to smite your foes. For example, readying up five of the Lightnings will allow you to cast a massive chain lightning attack, and mixing five Fires together will allow you to create a giant firestorm.

Once you master the number of advanced features like forward-casting, area-casting and self-casting, the game really launches itself into another level.  Being assaulted by a number of enemies that are firing projectiles at you? Well cast self-cast shield and watch their feeble efforts fail as you emerge the victor of the conflict.

The game soon becomes incredibly addictive and rewarding, however Magicka lacks a lot of what other modern ARPG titles contain. There’s no heavy loot system and just as alarming is the exception of an experience system, which ultimately means no leveling.  A simple mechanic that allowed you to invest small amounts of experience into your spells to improve them could have propelled Magicka even further as well as added another great element to the game – pun intended.

After you master the magic mechanic you will go from slowly typing out spells to watching your fingers nimbly bounce across the hotkeys, and your screen will be alive with destruction and carnage. It’s all quite fun and makes for a great little ‘side’ game in a sense that it’s simple to pick up yet deceivingly difficult to put down.

As I alluded to at the start of the review, Magicka lacks any real cohesive story or driving force behind the gameplay, instead opting to fill the gaming time with as many nerdy references as possible. Despite the nice humor and refreshing comedic outlook displayed in the game, Magicka launched in a rough state with a number of performance glitches, game crashing issues, enemy clipping and poor level design. Countless times I’d be tempted to throw my mouse and beat my chest in a King Kong fit of rage due to falling off a cliff one time to many or getting yet another insta-death courtesy of lava.

Alongside the single-player ‘story’ there is also an online multiplayer experience that is both problematic and fun at the same time. Whilst I’ve connected to a number of games and had fun, I’ve also disconnected from three times as many games and even fallen through the floor on a number of occasions.

Another gripe with the online component is the inclusion of friendly fire, which coupled with the basic and woeful communication system, makes for a rage quitters paradise when there are countless spells flying across the playing field. When people do work together though, the multiplayer is something amazing.

In conclusion, Magicka isn’t a bad game by any means, but it does have some major flaws that detract from what could otherwise be an extremely refreshing and exciting series. With a bit of polish and some simple reworks, Magicka 2 is almost a must do for Arrowhead Game Studios.

Here’s The Rundown:

+ Spell system is amazingly simple and deep at the same time
+ Multiplayer is great fun when playing with friends
- Plagued by bugs
- Level design is annoying at times

Magicka launched on the 25th of February 2011. Magicka was developed by Arrowhead Game Studios and published by Paradox Interactive. Magicka is available on Steam for $9.99 – our copy was provided for review by Paradox Interactive. System Specifications: AMD Phenom x4 Black Edition 955 3.6Ghz, HIS Radeon 6850 1GB DDR5 in CrossFire, 4GB Kingston DDR3, ASUS M4A89GTD PRO.

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With Microsoft’s Gamers’ Day at hand, embargos are lifting and information is seeping out. Fable 2 is one of the bigger titles recently shown to the press and we’ve got some interesting new details for you on one of Microsoft’s biggest games of this year.

The game’s director, Peter Molyneaux, sees GTAIV as a real benchmark in how games can handle storytelling. Story is very important in Fable 2 and Molyneaux wants players to feel the repercussions of their actions.

However, what may garner the most interest, for better or worse, is that the developers wanted to include a minigame that involved sexual intercourse—but had to drop the content. Something remains though, that may or may not involve a black screen, some moaning and a choice as to whether or not the act involves protection.

Next-gen indeed.

Some other changes and additions have been made to the game since it was last displayed:

1. The mini-map is gone. Players will instead receive directions from an on-screen indicator, described as a “bread crumb trail” that appears as a golden line, which will function a bit like an auto-navigation system to direct you around the world.

2. The magic system will be comprised of eight spells that can be used to target individuals or attack from a distance. With five levels to your attacks, further abilities will be amassed over time.

3. Real estate plays an important role in Fable 2. Any house in the game can be bought and will unlock something if owned: quests, items or skills.

4. Weather is dynamic and will change as time passes. Expanding on the idea of a day-and-night cycle, seasons will also pass.  Even your character will age over time.

The game is supposedly 20-30 times larger than Fable 1 and is now feature complete, needing only extensive testing before release this Christmas.

Source: Vinterbird of Neogaf Forums

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