14 DAY TRIAL // Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning was released earlier this week on the PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 by Electronic Arts, after being developed by 38 Studios and Big Huge Games.
We’ve already talked in depth about the game during our review, as well as in a few gamer diaries that appeared earlier this week.
Now, it’s time to look at the game as a whole and how it’s almost like a Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game, only without the actual online multiplayer component.
This is pretty obvious from the start of the game, as the stylized visuals borrow heavily from one of the most popular MMOs out there, World of Warcraft.
After that, the quest giving mechanics are extremely similar to the ones employed by different online games. You go to a location and you can easily spot different characters with exclamation marks over their heads. Once you hear their story and accept the quest, it changes into a question mark that stays there until you complete the mission.
While this may seem a bit in your face when compared to the minimalistic markers sported by Skyrim, for example, it works perfectly and you don’t have to waste time talking to all sorts of non-playable characters before you find someone that can give you a quest.
You’ll even find MMO-style quests that involve collecting a certain number of things or killing different types of enemies but, thankfully, these aren’t that many, so you’ll soon have more impressive adventures.
While this gamer diary may feel a bit like a critique, I’m actually thrilled that Reckoning managed to deliver a sort of MMO experience without any actual online multiplayer. I’m not a fan of strangers running around during my gaming experience and the single-player nature of Reckoning caters perfectly to my desire.
What do you think about the game’s MMO aspects? Share your thoughts about the game’s inspiration below.