14 DAY TRIAL // The dungeon crawling role-playing game genre is, without a doubt, ruled over with an iron fist by Blizzard with its Diablo series, but this doesn't mean that other developers aren't trying to carve their own niche in the pretty big segment.
One of the most successful is Neocore, as the Hungarian studio has rolled out in recent years not one but two games as part of its The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing series. Both managed to draw in fans thanks to their clever writing, good mechanics, and low price.
Now, the studio is getting ready to roll out The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing III, the final chapter in the trilogy, which includes new adventures, new classes, and quite a lot of improvements over its predecessors.
While the final version isn't out just yet, we were able to play an early preview one, with two new characters and the first three environments. Does Van Helsing III live up to the expectations from fans or should Neocore get back to the drawing board? Let's find out.
Van Helsing III continues the main story
The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing opens up with a quick recap of the events from the first two games. However, if you have a passing interest in medieval fantasy, you can quickly piece together that Abraham Van Helsing is a monster hunter who must go up against various supernatural villains.
The third installment promises to shed light on the cliffhanger ending from the second chapter, while exploring the mysterious origins of Van Helsing's ghost lady friend, Katarina.
Besides bringing forth a new storyline, this third game also packs in quite a few new classes. The preview version includes the bulky Protector as well as the powerful yet fragile Elementalist.
While without a doubt the two characters remind Diablo veterans of the Crusader or the Wizard, they aren't just copy pasted into Van Helsing III. The Protector not only carries a big shield around, but most surprisingly, it can be actively used in combat. You can raise the shield to block attacks and offer you a brief respite from the hordes of enemies. The Wizard also packs in quite a few Diablo-like powers, like a flaming hydra, but also a few new ones.
Intense combat and amusing moments abound
You're going to need all your abilities and dungeon crawling skills to survive the many different enemies the game throws at you, as the environments are filled with packs of powerful foes, not to mention boss enemies.
Besides the great combat and new elements, the game brings back its trademark humor, as Katarina and the various quests offered by the story manage to paint an amusing picture that's not all doom and gloom.
The visuals are also pretty good and while the interface might seem a bit cumbersome at first, especially for newcomers, you'll quickly figure things out.
Overall, The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing III introduces enough new things to stay interesting, while retaining features that made the previous titles so popular with fans from all around the world.
Check out a series of screenshots and a gameplay video below.
