BLACKGUARDS 2 FULL

The bottom right section is new, and makes stat changes that are a result of your gear much clearer I found that looking for items or objects I could interact with on the map was easier (although I have played the original so perhaps I just knew what I was looking for), and the effects of certain items are shown in a much simpler way, to appeal to people with less knowledge of tabletop RPGs. Overall, the UI, the systems, and the entire gameвЂ™s look has been improved. This has been removed from Blackguards 2, instead weapon mastery is clearer, skills are set out in a much simpler way, and acquiring skills or spells doesnвЂ™t require you to jump from city to city looking for the right teacher, instead you have a hub camp with a pair of teachers for every skill. The Dark Eye universeвЂ™s experience points, Adventure Points, had to be spent on attributes like dexterity, intelligence, charisma, among others.

The original game was, at times, rather clunky. Red bar is health, yellow is endurance, and blue is astral points, with icons below the portrait indicating buffs or character strength ItвЂ™s clear that the developers have passion for tabletop RPGs, which is clearly shown through how theyвЂ™ve updated these systems for Blackguards 2.

BLACKGUARDS 2 FULL

Certain stats or abilities can regenerate at the end of a full turn (astral points вЂ“ the gameвЂ™s mana system, or the ability to parry, for example). In very traditional tabletop fashion, the game is split up into turns, and then the turns are split up for each character, based on a virtual dice roll for each character in the fight (influenced by a character stat).

The hex grid system works just as youвЂ™d expect, and allows for interesting strategy with spearfighters (who can attack over one hex away, even over low-standing walls, or a certain dwarf), and certain mage spells, which are area of effect. It has multiple rather unique features, however, namely a hex-based grid system on each map, and multiple very traditional tabletop rules.Д¬ertain areas with limited space make for some interesting tactics, for both you and the enemy to use ItвЂ™s a turn-based RPG, based in The Dark Eye universe: EuropeвЂ™s most popular tabletop RPG (especially popular in Germany). The game hasnвЂ™t changed the base formula, however a lot of the systems outside of combat have been changed. So I was very pleased, yet apprehensive, to get to play through a preview build of Blackguards 2. However, every so often, I start to love something: Neverwinter Nights 2, Etrian Odyssey, and then Blackguards. IвЂ™m very, very picky with RPGs, IвЂ™m not a huge fan of Dragon Age, I enjoy The Elder Scrolls for first person combat rather than the world, and I never could get into The Witcher 2. If IвЂ™m honest, I didnвЂ™t buy it for Blackguards, I looked at it and thought it was another RPG I wouldnвЂ™t care about. I played the original Blackguards only recently, after being able to pick it up in a Humble Bundle. Other than finishing touches to the story, bugfixing and balancing changes, the game is unlikely to change dramatically between now and release, but it is possible. Note: I played a prerelease version, this means there were bugs, the story was unfinished and the content is subject to change.