Gas Powered Games looks to have a winner in Dungeon Siege II as it will improve upon many elements that were severely lacking in the first game. Many of the problems in the first game included: a game with practically no story and what was there you did not care very much about, quests that were very dull and boring and AI that needed improvement. While Dungeon Siege was still a good game even with these limitations it was far from the game that it could have been. Seeing the sequel in action at E3 was definitely one of the highlights of my time there, as Gas Powered Games seems to have taken care of all of these problems and made Dungeon Siege II one of the RPGs you will want to be playing on the PC this fall!

At E3 I was given a guided tour of Dungeon Siege II by Steve Wartofsky, a producer from Gas Powered Games. He was very eager to show me many of the masterful improvements that have been made in the game. For one, the graphics engine seems to have been updated considerably which allows for far more detail in the environments, characters and enemies. Just wait until you see some of the cutscenes in the game as well as how awesome the environments look and your jaw will literally drop at how great it all looks.

In my review of the original Dungeon Siege, I complimented how beautiful the graphics were and now in the sequel it seems the graphics have taken a gigantic new leap in quality. The improved graphics engine will definitely go far in allowing the game's designers to create a compelling story that was absent in the original game. Quests as well as story should be much more exciting this time around with scripted cutscenes that will appear throughout the game. I am very excited about these aspects as I found many of the quests in the original game lacking in fun especially when there was no interesting story to complement these quests. Expect to change what you thought was possible in the sequel as what I saw gives me hope that this will potentially be one of the best RPGs released this year.

Enemy AI seems to have been improved as well over the original game. Enemies seem to react to what you do and should coordinate their attacks more efficiently to bring you down. What you remember about pack mules is changing for the better as well. No longer do you have a pack mule to store the items you find along the way but can recruit creatures that will not only store your items but fight alongside you as well. It is excellent that you now have a companion that does not just stay in the background but helps to fight your enemies as well. I also enjoyed the fact that fighting against your enemies will involve more strategic decisions this time around based on new heroic powers you can unleash on your enemies as well as various new skills. In the original game I felt that I was not given enough options for attacking enemies and the sequel seems to help in this area as well by providing many new ways to attack.

This is only scratching the surface of many of the vast improvements that have been made in Dungeon Siege II. For those who loved the music in the original Dungeon Siege you will be happy to know that famed composer Jeremy Soule will return to provide more of his music magic in the sequel. It is difficult to hide how excited I am about the new features in Dungeon Siege II. Dungeon Siege II looks to be the game I always wanted the original to be: a compelling storyline, enhanced graphics, better gameplay and AI, and an overall better RPG gaming experience. As you can see it is obvious why we chose this game as Best PC RPG at E3 2004, because we strongly feel that Gas Powered Games will do their very best to see that the promises of Dungeon Siege II are fulfilled when it is released this fall. Dungeon Siege II may prove to be the hallmark of RPG gaming in 2004!

    BEST PC RPG - E3 2004

Dungeon Siege II Official Website