"Welcome to Sigil, the "City of Doors", a place with gates that lead anywhere in existence, provided you have the proper key. It is a neutral ground and watering hole for races across the multiverse, all under the watchful shadow of the Lady of Pain, the enigmatic ruler of the city. It is a place where the word is mightier than the sword, where thought defines reality, where belief has the power to reshape worlds and change the laws of physics."

Graphics 4/5

The Bioware Infinity Engine is used once more in this game, but many changes are implemented. One of the most notable is that of the camera, which is much closer to your characters. Not only does this help those with poor eyesight, but it also gives the artists of the game much more freedom to create beautiful environments with great detail. This little aspect brings the city of Sigil and the rest of the planes to life. Of course, there are also drawbacks to this view, and that is that the game is essentially reduced to a melee game. However, this doesn't present much of a problem, except for all the ranged players out there who love to stand from a distance and pelt enemies with sling-bullets/arrows/spells.

Gameplay 4/5

The game starts out much like any other RPG, with character creation. This time, however, the character is picked already, the class is picked already, the race is picked already, and all you do is distribute some ability points among the normal six abilites. This game seems to have strayed quite a big from conventional AD&D rules. For one, you start off as a fighter, but can change. That's right, throughout the game you will meet important NPCs who will be able to train your character in the way of the thief, the mage, or the fighter. Then, as the game progresses and you get PCs, you will be able to switch among classes by asking those characters to remind you how to be that particular class.

On the main screen, should you right-click, a small menu will appear over your mouse, pausing everything in the game. This menu contains the character that is selected and commands, spells, quick items, etc. While some have debated about the usefulness of this pop-up menu, I myself have found it to be quite useful while playing the game instead of having the bottom of the screen cluttered with a myriad of buttons.

For those looking for a slash-em-up-and-steal-their-stuff type game, this isn't it. The sheer amount of dialogue would be enough to fill a book, and it's not dull dialogue either. As you read each of the NPC's words, more of the worlds of the planes will be revealed to you, and rarely can you get bored of the conversations (although Diablo maniacs might miss out on most of the action). The game is in the conversations, not the battles. Dialogue is where you get the most experience as well.

There are many bugs within the game, but patch after patch has been released, and these bugs are mostly all gone, save for some obscure ones that might pop up once or twice.

Story 5/5

I can not say enough about the story. As I played the game I felt as if I was sucked into this wonderful world that is the game. Planescape has the most character driven plot I have ever seen in any game. The beginning is a bit of a cliche, as you wake up, you realize that you have no memory of who you are or what you have done. Yes, it's been done before, but all similarities end right there. ALL similarities. You're covered in scars that would end a normal man's life five times over, but you are special. It seems that you can't die. All attempts to die merely end with you being resurrected, and you can't fathom why. As your character ( known only as "The Nameless One" ) wanders around the planes, searching for his past, he'll unearth more and more secrets about who he is...and who he was.

The characters are what really make this game unique. The first person you meet in this game is a wise-cracking floating skull (don't ask) named Morte. As he says "You know, Morte? As in 'dead'?". There's also the peaceful githzerai warrior Dhak'kon, who seems troubled...and the luscious and lovely (and hard-hitting!) tiefling Annah. There are more characters within the game, and each and every one of them is completely unique. Likewise, each and every one of them will come to life as they are revealed within the game, their past, their motives...and their feelings. No longer are the characters the cannon-fodder which they once were in Baldur's Gate. These characters are alive and breathing, and each of them has there own opinion...and their own connection with the Nameless One. I feel like I am giving too much away, but if anything, the game should be played for the story, if not anything else.

As I played through the game, each new revelation had me gasping for more. I had to finish this game and discover the truth of it all. I have yet to experience a game with a story as good as this.

Sound 5/5

The music in this game is fantastic. It speeds up to a tune with a fast pulse-pounding beat when enemies are near, and then brings up a tearful melody at exactly the right moment. Not only is the timing and style of music great, but the music itself is..I'm running out of positive adjectives here. I must have sat for ten minutes just listening to the main theme over and over and over and over again!

There are some voices in the game, but only the usual ones ( "Yeah?", "Right then, let's go" ) With the amount of dialogue in the game, I'm not surprised at this. The voices that are there are fitting, such as Annah's glib irish dialect or the Nameless One's gruff tones.

I must stress the music again. It's excellent. Should you have a chance to listen to it, I suggest you do.

Satisfaction 5/5

This game has many, many hours of gameplay stuffed within it, and many more should you want to discover everything. I do have one complaint though, and that is the game's reliance on Intelligence and Wisdom stats to reveal memories. Having 18 Wisdom and Intelligence is all fine and good, but when you're a fighter, it's worth pretty much nothing. Even so, the game will keep you playing on and on to find who the Nameless One is.

And that's only half of it. You can play the game straight from beginning to end, but if you do, you're going to miss out on more than half the game. Discovering new things is what the game is all about, not just playing from beginning to end. Probably the most interesting to discover is your relation to the characters that you had before you woke up in the beginning. Once you finish the game, you will sit back and wish there was more. It feels like you have just finished a great movie or book - and don't want the magic to disappear!

92%

This game is a must-have for RPG-ers!

System Requirements: