Sacred Screenshots     The Final Say! Gameplay 9.0 Graphics 9.2 Sound 9.0 Value 9.1 Sacred  - reviewed by Andrew B Review Date: May 2004 Review Score: 9.1/10  Distributor: Red Ant Enterprises

"An epic tale of good versus evil set in the magical world of Sacred!" In this world of racing games, sport games and first person shooters, it's always nice to know that game developers haven't forgotten about the RPG (role-playing game) genre and Sacred is no exception to the rule. Game developers Ascaron have taken the RPG genre to the next level with their latest furore into the harsh world of gaming. Sacred isn't just your average RPG game as not only does it offer gamers a whole new plethora of adventures, weapons and characters but it has been exclusively designed to run with NVidia graphics cards for some of the most amazing graphics of this side of Hollywood. That's not to say that Sacred won't run with other graphics cards but if you truly wish to enjoy this title to its true potential than I would highly recommend that you purchase a graphics card with the NVidia chipset. Sacred itself is extremely similar to games such as Diablo and to an extent Baldur's Gate but unlike those two other games, Sacred is easily one of the most detailed gaming environments in any RPG title. As with all good RPG titles, Sacred offers gamers one main quest where they must vanquish a hideous evil that threatens the very world but fortunately for the player, there are virtually hundreds of other side quests along the way. Although the storyline is rather basic, an evil wizard summons an ancient demon that he is unable to control, it does make for some fun and traditional RPG style of gaming. The game also contains six predetermined heroes that the player can select which includes a gladiator, a Seraphim (angel), battle mage, Wood Elf, Dark Elf and a Vampiress. Apart from the varied races of heroes that you can select, each character also has their own unique traits that all help lead the gamer to their own personal victory. The game is also littered with hundreds of different weapons and spells that range from simple to extraordinary. One of the most notable features of Sacred is that the gamer can actually ride and fight on horseback. Sacred also contains an in-depth tutorial with a 69 page manual that will answer just about any question that you have. Although the combat of Sacred is generally a point and click interface, it does become a little tricky behind the scenes. That is, you must ensure that you select all the right skills for your character before you rush blindly into combat.

Each character also has their own archetype of attacks that is a speciality of their character such as the barbarians first of gods attack that basically allows him to inflict an insane amount of damage.

To target an enemy, the player just simply has to left click on the enemy... provided that they are not moving too fast. Weapons can be easily upgraded at a blacksmith but you must have the correct funds and gemstones that you have discovered on your journeys.

The most impressive thing about a battle (well after the battle) is that there is a hotkey that automatically picks up all the equipment from the various dead enemies that you have dispatched.

Graphics

As Sacred isn't your traditional 3D action game, it uses a similar view as Diablo and the Baldur's Gate series, which is a 3D isometric view. This means that the entire world has already been pre-rendered so you can except some extremely high quality graphics that lead to realistic monsters and backgrounds.

Each character in the game is highly detailed and moves with a humanlike feel, even the little things such as the detail on their armour and swords has been implemented into this title. Another impressive feature of Scared are the highly detailed backgrounds that range from deserts to underground caverns and lush mountain forests.

It should also be noted that this game is fairly resource hungry because of the extremely high resolution detail of 1024x768 (or greater) and even on our test machine, the game sometimes started to chug if there were too many characters on screen at once or if you unleased a myriad of magic spells at your enemy. The game also contains some beautiful pre-rendered CGI cutscenes that really help immerse the gamer into this magic and wonderful world.

Sound

What better way to compliment the amazing graphics of Sacred than with a majestic musical score that sounds like it has been taken directly from the Lord of the Rings. The voice acting of Sacred has also been professionally done and nothing sounds too forced or contrived and match that with some extraordinary spell effects and the sounds of battle and you truly have a match made in RPG heaven. I also suggest that you crank up your speakers when you are playing this game because it's truly a experience you won't forget any time soon.

Final Words

In conclusion Sacred is a very well made game that contains a sturdy gaming engine with exception graphics and sound with a very in-depth storyline that helps draw you into the kingdom of Ancaria. As the game is a true open-ended title, you can literally play this title for days on end because it's not as linear as similar games on the market at the moment (Dungeon Siege).

Sacred also features an extremely entertaining multiplayer option that allows you to play against 16 people in either a LAN or internet environment. If you love RPG titles, than I would recommend that you check this game out because it doesn't get any better than this!

- Andrew B