This is one of the most awesome games of all time for me.
The game is a blend of RPG and RTS that IMO, is pulled off very well. The RTS encounters require some actual thinking to pull off, and take quite awhile to succeed. Resources on each map are finite, the more basic resources are usually plentiful, but you really gotta watch your more esoteric resources on some maps our you'll cripple yourself.
I will add, that when it comes to combat, things are rarely quickly resolved. Sometimes this can be a bit tiresome, you rarely lose or win quickly, you'll do it slowly and painfully in almost all RTS battles. The AI isn't that great either, it tends to be very formulaic, but if you want you can play against others online to spice things up. Still, I think it falls more on the satisfying end of the spectrum.
At the same time the story of the game is developed quite nicely, and your choices in abilities and equipment make a real difference, especially when you switch from RTS battles to more adventure-style RPG questing. It's all very fun, and pulled off while feeling natural. A pretty good lore is also in place if you're interested, you even get choices in conversation, although there isn't anything like Bioware-style impact from your decisions in the rest of the game.
Unfortunately, being a foreignly produced game, along with the unusual system and being a helluva long game (each one can easily blow through dozens of hours of your life), as well as being PC only seem to have made the IP virtually unknown in the US.
The first three are available on Gog.com (Good Old Games) as a platinum package for only $9.99 and Spellforce 2, as well as its expansion Dragon Storm, are up for grabs on D2D. Incredibly, the first three are somehow Vista 64-bit compatible, which, while it isn't incredible as me being able to run Diablo 1 on Vista 64-bit with a 1600x900 screen (<.< Still shocked at that) it is still very nice.
Of course, the games were made awhile back, so don't expect incredible graphics if you decide to try them out.
The game is a blend of RPG and RTS that IMO, is pulled off very well. The RTS encounters require some actual thinking to pull off, and take quite awhile to succeed. Resources on each map are finite, the more basic resources are usually plentiful, but you really gotta watch your more esoteric resources on some maps our you'll cripple yourself.
I will add, that when it comes to combat, things are rarely quickly resolved. Sometimes this can be a bit tiresome, you rarely lose or win quickly, you'll do it slowly and painfully in almost all RTS battles. The AI isn't that great either, it tends to be very formulaic, but if you want you can play against others online to spice things up. Still, I think it falls more on the satisfying end of the spectrum.
At the same time the story of the game is developed quite nicely, and your choices in abilities and equipment make a real difference, especially when you switch from RTS battles to more adventure-style RPG questing. It's all very fun, and pulled off while feeling natural. A pretty good lore is also in place if you're interested, you even get choices in conversation, although there isn't anything like Bioware-style impact from your decisions in the rest of the game.
Unfortunately, being a foreignly produced game, along with the unusual system and being a helluva long game (each one can easily blow through dozens of hours of your life), as well as being PC only seem to have made the IP virtually unknown in the US.
The first three are available on Gog.com (Good Old Games) as a platinum package for only $9.99 and Spellforce 2, as well as its expansion Dragon Storm, are up for grabs on D2D. Incredibly, the first three are somehow Vista 64-bit compatible, which, while it isn't incredible as me being able to run Diablo 1 on Vista 64-bit with a 1600x900 screen (<.< Still shocked at that) it is still very nice.
Of course, the games were made awhile back, so don't expect incredible graphics if you decide to try them out.
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