Dungeon Siege II: Deluxe Edition

Dungeon Siege II fares better at improving the other big gripe about the first game: its weak story. For starters, there is a wealth of content here. The first act alone stretches longer and has more to do in it than some complete games. And it's not just fluff. The epic central storyline takes a little while to really get going, but it is the grand hero's tale, complete with the requisite orchestral music.

RPG fans who thrive on doing all the side quests and exploring every nook and cranny will also appreciate how well integrated the world is. Every extra task undertaken fits naturally into the bigger picture. They never feel like an artificial courier job just for the sake of giving you more to do; and the accompanying rewards are always nice, but not so nice that you couldn't live without if you decide to just follow the main story.

These welcome refinements to the original game undeniably address the things fans harped on after its release, but the trouble is that's all it feels like. Even with the new story Dungeon Siege II never quite manages to shake the underlying sense throughout that if you squint hard enough at the screen you could be playing the original game. It's as if answering the critics became such a preoccupation that instead of a sequel, Dungeon Siege II became the perfected version of the original.

There's more to it than just that the game looks like the original at a glace, but that certainly doesn't do it any favors. Not that it isn't attractive at times. Zoomed out, the fully 3D environments look inviting enough; there are some nice lighting effects and (as it seems everyone does now) a physics engine is at work throwing a spray of giblets this way and that with every explosive kill. It's when you get closer in that things get rough around the edges -- a problem especially compounded by the desire to model all the gear you find during the adventure. And, to make matters worse, camera woes are back. At those closer-in heights the angle can not be flattened out enough to effectively see around your character. Pull back, and it gets hung up too much on environmental obstacles, particularly in confined areas such as caves and castle interiors.

There is more to the sameness than just the graphics. Despite the strong story, the characters, including the player's, come off flat and lack any personality that might help them connect. The unique development system of the original that seemed to hold untapped potential for something new has not evolved either. While the idea of improving in different areas based on what you do/use in the game sounds good on paper, in practice there is little to make it different from just having chosen a class. At higher levels there is some appeal to your combat mage being able to pick up a sword and play around, but in all honesty, it's just playing around. When it comes time to really fight you're going to use your primary strengths. The inclusion of a skill tree and special powers only strengthens this. After dumping your skill points into being a better mage and earning its best powers those are what you use in battle.

And the best place to show that off is playing with your friends online. Dungeon Siege II at least partially redeems itself with serviceable multiplayer. It's still not up to the standard set by Diablo's bnet, but the system is friendly to bringing characters in and out of multiplayer and serves the basic purpose of getting you and up to three of your friends together for some hack-n-slash action. That, along with the expansive single player campaign should provide action-RPG fans with plenty of late night adventuring.