Eschalon: Book I Demo

Isometric RPGs may be a dying breed nowadays, but that doesn't mean they are entirely extinct. Exploring a dark dungeon from a top-down perspective is still the best way to do it, since it is about as close to table-top games as it can get without having to roll actual dice. However, a fancy eagle-eye view is not enough to impress, since a lot of elements must work together to provide the players with a memorable experience.

Eschalon: Book I is one of these isometric RPGs and it really tries to revive the genre in its own way, by making use of old, yet still functioning gameplay mechanics, together with a solid storyline and a pretty detailed graphic engine to render the game world. In essence, all the elements are there, although there are some annoyances sprinkled on top as well, for good measure.

As far as the story is concerned, it all starts with the biggest cliché in the book, meaning that the protagonist wakes up one morning with no memory of anything that happened before last night. Naturally, he finds a letter that directs him to a nearby town and the plot thickens from there on out, although you still stumble upon various D&D motifs along the way to remind you of the good old times.

One thing that might catch your eye in the beginning is the fact that you have complete freedom when it comes to the character you create, which is a nice thing to see nowadays. Thus, there are multiple classes to choose from, as well as plenty of talents and more than enough attributes to increase over the course of the game. Naturally, they all affect your abilities and have a great impact on whether you are capable of delivering critical hits, unlocking chests or dodging the enemy blows.

Although the game is very similar to an old-school isometric RPG, the controls are not exactly the same, since you cannot just click on the map and watch your character run there. In contrast, you have to always hold the mouse button down and move it around in order to walk in the desired direction. It is also possible to eliminate the need to hold down the mouse button, but it is still pretty annoying, especially when you keep running into walls.

In the end, Eschalon: Book I does manage too keep you glued to the screen for quite a long time, thanks to the good story and the satisfying experience. The combat is pretty easy to deal with and there is plenty of loot to enjoy over the course of the adventure, not to mention the interesting creatures you stumble upon.