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Arcanum: Of Steamworks & Magick Obscura
The Specs
It's your standard issue fantasy world -- Elves, wizards,
swords, yadda, yadda, yadda -- with an Industrial Revolution.
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for an idea of how that looks. This conceit gives Arcanum's
game world a unique balance between magic and technology that
affects combat, character development, and storyline. The
character development, which might be described as a DIY class
system, emphasizes the freedom to spend points however you
want. Since this is the newest title from the guys who made
the original Fallout, you can also expect freedom to pursue
whatever moral choices you make and multiple paths through
the storyline.
The Speculation
Tom's Comments: What do Black Isle's Planescape
Torment and everything done in the last three years by Origin's
Lord British have in common? They ruined RPGs, the former
for being so good and the latter for being so bad. So why
am I looking forward to Arcanum? Two words: Tim Cain. Cain
was the creator of the first Fallout, which arguably rang
in the RPG rennaissance we're currently enjoying. Actually,
I have another word to explain why I'm looking forward to
Arcanum: steampunk. If there's one thing more hackneyed than
Blade Runner-esque sci-fi, it's Tolkein-esque fantasy. Arcanum's
steampunk milieu sits a million miles away with nary a cliche
in sight.
Mark's Comments: Arcanum will be an interesting
test of the depth of the RPG market. It looks like it will
have everything that hardcore RPG fans want: Good replayability
due to the character development system that lets you emphasize
magic or technology (but not both), an interesting setting
with Victorian steamworks juxtaposed against traditional fantasy
elements, and of course the fine RPG pedigree of Tim Cain
and Troika Games. But the game also has some elements working
against it. It doesn't have that familar Tolkien-esque setting
which is arguably a stong selling point — there's a reason
why that kind of backdrop is popular. The 2D graphics are
pretty, but still look a bit dated. And when I played it at
both E3 and Gen Con, the pacing was a bit on the slow side.
It was also an exceedingly chatty game, with lots of conversation
to read and click through. These are all things that make
me wonder if it will appeal to more casual RPG fans, the type
who only play one or two RPGs each year.
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Publisher: Sierra Studios
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Developer: Troika Games
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Genre: RPG
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Release Date: Q1, 2001
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