60 Second Preview of…

Etherlords at E3 2001

The Specs

Think Heroes of Might and Magic, but during the turn-based combat your hero draws a hand of spells from his shuffled deck and spends components and mana to cast them. Spells can summon creatures, boost stats, attack the enemy, and so forth. There are four different races, each with its own arsenal of spells and creatures. On the strategic map, you get spells and components based on the structures you control. The game will be scenario-based, with over 20 different missions and multiplayer support that includes cooperative games. Etherlords uses the same 3D engine Nival Interactive used in their Evil Islands RPG.

The Speculation

Mark's Comments: Etherlords is a game poised on the brink of greatness or disaster. It's crucial that Nival Interactive balance the game well and deliver decent AI, and with four races, 120 summoned creatures, and over 300 spells in the game, that won't be easy. If they succeed we could be looking at one of the best strategy games of the year. If they fail, it could be uglier than a rash on an orc's ass.

Tom's Comments: I really want to like this game, which was one of the most pleasant surprises of the show. It's the kind of strategy cum collectible card game that you've been waiting for if you fondly recall Chaos Overlords and the strategic shell around Microprose's Magic: the Gathering. Etherlords also looks gorgeous. But after Nival Interactive's Evil Islands, you'd think these guys have absolutely no concept of balance. The ramping difficulty in Evil Islands was the RPG equivalent of flinging yourself into a brick wall. This bodes poorly for the precarious balancing act Etherlords will have to perform. Let's just hope those Russians at Nival are a little better at the spit and polish phase this time around.

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May 22, 2001