Arcanum - Review @ Hardcore Gaming 101

I simply LOVE Arcanum, though since my first couple of plays I always play as a Magick user, so that gets around some of the gun issues. I love the narrative and have never been game-stopped by a bug, but definitely see them. I played some again a few months ago but really need to get playing again

Arcanum, yes. it is by far one of the only candidates for the earlier fallout games(1,2).
it doesn't have huge replaybility as fallout, but you at least want to play it twice.

for hardcore crpg fans for sure, but that means if you loved fallout 1,2, planescape etc. you will love this one too. it has nothing to do with the other troika's games, it is as if they were a different team(bloodlines, ToEE, really so so crpgs imo). this one feels, and looks like a continuation of fallout-gameplay wise, a kind of an crude nit brave attempt to mix steam power and magic in a single universe. The plot definitely did well on that part. and in some parts of the game you really feel the immersion is top notch. which means the combination of the combat system and plot with all the presentation is pure balance.

great game. highly recommended, but be prepared, its not easy. and that's part of the fun.

Played it once when it came out. Kept the ogre from the beginning. By mid game he was winning all the battles himself.

Main issue I have with Arcanum is the combat is terrible… Real-time / turn-based doesn't matter, they are both awful. But the atmosphere is amazing. So I would highly recommend building a character that can avoid combat as often as possible (i.e., high charisma- let your followers do much of the fighting for you and focus on non-combat skills.

I am a huge fan of character development, open worlds and atmosphere, so Arcanum is near the top of my list of favorite RPGs. And, while I'm not normally a big crafter, making all the weapons and gizmos in Arcanum is good fun.

I love Arcanum, VtM Bloodlines and ToEE with equal fervor. They are all legends, just look at all the crap that gets released now

I remember loving Arcanum, but I'll be damned if I didn't play it on release and it's foggy as to why.

I played it, but I can't remember if I finished it. I think I did. I remember liking the mix of steampunk and magic a lot, not so much the TB vs action combat part though…

the setting is brilliant

I don't know if I'll ever have the willpower to not play a mage/ melee fighter/ diplomat. I could try a thief or a techy one day… but then I never feel like it.

edit: which makes me wish Arcanum was on Steam. I'm really itching for a few achievements but I'm too lazy to do that myself. Playing a nature mage and allying with the dark elves would be cool, for instance.

Yeah, I can't see myself playing the tech side. I like magic. I have guns in real life and even a sword, but I've never been able to throw a fireball

I'm playing a mage/diplomat myself. She has a point or so in pickpocket too, for when diplomacy fails to get me what she wants.

I played through Arcanum as the greatest sword-wielding Mage elf the world has ever seen. Great game, I even got used to the combat in real-time when I played it. I removed the level-cap and my character was ridiculously overpowered, but I like achieving godlike power in my RPG's. Also, I felt the narrative sort of fell apart near the end.

I've returned to the game many times for a trip down nostalgia lane, but have never really played much beyond the intro with several different character builds. I would like to go through the game as a tech character and see how differently it plays. Overall, I think Arcanum is in my top 10.

Originally Posted by Sacred_Path
I don't know if I'll ever have the willpower to not play a mage/ melee fighter/ diplomat.

That doesn't seem like an easy build to create considering you only get 1 skill point per level. I'm guessing you stuck to only 2-3 magic schools?

I used to agonize over my character builds. It seemed like there were never enough skill points to go around.

I logged into Arcanum yesterday just to run around on my crazed Ogre and bust some skulls with the tree he wields. Wipe a few mage parts off the limbs, and swing again!!!

Originally Posted by JDR13
That doesn't seem like an easy build to create considering you only get 1 skill point per level. I'm guessing you stuck to only 2-3 magic schools?

I used to agonize over my character builds. It seemed like there were never enough skill points to go around.

oh, just replace / with or. I agree a build like that would be severely gimped. Fighter/ diplomat or diplomat/ mage is perfectly viable though.

I completed Arcanum for the first time only in 2007 on my ol' crappy Celeron.
I created this crazy dwarven mage and tried to role-play him as a kind of necromantic Hunchback of Notre-dame often with very amusing results. Not too many companions survived his bleak world view if I recall.

I do need to check out the technology side in greater detail at some point with another character; as despite the awful combat, the game has a high replay value due to its character builds, open ended nature and choices and consequences in that signature Troika style.

Most modern games cant come close to old legends, however flawed they are

In Arcanum, companions are for shielding purposes only. However, if my ogre could use them as missile weapons, rest assured he would do so!

Originally Posted by Carnifex
In Arcanum, companions are for shielding purposes only.

I once played a mage and only had 1 companion - worthless mutt (dog)


I use the following spells on him (maybe I forgot their names a little bit ) - agility of fire, stone fists (works because Dog's attacks are treated as unarmed) and haste. Then I use Time stop (that mass haste spell)

The result? - dog killed the final boss in 2 turns. During the first turn alone Dog damaged 80% of his health.

That doesn't shock me. Arcanum is ridiculously biased towards magic users.