Avencast: Rise of the Mage

When It came out, I was "wow" different style of RPG, why not start with some excited spells, change the staff and why not kick with It. The puzzle for me was fun, but sometimes was challenging In my eyes. The mix Is great, for others not, you can teleport olmost anywhere, storyline seems a bit "strange". I gave 5* because at that time for me was a different style of RPG that I really like It.

This game, in general, is something you rarely see. Apparently, it started as a Diablo clone, but then incorporated control combos for spells as the main combat feature; that alone is quite remarkable. Most of the game systems are basic, but they are functional and they are smooth to use: inventory management is basic but does the job well, character progression is basic but works nicely, the dialog system is, eh, functional. The amount of text in the game is remarkable, and all the dialogs are voiced, but the quality of the voice acting varies a lot. I think it would have worked better if the lines were shorter, and if they were delivered faster, because otherwise it's painful to have to wait for the actor to get through a full paragraph of text. It's kind of a shame because the setting is pretty original and it's quite clear the writer really had a lot of interesting ideas. The puzzles are quite innovative, I would say. There are classic "fetch the item and unlock something" puzzles, but there are also combination locks, and even a few physics based puzzles. There are even optional puzzles for extra loot. Graphically, the game is OK for its time, but the monster design, and especially the design of demonic enemies is brilliant, and quite original. It's quite clear that this game was a work of passion, by people who really wanted to make something they would be proud of, despite it not being a smash hit. If you want to play something with a completely original setting, mechanics that embody the slightly odd, experimental ideas of the 2000s, and you're OK with very active combat, then check this game out for sure.

Graphiquement tout juste correct, il se rattrape par ses effets de lumières. (Mention à la caverne aux cristaux, c'est plutôt beau). Vous avez deux "grosses zones" différentes, j'ai beaucoup aimé l'académie sans être originale, c'est toujours sympa d'explorer une énorme bâtisse. La deuxième est plus classique et on perd beaucoup du charme des premières heures. Attention au clipping qui est très prononcé : au détours d'un couloir, vous le verrez se charger. Nous avons aussi des bugs : éléments qui passent à travers les persos et autres. Pas handicapant mais ça fait pas sérieux. Vous pouvez lancez vos sorts avec une combinaison de touches (par exemple D-Z + clique droit) ou avec les raccourcis (F1, F2, etc...). Vous avez la possibilité de faire des roulades, croyez-moi, vous en abuserez). Deux voies s'offrent à vous : soit la magie du sang (corps à corps) ou magie de l'âme (distance). J'ai personnellement utilisé cette dernière : vous avez plusieurs "niveaux" de sorts, chacun avec un aspect différents : plus vous avancez et plus vous sentiez la puissance de votre boule de glace. On regrettera aussi l'absence d'éléments destructibles : ça aurait pu être tellement classe de pouvoir tout péter ! Quant l'histoire : cliché au possible ! Le grand méchant vous offrira même son plus beau rire maléfique ! Il est dommage que le lore de l'académie ne soit pas développé : il y avait moyen de créer un univers étoffé. Les cinématiques dessinées sont très jolies à regarder. Les musiques sont tout juste correctes : celles des combats sont vraiment molles (sauf celle des cavernes pour l'examen : meilleur du jeu. Dommage qu'on l'entende pas plus). Celles en mode exploration sont sympas mais oubliables. Avencast n'est probablement pas un jeu incroyable mais il est plutôt rafraichissant avec son gameplay original et plutôt dynamique et fun. Finalement, n'est-ce pas ce qu'on attends d'un jeu de ce genre ? Je conseille !

Game's got good mechanics, fun spells, and combat is actually fun though a bit under-utilized. The game world lacks diversity and you go through mostly the same looking dungeons. Enemies are serviceable but monster design is uninspiring. Game is roughly 12-15 hours so not a long playthrough. The story is very cookie-cutter it's like watching a poorly written Harry Potter but serviceable. All in all, if you like arcadey aRPG's with cool spells, and can handle a bit of tedium with samey gameplay and not a lot of diversity in levels it's a fun little game.