Enclave

Pros • Two campaigns: good and evil • Selection of characters with different strengths • Strong on the graphics front	Cons • Seems caught between action and strategy, and not in a positive way • Combat is make-or-break: if you don't like it, you won't like this game • No multiplayer
Bottom Line Best to rent it first, to see if you like how combat is handled. The story of Enclave is wound around two forces that have long been separated by a great chasm, created when a wizard slammed his staff into the ground to destroy a powerful demon. In the middle of the rift is the isolated but prosperous realm of Celenheim. Over the ages, the land has been slowly healing itself, and now the rift is traversable in places. The other side of the rift isn't as pretty as Celenheim, and its people resent being stuck there. Now that the opportunity is presenting itself, they're mounting an invasion of Celenheim. You will play an assortment of warriors caught up in this series of developments in two campaigns of third person hack n' slash, one for the good guys, one for the bad guys.

Enclave is a third-person fantasy action game, somewhat in the style of Gauntlet: Dark Legacy and The Mark of Kri. There are two campaigns that will require you to run through levels, casting spells, loosing arrows, and bashing things about the head and neck with your sword. Occasionally, you'll need to find the odd key and get out of the way of a nasty trap, or evade a lethal drop. You know the drill.

If you prefer, you can also zoom in for a first person view. In fact, the controls are laid out a lot like a first person game. Some have complained that those controls are awkward, but I thought they were fine--left stick for movement, right for looking around, trigger to attack, etc. You can also switch weapons if you have more than one, change ammo type, make a defensive move, quaff a healing potion, and if the level calls for it, manipulate an object, such as pull a lever or use a key.

Level design is usually pretty basic, but it sure is sweet to behold. Large, crumbling temples where rubble falls from the ceilings and walls, hellish plains of lava, mist-covered keeps, seaside towns, and so on. The game's graphics are a definite highlight. All things are very detailed, down to the characters that populate the game. I particularly like the Knight's scowl and Mordessa, your evil boss from the Dark side campaign. Mordessa looks like something out of the pages of Heavy Metal magazine (you can just see Julie Strain playing her in the movie adapatation), or someone who's late for Fetish Night at the Boom Boom Room. Why is it that the forces of evil always get the hot leather and mail-covered babes? No wonder evil is never fully destroyed.

While we're on the subject of characters, one of the game's best points is that you get a selection of them. You start with a rough n' tough-looking Knight, then gradually unlock more characters: the bow-wielding Huntress, the bomb-chucking Engineer, spell-casting Druid, speedy Halfling, and so on. Once the Light side is done, you can go on the Dark side campaign and play characters like the Assassin, Sorceress, Lich, and Goblin. Each character is very different. Melee characters like the Knight can wade into a tough battle, whereas spellcasters and bow-carriers are better off hanging back and killing opponents from a distance before they're even aware of you. There are also hidden characters that can be unlocked by collecting all the gold hidden throughout the game.

Between missions, you can select a new character, or stick with your current one. Gold is spent on different weapons, armor, ammo and health potions for your crew. You will probably end up finding a favorite character and sticking with him/her, which makes sense to do. You only have so much gold, and you can't afford to outfit each and every character. You will probably remain with your first choice and keep spending money to make your current choice as powerful as possible. This was done to encourage replayability, I guess.

As you might expect, your number one activity in Enclave is fighting. This for me is where it breaks down. I find that Enclave is a little unsure of whether it wants to be a fast-paced action-slasher, or something more calculated and strategic. The monsters certainly move quickly like an action game, and yet madly pressing buttons is not the best response, since they can block your attacks, and you will need to block or evade their attacks if you want to survive. For this reason, it seems like the pace of the game needs to be slower. Especially if you're playing a character that isn't meant for a straight toe-to-toe fight. I found that I spent most of the game running at a monster and quickly retreating, or constantly retreating if I played a character with ranged attacks. Very little tactical variety.

Combat is kept very fast-paced and the levels are usually pretty short, so you're in and out fast. Provided you don't die that is, in which case you must start the level from the beginning. That can get frustrating. Enemy AI is not great, but they do place monsters very well to compensate for this. Quite often the smaller monsters will hide in the rafters, or on a roof-top waiting to push some crates or barrels on you. Friendly AI is also nothing to shout about. Occasionally you'll have to escort or fight alongside someone, but you'll be doing all the work.

A lot of this could be made up with multiplayer, something else the game missed out on. It would have been a great thing to allow two or more people to pick a character and go through the game cooperatively, but this is single-player only.

Between missions there are in-game cutscenes and mission briefings that tell the story well enough, and keep things moving. Except for some lengthy introductions at the start of the campaigns, the game is smart enough to keep you occupied. There is also some nice continuity between missions: in the Dark campaign, there's a mission where Mordessa sends you to whack a person you had to protect during the Light side campaign. Heh heh heh.

From the message forums I've been visiting, I see mixed reactions to this game. Some like the combat, others do not. If you like the combat, you'll be satisfied with Enclave. If you don't like the fighting, you won't find much else to take an interest in. The safe move is to rent it. If you're in love after fighting with the first few characters, then you can commit.

Info & Screenshots