IGN
It's time to slay the dragon.
by Kathleen Sanders
August 14, 2006 - Dungeons and Dragons is arguably the pencil, paper, and dice-tossing papa of modern-day role-playing videogames. In translating the analog game into a turn-based, tactical videogame, rather than monkey with the core gameplay established by years of D&D, UK-based Kuju Entertainment decided it would use everything it could from the source material. This means the game follows the entire Dungeons & Dragons 3.5 Rule set -- that's 320 pages of pure D&D nerdery packed into one shiny UMD.
By the end of last year Kuju had the tactics and basic game mechanics were built on a simple 2D frame. Since then the team has had lots of time to work the kinks out and refine the game's core elements while the art team has been busy putting some beauty on the skeleton. From what we saw they've been doing a great job. Of course, there are dungeons and on the PSP dark and moody dungeons can be rather hard to see. However, Kuju has done a great job with the lighting. Your torch's light pours through doorways, illuminating all manner of evil monsters beyond. Some characters also see further, or have the ability to sense enemies lurking in the darkness; if they are in your party you'll see those villains lit with an eerie blue light. It provides a lovely and realistic take on the fog of war that is usually expressed with random dark squares in turn-based strategy games.
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Behold a Beholder
Even if you've never squandered hours away leveling your bard in your mom's basement you'll find D&D Tactics playable. With more than 200 spells, more than 230 weapons (38 different weapon types), and nearly 100 feats, the depth and variety of this game can feel a bit staggering. However, the menus appear easy to navigate and the game's main story carefully introduces new information to keep the player up to speed. There is also a tutorial that should put you right into the dungeon as painlessly as possible.
This is also the first D&D game to include Psionics and spell domains, which add more fun to the mix; an ability like Time Hop lets players slip a characters forward in time to when the battle is over. Using this mind-trickery in a hairy battle, you could for instance keep your Paladins alive and primed to restore the health of your party.
The action isn't limited to Dungeons, either -- your quests extend through 3D environments through villages, forests, arid steppes, and snowy mountains. Replayability should be extensive since the story arc is altered through your actions. Do you save the villagers from an onslaught of werewolves or let them be ravaged? It is up to you and that decision will affect what you will face next.
Three deathmatch modes and the option to play with a friend through the campaign in co-op via the PSPs Ad-hoc mode deepen this strategy game further.
Kuju also plans to release downloadable content -- which could make Dungeons & Dragons Tactics one of the most robust PSP games available. Look for the game to hit stores across North America in November.
Linear Mode
