bit-tech Shopping: Sony Champions of Norrath (PS2)

Rating: 8

Time with product:

Strengths: Excellent graphics; plenty of missions; good boss battles

Weaknesses: Some framerate problems

Summary: Champions of Norrath is another of the hack and slash games from Snowblind. If you're into hack and slash games, these games are good stuff. The graphics are great and the game controls are good. The storyline is nothing spectacular but is acceptable (you know orcs & goblins must be stopped). There are some good boss battles. The game has multi-player options for 2 players and online play. One weakness of the game is that the framerate gets bogged down when there are a lot of enemies on the screen or particle system effects. Other than that, the game is a pretty fun action game. Recommended.

Rating: 8

Time with product: 3 Months

Strengths: + multiplayer option, 1-4 players+ customizable characters and 5 groups to choose from

Weaknesses: - character models are a bit crude.- the camera for 2 or more players is too far away from the action and characters look like ants.

Summary: Even though Champions of Norrath has everything and more that the original Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance offered, for some reason I didn't enjoy it as much. It's good fun, especially when you have several friends to play along but I think the camera ruined it for me. When you have multiplayer on, the camera is zoomed out and really high making it very difficult to see what you're fighting.

Rating: 10

Time with product: 2 Weeks

Strengths: Ability to sell unwanted gear, and buy upgrades and better armor; excellent graphics

Weaknesses: Weak online capabilities; no "quick save" feature during missions

Summary: This game is one of the best RPGs I have ever played. The character customization at the beginning is unique, and the ability to add points to your character's individual skill set is another fun feature. The particle effects, lighting and detailed graphics are all excellent. Also, the music score adds drama to each level you encounter. The only drawback to this game is that sometimes the tile sets don't draw in quickly enough, and it appears that you are crossing over into a deep, black nothingness. All in all, Snowblind has put together a top-notch game in "Champions of Norrath".

Rating: 8

Time with product: 2 Months

Strengths: Online play, hours of entertainment

Weaknesses: gets repetitive

Summary: I thoroughly enjoyed playing this game. While I didn't play a lot of online play, I did utilize the multiplayer option a lot and it makes the game a lot more fun. Nonetheless, even with one player, this game can be fun. It is a hack and slash game set in an everquest world. Highly recommend.

Rating: 8

Time with product: 2 Weeks

Strengths: Great hack-and-slash adventure, online play, good music.

Weaknesses: Wierd freezing glitches, repetetive, cheaters in online play.

Summary: I've always loved cooperative games and this game is great way to play online or offline (with multitap). I have never gotten into any MMORPG due to the lack of real-time battles so it was a welcome relief that Sony decided to make this game. It's basically you and up to 3 other people get to explore different lands and dungeons to further the goals in the story and to enhance your character's weaponry, armor and skills. This game can get repetitive at times because it is a hack-and-slash adventure. There are some glitches and freezes with the game since the game's data (character data) is stored on your memory card (and not the servers). This causes the game to freeze at times and sometimes you get to a certain point in the game and get stuck (the only way to play again would be to start all over again). Also, there's the issue of people cheating, which ruins the fun of the game. It's probably best to play with people you personally know and trust. If you like a more engrossing (and online) Gauntlet type experience, then Norrath is for you.