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It’s amazing how a proven game design like, oh let’s take Diablo as a completely random example, can be cloned and somehow end up a near complete failure.  Sometime cloning games works.  Case in point? Titan Quest.  Sometimes it doesn’t.  Mage Knight Apocalypse doesn’t.

Apocalypse Who?

What’s more bewildering is that on paper, Mage Knight Apocalypse has everything a Diablo fan should enjoy.  Several different character classes, lots of different monsters to attack, tons of skills to learn and loot to pick up.  It’s set in a fantasy realm, obviously based on the Mage Knight tabletop miniatures game.  Although generic, the fantasy stylings of Mage Knight are more than adequate for a video game.

But almost immediately, Mage Knight Apocalypse fails to impress.  The storyline fails to resonate with the player right from the beginning.  It’s about some great evil you’re called upon to banish by the whim of this weird purple crystal dude.  Bad plot aside, the characters in the game never really come to life.  Contrast that with something like Diablo II and you’ll understand where we’re coming from here.  Part of the drive to continue playing (and pay attention to) Diablo II comes from the characterization of the heroes and villains in the game.  In contrast Mage Knight Apocalypse is populated by cardboard cutouts.  There’s no joy or excitement in playing the game.  It’s all very mechanical.

Level-Up!

But at least the mechanics are solid.  Mage Knight Apocalypse does what every good Diablo clone should do and then some.  There are plenty of items with which to outfit your character.  You can even tweak your weapons and armors giving them an additional magical boost.  You can also brew your own potions from plants found in the game world.

The most satisfying aspect of the game is the character advancement system.  There are no hard levels.  Instead you gain new skills based on how much you use skills and attributes. It’s a bit like a cross between Diablo’s skill point system and the more amorphous one found in Dungeon Siege.  And it works really well.

Battlefield Contortions

Sadly, the rest of the game appears designed to give you as little fun as possible.  The inventory system is a complete mess.  Items stored in your backpack can be immediately equipped with a mouseclick, but there’s no simple way to ascertain if the new item is better than the one you’re already using.  Everything in your inventory is portrayed as a tiny icon. In some cases, items didn’t even have an icon, just a mess of white blocks.

Even the combat comes across as unsatisfying.  The game is in full 3D and appears to encourage you to constantly adjust your camera angles.  But doing that while moving your player around AND using your mouse and keyboard to attack is a bit too much to ask.  It never feels very comfortable. It also doesn’t look very good.  The game has clunky combat animations to match the clunky controls.

Save. Die. Reload.

The save / death mechanics appear designed to make the game as painless as possible, but in practice vacillate between frustrating and boring.  When your character dies, he ends up at the nearest save point with 50% health.  However, occasionally the monsters you were just fighting will be near the save point too.  So you’re immediately thrust right back into battle with half your health.  Since there’s no long term penalty for death, you can just keep dying and respawning until you finally wear down the enemies.

You eventually come across companions who will accompany you one your journey.  They are more a curse than a blessing thanks to the spotty AI.  Your buddies make a habit of getting lost or stuck on the scenery with alarming frequency. 

A-POO-Calypse

That’s Mage Knight Apocalypse in a nutshell.  It’s a fine idea.  Hey, if Diablo can be a smashing success, why not an unabashed clone?  Well, the devil truly is in the details.  A good game design need to fire in all cylinders.  Mage Knight Apocalypse stumbles on so many levels, it’s a wonder they ever got it out the door.

Article by: Greg Bemis
Video produced by: Sean Jennings