Who games like the two original Thief-parts (in Germany under "Dark Project" known) loved, will discover here strong parallels and also one or the other hidden homage to the master thief, which is not surprising, since with Arkane a considerable part of the former Looking Glass Crew included (advisory) Warren Spector had their fingers in the level design. In this respect, probably not a complete coincidence that hero Sareth plays in terms of control, like the heroes of System Shock 2, Deus Ex 1 or Thief. 1 and 2
Dark Messiah is basically constructed as a linear shooter, although some areas in different ways and can be walked all already trodden areas usually can be re-entered and also need.
Nevertheless hero Sareth spends most of the game with the attainment of a specified target date on which it fend for himself / -zaubern or -schleichen applies.
May sound uninteresting, but it is not. Firstly DM comes up with a well-implemented two-pronged backstory that keeps the player at the bar, on the other hand, I rarely a fight control so liked to play like this, because it is relatively intuitive and at the same time extremely versatile. The battles make plain fun. Sareth can be much more direct control than many key combination artistes superhero and you experience his struggles also so directly that one has the feeling of being in the middle of the action.
Besides, the world of the game is einflechtbar to a large extent in the fighting, boxes can be hurl telekinetically with force against distant opponents, poorly supported wooden structures to bring a targeted shot to the collapse, unwary opponents to take over one or the other edge of the wall, etc - the joyous experimentation with magic, sword, bow and crawl skills is thus a free hand.
The characters of the game are mostly prefer full, credible and designed like a small dash of humor or irony, it's fun to listen to many a conversation Goblins or Orcs, before it comes to the inevitable conflict with them.
DM must neither his nor his graphics physics engine hide concerning prior blockbusters such as Oblivion. The game works even in low resolutions never simple. I've played it, among other things on a laptop with a Mobility Radeon ATI700 to 800x600 without feeling the difference to my other systems as too serious. Bugs, there were non-at least for me and there are plenty of patches available, even if the product maintenance should have been set.
Of course, the Dark Messiah is at its best when it can run to its maximum settings.
The physics of the game environment looks very realistic thanks to Valve Source engine and can Sareth also sometimes be fatal if it does not yield such as a self-imposed trap like a chandelier falling down fast enough.
Dark Messiah has at least managed under the top ten of my favorite action adventure quickly with me. I know now can not remember how many times I've already played, in any case, not for the last time.
