Previous Next

Your world has been infected with evil. Morgoth, who's not particularly nice, has been putting himself about a bit too much for the liking of the Gods. In their anger, they let loose a flood and drowned all but one of the surrounding lands and kept dinghy salesmen in business forever.

This land is. Arborea, the home of the four sacred crystals of harmony. As you'd expect, Morgoth has gone and stolen the crystals and it is your task to get them back. To help you in your quest you have six characters led by the well 'ard Prince Jarel. They all start off dead which isn't very helpful, so before you begin you must rejuvenate them, choose their character class and deal out 60 points to the four attributes of life, constitution, strength and agility.

Click on the 3D icon and you're thrown into the world of Arborea as seen through the eyes of Prince Jarel. The other characters can either follow him or go off exploring on their own - you can do this by moving them on a separate map. It's best to send some characters off on their own as they often find something useful on their travels.

There's a lot of skirting around to be done in the game and those crystals can prove pretty elusive. Luckily, you can stumble across a house and if the inhabitants are hospitable then they bestow you with new skills or reveal the location of a crystal.

In true RPG fashion you soon find yourself thrown into an argument with a motley collection of creatures, this usually ends in a bust-up. The fighting takes place on a chessboard style grid. It's advisable to pile in with the fighters and keep the magicians out of the way so they can cast spells. There is also a flee option in battle which is handy when things start getting a little too hot.

Wandering around the 3D landscapes creates a genuine sense of atmosphere although they do get a little repetitive and movement can slow down in this mode. On the other hand, the unique combat sequence is fast, simple and effective. Tripping over those attractive-looking houses in the forests breaks up the monotony of wandering around looking for crystals and livens the game up a bit.

Crystals Of Arborea is a good game - if you're looking for a definitive RPG and are willing to splash out, try Ishar, if not, you could do a lot worse than this.

1. Strategic role-playing game with effective combat sequences and impressive graphics.

1. Sparse sound. The disk accessing slows the whole thing down.