Dungeon Siege 2

Dungeon Siege II is an epic action role-playing game where players lead a party of heroes to battle a growing evil in the land of Aranna. Engage in real-time combat, explore vast environments, and customize your characters with a deep skill and loot system. Developed by Gas Powered Games

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License: Commercial

Categories:

Game

Available for:

Mac OS X Windows Steam Discontinued

About Dungeon Siege 2

Dungeon Siege II expands upon the foundations of its predecessor, offering a rich and immersive fantasy adventure set in the troubled land of Aranna. As a mercenary initially caught in a conflict, you quickly become entangled in a prophecy that foretells the rise of an ancient evil. The game masterfully blends real-time action combat with strategic party management, allowing players to control up to six characters simultaneously.

Key features that define the Dungeon Siege II experience include:

Expansive World & Exploration: Journey through diverse environments, from lush forests and arid deserts to chilling ice formations and ancient ruins, uncover secrets, and complete a wide variety of quests that flesh out the lore of Aranna.
Deep Character Customization: Choose from various character classes and develop their abilities through a flexible skill system. Acquire powerful armor and weapons to tailor your party's capabilities and appearance.
Strategic Party Management: Control and command multiple heroes, each with unique skills and roles. Strategically position and manage your party's actions in the heat of battle to overcome challenging encounters.
Intense Action Combat: Engage in visceral real-time combat against hordes of diverse enemies and formidable bosses. Master a range of abilities and spells to dominate the battlefield.
Rich Loot System: Discover a vast array of items, including rare and legendary gear with unique properties, that significantly impact your characters' power and playstyle.

Dungeon Siege II provides a compelling narrative, engaging gameplay mechanics, and a wealth of content that keeps players invested for hours. While online multiplayer functionality is no longer officially supported, the single-player experience remains a robust and enjoyable journey for fans of the action RPG genre.

Pros & Cons

Pros

Deep character customization and build variety
Strategic party management adds tactical depth
Vast world with plenty of quests and exploration
Addictive loot system and progression
Engaging single-player campaign

Cons

Official multiplayer servers are discontinued
Inventory management can be cumbersome with a large party
Graphics are dated compared to modern titles
Camera angles can occasionally be restrictive

What Makes Dungeon Siege 2 Stand Out

Strategic Party Control

Efficiently manage the actions and positions of multiple characters in real-time combat scenarios.

Deep Loot Customization

Find and equip a vast array of gear to personalize your characters' stats and appearance significantly.

What can Dungeon Siege 2 do?

Multiplayer

Play with friends and other players on servers, collaborating on projects, competing in minigames, o...

Single Player

The primary mode of play is designed for a solitary experience, focusing on a linear or semi-linear ...

Action Combat

Gameplay is fast-paced and focuses on direct engagements and skirmishes between players.

Isometric View

Develop games with an isometric perspective, commonly used in strategy and simulation genres.

Third Person Perspective

View the action from a third-person viewpoint, providing a dynamic and cinematic perspective on game...

Party-based Gameplay

Manage and control a party of multiple heroes, each with their own skills and equipment.

Review

Dungeon Siege II Review

Dungeon Siege II, released as the sequel to the successful action RPG, builds upon the foundation of its predecessor while introducing significant enhancements that elevate the overall experience. The game is set in the fantasy world of Aranna, and players are thrust into a sweeping narrative that involves ancient evils, prophecies, and the fate of the world.

Gameplay Mechanics

At its core, Dungeon Siege II is an action RPG with a strong emphasis on party management. Players control a single character initially but quickly gather companions to form a party of up to six heroes. Combat is real-time and can become quite hectic, especially with a full party. The game offers a pause function, which becomes crucial for managing the actions and positions of individual party members during intense battles. Each character can be assigned a combat role and AI behavior, allowing for some degree of automation, but direct control is often necessary for optimal performance.

The class system in Dungeon Siege II is flexible. While characters start with basic proficiencies, their development is largely determined by how they are played. Using spells will increase their magical abilities, while wielding melee weapons will improve their combat prowess. This organic progression system allows for greater freedom in character builds, though it can also lead to characters being less specialized early on.

Loot is a significant part of the Dungeon Siege II experience. Enemies frequently drop equipment, potions, and gold. The variety of gear is impressive, with different rarities, magical properties, and set bonuses. Finding powerful new items is a constant driving force and contributes significantly to character progression and customization. Inventory management can become a task, particularly with a full party, requiring frequent trips back to vendors.

World Design and Exploration

The world of Aranna is vast and varied. Players will journey through diverse environments, each with its own distinct aesthetic and enemy types. From the forests of the starting area to the deserts, frozen landscapes, and underground dungeons, the world feels expansive and offers plenty to explore. The environments are generally well-designed, with hidden areas, side quests, and lore snippets scattered throughout.

Quests in Dungeon Siege II range from straightforward fetch quests and monster hunts to more involved storylines that tie into the main narrative. The main questline is engaging and provides a clear path through the game, but the numerous side quests offer additional experience, loot, and insight into the world's lore. The pacing of the game generally feels good, with a steady flow of enemies, quests, and progression.

Presentation

Visually, Dungeon Siege II, while dated by modern standards, featured impressive graphics for its time. The environments are detailed, and character models are reasonably well-rendered. The effects for spells and abilities are visually distinct and impactful. The isometric camera view provides a good tactical overview, although it can sometimes feel restrictive in tighter indoor environments. The audio design is solid, with fitting music that enhances the atmosphere and satisfying sound effects for combat and abilities.

Multiplayer

Originally, Dungeon Siege II included a robust online multiplayer mode, allowing players to team up and tackle the campaign together. However, the official servers for Dungeon Siege II have been shut down, meaning the original online multiplayer functionality is no longer officially supported. While community-driven solutions might exist, the primary way to experience the game now is through its single-player campaign.

Conclusion

Dungeon Siege II is a classic action RPG that offers a substantial and enjoyable experience, even without official multiplayer support. Its blend of real-time combat, strategic party management, and deep character customization provides a compelling gameplay loop. The vast world of Aranna is filled with content, and the progression system keeps players invested in developing their party. While some aspects of the game, such as inventory management and the camera in certain situations, can be minor annoyances, they do not significantly detract from the overall quality of the experience. For fans of older action RPGs or those looking for a deep single-player adventure with significant replayability through different character builds, Dungeon Siege II remains a recommendable title.