Looking down on Dungeon Siege III

What is it with games like Dungeon Siege III and Dragon Age II that the PRs feel the need to sell them to us as third-person action games? They aren’t. They are isometric, top-down, dungeon crawling, hack and slash games. Do they think people don’t want to play top-down dungeon crawlers? If so why the hell are they making them? Why not just make third-person action games rather than try to miss-sell gamers one genre for another? Also where has this idea come from that people don’t want to play zoomed-out, hack and slash games anyway? The fact that gamers loved the original Dragon Age and that Torchlight was such a big hit should surely make it clear that it’s not a genre that’s going out of fashion. I love the isometric viewpoint. I love that it leaves a little to the imagination, while still having the visual scope to be beautiful. I love the loot-collecting and button-mashing my way through battles as I’m swarmed by enemies, occasionally breaking out a nice area effect spell that makes me tingle.

Publicity screenshot                                    Actual screenshot

Both Dragon Age II and Dungeon Siege III were hyped in such a bizarre way. All the screenshots were either from cutscenes or the camera was clearly pushed right into someone’s face in a way you’d never be able to sustain while in combat. All the press repeatedly drove home words like ‘action’ and ‘visceral’. I took offense at how often I read that Dungeon Siege III wasn’t going to be like the previous games, as though the publishers were trying to scrape some shit off their shoes. Through all the hype I kept hope that they were lying through their teeth and that these games would be exactly like previous top-down dungeon crawlers and as it turned out they were.

Publicity screenshot                                    Actual screenshot

Whether the minor changes to these games to streamline them a little making looting, customising and combat a little simpler is necessary or wise is another issue but it comes from the same source of discomfort that PRs have with the whole genre. In a game where you just click on every enemy to kill them, collect every bit of loot and run through narrow corridors over and over again, a little complexity is a good thing, surely? We need those weapon stats and armour options to bring a little depth to the gameplay. Don’t hide them. Not every game has to look like Mass Effect or Halo. It’s OK for there to be a different viewpoint, it’s OK for your character to be a little dot on the screen far below you. I sincerely hope that this isn’t another genre that disappears from gaming, especially since it’s still actually quite popular!