Mage Knight: Apocalypse

Forgivably unoriginal roleplaying. [Dec 2006, p.82]

The length is quite satisfactory, the inclusion of co-op play is a very good bonus, and I just found this to be a really fun RPG romp all around – which, ultimately, is the most important thing.

Uninspired slop. MKA had quite a bit of promise, and we were extremely excited to play the game based on interviews with the staff members, but issues with the control scheme and gameplay functionality killed what we were hoping would come about in Mage Knight: Apocalypse.

Feels like a half-hearted effort in a saturated genre that won’t be keeping the folks at Blizzard up at night.

If you find its imperfections endearing there’s much to position Apocalypse as one of the bolder attempts to further the art of the click-fest. [Dec 2006, p.85]

Mage Knight Apocalypse is a lot like eating the generic store brand equivalent of Lucky Charms. It has everything you expect, but doesn’t taste quite right.

Unfortunately the AI in the game makes it frustrating at times, and the simple hack-and-slash style of the game really doesn’t do anything to make the MK universe unique; it just offers up something we’ve all seen and done before with a couple of minor tweaks.

Unfortunately, the game suffers from all around poor AI, several bugs like being able to blast spells through doors, and an all too beneficial save-respawn system that make it incredibly easy to beat.

A fairly average, poorly constructed game, built around some refreshing, interesting ideas, and you'll probably be frustrated at what could have been more often than you're entertained.

This is just another example of how a game with apparently decent production values fails based off the lack of proper planning and design.

At its core Mage Night Apocalypse is, although not brilliant, at least passable. However, the fact that the game is hampered by numerous interface problems means it can only be recommended to those obssessed with the Mage Knight universe, or those that want to play every RPG there is.

Even if you can escape the stupidity of the AI, you can’t avoid the other shortcomings of the game. And it’s a shame, because the story is not that bad and the graphics are sometimes enchanting.

Mage Knight Apocalypse is a sloppy attempt to adapt the collectible tabletop miniatures game to a dungeon-crawler format.

MKA's unresponsiveness and emptiness gives it the air of an MMO that was canned and crammed into a single-player format, or was designed for the soloing MMO player. [Jan 2007, p.82]

What we have in Mage Knight is a poor attempt to hop on the "WoW" gravy train. The developer clearly flayed all the depth and nuance out of the formula that made WoW such a huge commercial success, delivering instead a soulless husk stuffed with empty promises and features that you wouldn't want anyway.

Devotees of this universe's mix of fantasy staples and steampunk gadgetry might find themselves unable to resist Mage Knight: Apocalypse's dubious lure, and may even enjoy the game's character-building freedom if an effective patch comes along, but they aren't likely to stay enamored for long when this holiday season's bigger and better RPG offerings finally appear.

The few things the game does well (voice acting, the potion-brewing system, the item imbuing system) just cannot possibly hope to save what is, at best, a beta-release bundle of sloppy code.

The main linear quest path provides the bulk of Mage Knight, with little in the way of sub-quest trimmings, and the replay value is low despite the temptation of trying out new characters.

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.

Tedium, interrupted by frustration. [Holiday 2006, p.86]

We can't think of a time throughout the history of the PC when this might have been considered a well-executed title. [Christmas 2006, p.92]

The final nail in Mage Knight's coffin is the camera system. It's the most bizarre use of a third-person camera of any game in recent memory.

One final warning to keep you from you buying this game: The sound effect you hear when you gulp a potion is a squeak akin to fingernails scraping a chalkboard or the running of unoiled machinery. [Jan. 2007 p.62]