Grim Dawn

So far, this is my favorite game on Steam, but keep in mind that I am an ARPG newbie. [h3] TL;DR This game has no drawback except that I feel like a criminal for buying the complete edition for only $50. This is seemingly thousands of hours of QUALITY exciting gameplay and I didn't even want to review it yet because 70 hours still wasn't enough for me to see everything... With a single character... On a single difficulty. NUTS! Even the story and environments get interesting. [/h3] First, if you're like me and look at the store page and find that the scenario/setting is a bit of a turn-off for you and that's why you decide to skip this... I ultimately ended up liking it; it's just the first part that's boring environment/story-wise. By the time you hit the first expansion, you'll be shocked how much of an adventure this is. Even if you only get the base game, it's really cool how far you get to travel through the world. But get the expansions man, it only gets better. Gameplay-wise: Insane. This game is nuts. I am still playing through everything with my initial character, but the itch to make a new character has been there since level 20 a few hours into the game. Even within just one dual-class it feels like there are 5 sub-classes. I genuinely think there's probably more than 30 fun characters you could build. You can respec easily and cheaply, so the game does encourage you to go bananas and play around, though attributes are harder to respec (need a rare item). I think I just need to bold this too: [h1] there's no hidden problem here, no "Always Online" "Microtransactions" "technical issue" "AI-produced content" "3rd party launcher" [/h1] I hate that that's not the norm anymore, but it is what it is. As a ARPG newbie I was reading reviews for other games and I couldn't find one that doesn't have some weird problem. This is a finished game, not bait with some fishing line - Again, it's TOO finished. But that's not the reason I love this game, it's just the reason I bought it.

I can't believe I didn't know about this treasure until now. What a wonderful game! Much more fun than Diablo IV and for a far better price. It feels a little like a successor to Diablo II. Don't let the age and the graphics hold you back. The game runs beautifully on Windows 11 and the graphics are still colorful, intense and convey the appropriate mood. Highly recommended.

I like it but it's a hard sell. Planning a build is complex for the sake of it. The devotion UI is a barrier, components are a barrier, augments are a barrier. You need a third party database to learn what build-defining items exist. Third party sites also help to learn which skills work together. It's not depth, just obscure knowledge. End game is the usual random farming but the shared stash is tiny, so you need a third party app or you will lose most items. You need to max out a ridiculous number of resists, and tough end game areas/bosses need some to be even higher. Multiple gear sets are the answer but there are no gear loadouts to keep track of them. End game items also have an essay of stats and effects to compare (seriously, 20+ lines). It's a lot of work even if the payoff is a big power fantasy. My friends all said "stuff that", so now we play other ARPGs.