Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning Review — Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning Review — Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Oct 1, 2020 0
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In 2012, developers Big Huge Games and 38 Studios released Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning; a title featuring the work of creative minds, such as Todd McFarlane and R. A. Salvatore. Set in the fictional world of Amalur, Kingdoms of Amalur sees players take control of the Fateless One, a character who has somehow escaped death and is now the vanguard of their own fate in a world where fate is predetermined. The story would take the Fateless One on a journey to aid those in need while the Crystal War rages on between the mortal races and the Tuatha Deohn — a race of corrupted Winter Fae. Upon its original release, Kingdoms of Amalur found success among fans and critics alike, as the game quickly found an enthusiastic audience. Sporting an art-style reminiscent of World of Warcraft, and gameplay of traditional action-adventure titles, Kingdoms of Amalur was set up for success. Unfortunately, the high that Reckoning was experiencing would be short-lived as the title failed to break-even with sales, and the studios eventually filed for bankruptcy. As a result, the title faded into history, quickly forgotten as the industry moved on with only niche fans keeping its flame alive.  However, in 2019, rumors had begun spreading of an inevitable remaster for the title as THQ Nordic had purchased the intellectual property rights for the game. In July of 2020, the title was  officially revealed, with a release date to follow in the coming months. Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning is the remaster of the original game, with enhanced performance, visuals and, surprisingly, a new expansion to follow the next year. The announcement of Re-Reckoning had once again fanned the flames and reignited the fandom around the title.
Re-Reckoning

Characters

Face Lift 

Not much has changed for the story of Re-Reckoning, as players will still control the Fateless One and battle the Tuatha. If anything, the game now suffers from a storyline that has been beaten to death by other titles in every other medium. Where the title does differ, however, is the visuals. In 2012, the game supported a baseline of 720p on most platforms, and while back then, the visuals may have felt standard, looking at the original now will surely cause discomfort. With the release of Re-Reckoning, the title has now received a resolution bump to native 4k on some machines.  While the massive upscaling in resolution may sound fantastic to some, the reality is that only the pixel count has increased. The in-game assets, visuals and character models remain the same, which can look even uglier at the higher resolution. This is not to say that there is no beauty within Amalur. Despite old assets and models, the world and environments are still gorgeous to look at — thanks to the artistic timeless talent of Todd McFarlane — and the title is filled with rich lore and storytelling. One can only wonder though why more was not done to enhance the visuals of this remaster.  Along with a visual bump, the title received some enhancements to its performance as well. On the PlayStation 4 Pro, Re-Reckoning ran at a decent 60 fps, although there were noticeable times when the game struggled to maintain that cap. Nonetheless, it was genuinely enjoyable to experience an older classic at an enhanced framerate. With the next generation of gaming seemingly touting 60 fps as the new baseline for video games, it is nice to see a title like this get in on the ground floor. 
Re-Reckoning

Combat

Jack of All Trades…

The gameplay of Re-Reckoning screams 2012. This is neither good nor bad, as the title feels genuinely like a product of its time. While there can be some expectation from gamers for a remaster of an eight-year-old title to have some changes, it should not be judged for preserving the intent of the original vision. Where it can be judged, however, is in the quality of its original gameplay. In Re-Reckoning, players have the ability to sculpt their Fateless One in any way they deem fit. By investing into three skill trees: Might, Finesse, and Sorcery, players are guided down the paths of traditional role-playing character tropes.  Where Re-Reckoning shines, however, is in the ability to mend and fuse these classes into hybrids that reinforce just as much freedom as an MMO. Do you desire the playstyle of a rogue but want to have spells and cantrips in your back pocket? There is a hybrid class for that. How about a warrior that can rain thunder on enemies? Yep, class for that too. In Re-Reckoning, spending the time to invest in the character’s skill trees will yield worthwhile rewards for every player.  What makes the gameplay in Re-Reckoning disappointing though, is that this concept of class-hybrids is bogged down by the mundane repetitiveness of combat. No matter how specialized a character is, the same two buttons will be pressed in combat, with the odd dodge thrown in every now and then. This can be altered with the usage of skills; however mana management is required for moves that truly enhance the flow of combat. These abilities will drain mana more quickly, leaving you to return to the simple button rotation while it regenerates. This issue could have easily been addressed by the remaster if the developers had tweaked the mana requirement for specific skills.
Re-Reckoning

At least this grass is green

The Grass Isn’t Always Greener

No matter how aged Kingdoms of Amalur Re-Reckoning may feel, there is still a good game at its core. There is a reason why in 2012 it found a following despite fading into obscurity, and with Re-Reckoning, many are reminded of this title’s uniqueness once again.  After playing Re-Reckoning, it is easy to feel as though this title deserved a better remaster. With so much promise of a rich and beautiful world, the potential of rebranding the Amalur series and spawning more projects off of it is too great to pass up on. This seems to be the thought process behind THQ Nordics acquisition of the IP, as it has gone ahead and announced a brand-new expansion, Fatesworn, to be released in 2021. As a surprise to many, this expansion was announced alongside the reveal of the remaster, intending to fuel greater excitement for the game and tease the possibility of future titles.  With the knowledge of a brand-new story expansion coming to an eight-year-old game, one would have expected the reintroduction of Kingdoms of Amalur to be more celebrated by the developers and given more of a remaster than just visuals. There are numerous elements of the game that could have been modernized for current audiences to help boost reception and fan retention. Tweaking the gameplay balance could have gone a long way to add more replayability to the title, as players would have been encouraged to further experiment with the combat and classes provided. Adjusting character models would not have gone against the creative vision of the original, instead allowing for a more realized version of the art-style to be appreciated.  Everything about Re-Reckoning screams 2012. As previously mentioned, there isn’t anything inherently wrong with that, however for a remaster in 2020 and an expansion just over the horizon, there is more that could have been done to recapture the magic. This remaster thus becomes a case of managing expectations. If one is to understand that the title is intending to preserve the essence of the original as much as possible, then the developers have succeeded in doing so. The problem lies within the inherent flaws that came with the original now finding their way into the remaster. When this is considered, the title thus fails to provide an experience that is worth revisiting, ultimately resulting in an experience that makes one feel as though the game deserved better. Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning was reviewed on PlayStation 4 Pro. It is also available on PC and Xbox One. For more content, check out our NBA 2K21 (Current Gen) Review!
Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning1 PC240 Playstation 4196 Playstation 4 Pro2 THQNordic3 Xbox ONE424
About author

Daniel Pereira

From a young age I've loved video games and the power they possess in bringing different kinds of people together. I have forged many good friendships through this medium that would not exist without it. I love experiencing a new genre for the first time and finding out it resonates with me. Also, Conker's Bad Fur Day is one of the greatest games of all time. Fight me.

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