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The "Siege Engine" will dazzle you (or induce vertigo, whichever comes first).
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Most RPGs coming out now feature 3D graphics, but I haven't seen any as downright impressive as Dungeon Siege. Using their very own "Siege Engine," Gas Powered Games has laid the groundwork for one hell of an RPG adventure. You can explore caverns, leave them and wander deserts, enter worlds of ice, or cross bridges over very deep chasms… and you can do all of this without the game ever pausing to load.
Upon hearing that, I really began to wonder just how that would be possible. No loading once the game started? This is a PC, after all, and not a console using cartridges. Curious, we asked Chris Taylor about this, and he told us: "The 'Continuous World' technology is achieved by using a few percent of the CPU to constantly load the world as the player's characters travel through it. In general we are very excited with how this has worked out so far and don't foresee any issues with the framerate." He also said that the engine was built from the ground up for the game's design requirements, and that it supports many of the latest forms of rendering technology, including transform and lighting (which is good news for all of you GEForce owners).
For many people, myself included, immersion is hurt a little bit by load times while playing a game. If I'm just getting into something and then a new screen pops up that says "LOADING" and a small display shows a bar being filled up as the game is being loaded, I remember that I'm not a great hero saving the world from evil… and then I realize I'm playing a computer game. After that, it takes a few minutes of play to again become immersed in the game. I really think that if the Siege Engine technology works out all right and doesn't make a game that requires dual 1GHz processors to play, Dungeon Siege will prove to be one of the most immersive RPGs to date.
The actual physical appearance of the game really is stunning. I witnessed the E3 presentation video, and seeing the game's landscapes was awe-inspiring (as far as games go, anyway). Who needs to go outside when you can wander realistic looking outdoor environments and walk alongside deep cracks in the earth? I sure don't, and at least in devoting my time to the game and not that overrated "real life" thing, I don't have to worry about thinking up gifts to buy for friends' birthdays (I won't have any friends).
Also, all environmental beauty aside, the game's characters were animated very well and helped bring the game to life. Watching the "farm boy" hack at the creatures invading his farm made me feel like I was watching a movie, and the animation in the characters' movements was very realistic. Later, when archers were shown, you could watch them pull out an arrow, draw it back in the bow, and then look at it cruise through the air before cutting into a soon to be unhappy spider.
Finally, the special effects are no disappointment either. Whether you were witnessing a building burn or casting a spell, the 3D accelerated effects grasped the attention of anyone who saw them. The most impressive display of effects was witnessing a large dragon breathe huge flames at an otherwise happy party of travelers.
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