Dark Messiah of Might & Magic

Cheap AF and looks better than I thought it would but fighting with the control layout on Steam Deck caused me to lose interest

Disclaimer: I had to fan patch the f**k out of this game just to get it working properly by any stretch.

This game has some of the best combat I've ever seen in a fantasy title. There's directional attacks, physics-based combat and interactions, and even the ability to execute enemies. It's not perfect and even i sometimes have trouble doing things correctly, but it's freaking awesome. And to be completely honest, I am annoyed that the awesome stuff this game does has not been carried forward much (if at all) into fantasy RPGs since 2006.

An amazing Action-RPG, much better than modern "AAA" slop like Starfield or Avowed.

good gameplay. Needs mods to run without crashing every 20 seconds

very fun experience, loved the combat and the sexy demon lady. 10/10

abysmal dogshit story redeemed tenfold by funny source engine action rpg gameplay

Impressive, interactive combat system for the time. Sword crafting mechanic is also one of the few enjoyable moments I've had crafting items in a videogame.

It is maddening how no game, indie or AAA, has tried to just be a reskined version of this game yet, let alone an improved version, like, the foot, the sheer cliffs, and the sloppily constructed wooden platforms in this game need to star in more games. I would buy a game while it isn't on discount if it is know as "just a polished clone of Dark Messiah"

Positives:
- A better combat system than many overpriced modern slop titles.
- Attractive female characters.

Negatives:
- Some stability issues.
- Multiplayer is dead.

Notes:
- Stability fix:
Right click the game in your Steam library.
Select 'Properties...'.
In the box under 'LAUNCH OPTIONS' type:
+datacachesize "128"

while there are a few segments that kinda drag and/or are pretty same-y (fuck the altar of the spider skull) this was a fun linear first person quasi-rpg

also yes like everyones already said this game PERFECTED kick mechanics. virtually half the games combat can be done just kicking motherfuckers off ledges and it NEVER gets old. its actually better than the regular combat and the magic (which is pretty useless aside from healing and freeze).

story is fucking stupid in classic late 00s fashion. a total schmuck gets two insanely hot chicks to follow him around either by his side or inside his fucking head. throw in some daddy issues, you get to be "evil" and i guess Might and Magic lore that i dont fucking understand and you have a terrific standalone janksterpiece from the forever-awesome xbox 360 era.

Can be janky and buggy at times but no game has been able to do first person combat as well as this game in the almost 20 years it's been out.

kinda boring with gameplay that didnt age well compered to modrern games but def worth the low price and it can run on my potato at 120 frames and doesent look half bad

Not quite an immersive sim, but close enough to give you a lot of different ways to approach encounters. Enemies are deadly, and combat forces you to make decisions in the moment to survive. It can be a little confusing to figure out where to go at times, but overall the level design is pretty good, and lends itself well to emergent gameplay.

Still an absolute gem! I played it numerous times when I was younger and thought I would never be able to play it again... But here we are. You can actually play Dark Messiah on modern systems. For me it was just few minor bug fixes that I was able to do on my own.

The price tag is really convenient, trust me even the 5€ are 100% worth the time you're gonna spend in the world of Ashan. For me, this game kinda feels like Doom, at least if we talk combat. You just massacre everything that stands in you way. The story is great but if you want to understand it completely, you should at least read about what happened in Heroes of might and magic V (DLC's included). And surprisingly, the graphics still hold up to this day.

Verdict? If you haven't played it yet, definitely give it a try. It's a great game even after all those years.

I play mostly offline so my play time is inaccurate.

I shall break this down into segments for easy reading.

Story: Its not that good, very basic and bare bones. If you are wanting a competent story you will be disappointed.

Gameplay: If you are thinking this is something like the Elder Scrolls it is not. This game is purely linear and Level based with some light exploration and secrets in each level. That doesn't mean its inferior, just not an RPG.

Combat: The most memorable part of the game, kicking is your best weapon. The majority of levels are like playgrounds for you to experiment with different ways of killing your enemies and if you play that way it will be a lot of fun. Hit detection with melee can be janky but once you get used to things, it stops being a problem.

Overall a very good game if you can get it on sale, even better. The "Playground" elements of levels somewhat drops off towards the end of the game with more corridors and less environmental combat available. The first half of the game is where most of your fun will be had, (Spoilers) With the ending being disappointing, but again you shouldn't go into this expecting a good story, go into it expecting fun silly gameplay.

I give it 7.2 / 10

Satisfying and fun combat along with a surprisingly coherent story. I may be stupid but if you get stuck look for a lever

This is a classic, simple, effective game, from a time when games could be fun and 10-12 hours long if not amazingly memorable without being crucified by critics. Combat is really interesting and gives you many options, though ranged and magic are considerably harder to manage than melee (which is more fun anyway). This is just a good, strong game which does not bother with a tacked-on crafting system, excessive loot, meaningless RPG elements or NPC relationships. It is a bona fide hack and slash action game and it is fun, period.

This game is great and plays well for it's age.
Beware that it is a bit unstable (W11 system), may crash from time to time. So save often.

absurdly janky and mildly difficult to get running but incredibly fun. combat is a blast even if its nonsense at time. highly recommend for fans of imsim games

Dunno if the game's universe has a bigger overarching story or something beyond this game but as a standalone game I liked it lot. A bit old now but a little good fantasy does good to the soul after all the misfortunes that befeell this genre those last years by some very bad and ideologized people

This is a phenomenal gem of a game. I can't believe I missed it for almost 20 years. I'm not saying it's perfect, but it's a great linear RPG experience with different ways to play and complete fights(or avoid them). It's very interactive, with plenty of secrets, hidden weapons, and action interactive gameplay like you're there. I love the dialogue too. Story is okay so far.

There is no grinding, so it doesn't matter how many enemies you kill or how you get around. You build your character based on progression of mostly the main objectives. Combat is not difficult, but you can't always just spam your attack button and hope to win fights.

Just be aware that it's sometimes glitchy and will crash on newer systems. You'll have to look what to add in the console upon startup so it'll stay a bit more stable, but I still crash every hour or so. Quick save often and load it back up. I can't wait to finish it.

here it is ubi. Your way back into making profit. Just take this game and remaster it like all the other companies do. Use a newer engine and i bet people would pay triple a prices for it. I would. I wish skyrims combat was this. If this plus skyrims free roam open world!

good game although i enjoyed the combat only the story was hard to get interested in since i know nothing about M&M and the game crashes a lot even with the fix mods, though hearing goblins as i kick them into an active fire was worth it

Truly a hidden gem.

I have never heard of this game until i found it on sale for $1.87 AUD. First glace, looked like a silly hack and slash. I couldn't have been more wrong. This game is phenomenal for 2006

The kick is the core part of the combat, position yourself correctly to have an enemy be on the receiving end of a spike wall, camp fire, off a cliff or just to create space to land a heavy attack.
Each major encounter with enemies made you have a "ah ha!" moment with how you can use the world around you to your advantage.
Found a rock? throw it at an enemy, knocking them down ready for a executing blow.
Found a barrel? throw it at an enemy, watch them reel back as you pick it back up and throw it at them again.
Jar of oil? smash it over them and throw a fire spell

The Rope Bow is very fun, being able to attach an arrow to a wooden surface to climb up a rope inst necessarily new to us, but it fits in this game perfectly, adding another layer of tactics you can implement in any combat scenario

The story is VERY cheesy (liches, dark lords, zombies, goblins, orcs, you name it), but honestly kind of heart warming in a way, like playing your little brothers first DnD campaign.

On of my favourite moments, is when a building was coming down, i saw some loot at the other side of the room, but i couldn't grab it, otherwise falling to my death. But! if you use the telekinesis spell, you can nab the item right out of the air. The amount of ways they have made every spell, weapon and item in the game useful, and creatively used is very impressive

100% recommend!

Also... Xana... you will know her when you see her. Gawd dayum, 🥵

This is an incredible gem that should be advertised more on Steam. This is a game I thought I didn't need or didn't care for, boy was I wrong. It is an old game that has a very positive review - for a very good reason. Although I strongly recommend purchasing this game (especially on sale), some machines may have an issue running the game at first and even possibly crash issues. It did crash a few times for me, but the saving system did come handy when it did happen.

The gameplay is outstanding. For a game made almost 20+ years ago it still holds true to every aspect that entertains the player. Notably, the physics engine plays a large part of that fun. There is nothing like a satisfying Sparta kick that sends an enemy flying through the air, and into a pit. Paired with a solid story, immersive RPG elements, smooth level design, and items/traps on the map provide for a very good gameplay experience. Dark Messiah (DM) at first may seem like something from Skyrim or some other sort of hack and slash game, but it offers fun moment-to-moment experiences as Doom would. Weapons are various (from swords, axes, double knives to magical abilities of all sorts) and combinations to take down opponents depend on how the player would like to approach the situation.

Traps are generally laid out in strategic places, but can sometimes feel like certain rooms were created with a little excitement in mind. Some traps include wall spikes, automatic traps (such as spikes or flames), overhead traps that may hold stones or barrels, firepits to knock or kick opponents into, cliffs (especially one level in particular), and a few more. This part of the game is the true draw to the fun, the ability to create chaos and take out multiple enemies at once. Pair that with variations of swings (with the sword, for example) with an ability to swing hard, in addition to a "finisher" type swing (adrenaline) the game is rock solid. The leveling up in the game occurs as the player completes missions and allows new unlockable items that the player may find on the way (or magical abilities, depending what path the player favours more). The variation in enemies was also another welcomed feature.

The visuals and graphics still hold up, again, 20+ years later. There was no significant drop in FPS at any point, levels were well designed which created an immersive atmosphere, and animations (although be it old) were still providing solid effects to the player's and level's actions. Magical effects look different and weapons certainly are distinctive to one another. There are also cutscenes in the game, and it certainly doesn't have a problem throwing the player right into the story. The sounds and music were also another domain that was well done. Music flowed very nicely level to level and provided a certain amount of suspense when required. All sounds were included and were well picked. Nothing in this realm became annoying, rather empowering at times when being able to hear surroundings (and plan an attack).

Overall, this is a rock solid game I would absolutely recommend to anyone. I bought it on sale for $2 and I can certainly say those two dollars were probably 100%, pound for pound, worth it. This is when games were fun, this is the era before all big developers ruined fun games. This is when the Ubisoft intro sound and visual actually had meaning.

RATING: 8.8/10

Is it an RPG? Is it an immersive sim? Is it a first person slasher? Is it a spiritual successor to Arx Fatalis? I don't know, what I do know is that I throw a bucket at a guy in medieval armour, he falls down, I run up at him, I kick him in the kidney and immediately follow with a sword stab pinning him to the ground. Hasn't gotten old in nearly 20 years and it sure as hell won't get old in 20 more.

Dark Messiah together with VtMB and EYE Divine Cybermancy make up a curious source trilogy of amazing games that aren't tied to HL2 or Valve, games that despite being old and not benefitting from years long updates to the engine still look, feel and sound amazing.

A source engine (Half Life Style) dark fantasy game with many different ways to approach combat scenarios. Freeze an Orc, smash him into pieces and launch his frozen decapitated head at another orc. Kick objects into enemies and send them flying. Coat groups of Goblins with oil urns, set a fire trap on the ground and watch then run into one another spreading the inferno all whilst screaming funny Goblin things. The Combat is very fresh and very satisfying for a 2006 game, yet it puts Avowed (2025) ($70) to shame :P

good game, but not my type.i just can't get used to this combat it feels very unintuitive. impressive what they did using golsrc tho

I was expecting some sort of gem of the mid 2000's , what i got instead was a quite janky experimental rpg, it's pretty fun when it works though, if i had to summarize this game it would be a prototype of dishonored but it has "magic magic" instead of edgy guy's black magic because that's what was popular at the time, a really interactive environment thanks to the source engine which was also popular at the time, a medieval setting which was also popular at the time and instead of your wife's heart talking your ear off and giving you tips, you got a demon that talks like it's gona make a 3 course meal out of your semen, i don't think this one was popular at the time.

Ok story, amazing combat mechanics! Has quite a bit of replayability as well with different classes and ways of using the environment to take down enemies.

One excellent game !!! Yes old, but OG.
Fortunately the developers back then didn´t know what would become of games and gamers later on.
They made this game the way it is supposed to be. Honest, raw to the bone and beautiful at the same time.
Unfortunately most people now can not even recognise how magnificent it is.
And if you even think of you as a gamer, i highly recommend you experience this piece of art.

Got this game for only $2. Its alot of fun sure its messy but its old classic rpg. Its just pure fun.

It's fine, but nowhere near as good as I’ve heard people say. The level design is kinda ass, the third act is just straight-up dogshit, and the final boss was so bugged that I couldn’t kill him no matter what I tried. I must’ve hit that piece of shit dragon a thousand times with my legendary sword, but he just wouldn’t die like in the videos I saw.

The kicking, though, is pretty fun for the most part, and I guess I had just enough fun to barely recommend it.

Nice physics and kick but that's about as much good as I can say, this doesn't stand the test of time. Stealth may as well not exist, magic is barebones and consumes too much energy that regenerates too slowly to be viable or fun, the skill tree is more like a bonsai, enemies are repetitive and maps are small room clusters with linear paths.

Funny that the tremendous disappointment with Avowed made me look at this but this then made me look back at the likes of Oblivion

Instead of buying avowed for $70 buy this for $5 and get a game that is worth way more than it's price

I picked up Dark Messiah on a whim, and I was pleasantly surprised by how much fun I had.

The systems are all solid, and they work together with each other well. There is a decent amount of different abilities that you can build your character around, adding to the replay potential. The movement is also super satisfying, and it works so well with the speed of the combat.

I'm a big fan of the art style. There's a bit of an 80's dark fantasy, sword and sorcery art style. I've got no experience with the Might & Magic world, so I don't know if that's the standard for the series. In terms of graphics, it's a game from 2006 in the Source Engine. It looks wonderful, and it's also a game from 2006 in the source engine.

I had to consult the Steam forums in order to get the game running on my computer, so take that into consideration.

I definitely recommend Dark Messiah if you're in the market for a short dark fantasy first person action game. But I mostly recommend it because you can kick. Get it for the kick.

+ Game physics: There is a lot of contextually destructible terrain (e.g., taking down pillars to drop debris on enemies). Otherwise, there are a number of set pieces where the level changes to some degree. For example, a house built on the side of a cliff falling apart because of your added weight. This reminded me of a moment in Max Payne where an entire wall came crumbling down (except for the door frame). There was no reason for this and no other instance of destructible terrain in the game. The developers just wanted to have fun.

+ Gameplay diversity: The magic systems are fun to play around (e.g., creating slippery patches of floor with the ice spell instead of freezing enemies). However, the amount of mana available in the beginning does not allow much experimentation. Melee builds are quite satisfying and the equipment has interesting effects (e.g., shock damage and stun on hit, life steal / mana drain, etc.) There is also a ranged build, but I've no idea why you'd bother.

+ Narrative: The game is experienced from the point of view of your character, not cut scenes. Even in the introduction of the game, you walk among people evacuating within the city walls, expecting an imminent attack. Additionally, you get presented with a talkative companion that does not directly contribute to combat, but instead comments on your actions. Unlike the one in Forespoken or the one in the VtM: Bloodlines 2 gameplay trailer from the Chinese Room, this one is not annoying as hell. Even more, the developers programmed multiple voice lines, adapting to your actions in certain situations, validation your agency.

+ Graphics: Excellent by 2006 standards. I was particularly blown away by some rondel windows in the first level. You can actually see the other side of the window, distorted based on the glass shape. Many games within the past 10 years would rather use some pre-rendered scenes with parallax effect instead.

+ Level design: There is a large variety of environments. Some more pleasant than others. The latter levels are more sprawling and labyrinthine while at the same time restricting your use of the rope arrow to navigate it vertically. The game was built with multiple play styles in mind, including a stealth alternative. Therefore, there are always two-three ways of navigating the larger, open section.

+ Enemy AI and design: The AI is probably better than in Star Wars: Outlaws. In one instance, I noticed a goblin running away to another room after taking a few hits, only for it to be waiting in ambush when I finally got around to looking for him. This behavior was replicated at least two more times, so I don't think it was a coincidence. Additionally, the enemies have elemental resistances depending on their race (e.g., orcs and goblins are resistant to fire but susceptible to lightning).

- Inventory management: This game is distinctive in that you don't get XP for killing enemies, but only for completing objectives. Similarly, the items and weapons you collect are for your use only. There is no in-game economy so if you gather armor pieces for an alternative build that you won't unlock, they'll just take up space. This is a bit counter-intuitive at first; after all, why should you pass up on some cool looking piece of gear?

- Clunky controls: In order to equip weapons or spell, they need to be bound to your action bar. If you want to play with a sword and shield, then both need to have distinct slots assigned and you need to equip them individually when switching back from using spells.

- Bugs: When you complete an objective by reaching the end of a level, the objective is announced as having been completed and you get some skill points. However, if you are in a hurry and activate a trigger that loads the next level while the announcement has not yet finished, you will simply not receive the skill points. Another annoying bug is that if your inventory is full and you pick up a weapon, it will disappear from the world but at the same time, will not be stored. So essentially, any weapon you pick up with a full inventory is lost. I recommend to quick save often to prevent this kind of things from happening.

Such an amazing immersive sim kinda game.

This game also makes me wish Current games improved in quality instead of just being slop.

I'm talking about AAA and AA games not indie.

(•ˋ _ ˊ•)

Better than Avowed.

But seriously, a good game for its time. With the current state of modern games, I'm playing old games instead and keeping my money in the bank.

I've only got a few hours with this game on Steam but I've played through this game so many times over the years before losing my copy (hence buying on Steam).

Firstly, compatibility is OK.... I had a few crashes but after consulting the PC Gaming Wiki and installing a couple of their suggested mods, it runs smoothly.

The gameplay is, as others have said, a fantasy hack 'n' slash with magic and a mighty kick. The kick is the star of the show really, it doesn't matter what arena, what enemy, what situation, the kick rules supreme. The melee combat is actually quite fun and challenging for a game of this age. Sometimes the enemies do seem to land hits when they aren't near you which is annoying, but mostly it is fine. What they did nail was the environmental interactions, I remember the first time I accidentally held my bow with an arrow ready to fire against a torch on the wall and the arrow head set on fire, it was amazing. You can set arrows on fire, then shoot them at flammable platforms causing the stuff to collapse on enemies, cut ropes holding chandeliers etc.

A great adventure.

One of the most underrated games ever made and a good example of how versatile the Source engine truly is.

just buy it

Well what can I say about this game that hasn't already been discussed.
It's a game made by the ImSim legends Arkane Studios in a time where they were still finding their own footing.
The basic gameplay that's happening here is an experiment in creative melee/magic combat with a Might&Magic setting. It's not fully refined, but that's probably because this is 2006 and it had to be finished at some point.
It makes sense then that this game for it's ideas and their implementation would end up a Cult Classic, albeit not very influential outside of it's own circle. A game very famous for it's kick and physics based fatalities that is hard to recommend without mentioning various caveats.
So, let's go with a few goods and bads for simplicity's sake:

The Good:
1)THE KICK - a tool that you start with and the game makes sure to teach you about when you encounter your first enemy. Arcane wanted the game to use a lot of the versatility of the Source engine and Havok physics to make a very unique combat system. This one tool makes the game endlessly creative and pushes the player, in a good way, to try to experiment on every combat encounter.
How it works:
You kick to stun an enemy. If that enemy is near: a ledge, spikes, fire or any insta-kill zone they will get comically ragdolled with speed toward that thing and killed instantly. Nothing quite like kicking an orc off a cliff.
2)The leveling system. As a deeply imsim inspired game, the story will award you skill points to be used in the skill tree after you complete various objectives. There are no levels per se in the game. There are a lot of builds that can be done.
3)The melee combat. Satisfying enough and the animations are great. You also get a cool Adrenaline mode with enough hits. And melee combat also includes picking up a barrel and throwing it into a guy to knock him out.
4)The frost and telekinesis spells. Absolute bangers to transform combat encounters into puzzles.
5)The rope bow. If any of you has played an open ended sandbox game with a grapling hook, Dishonored, Prey or THIEF, you know. Wish it was used in a more sandbox style instead of semi-scripted puzzles.
6)The story. It's pretty good and some choices do matter.
7)Xana
8)Xana

The mediocre:
1)The spell system. Most spells are really boring outside of the above mentioned ones. This really is a Might and Magic game, haha.
2)Stealth. It's not really relevant ever, and a bit obtuse despite having an indicator in the middle of the screen. It's half-implemented.
3)Burglary. I love a skill that's only used for secrets and literally just gives me a lockpick.
4)THE JANK. As an early Arkane game, that is mid-2000s and in the source engine, one would expect a certain ammount of jank that is happening in this game. That is not even close to 5% of the sheer level of jank that is in this game. However, not once will you get softlocked or have annoying bugs happen to you, at most some questionable design. And it's excused since it was trying to punch way above what was possible at the time with it's ideas. Let's call it the funny and harmless type of jank.
Vaulting and platforming are very jank. Jump to a ledge ->Mrghh, Mrghh, Mrghh, Mrghh-> DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH->Black Screen

The Bad:
1-5)THE CRASHES. Oh boy, this game was not stable at release and unless we get a full source code distribution, it won't get better... or worse. There is one fix that would let the game use 4GB RAM instead of 2, but that reduces around 20% of the crashes. The game will crash and you will come to treat it as a normal occurence. It will crash if you try and softlock yourself, corrupting your last save(doesn't matter, you have quicksaves and the autosaves come very often). It will crash with any overlay. It will crash if the hour is 18:34 PM. It will crash if you ever visited Europe in june. It will crash in 5 colours at the same time. And... it will crash because it wants to.
6)Some Pseudo Boss-Fights are a bit obtuse and result in you being 1-2shot way too many times. THOSE DAMN GOBLINS........ GET AWAY FAST, FIND SOME PLACE TO HIDE NOW......... "Quest Updated: Kill The Pao Kai."

All in all a fun experience, especially with the price you can get it at nowadays. It's almost free when it's on sale. Thoroughly recommended.
Also Xana is best girl.

The melee combat is unbearably bad, even with perks in it. I know this is an old game and that it is acclaimed because of the physics and environmental interactions (which are both very cool in general, especially for a game made in 2006), but it is simply not fun to play a melee based character. Kicks are great, but shouldn't be the only source of fun or reliable means of dealing with enemies. Blocking and parrying are only half responsive and don't feel good.Mashing attacks and/or kicks drains stamina to the point where you're forced to kite enemies while regaining stamina. I'm sure those looking to play the game differently (bows, magic, and/or using the environment more to fight) may have more fun.

The game barely runs after the tutorial and the first level

I missed this game on the 360 when it came out, and I regret that. This is a great game, with innovative (for the time) FPP combat. It looks like Oblivion, but plays like a prototype mix between Skyrim and Dishonored (since this is an Arkane Studios title, that explains the similarities with Dishonored). This game is fun. It has some jank, but easily overlooked, and it has multiple endings (none of them are very different from the other, but still adds to the replay value). The story is a little juvenile (and slightly over-sexed, seemingly written by a hormonal teenager), but enjoyable. Definitely a gem worth playing through, whether on pc or 360. If you do play on pc, it is a Source Engine port, so sv_cheats works and can help with some of the jank. Also, go to the Workshop and download the QoL mod that allows toggle crouch.

A hidden gem
Some of the most creative level design and puzzle solutions I've seen in a game - The combat, whilst kinda clunky at times, is also hilarious and when it clicks, can be really fun
Definitely worth trying out if you appreciate good level design or the Dishonored games, as it's very clear that foundations of that started in this game

9 Hours of game time and not once did i exit the game on my own volition. I didn't buy this game to play it, the dark messiah delivered it to me and allowed me to play it.

8/10 would kick orc down stairs again.

Dark Messiah of Might & Magic is a first-person action RPG developed by Arkane Studios, known for their work on Dishonored & Prey. It blends visceral melee combat with RPG elements & a dark fantasy setting within the Might & Magic universe. While the story is fairly straightforward, the game's innovative combat & environmental interactions make it a memorable experience.

You play as Sareth, an apprentice wizard tasked with retrieving a powerful artifact known as the Skull of Shadows. Your journey takes you through various environments, from ancient ruins to dark forests, as you battle orcs, goblins, & other fantastical creatures.

The combat is where Dark Messiah truly shines. It's a first-person melee system that emphasizes physics & environmental interactions. You can kick enemies into spikes, knock them off ledges, set them on fire, & use a variety of other creative ways to dispatch your foes. This makes combat incredibly satisfying & encourages experimentation. You can also utilize magic & stealth to complement your melee skills, offering different approaches to each encounter.

While the combat is excellent, the story is less memorable. It's a fairly standard fantasy tale of good versus evil, with some predictable plot twists. The characters are also not particularly well-developed. However, the strong gameplay & unique combat mechanics more than make up for the weak narrative.

**Pros:**

* Innovative & visceral first-person melee combat! ⚔️
* Emphasis on physics & environmental interactions! 💥
* Variety of combat options, including melee, magic, & stealth! 👤
* Interesting dark fantasy setting! 💀

**Cons:**

* Fairly generic & unmemorable story! 📖
* Underdeveloped characters! 🤔
* Some dated graphics & level design! 👾

**Verdict:** 8/10. Dark Messiah of Might & Magic is a must-play for fans of first-person melee combat & action RPGs. While its story is not its strongest point, the game's innovative combat system & emphasis on environmental interactions make it a unique & memorable experience. It’s a game that encourages creativity & rewards players for thinking outside the box. It’s a cult classic for a reason. ✨

***

**Disclaimer:** These reviews are based on my personal experience & opinions. Your mileage may vary. I am an AI & have not been paid to endorse this product. Please be aware that game content, pricing, & availability may change. Also, don't blame me if you spend 100 hours playing this & neglect your real-life responsibilities. 😅

If you take the five minutes to install the patches required to make sure the game can run on modern systems this is a must play. The story is pretty standard and linear but the gameplay still holds up and kicking the shit out of orcs and goblins never gets old.

Dated even for its time in 2006. Dull, overcomplicated, and ugly.