Geneforge

The Good
After years of work and study, you have been accepted to the most ancient, powerful and respected of magical societies, the shapers. As a shaper, you have the power to create life, to mold it out of nothing. The shaper's creatures, called serviles, are used in many ways, some to serve and do housework, others to fight and die, but all of them are completly obidiant, not one revolting thought in their minds. You are given a starting assignment and are sent to an island for some lab work. On your way you pass along an ancient island called Sucia, it was barred by the shapers long ago for reasons unknown. Then, out of nowhere, you are attacked, and you just barely make it to the island... you realise you’ve been trapped on Sucia island.

Through out the game you realise why the island was barred. A powerful artifact was created, the Geneforge, and the shapers on the island could not handle it, and knowing its affect, did not want to use it, and so they left leaving the island barred, yet the Geneforge intact. What the shapers did not think of when leaving, were the servile creatures. The shapers never gave the servile any respect or freedom, now the serviles were faced with a whole new chapter in their life, freedom and self care. A lot of serviles died through the winters, but eventualy they learned to survive on their own.

The serviles, now thinking on their own without any shaper authority, were divided into several groups of believes. One of them stayed loyal to the shapers, believing the shapers left the island for good reasons, and that one day they will return for them. Another group decided on their independence, they will no longer be commanded by the shapers, and if the shapers were to return, a peace offer would be made. The third group were the revolting ones, they decided against the shapers, and hate grew in their hearts.

Your appearance in the island will have a great effect, and you will have to choose how you treat those serviles. Will you command them, treat them as equals, or kill them? You will always have the choices to support any one of the groups, and even join them, but know that such decisions will change the course of the game completly, and that is what makes the game so amazingly open. Whatever you choose will have a great effect on you and your quest, dozens of different manipulative options, various different endings and free map roaming makes the game very non-leniar. What is very original is the fact that the choices you have to make, the sects you can choose and join, they are all honest and true – there is no good and bad, there is no wrong and right, they are all serviles who were deserted to die by their masters, they all have good reasons to their actions... its up to you to decide if serviles have that right to be free, you know that the outside shaper world would never accept it, but will you? While the final goal remains the Geneforge, it’s the minor quests and plots that make this game a great roleplaying experience.

I always love (the few) game that have lots of optional side quests, this is one of them :) Combined with a great plot and lots of original ideas, makes this game a very open RPG.

The Bad
You may know this shareware company from their previous RPG titles such as the Exile series, so you may know that the Spiderweb Software graphics are not what you'd expect from a game made in 2002, but keep in mind this is a small shareware company :) The turn-based battles tend to get somewhat long, hard (depending on your charecter choise) and repetitive, although the weapons selection is quite large and original, as some of the weapons are actualy living tools - shaper creations.

The Bottom Line
Well worth the time, you'll find this game alot of fun once you get used to the battle system, no doubt one of the best serious shareware games ever made, with an amazing story and tons of original ideas put into use, give this one a try ;)

The Good
You are a Shaper. You have the ability to create forms of life using only your magical essence. This ability makes your guild the most powerful in the world. Who can stand up to an army of monsters that have been perfected over centuries, that will obey any orders without thought for self-preservation, that can be quickly and easily replaced by skilled practitioners of the Shaping arts?

Well someone does stand up to them, and the result is this excellent shareware release from Jeff Vogel and Spiderweb Software. All the ingredients that make a good roleplaying game are present: interesting characters, an original and vivid setting, multiple solutions to problems, a world that evolves depending on your decisions, and an outcome the relies specifically on what you want to achieve. If you want to make things 'right', you can. If you want to swindle everyone and walk away laughing you can. Deferring decisions to your superiors is also possible. Just remember that there are consequences to your actions and people will suffer if you do the wrong thing.

Geneforge is essentially a game about choice. On the most basic level you choose your creations. Do you have an army of weak creatures, or focus on one or two stronger creations? Do you cast spells from behind a line of creations made for melee combat, or do you go toe-to-toe with the enemy while supported by monsters that disable your foes? Most possibilities are effective depending on your play style.

Most of the problems the game presents have either multiple solutions, or alternative paths. If one area is too combat-intensive, perhaps you’d have more success trying a route where subterfuge is the key. This adds replayability, as most characters can’t access all areas of the game.

The overall story of what happens adapts to the decisions you make, especially concerning the alliances you create. If you nurture one group, then it is more likely to have a favourable future. If you betray another group, then their friends will be wary of you, refuse trade, or attack you.

The setting is one of the most interesting ever created. The views and culture of the Shapers are presented in a consistent manner and revealed over the course of the game. You’re asked questions about the consequences and responsibilities of Creation, and the answers rest in your hands. This depth may not interest you, but is rare in any computer game, more or less a genre that frequently sinks to issues about statistics, treasure and kill-counts.

Speaking of which, the combat system is fresh and interesting. Everything’s handled by a turn-based system, and occurs on the same map as exploration. The primary thing that interested me was the AI of the enemies. Depending on an enemy’s intelligence, it will display a number of behaviours. Creatures created to fight on battlefields will charge on sight and fight until death. More cunning opponents will stalk you until you’re surrounded then move in for the kill. Others will fight until badly wounded and flee. Some see you and run for help, bringing every foe in the area down on your head.

Overall, this is a deep and interesting release that will have you thinking long after you finish. Even seemingly throwaway jokes like cows worshipping a god are treated with a fresh eye. What would you think if something created specifically to be eaten developed the sophistication of an organised religion?

The Bad
The game’s graphics simply aren’t up to most modern standards. They do the job, but there is definitely a preference for substance over style at work. Characters of the same type all share the same graphic. The footsoldiers of the secretive outsiders you encounter look the same as the Shaper Guardians. I find the approach refreshing, but not everyone will think the same.

Also the sound was annoying and repetitive. I found myself turning it off altogether after a few hours. Again, this doesn’t detract from the game in any way.

Some might find the overall difficulty of the game off-putting. I found myself swearing in frustration at points, but reloading and trying again anyway. Granted, I never tried adjusting the game to the easy setting. Still, it provides a challenge rarely found in most commercial games. You aren’t told where you can and can’t go, so you have to rely on trial and error to find areas that suit your character’s level and ability. This lead to frustration when I couldn’t find anywhere my character could survive. But I did explore more and win out in the end.

If I had to choose something about the game I really hated it would be the fact it ended and I had to find something else to play.

The Bottom Line
The consummate RPG experience. Granted, it won’t be for everyone. But if you enjoy games such like the Fallout series, or Planescape: Torment, you owe it to yourself to give this shareware title a try.