Sacred 2: Fallen Angel

Sacred 2 has become exactly what we have all hoped for: One excellent dungeon crawler building upon the strengths of Sacred 1 and a worthy heir to the game’s legacy. Though it could’ve been much better as new ideas are a bit rare. Nevertheless, Sacred 2 remains a great game with high replay value. [Issue # 16]

One of the most captivating fantasy worlds you can find in RPG genre. If you can get over a little bit slower opening you’ll be rewarded by hours of adventures. Surprisingly good sense of humor for a German game! [Oct 2008]

Sacred 2 will probably stay in the shadow of "Diablo III", but still manages to be a pretty good game. The huge enviroment will gift you many hours of gameplay and the traditional style of playing works more than fine. This being said, Sacred 2 offers few new features but in the end the balanced gameplay and varied mission structure will be worth you while.

Ascaron's second monster-bashing game returns to the huge and beautiful realm of Ancaria. It inherits both the virtues and weaknesses of its predecessor - and bugs, too. Possibly the best action RPG for a long time, Sacred 2 is addictive as long as it's not crashing. Ascaron is already working on new patches, which should be available soon .

Out of the box bugs make a mockery of Ascaron’s hard work, making the difficult job of selling an already unfashionable genre even harder. But even we can recognise that despite everything, some of the sheen and charm has worn off the second time around. Whatever Ascaron has planned to make a success of next year’s console releases, they have some hard work ahead.

Sacred 2 has a passable single-player mode, but it comes inot its own online with the right company. [Issue#14, p.52]

Sacred 2: Fallen Angel doesn’t really do anything new or particularly better than any other level grinding RPG out there, but it does it all quite well and offers a massive world that will take ages to explore fully.

An entertaining romp.

The AI is pretty dumb, the pathfinding is indirectly and randomly reliant on the cursor’s direction, and there are some pretty ridiculous situations in which a “highly” intelligent person would think of “real sex”, but it’s at the same time the game is extraordinary through its “heart-pounding” addictiveness and the fact that it made me laugh out loud a few times.

Ascaron team deserves a bow with a flourish for their creation: a beautiful, rich fantasy world. It also deserves a kick in the pants for spoiling the fun with lots of annoying bugs. But punishing the enemies using an electric guitar relieves the tension considerably. [Dec 2008]

Numerous glitches, crashes and bugs make Sacred 2: Fallen Angel an experience sometimes more painful than enjoyable. Yet, despite its technical flaws there is fun to be had with this game, as it easily improves the predecessors formula in lots of ways: Impressive visuals, a huge world to explore and some elaborate control mechanics make this a good game that is worth your attention, as soon as the developers have finished their job and released the necessary patches.

Sacred 2 is a game that makes it really hard to write an article about. On the one hand, many aspects of the game have been successfully and outstandingly realized, on the other hand, there exist a lot of minor things that leave a bad impression.

Sacred 2: Fallen Angel may contains some programming errors, but it's one of those titles that role "hack 'n slash" PC game lovers won't want to miss. It's long, it's cheap and it's a good reason to continue trusting in the PC platform.

Sacred 2 improves upon its precursor in many ways. While some elements of it still need work, much of the game is a good example of the evolution of the hack-and-slash game.

Overlook the few minor irritating aspects of the game, and you'll find Sacred 2 to be surprisingly enjoyable.

The consistent humour of the game as well as the hours of gameplay that can be casually enjoyed cooperatively with friends makes Sacred 2 stand above the usual clone variety of fantasy RPG.

Sacred 2 is a pure, old school hack'n slash made for old school fans of the genre. There is no will of experimentation and it uses the classic formulas for player archetypes, combat, evolution or loot. It´s certainly enjoyable if you love the genre, but it doesn't offer anything new and at some moments it suffers from technical glitches and other small annoyances.

As far as Diablo-style hack-and-slash action-RPGs go, Ascaron Entertainment's Sacred 2 is the best genre entry since Titan Quest.

If Ascaron patches in fixes for the bugs, to shore up the game, this will be quite entertaining and should provide a lot of fun. The graphical elements are, for the most part, well done, and the game has a very good vibe to it – it does not take itself too seriously, while at the same time telling a decent story.

Still, this game is at home on the PC, there's no mistake. It's too bad that home isn't a terribly comfortable one.

There really is a lot to like about Sacred 2, but only as long as you are willing to put up with the constant need to micromanage your journey with a high tolerance for FedEx-type questing.

For the people on the lookout for a new RPG to play and especially the ones who are awaiting Blizzard’s Diablo 3, Sacred 2 might just pass the time for you. It won’t replace your Diablo 3 thirst, but it will give you something to play in the meantime.

Despite being a deep RPG that delivers a lot of scope for fans of the hack 'n' slash genre, Sacred 2's 16-player online multiplayer is its only real stab at originality.

Although Sacred 2: Fallen Angel doesn't break any new ground, it does impressive work freshening up an old formula.

Sacred II nails the unfettered joy of exploring a wide-open fantasy world and ties it to the always-amusing process of building a heroic avatar to meet the stiffest of challenges. To dismiss it merely because of its (dozens of) missteps is to lose out on the many things it does well.

Though it has flaws, Sacred 2 has more than enough personality to make it a solid action RPG.

Fixes addressed, Sacred 2 should scratch that nagging ARPG itch between now and Diablo III. [Jan 2009, p.121]

For those with a passion for exploration and character development, you can't go past the lush landscapes of Sacred 2's Ancaria to give you a long-lasting level grinding fix.

If you like Diablo-style games, Sacred 2 is for you. The single and multiplayer options included provide nearly endless replay value for fans of the hack and slash genre.

Basically a nice Action-RPG which is its own worst enemy with repetitive gameplay, complicated inventory and a dull story.

If you liked "Diablo" and are salivating at the prospect of getting back into its dungeons, Sacred 2 will keep you going until "Diablo III"'s release. If you didn't, Sacred 2 will be an experience comparable to having your eyes pecked out by eagles. [Jan 2009, p.74]

Mindless hack-n-slash nonsense, in a very pretty world. [Jan 2009, p.98]

All the sore spots that we hated in Sacred Underworld have found a new home in the sequel. Take any modern MMORPG, and it will offer you all the same things as Sacred 2: rudimentary story, copy/pasted quests, constant grinding. And much more than that.

Sacred 2 is the best Diablo clone since Titan Quest and its excellent expansion, Immortal Throne, and while the compulsion to play is there, the unholy alliance of clicking and collecting works and works well.

Okay, so there's plenty of irritating stuff but we're here for the clicking, and there's plenty of clicking to be had. This is no challenge to Diablo or even Dungeon Siege, but the world is big and there's plenty of stuff in it to murder. And isn't that, at its heart, the essence of the action RPG? [Christmas 2008, p.79]

If it weren’t for all the bugs, Sacred 2 would get a better score, but as it stands now it needs some significant patching to reach its full entertainment potential.

A decent action RPG with some interesting and unique character development. It may take some time to appreciate, and many won’t. It’s worth a look, but it’s not for everyone.

It needs to be said that Sacred 2 is still rife with minor bugs, but patches are slowly mending the game-crashing bugs and graphical mishaps. This is just one of many clues that point towards an overambitious design document that didn’t have enough time or manpower to execute fully.

Proof that more isn't necessarily better. [Christmas 2008, p.80]