Hack-and-slash role-playing games have long been better fits on the PC than they have been on consoles. There have been exceptions to that rule of course, and now Sacred 2: Fallen Angel is making another appeal for genre fans to kick the mouse to the curb. The Ascaron Entertainment game makes its debut on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 just over six months after it first arrived for the PC, but this doesn’t seem like a port. This is actually a slight refinement of the earlier game, and the improved interface and the often overlooked couch-comfort factor make it easier to enjoy the epic length of the adventure. There are still too many problems with the monotonous quest design and the unwieldy size of the game world for this to be a top-shelf action RPG, but it’s a little closer to that status than its PC cousin.
With that said, developer Ascaron Entertainment isn’t reinventing the wheel here. Sacred 2 is a Diablo double in every possible way. As is typical in action-first RPGs, there isn’t much of a plot. You take on the role of the usual muscle-bound warrior or kooky mage in the medieval fantasy land of Ancaria, playing as a hero in the light campaign or as a villain in the campaign of shadows. No matter which side you choose, though, the gameplay is all about slaughtering thousands of monsters, looting their corpses, and leveling up. Trouble is being caused by the high elves and T-energy, a glowing magic fluid that serves as Ancaria’s oil and is pumped all over the land in pipelines. But beyond that, you’re marooned between vague plot quests and odd jobs.
