The Temple of Elemental Evil

In Temple of Elemental Evil, hardcore tactical gameplay takes top billing.

Looking for an RPG that will really put hair on your chest? Then check out The Temple of Elemental Evil, a hardcore adventure based in Greyhawk, a classic world created by D&D innovator Gary Gygax. If you have patience (and a robust PC), this one?s for you.

Witches? Brew
Judging by the clean menu design, TTOEE?s developers focused on creating the most intuitive control scheme possible. Unfortunately, the results are mixed: While the simple point-and-click navigation system is fine, party members often become separated in towns. TTOEE truly shines in its turn-based combat, the heart and soul of any old-school D&D title. You can easily access spells and skills via slick radial menus, while a color-coded action system makes tactical maneuvers a snap. The addition of D&D version 3.5 rules means characters also have loads of new abilities like Trip and Coup de Grace. Overall, TTOEE rewards the patient; once you learn the rules and grasp the controls, you?ll be hooked for life.

In the visuals department, TTOEE?s environments boast eye-catching details like bubbling slime pools and swarms of butterflies. To see all the graphical details, however, you?ll need a high-end PC, and even then you can expect some occasional slowdown. As for the audio, TTOEE offers a stirring soundtrack and atmospheric effects?just disable the irritating party chatter.

Excelsior!
The lack of multiplayer options is a shame, but TTOEE is the best D&D title in recent memory, especially since parties of different alignments (good, evil, neutral) all face unique plots. This all adds up to one monstrous nonlinear RPG packed with plenty of replay value. If you?re looking to kill roughly 200 hours of free time, here?s the perfect opportunity.

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