9/10
Criminally overlooked! Let me start by saying this definitely isn’t a game for everyone. Not because it leans too heavily into any extreme, but because it came out at a time when most players weren’t ready to explore it or to enjoy a game that doesn’t hold your hand. I have little doubt that if it had released during the golden age of CRPGs, it would be considered a cult classic today.
And to be clear, I don’t mean that in a “git gud” sense. I’m not even sure I fully understood or mastered everything myself—and I don’t think you need to. It offers fantastic art direction, a unique and compelling mythology, and systems that feel refreshingly different from the usual genre conventions. At one point, I even found myself taking notes in my journal about quests, which added a whole new layer of enjoyment.
If I had to sum it up in one sentence: with games like this, we often say “it’s fun to learn and master them.”
With this one, I’d say “it’s fun to get lost in it.”