Rise of the Argonauts Hands-on
[…] An action-RPG, Argonauts takes the common button-mashing combat elements and fuses them with a Western-RPG component. The result is, potentially, a unique experience.
You play as Jason, though there will be many other heroes who will fight alongside you on your quest. Hercules, Achilles, and Pan are among those that take up arms with Jason. For each mission, you'll select an Argonaut to be your wingman. Each Argonaut has an allegiance to a particular god, which plays a role in combat. Herc rips enemies in half and is your strong man. Pan, who bows to Apollo, is a healer and will replenish your health at opportune moments.
[…]Each god has a different skill tree in Rise of the Argonauts, which opens new skills and powers for Jason. […]
Each choice is in line with a particular god. So choosing that option not only gives you different responses, but earns favor with that god. But you won't have choices that match each god every time, which is why you can never be fully in the favor of one god. And developer Liquid Entertainment wants it that way.
The RPG side of things is very streamlined. There are no loot drops, no stat sheets and no inventory screens. You earn new weapons -- we saw the mace, sword and spear -- which can be upgraded through the smith on your ship, the Argo. […]
Jason visits a number of areas where he'll speak to others and gain side quests. And you do upgrade Jason by dedicating deeds to higher powers. Choice also plays a role. At one point you can decide whether to kill Medusa or save her. End her life and Perseus joins the Argonauts. Save her -- and return her to human form -- and she will join your team.
[…] While it doesn't have the same type of combat as God of War, it is similar at least in terms of the number of enemies on screen and that they tend to take a few hits to bring down.
Shields are a big problem for Jason. You'll need to roll-dodge to get to an enemy's side and strike from where they are unprotected or perform a shield bash to try and knock away his protection. […]
She doesn't look so good.As you power up Jason, he'll earn spells that can be used in combat. It's just a matter of a keystroke on PC or holding a direction on the D-pad on consoles. There are loads of spells to choose from. One of the more interesting ones is Conquest. For a brief time, you gain health back by killing people.
Combat handles well and is easy to get right into.[…] Still, depth doesn't seem to be the focus here. This is an adventure meant to be easily enjoyed by all that takes you through some imaginative worlds where you battle some cool-looking enemies.
There's still a lot to be done to make Rise of the Argonauts a winner this holiday. Bugs need to be squashed, the framerate needs to be smoothed out, and the visual fidelity could use a boost. While Argonauts still looks a little rough around the edges, it does show some promise. The skill tree is actually very slick. Hopefully the story and the boss battles can deliver.
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