Dark Messiah - Review @ Just Adventure

Most of the Dark Messiah reviews have faded into the past but Just Adventure has just posted an unusual critique that's as much game history lesson as anything else.  There's no score and I'm not really sure exactly how the author sees the game as a whole but here's a sample:

Let us not forget the plot. The plot is the thing in my book and the plot in this game is about Sareth the orphan who happens to be adopted or raised by a wizard named Phenrig. Sareth needs to find out his true identity and Phenrig and his friends help him do this by presenting him with quests. Phenrig puts a demoness named Xana in your head who you can talk to. Talking to Cortana helps alleviate the loneliness that assaults most single character adventurers.

Unfortunately the plot is linear. Everyone knows I prefer open ended game plots, such as the one from Faster Than Light’s SunDog: The Frozen Legacy, released in 1984 for Atari ST and Apple II. The design was by Bruce Webster and Wayne Holder. Be a space trader, be a mercenary, be a bounty hunter, etc. You can do almost anything as you explore the galaxy and upgrade your ship engines, weapons, etc. This type of game was tried in the Advanced Dungeons and Dragons gold box games (Pool of Radiance, Strategic Simulations, 1988). You explored, you found new places and you forged off in another direction. In the end you came to the same climax.