Grim Dawn - Preview @ Gamebanshee

Gamebanshee has a new preview of Grim Dawn based on the alpha version. It's over three pages long so I'll just post a snip from the end.

Closing Thoughts

I've had Grim Dawn on my watch list for quite some time, and after playing the closed beta, it's clear Crate Entertainment have built a very polished, entertaining game that for action-RPG fans will likely be worth the wait. While in its alpha state there are a number of outstanding issues (namely some environment collision bugs, balance problems and performance hitches), the game is still very stable, plays smoothly and is very polished for an indie production.

There are some looming questions, however. Story in the alpha is very sparse and based on the limited selection of gameplay, it's hard to get a feel for the overarching plot, characters and so on. Right now, what's included is very functional, but also very limited, and I hope it will be fleshed out more as time goes on.  The levels, though fixed in their layout rather than random, do feature special events to run across each time you play, but these were quite limited when I was running through the alpha - something I hope is improved to make replaying the game more interesting. There are also some loose ends, including a faction reputation system, whose functions are not especially clear right now. Who knows - perhaps there will even be some choice & consequence in how the story plays out, if what a few of the quests demonstrate carries through.

Either way, Grim Dawn, though certainly not the most creative and original action-RPG ever, is definitely doing just enough differently to carve out a niche for itself. I'll be the first to express my weariness at yet another hack-and-slash RPG, but Grim Dawn does the genre just about as well as it can be done, and with some twists that make it interesting even for veterans.  With no set release date, I'm looking forward to seeing how the game evolves as the developers collect feedback and expand on what's already established.