RPGWatch Feature - Wolcen Preview

Aubrielle takes an early look at Wolcen, the good looking ARPG made in CryEngine.

On the surface, Wolcen may not look much different than a lot of favorite Diablo-like ARPGs.  It includes fast-paced action combat, loot, intricate skill trees, and unlockable portals to take you quickly from one zone to another.  But it differs in a few key ways.  For one thing, CryEngine technology allows for beautiful weather and atmospheric effects never before seen in a game this style.  Rain-slicked streets and puddle-ridden dirt roads glimmer with the light of sunrises or guttering torches.  Forests come alive with realistic trees and undergrowth, and are made gloomy by low-lying fog or sullen, miserable rain.  Even from an isometric view, it's absolutely clear what the sky looks like, even if you can't see it directly.  CryEngine allows a developer to easily render realistic atmosphere in their RPGs, doing far more to immerse the player than the less sophisticated environments used in many recent ARPG titles.