9:15 AM
sweetRose
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Developer: Big Huge Games
Genre: Role-Playing
Developer: Big Huge Games
Genre: Role-Playing
Game notes:
One game that I don’t get to talk about enough, or play nearly enough, is Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning. Big Huge Games’ sprawling RPG epic is one of my favorite games in recent memory and now they’re giving all of us a good reason to get back into it. The Legend of Dead Kel DLC adds a new location to the already massive world map in Reckoning and sends you off on a new adventure that features both pirates and the undead. How could it go wrong?
You can begin your journey to Gallows End, the island that The Legend of Dead Kel takes place on, at any time during your journey through Amalur but Big Huge are recommending your hero be at least Level 10. Head to the port town of Rathir in the northeast of the world map and you’ll meet up with Captain Brattigan. The good Captain will be at the core of your story and will even accompany you, at times, to fight alongside you. She was definitely one of the main draws of this adventure as she is a hilarious and likeable character. Her comical ineptitude is understated and her skewed world view will keep you chuckling.
It’s not all fun and games though, we’re here to escape the island of Gallows End and defeat its Pirate Lord, Dead Kel. Kel has been terrorizing the seas around Gallows End for quite some time with his skeletal pirate minions and it’s time to put him down. As a standalone adventure the story of the Legend of Dead Kel is one of the most interesting storylines in the entire game. Dead Kel himself is a bit generic but the other characters, henchmen and set pieces make this adventure very enjoyable.
While the story is great it isn’t just a linear affair. The Island of Gallows End is easily as big as any of the other major areas in the main campaign of Reckoning and there are plenty of caves to explore on top of that. The island is populated by a group of shipwreck survivors who have formed a loose society that I’ll leave you to discover the specifics of. This isn’t one of those restrictive, focused adventures that lots of RPG DLC packs end up being, you are free to explore Gallows End, take on side missions and defeat any or all of the monsters that inhabit it.
The Legend of Dead Kel will also give you your coolest player home yet. Gravehal Keep sits atop a hill overlooking the main village and stands uninhabited due to a monster infestation. Through a series of quests you can reclaim and upgrade the keep to fill it with your own sweet furnishings and features. Trust me this will quickly become your favorite home in the game.
The main quest line in The Legend of Dead Kel will take you just over four hours but that is if you attack it straight through. If you complete all of the side quests and explore the whole island you’ll likely be here for much, much longer than that. It’s easy to see that a lot of effort went into the making this DLC and we hope there is much more to come from this studio.
