The hack and slash genre places the player in the position of a nasty-minded deity, controlling the action from the heavens. In Sacred 3, you gaze upon ruined towns, burning forests, and scorched battlefields. It’s visually sumptuous. The dialogue is a different matter. A dive-bar drunk could invent better quips than the ones on offer here. Sacred 3 is no joke.
The plot has been pillaged from a thousand fantasy fables. The villain has robbed a precious artefact that’s making him an unstoppable force of bastardry. Four heroes step up, including Marak the Warrior, a character who must munch Lance Armstrong levels of steroids, and Vajra the Archer, who looks like someone from a Human League tribute act.
Combat requires finger-prodding the controller and beefing up on special abilities after each level. But there’s not much new here to add to the genre. This tale of wizardry lacks magic.