MAGE DUEL - The Original

Today we're reviewing Mage Duel, by Max McGee, a game that doesn't ask you to read, it simply tells you to get out there and kill.

This game is still under construction if you will, so we're gonna focus on what you can play so far, which is the first act, all nice and demo'd for your playing convenience.

The game, save for the battlers and audio is strictly RTP, so let's not focus on the graphical here; McGee makes good use of the tiles available, and no one says it's gotta be 100% custom to be good. Far from it. The story should be good enough to carry all RTP games...

...If there WAS much of a story, that is.
As stated before, this game begs you, as its' slogan states, to "DUEL SOMETHING", and that's exactly what you're gonna be doing for the next couple of hours, or until you're tired of watching the announcer sequence. To be sure, there is
a main storyline with some slight development of the character. That's right, character. Act One has you playing you, and you alone.



This isn't necessarily a bad thing, it's nice to rely on yourself, and I like the added touch of playing "My guy" rather than the main character someone else made for me. The customization of your character is excellent, you choose one of four available classes, and you won't be disappointed with the wide array of customizable options provided for your enjoyment and experimentation. It's got
a charming old-timey feel that us older
gamers just can't resist!

Honestly, the game only falls short on
content and storyline in Act I; You start in the middle of an arena, where you run around and become a mage all of a sudden, then you're thrust into a pit and told you have to fight for your life. That's pretty much... it.

Right after you choose your skills and run around the arena in a trance, you
go downstairs, and the screen slowly scrolls through the main arena map for your viewing enjoyment. But... no story here, just an excuse for us all to view the design of the outside because we won't get another chance to, really.

Then it's off to downstairs, where your actual story/intro awaits.



Burl is such a nice guy... he's willing
to tell you how screwed you are and how he owns you...wait...



ok, so ALGUS owns you. (If you've ever
played FFTactics, like me, you'll probably chuckle when you hear that name)
But why? for what reason? Can we at least have a "this is what you were doing before some guys came and kidnapped you" type-flashback please?
I'd kinda like to know why I am just fighting in the WWE (sans the exciting announcers) for my life and/or freedom!



...speaking of the announcer... you'll tire of her (him?) VERY quickly. It would have been nice to see something different
everytime a new fight pops up, rather than the same scroll upwards and the same dialogue from the same announcer for each fight. Maybe some banter in the background, or adding another announcer to ham it up a little at LEAST for the sake of making it livelier/humorous would be a nice twist. McGee basically wants us to see the same scene 10 times, 40 if you go through each class like a certain reviewer did!

This wouldn't be too bad if not for the added fact that there's few things to talk to down IN the pit...



...and they rarely (except for 2 exceptions I saw) have anything new to say after you've fought each main battle.
Even after 8 battles, you'll still be called a novice upstairs, and the witch downstairs will STILL tell you to stop staring and grow up. You'll feel like a regular Rodney Dangerfield; you'll simply get no respect.

Oh, but Ral loves you. He loves everyone!
At least enough to wanna help train them.
He's this game's equivalent of Phil from Disney's Hercules. ...don't worry, you'll
grow tired of hearing HIM say the same stuff over and over again too! And despite the threats and meanness, even if you opt not to fight and decide you just wanna run around the pit for eternity, Burl will NOT drag your ass to the stage against your will.



The battles are fixed. 20 in all, 10 main ones, 10 monster ones if you wanted to have extra experience and cash. It's nicely balanced, and provides a challenge for you to really use even the most obscure sounding spells in tactical combinations. Try a Healer/Illusionist combo if you want to go for broke!

And speaking of broke, keep your initial money, because the downstairs stores (in prison?) provide better stuff to buy. (yes, Algus PAYS his captives for every fight... but you'll pay him back with his own money when you buy from him and his pit-stores... nonsensical? Yes. Do I love it anyway? Yes.) speaking of which... if
Lord Algus wanted to entertain his viewers, wouldn't it be better for sales if he just dropped you in there unequipped to fend opponents off for dear life with whatever is in the arena?

The answer is who cares? DUEL SOMETHING!

Overall, I love the feel, the theme and the class system and skills.

But if you're looking for some plot to go with your class skills, you're going to be disappointed. This is pretty much for people who want to fight without having to do too much pesky reading. Few NPC's and little development in Act 1. I do truly hope it'll all come together somehow in Act 2. In the meantime, I'm gonna try another wierd combo and see if I can survive!

Out of the site's 1-5 rating scheme, this one gets a 3.5 from me! Give it a try, don't be shy. It's a demo, after all, and what are demos for if not to improve on?
(get into the RTP and remove the intro and Announcer, and you'll probably enjoy it a little more, though)