Back after 10,000 years

For those who loved Diablo, but broke one too many mice playing it, Locke D'Averam has been resurrected from the dead for you. Locke is the protagonist in Revenant, Eidos Interactive's new foray into the field of 3/4 overhead hybrid RPG / action games. (Enough adjectives for ya?) You play Locke, who has been raised from the dead to do the bidding of a warlord, who wants you to save his kidnapped daughter. Conveniently enough, a side effect of your resurrection is a loss of all feelings of emotion. You know what this means, kids - hack, slash, maim, kill, and best of all, no remorse!

One major thing that sets Revenant apart from Diablo is the move away from reliance on the mouse. While you can still use the mouse to move around and attack, you can also use the keyboard. In fact, you're much better off using the keyboard, as Revenant has a much more complicated fighting system. You have three levels of attacks and additional special attacks, as well as the ability to block, dodge, run, and cast various spells. Not only that, but you can enter stealth mode, and sneak up on an enemy, or bust out your bow'n'arrow, and hunt from afar like the coward you are.

So it's Diablo with a keyboard?

Well, no, not quite. Beyond the much-more-sophisticated fighting engine, which is similar to 3D fighting games, Revenant also boasts such niceties as a detailed storyline and swell-lookin' graphics that will make you forget you're playing a tile-based game. Also to be included is a mission editor, which will allow you to make your own maps and levels.

One reason for all these splendiferous features is Revenant's design team, Cinematix. Their staff is mostly comprised of hardcore gamers, much like us here at Firingsquad (motto: unhealthily obsessed with small rodents). They set out to take four major areas: Story, Combat, Artwork, and Gameplay, and design them using the best ideas from hundreds of other games, as well as some brainstorms of their own.

Charmed, I'm sure

Buying 'special potions'