Reception Sacrifice (video game)

sacrifice s art reminded video game journalist kieron gillen of works (pictured) of renaissance painter hieronymus bosch.

initial reactions favorable. sacrifice s art point of focus reviewers: fantasy creatures novel designs made deep impressions on industry. designs unconventional gaming journalist michael eilers remarked, if salvador dalí , h. r. giger got , played around 3d studio max few weeks cooler full of bass ale between them. fellow journalist kieron gillen, sacrifice resembled version of strategy game command , conquer designed renaissance painter hieronymus bosch. aside being impressed details in graphics, gamespy s lee haumersen found creatures movements fluid , believable, remarking, flying dragons heave bodies through air reminiscent of draco in movie dragonheart. journalist tom chick summed weird experience of seeing wizard @ head of troop of flapping, crawling, loping, whirling, hopping things essence of gaming about.

the game s spell effects elicited positive reactions. next generation magazine s samuel bass called them awe-inspiring , while positively breathtaking eurogamer s john bye see flaming missiles raining down on battlefield, tornados lifting [his] men sky, or ground swelling beneath [his wizard s] feet . although such effects implemented in other games, gillen pointed out, vastly different experience watch them first person perspective. reviewers of firingsquad , pc gamer equally overwhelmed stunning visual effects. despite filling screen winged, animated demons , multiple gigantic twisters spiraling gorgeously clouds , sacrifice performed smoothly on reviewers machines, impressing staff of edge magazine.

aside visuals, game s audio attracted comments. gamespot s staff enjoyed listening story unfold through recorded voices. found voice actors did not overact roles despite extravagant appearances of characters. instead, actors performance conveyed depth personalities of these characters. haumersen noted few flaws in game s vocal presentation: character models lip movements did not match speech, , had limited number of gestures accompany words. michael house of allgame not altogether impressed, finding voice acting spotty[,] ... ranging hilarious obnoxious.

to several reviewers, sacrifice flawed in handling of combat. found game s interface—which presented viewpoint looked on wizard behind—hindered them having clear picture of characters surroundings. game s fast-paced combat ensured fights tended messy affairs, aside picking out units chaotic mass issue commands, players had see wizards safety, , cast spells support army. reviewers commented once player had lost number of battles, or army never recover losses win match. sacrifice s multiplayer games, gamespot s sam parker observed, tended long-drawn stalemates until wizards obtained more powerful spells. pc zone s keith pullin disappointed game not designed reward tactics; in experience, achieved victory continually summoning groups of creatures attack enemy. bass agreed game lacking in tactical play, other aspects impressed him enough downplay failing in assessment.

the intensity , excitement generated frenetic gameplay pleased ign s dan adams, bye frustrated experience claimed have suffered massive increase in blood pressure. game s heavy demand micromanagement convinced maximum pc name sacrifice best argument gamers [to grow] third hand , opinion in line chick s comment interface [seemed] have been designed 1 of game s 13-fingered beasts . sacrifice s gameplay had supporters; staff @ edge, impressed game s controls , visual perspective, named 1 of few titles [that took] strategy third dimension , convincingly used plane more dazzling 3d makeover .

no sales figures released sacrifice, several members of video game industry acknowledged game did not sell well. james bell, infogrames s senior vice president of creative development, said sacrifice, although excellent game, suffered poor sales because badly marketed , released @ wrong time. reason, offered gillen, sacrifice s commercial failure small size of development team. based on efforts of 4 people, game built around gaming preferences, failing take account opinions of wider variety; hence, game became niche product.

legacy

impressing ign wonderful land full of character , imagination , sacrifice gaming site s choice best strategy game of 2000. honored in same year european computer trade show best pc game of show. since release, sacrifice has been 1 of pc gamer s top 100 games @ least 8 consecutive years. looking @ history of real-time strategy gaming, geryk pointed out sacrifice s depth , originality unparalleled in genre , overlooked in favor of graphics. staff of gaming site ugo shared similar opinion, naming game in 2009 eighteenth top strategy game of time.

although sacrifice honored quality game, industry observers pointed out qualities forgotten people; staff of gamesradar said game practically invisible gaming public , , according gillen, few remembered sacrifice pioneer of mouse-gesture control system, praised revolutionary in peter molyneux s later game black & white. gillen further lamented sacrifice s release heralded end of shiny s forays creative game development, company switched producing more mainstream products, such enter matrix. despite receiving numerous calls sequel, shiny said in 2002 not produce one. 7 years later, gamesradar repeated call sequel while proclaiming sacrifice 1 of underappreciated games of time .