First Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning gameplay feeds on RPG nostalgia

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Sneaking and stabbing are the bread and butter of Finesse specialists

Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning
(Image credit: THQ Nordic)

THQ Nordic has released the first gameplay footage of Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning. The RPG remaster supports three different paths to heroism, and this trailer focuses on Finesse.

Choosing Finesse will unlock the game’s more precise weapons - daggers, bows and Fae-Blades - as well as more devious options like traps, bombs and poison. It’s the life of the hunter and rogue, familiar to anyone who’s kept track with RPGs since the invention of D&D.

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In fact, there’s a cozy familiarity to Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning as a whole. It recalls an era of RPGs defined by Dragon Age: Origins - brightly coloured yet gory worlds in which you could be sure of getting a critical hit by sneaking up behind an enemy.

The original game was published by EA and pulled together some expensive talent - namely Drizzt Do’Urden creator R.A. Salvatore, comics celebrity Todd McFarlane, and Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion lead designer Ken Rolston. Kingdoms of Amalur reviewed fairly well - we said “the combat is stronger than Skyrim’s by a long shot, and the world feels more alive than games like Fable”. But you won’t find it on any Best RPG lists, so it’s an unusual choice for a remaster.

Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning will be out on September 8th for the Xbox One, PS4 and PC. Perhaps more intriguing is the brand-new Fatesworn expansion set for release next year. 

The game’s original developer, Big Huge Games, laid off its entire staff in 2012. It’s been revived by co-founder Brian Reynolds since, but doesn’t appear to be involved in the Re-Reckoning.

Looking ahead to more releases on the way? Here's our roundup of upcoming games 2020. 

Jeremy Peel
Jeremy Peel
Freelance Writer

Jeremy is a freelance editor and writer with a decade’s experience across publications like GamesRadar, Rock Paper Shotgun, PC Gamer and Edge. He specialises in features and interviews, and gets a special kick out of meeting the word count exactly. He missed the golden age of magazines, so is making up for lost time while maintaining a healthy modern guilt over the paper waste. Jeremy was once told off by the director of Dishonored 2 for not having played Dishonored 2, an error he has since corrected.