Kingdoms of Amalur demo hitting Xbox Live next week

Still unsure if EA's Skyrim/Fable hybrid Kingdom's of Amalur will be worthwhile? Well, EA has two bits of news that might help sway you one way or another. The first is a new trailer, showing off the game's crafting and skills system. Unlike Skyrim, your character in Amalur's skills don't share the same points as its combat abilities, meaning that you're able to invest in lockpicking, crafting, and persuasion without hindering your ability to fight. In the video below you're given a run-through of all of the different skills, letting you decide early which ones you want to invest in when the game releases next month.

The second (and likely more exciting) part comes from Major Nelson's blog. In a post today, he confirmed that a demo for Kingdom's of Amalur: Reckoning is not just in the works, but due out in the near future. The very, very near future. On January 17, Xbox Live users will be able to download a demo for the game, giving you the last thing you'll need to decide whether or not Amalur is for you. Besides our review, of course.

Hollander Cooper

Hollander Cooper was the Lead Features Editor of GamesRadar+ between 2011 and 2014. After that lengthy stint managing GR's editorial calendar he moved behind the curtain and into the video game industry itself, working as social media manager for EA and as a communications lead at Riot Games. Hollander is currently stationed at Apple as an organic social lead for the App Store and Apple Arcade.