Dungeons & Dragons: Daggerdale

Dungeons & Dragons: Daggerdale is an action video game developed by Bedlam Games and published by Atari. The game includes both single and cooperative multiplayer modes and is set in a Forgotten Realms environment. Dungeons & Dragons: Daggerdale was the second Dungeons & Dragons video game to be announced in 2010 and was released in May 2011 on Xbox Live Arcade, PlayStation Network, and Microsoft Windows. It is the first D&D video game to be released on a console since 2004.

Synopsis
The game takes place in the Forgotten Realms in Daggerdale, a region in the Dalelands on the continent of Faerûn. Players will enter areas such as the Tower of the Void and the Mines of Tethyamar.

Dungeons & Dragons: Daggerdale centers on the desperate struggle to defeat the evil Rezlus and his Zhentarim in their attempt to invade and conquer the Dalelands. Players are charged with the task of restoring order to the Dalelands by unlocking the secrets of the Mines of Tethyamar, defeating the evil within the treacherous Tower of the Void, leading to the final confrontation with Rezlus himself.

Gameplay
Bedlam stated that Daggerdale is a video game that uses real-time tactics combat, questing, character development, exploration and a pick-up-and-play feature. Two modes, campaign and freeplay, have been announced. Single and multiplayer modes also exist for the game, including split-screen multiplayer.

The game makes use of the four main D&D character classes: clerics, rogues, wizards, and fighters, as well as the four main races, dwarves, elves, halflings and humans. Some customization of the characters is provided as a player earns experience in the game, and character progression advances as per a limited set of Fourth Edition Dungeons & Dragons rules for both class and race. Further customization is achieved through loot and equipment drops. Character level advancement is currently limited to level 10.

Development
Bedlam Games began development of Daggerdale in March 2010 and sixty developers were reportedly working on the game as of January 2011. On January 19th, 2011, Bedlam began operating as a subsidiary of bitHeads, Inc., and continues to operate as a brand-dependent division. bitHeads co-founder, Scott Simpson, has alluded that the company plans to pursue a game model that will allow a gamer to play the same game on both an Xbox 360 and a portable device, such as an iPhone, in order to provide 24-hour access to the game. It is unclear if such a strategy will be implemented for Daggerdale.

Reception
Joystiq rated the game a 1.5 out of a scale of 5. They stated that “It’s not just a bad game, it’s a terrible use of Wizards of the Coast’s timeless license.” The chief criticism came from the fact that there were too many bugs and glitches, and this ruined the game for many gamers. The game was praised for its tight gameplay. The PlayStation version is expected to be better because of its later release.

Trilogy
The game is the first in a planned trilogy of video games. With each game being released, the player will be able to go up 10 levels higher.