Dimensity (PC) review "Borecraft"

Dimensity is about the thousandth game featuring a war between humans and some other, toothier humanoid race. However, it strays a bit off its genres' beaten paths, which is commendable. Your first question upon hearing this might be, “So, is it an RPG or an RTS?” The unfortunate answer is “Yes.” It's an RTRPSG: a Real-Time Roleplaying Strategy Game...

And yes, it's as clumsy as it sounds...

Presentation stirs memories of Diablo, but it plays like an old-school, pre-MMO Warcraft offering. In other words, you don't hold down one of the mouse buttons to roam everywhere and hack and slash with ease, but command the human protagonist, Iomar, to move to a location on the map and let him do the chopping. Occasionally, you might instruct him to execute his astounding one combo attack that comes with his current weapon type, and try to mitigate damage.

If you're like me, you might not realize right away that there's an effective method for survival: staring at the screen. You see, protagonists regenerate when holding still. Because of this, there is no need to potion the hell out of yourself to stay alive. Besides, this adventure doesn't come with any shops to hoard potions, which also renders your gold worthless in most missions. However, what you can do when you're dying is run away from your opponents, as most of them give up after about twenty feet of pursuit. At that time, you sit still and regain all of your hit points while your targets replenish very little of theirs, if any. This is key because the early phases of each campaign bury you in foes that can easily break you if you don't take a few minutes to relax. The regeneration process isn't instantaneous, either. It's a good idea to bring a book or keep your smartphone handy so you can dink around while waiting. Such activities serve only to remind you that you could be playing a more worthwhile title that can hold your attention more effectively.



Of course, it also teaches you that your opponents are about as smart as rocks. For instance, some opposing guards stare off into space while you destroy their nearby tower or sanctuary. There's even a stealth mission where you must sneak past watchtowers, yet you can avoid detection by destroying them with arrows from afar. They even catch fire, not thinking even for a minute that they're being attacked.

Honestly, even if your opponents were clever, the game's unbalanced difficulty rating would still bring them down. Yes, the early proceedings prove to be a challenge, but once you gain levels and find more powerful equipment, enemies fall with little effort. I especially noticed this in the Firbolg campaign, where its hero, Balor, become such a beast that you sometimes don't need a whole squad just to invade a base.

Yes, I've made blatant references to RTS elements throughout this review without going into detail, mainly because they're so tacked on. Dimensity doesn't flow like your standard RPG, complete with a massive world to explore. Instead, it's a level-by-level job with most scenarios handling like your average hack 'n slash, albeit with RTS mechanics. Now and then, though, you come across a stage that allows you to build structures and invade settlements, and suddenly your worthless cash supply means something. You erect training centers that allow you to hire melee experts, rangers, and siege weaponry, not to mention facilities for mages and clerics. And yes, this means more staring at the screen while your units spawn...



You then command that whole contingent, sending them to engage in perhaps the dullest, simplest, most stripped-down RTS campaign you can think of. Your targets don't smarten up, they don't respawn from structures, and felling them is mindless work. No, you don't train peons to harvest wood or gold. Construction requires no materials, and you accrue cash through repetitive murder and via in-inventory item selling option.

Oh, and you can save scum, too, as if this one isn't easy enough.

Salvation could come in the form of a decent storyline or side quests. Sadly, that hope becomes dashed with each lackluster cutscene. The outset of the first of two campaigns sees you battling alongside your king against Firbolgs, who resemble orcs more than their blue-skinned D&D counterparts. Eventually, they imprison you both, slay the monarch, and his last words are spoken to you in perhaps the most underwhelming manner. There's very little build or drama to it; he merely engages in standard dialogue and says, “Here, take this MacGuffin and go to the queen,” then dies like an ordinary NPC.

After several stages of padding, Iomar meets the queen and the king's trusted advisor: a dude who looks like he sacrifices babies for fun. Seriously, he's got glowing red eyes and a raspy, evil voice, and it comes as no surprise he's up to no good. Yet, Iomar somehow doesn't see this and continues to defend satanic Hitler. It's like the story couldn't beat you over the head hard enough with the “good guys are actually bad guys” plot device.



So then we get Balor, part of a race initially portrayed as villainous because they're ugly, war-hungry, and live in huts. Newsflash, though: they're actually the good guys this time. Or at least they're not as awful as the humans... So you end up rooting for Balor and hoping he drives the humans out of his land, which in itself is a refreshing take on fantasy war. Sadly, most of this plot comes to you via cheesy cutscenes and repetitive beats. Seriously, Balor, how many times can you be betrayed in one tale and still be surprised by it?

Side quests also do little to alleviate the tedium of watching and waiting, or the sting of a story that's mediocre at best. Most of these missions require you to complete basic tasks, like eliminating foes or fetching items. Sometimes, though, those goods are difficult to locate. Sadly, finishing quests doesn't provide much experience or valuable rewards, so you only end up wasting time you could devote to advancing the campaign.

Plus, each stage features a special dungeon to explore, usually put there to shower you in riches. However, these sub-levels don't allow you to save progress, forcing you to complete them in a single session. They also come with mindless objectives, including “locate five scrolls” or “activate four crystals.” More than anything, they're a waste of time, especially when gold is often pointless.

More than anything, Dimensity reminds me yet again that I need to do a better job of vetting the entertaining I purchase. I'm typically the kind of person to even give reviled works of entertainment a fair shake, but I only have so much time on this planet, and I'm never getting it back. While this one isn't entirely terrible because it does kind of scratch the “not quite Diablo” itch, it remains unfulfilling simply because there are so many superior RPG and RTS offerings out there, and there's no sense in playing one that's as awkward, limited, unpolished, and linear as Dimensity.

Staff review by Joseph Shaffer (January 04, 2025) Rumor has it that Joe is not actually a man, but a machine that likes video games, horror movies, and long walks on the beach. His/Its first contribution to HonestGamers was a review of Breath of Fire III.