Eragon

Overview

Eragon is a video game based on the movie, that was adapted from the very popular book, Eragon. The game was released to coincide with the release of the movie in theaters. The game was poorly received by players and critics but still managed to sell 400,000 units in North America alone.

Gameplay

The player is in control of the main protagonist, Eragon. The player at times also controls Eragon's dragon Saphira. The game is played in the third person and is mostly on foot. The player, in the beginning, has four combo attacks at their disposal. Magic is also an attack as well. The player has controls of these magic spells and their effect: magic push/pull (Thrysta Vindr), magic shield (Skölir), and magic fire (When using the Dragon, Saphira, the player also controls mostly the same on foot. Eragon sits on Saphira's back and can fire arrows. The player cannot choose to use Saphira nor can they choose to use her on ground-based missions. However, you can call for Saphira and she will come by, but not for a ride.

Co-Op

Eragon does feature co-op on the consoles and PC versions. However, no option for online co-op is given so the players have to play on the same console for this option. The game does allow for joining the game during single-player. The player has the ability to jump in and out at will.

Introduction to the Story

The game follows much of the same story as the book with a few minor and major differences. The game begins when Eragon finds a mysterious blue stone in the Spine while he was hunting. Eragon decided to keep the stone thinking he would be able to sell it or barter with it later. To his surprise, it turned out to be a dragon egg and hatched only for him, for he was the Dragon's chosen rider. The egg's hatching caused King Galbatorix to become aware because it was stolen from him. The Ra'zac come to find Eragon and are unsuccessful. They kill his uncle and burn his house. Eragon flees with Brom, an old storyteller, who also gives Eragon his weapon.

Version Differences

The Xbox 360 version has two exclusive levels (including Ruins of Orthiad) with one on foot and the other on Saphira. It also contains an exclusive enemy character, the "Kull" (large minotaur-like creatures). The Xbox, PS2 and PC versions lack these additions but the remaining 16 levels are otherwise identical across the versions (aside from obvious graphical discrepancies based on system power).

Reception

Eragon met with a lukewarm reception, with critics offering sharp criticism towards the game length (reportedly around six hours in length) and its repetitive combat sequences. Complaints were also levied against the camera, collision detection, controls, and presentation. On the website Metacritic, the PS2 and PC versions fared the best in reviews with both receiving composite scores of 51/100 though they only marginally rated higher than the similarly panned Xbox and Xbox 360 versions (49/100 and 48/100, respectively).