Demise: Rise of the Ku'tan is a medieval fantasy role-playing video game

Role-playing video game

Role-playing video games are a video game genre with origins in pen-and-paper role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons, using much of the same terminology, settings and game mechanics. The player in RPGs controls one character, or several adventuring party members, fulfilling one or many quests...

 released in 1999 for the personal computer

Personal computer

A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...

 (PC), developed by Artifact Entertainment and published by IPC Software. The game features the same setting as Mordor: The Depths of Dejenol

Mordor: The Depths of Dejenol

Mordor: The Depths of Dejenol is a computer role-playing game released in 1995 for Microsoft Windows. It was game designer David Allen's first release. Mordor inspired a sequel, Demise: Rise of the Ku'tan, released in 2000....

, which was also developed by designer David Allen

David Allen (game designer)

David Allen is a Video Game Designer and Entrepreneur who is most recently known as the creator of Alganon a fantasy based MMORPG developed by Quest Online, a company he co-founded in 2006.- Game Designer, Developer and Entrepreneur :...

.

Gameplay

In Demise: Rise of the Ku'tan, Lord Gherrick's realm is attacked by demons emerging from the mines of Dejanol. After the assault is quelled, the player is dispatched into the mines in an attempt to locate and destroy the primordial evil at its centre. The game world is split between a series of towns and dungeons; the former features guilds and merchants, while the latter houses monsters, which must be destroyed during the course of the players' explorations. At the outset, users are required to create an avatar with particular racial traits, classes and starting statistics, and develop the character as they progress within the game. This development is achieved by gaining experience, measured as a statistic, and equipping improved weaponry, purchased from the traders. Furthermore, the game features up to 16 players in a co-operative multiplayer mode.

Reception

Upon release, Demise: Rise of the Ku'tan received predominately negative reviews. GameSpot

GameSpot

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 were dismissive, arguing that the game lacked either "an engrossing story or an online multiplayer game with a sprawling world to explore." Even the most amiable of reviewers complained of the game's interface, poor graphics and tedious sound effects, while PC Zone

Computer and video games

A video game is an electronic game that involves human interaction with a user interface to generate visual feedback on a video device. The word video in video game traditionally referred to a raster display device, but following popularization of the term "video game", it now implies any type of...

commented that the fact "there is 3D acceleration support is risible, as are the graphical options to enable or disable detail and effects." Conversely, positive remarks were made regarding the variety of equipment, spells and the ability to combine classes.