Step forth, bold hero!
If you've played the original Rings of Medusa, enjoyed it and fancy checking out this one, be a little careful as it's not actually a sequel or update and is instead simply a remake, albeit one with fancier graphics and sound and a slightly improved interface. If you haven't played it though and are after some fantasy strategy fun, it's worth a look. It's not exactly in the same league as Might and Magic or Dungeon Master, but it does offer a nice mix of strategy and business sim, along with some roleplaying and action sequences to create a well varied package. Storywise, this is pretty familiar stuff, with the usual fantasy guff about lowly farmer's boys rising up to save the land from a vicious sorceress. Taking control of said farmer's boy, the player must explore the land, seeking out the five magical rings which will help wrest control away from the sorceress and take his true place on the throne. You have to earn money along the way and you can get this by performing tasks such as trading, going on bounty hunts or seeking out treasure. Once you have enough loot, you can start to hire others to do the dirty work for you and start sending out troops who will inevitably come in contact with other rival armies, with combat then ensuing. There's also a few little arcade sequences, like sword fighting and engaging in sea battles, just to add even more variety. While such a diverse game could feel a bit muddled, on the whole Rings of Medusa is enjoyable stuff. The improved graphics and interface are welcome additions over the original's clunky and crude visuals and controls and the quest is a highly involved and largely compelling one, so if you want to venture into another fantasy realm, you could do worse than check this out.
