Retro Replay Review

Gameplay

Hexplore delivers a compelling blend of real-time combat, role-playing progression, and light puzzle-solving that keeps players on their toes. You assume the role of MacBride, an experienced adventurer in an alternate Crusades-era Middle East, and your primary objective is to track down the evil wizard Garkham. Along the way, you’ll navigate multiple environments—from dusty villages and mysterious caves to snowbound mountain passes and jagged rocky wastelands—each teeming with monsters and environmental challenges.

Character customization and party management are at the heart of Hexplore’s gameplay loop. You can recruit up to three companions—archers, warriors, or sorcerers—in the various towns you visit, allowing you to tailor your party to your preferred strategy. Archers provide ranged support, warriors excel in soaking up damage and dishing out melee blows, and sorcerers wield powerful spells. As your characters gain experience, you invest points into specialized combat abilities (such as dual-wielding or fireball), as well as field skills like lockpicking or trap detection, which are crucial for unlocking secret areas and solving in-game puzzles.

The combat system strikes a satisfying balance between tactical depth and accessibility. Fights unfold in real time, so positioning, spell timing, and quick item usage matter. You’ll find yourself constantly swapping between offensive strikes, defensive stances, and healing or buffing spells. While the difficulty spikes occasionally—particularly in boss encounters or densely packed caverns—the ability to pause the action and issue commands to your party ensures that even less experienced players can manage complex skirmishes without feeling overwhelmed.

Graphics

Hexplore’s graphics are powered by a voxel-based engine that presents the world in a charmingly chunky, isometric perspective. Though this style dates the game compared to modern, high-polygon titles, it lends a distinctive flavor to every environment. Textures have enough detail to convey the arid plains of the Middle East, the glistening frost of the snowy mountains, and the dank gloom of underground caverns.

Lighting and shadow effects in Hexplore are surprisingly nuanced for its era. Lamps cast flickering glows in cave corridors, torches outline the silhouettes of wooden walls, and moonlight can be seen reflecting off silent desert sands. These modest visual flourishes heighten immersion and help players differentiate between danger zones and safe havens. Character models, while somewhat blocky, animate fluidly during combat—particularly when warriors swing heavy blades or sorcerers unleash arcane bursts.

Environmental variety also shines through in the visuals. Each region has its own color palette and natural features, making exploration feel fresh. Whether trudging through the rubble of an ancient fortress or picking your way across a windswept plateau, the voxel landscapes convey scale and depth effectively. Although you won’t find cutting-edge shaders or 4K textures, Hexplore’s graphics style remains coherent, functional, and surprisingly appealing when viewed through the lens of nostalgic charm.

Story

Set around 1000 AD during the Crusades, Hexplore weaves a narrative that blends historical intrigue with high fantasy. You step into the boots of MacBride, a lone wanderer drawn by rumors of Garkham, a black wizard who allegedly holds a magical tome capable of opening the path to the Garden of Eden. This premise immediately hooks you with its promise of mythic revelations and hidden lore, giving your quest a layer of urgency and wonder.

The world-building in Hexplore is bolstered by its numerous NPCs, side quests, and in-game texts. Townsfolk will warn you of bandit ambushes, merchants will barter for rare gemstones, and local scholars hint at secret passages in forgotten ruins. These narrative beats not only flesh out the setting, but also encourage players to stray from the main road in pursuit of clues, treasure, or mysterious artifacts. While the main storyline is fairly straightforward—hunt down Garkham, retrieve the book, secure Eden’s gateway—the side stories enrich the tapestry and make exploration feel meaningful.

Dialogue and quest structure occasionally feel dated, with blocky text boxes and stiff character portraits that lack lip-syncing. However, the core narrative retains its pull: the idea that a single tome might rewrite the fate of humankind is a potent motivator. Puzzles tied into the story—such as deciphering runic inscriptions or aligning ancient mechanisms—reinforce the fusion of magic and medieval politics. By the time you confront Garkham’s final sanctum, you’ll have invested heavily in MacBride’s personal stakes, which makes the climax all the more satisfying.

Overall Experience

Hexplore combines exploration, combat, and puzzle-solving in a package that still holds up for fans of old-school action RPGs. The cooperative multiplayer mode, which allows up to four players to tackle the campaign together, adds replay value and social fun. Collaborating with friends to flank monsters or debate which skill upgrades to prioritize revitalizes the game’s core mechanics and makes each new session feel lively.

That said, modern players may find the user interface a bit cumbersome: inventory management can feel tedious, and pathfinding sometimes requires pixel-perfect clicks. Fortunately, a robust save system and adjustable difficulty settings mitigate potential frustration. If you’re willing to lean into the game’s retro design choices, you’ll discover a surprisingly deep and rewarding adventure.

Ultimately, Hexplore excels at delivering an old-world fantasy epic with solid gameplay foundations. Its mix of character-driven progression, richly varied locales, and a story that fuses historical backdrop with magical threats makes it an engaging purchase for RPG enthusiasts. While graphics and UI elements reflect the game’s vintage pedigree, the underlying mechanics and narrative still inspire curiosity and provide hours of immersive play. For those craving a classic isometric quest with cooperative flair, Hexplore remains a compelling option.

Retro Replay Score

6.9/10