Retro Replay Review

Gameplay

Sacred offers a deep and flexible action role-playing experience, anchored by six unique character classes: Dark Elf, Battle Mage, Gladiator, Forest Elf, Vampire Lady, and Seraphim. Each class begins in a distinct region of Ancaria, ensuring that early exploration feels fresh regardless of your choice. Combat is fluid and visceral, with each character wielding signature abilities that scale alongside the formidable rune-based progression system.

The rune and skill system in Sacred distinguishes it from many other ARPGs. Rather than simply unlocking abilities by leveling up, you must actively find and read runes scattered throughout Ancaria to boost specific skills. This encourages exploration and replayability, as you’ll often revisit dungeons and wilderness camps in search of that elusive runic upgrade. Combined with unlimited stat points at each level, players can truly specialize their builds—yet must carefully balance raw power against increasing cooldown times on high-level skills.

Beyond the central narrative, Sacred boasts over 500 side quests, some of which are dynamically generated. These subquests offer vital rewards—experience, gold, and gear—that help you tackle the escalating difficulty of the four main acts. The optional quests also provide delightful detours into hidden temples, bandit camps, and mysterious ruins, making the world feel expansive and alive rather than a mere backdrop for the main storyline.

Graphics

Though released in the early 2000s, Sacred’s graphics have a timeless charm. The art direction leans into vibrant color palettes for forests, deserts, and swamplands, giving each region its own distinct atmosphere. Character models remain detailed enough to appreciate class-specific armor designs and weapon flourishes, while spell effects—especially from high-level Battle Mage or Seraphim builds—sparkle with satisfying flair.

Ancaria’s environments feel artistically cohesive. Towns feature varied architecture—stone fortresses, rustic villages, bustling marketplaces—while wilderness areas showcase lush foliage or scorched earth. The lighting engine, while dated by today’s standards, still manages to cast moody shadows in dense forests and create dramatic sunsets over desert horizons. Horse-mounted travel further accentuates the scenery, allowing you to appreciate distant vistas that beautifully frame your adventures.

Performance-wise, Sacred runs smoothly on most modern setups, and the Sacred Plus release even refines the interface for better zoom levels and camera control. Pop-in is rare, and load times are minimal between regions, ensuring that the world of Ancaria remains immersive rather than interrupted. Multiplayer mode likewise benefits from these visual optimizations, allowing group hunts to remain fluid even when facing hordes of enemies.

Story

At its core, Sacred unfolds the epic tale of Shaddar, a power-hungry necromancer who has unleashed an army of undead and monstrosities across Ancaria. Your mission is straightforward: track down Shaddar’s strongholds, thwart his dark machinations, and restore peace to the war-torn realm. The narrative is divided into four acts, each escalating the stakes as you venture from tranquil villages to corrupted fortresses.

Despite a relatively simple main plot, Sacred enriches its lore through dozens of NPCs, faction rivalries, and side narratives. Townsfolk recount local legends, merchants trade exotic artifacts, and wandering scholars offer cryptic hints about ancient magic. These world-building elements are woven into quests that, while optional, often reveal surprising layers of backstory—making subquests feel like genuine chapters in Ancaria’s history rather than filler content.

The character-specific introductions add further flavor to the story. A Dark Elf’s motivations differ from those of a Seraphim, and these perspectives subtly alter initial level design and dialogue. While the plot eventually converges on the same climactic showdown with Shaddar, the journey thus retains a personal touch. Fans of narrative-driven RPGs will appreciate how each class’s lore ties into the broader mythology, encouraging multiple playthroughs to see every angle.

Overall Experience

Sacred strikes a fine balance between classic hack-and-slash action and nuanced role-playing depth. The blend of main and side quests ensures you’re rarely idle, while the unlimited leveling system and runic progression beckon you to push your character beyond the century mark. Multiparties of up to 16 players and specialized PvP arenas add immense replay value for those who crave cooperative or competitive thrills.

The Sacred Plus edition is particularly noteworthy, as it incorporates the official 1.7 patch—improving multiplayer stability, rebalancing key items and quests, and expanding the world with new regions, foes, and treasures. Whether you’re revisiting Ancaria or exploring it for the first time, these enhancements polish an already vast game into something even more worthwhile.

Ultimately, Sacred remains a compelling purchase for ARPG enthusiasts seeking a sprawling world, robust character customization, and hours upon hours of content. Its age shows in small ways—some animations and interface elements feel dated—but the core adventure and addictive loot grind stand the test of time. If you’re ready to take up arms (or magic runes) and challenge the necromancer Shaddar, Ancaria awaits with all its grandeur and peril.

Retro Replay Score

7.4/10