Rolston: Skyrim and Reckoning have a "lot in common" - but not combat

38 Studios' Ken Rolston, who famously served as lead designer on two past Elder Scrolls games, belives Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning has one massive advantage over Skyrim.

"What makes Reckoning differ from Skyrim? The simple answer is that Reckoning has the best, coolest, fastest-paced, most tactile and silly-exciting fantasy combat of ANY video RPG," Rolston told Gamefront.

"The pace, fluid movement, tactical richness, and physical and visual theater of fantasy combat has always seemed the weakest feature of video RPGs, and Reckoning offers a fresh new answer in that department."

Rolston also noted Reckoning's "more vivid, colorful art style" and "easy-to-pick up, faster-paced gameplay in general", but added that the two epics have " a lot in common".

"Both games are Way-Too-Big, and have Way-Too-Much-to-Do, and they both seduce you into playing for hours and hours and hours," he said.

"They both have whacking big epic storylines, and elaborate faction quest lines, and boatloads of quests, and lots of characters and books, and lots of crafting and alchemy, and lots of ways to customize your character.

"But in many large ways, and in many small ways, Reckoning tries to take a fresh look at the RPG genre, and is trying to be What RPGs Will Look Like and Feel Like in the Future Utopia."

Rolston was lead designer on The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowingd and The Elder Scrols IV: Oblivion, and noted elsewhere in the interview that he had enjoyed Skyrim.

Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning is expected on PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 in early February. A demo is now available on Steam and both console networks.