Playing a thief is never easy, but Seven: The Days Long Gone makes it fun. This new isometric RPG is packed with a few amazing elements one of the best is the deep dark story. Seven plays well but can be unforgiving at times, just the like world it takes place in. For fans of isometric RPGs, Seven delivers a lot of surprises. This is our Seven: Days Long Gone review for PC.
Fans of games like Thief will enjoy the sneak attacks and pickpocket capabilities. Seven has an intricate system of challenges. Staying in the shadows and working with foes is one option. Attaching them to the dark and fighting your way through obstacles is another. Unlike other stealth games, Seven allows you to fight it out with a variety of weapons. Melee options from classic fantasy style games are available with a mix of dystopian technology bringing some real creativity. You also have ranged options to take out opponents from afar. Combat is not as fast paced as games like Diablo, but not slow either like turn based systems. Don’t get too cocky though, you will die in some fights. The interface needs some polish still. It is a nice speed which allows for options and ideas without the button mashing, but watch yourself.
One of Seven’s biggest assets is the story. Set in the far future, a world is rebuilding itself after an apocalypse. Think Blade Runner and Road Warrior combined with a heavy shot of fantasy. As Teriel the thief, you are captured and sent to a prison island of Peh. Starting from nothing and building up around the prison seems like plenty of fun for a game, especially set in this unique world. However, you have the help of a daemon that has taken a liking to you. With a wealth of knowledge and working as your guide, demonic possession was never so helpful. Without giving too much away we loved the story in this game. The dark future, mystic ties, and technology make for an amazing world. The narrative carries a few frustrating turns, you are a thief on a prison island after all so not everyone is well, perfect. The intense gameplay and deep plot about the daemons really drove us forward.
Parkour is everything in this game. The climbing system is easy to get used too. Once mastered you’ll be jumping around and using the environment against your foes. The team did a great job bringing the fun of games like Prince of Persia and Assassins Creed into an isometric view. However, the world is unforgiving and we fell a lot in our daring attempts. If Seven has one setback it can be difficult at times. Combat is tough. At its core, this is a stealth game, but it does allow for a wider margin of error than some of the others. Also, the environment is your friend but can work against you if you take many risks. A quick death is everywhere. There were times we found ourselves looking for a faster interface on quests around the environment. The minimap helps a lot, but sometimes the NPC interactions can slow you down. This could be an effect of the pacing expected in an isometric action game.
Seven iterates with a lot of content for the player. Hours of play will take you through the main quest (around 10 or so) and there are lots of side quests to explore. The free expansion called: Vetrall Empire is a fully open sandbox and adds tons of time. The game itself is very open and you can steal almost anything. We found exploring the maps to be a huge part of the game’s appeal. The intricate future world really springs to life on the screen.
The team of former Witcher developers does have a gem on their hands though, I am looking forward to more content and possibly some new characters. I definitely want more.
