It may look and feel a bit like a Neverwinter Nights retread, but Avencast is one unique RPG.

Outstanding colored lighting at least gives most scenes an eerie glow, a mood enhanced by the often creepy musical score. Nothing here is particularly ugly, just uninspired.

Character and monster models are burdened with boxy features, the animations are just a touch robotic, and most quests take place in run-of-the-mill dungeon corridors. This is most notable in the visuals, which are a bit chunky for a modern game. ClockStone started developing the game four years ago, so it has something of an old-school vibe. The look and feel of Avencast are pretty similar to that of the original Neverwinter Nights. With so much cross-genre experimentation, it's difficult to figure out what the developer was trying to get at, although the one thing you can say is that this grab bag of RPG styles comes together remarkably well. And while the plot strays into world-saving Dungeons & Dragons clichés, it begins with a bored teen mage doing the Hogwarts thing. Quests feature standard go-fetch objectives, although they're often jazzed up with adventure game puzzles. This role-player relies on WASD controls, but it doesn't have the nonstop action of a typical action role-playing game. Describing Avencast: Rise of the Mage is a bit tricky.

Avencast - Rise Of The Mage instal