Darkstone centers on a particular "chosen one", who is tested to see if they will be the one to kill a dragon that as been ravaging the lands for a time. The player begins their quest by collecting crystals that, apparently, are all part of the key to defeating the dragon. Along the way, people approach and pretty much beg the player to help them find, save, or kill something. In return they give armor, potions, gold, which aid the player in their quest.

The small town from which the player starts out in is just full of people who are burdened by problems caused by the usual mix of fantasy villains. In this town, equipment, magic books, and potions can be purchased. The acquisition of GOOD armor is somewhat difficult however. The local guy usually carries some really crummy stuff until you reach about level 20, and the same goes for about every other shop in town. Most of the time, a dungeon visit doesn't really pay off either, so in the end it takes some real dedication to continue the adventure.

The graphics are probably my main problem with this title. The thing that sets this title apart from others in this genre, is the three dimensional presentation. It’s a shame they didn’t spend more time perfecting the little things that add atmosphere. The lighting effects are adequate, but it would be nice if the title had the actual passage of days to represent time, since the player already has the option of having your character rest, as well as eat. The sight range of a character within a dungeon is barely enough to see what’s coming at you, add this to the fact that a light spell creates little or no noticeable difference.

The character models are somewhat gawky looking. They all seem to take this hunched over stance, which doesn’t seem at all natural. The models used for enemies are nicely done though; I really loved the character models on some of the later ones. If only the same amount of time was taken in making the forces of good look this snazzy. When all is said and done, everything in this title just looks so angular and sharp, which gives the game a half finished appearance.

Camera control is sufficient, but not really practical. The angle a player starts out at is probably the best one. By zooming in too close you loose a lot of the advantage in a fight, and by zooming out too far, polygonal structures such as walls and houses tend to get in the way. The battle control is pretty much the same as Diablo’s was. Although there was some frustration to be had during battles near doors, where pointing and clicking on the enemy was confused with wanting to shut or open the door.

Voice acting is one of the strong points of this title; they seemed to use voices that actually fit. The music tracks on the other hand are nothing to cheer about. They aren’t memorable at all, which really bothers me, since epic quests should include epic musical scores.