Dungeon Siege III is a strange entry in a series that has spent years trying to find its footing. Released in 2011 for PS3, PC and X360, it is the third main entry in a franchise that has always leaned on simple combat and simple menus, and this installment does not break that pattern. It is a game about walking down hallways, hitting monsters, and watching the numbers on your screen rise. Whether that is a compliment or a criticism depends on how much patience you have for a genre that has moved past this particular formula.
The game asks you to play as a hero tasked with saving Aranna from a threat that has grown too powerful for the kingdom’s forces to handle on their own. You fight through dungeons, castles and ruined towns, leveling up your character and your companions along the way. The core loop is familiar: pick a target, press a button, watch the damage count. What separates Dungeon Siege III from its peers is not its ambition but its execution, and that execution is often rough around the edges.
The Walking Down Hallways Problem
The most striking feature of Dungeon Siege III is also its biggest weakness. Combat is mostly resolved by walking your character toward enemies and letting your sword or spell do the work. There is little need to:
- Dodge
- Weave
- Position yourself carefully
Monsters fill the screen in predictable waves, and the game rarely surprises you with a new mechanic once you have learned the basics.
This approach worked well in the original Dungeon Siege, which launched in 2002 and built its reputation on ease rather than depth. The series has since tried to add more systems, but Dungeon Siege III feels like it is still playing catch-up. The walking down hallways problem is not a flaw of vision so much as a refusal to evolve.
The game does not punish you for standing still during a fight, and it does not reward you for moving with purpose either. This can feel liberating in short bursts, but it also removes any sense of urgency or skill progression. By the end of the campaign, you will have spent dozens of hours repeating the same motions, and the only difference between the early game and the late game is the number of hit points on the screen.
Leveling Up and Its Limits
Character progression is where Dungeon Siege III shows its age most clearly. You earn experience points for killing enemies, and you spend those points on skills that increase your attack power, health, mana regeneration and other stats. The system is functional, but it lacks the polish found in modern action RPGs. Skill trees are shallow, and there is little room for experimentation beyond choosing which stat you want to boost next.
The companion system adds a layer of complexity, allowing you to recruit allies who fight alongside you and level up independently. You can choose which companions join you on each mission, and their presence changes the shape of a fight. One companion might focus on healing, another on dealing damage, and another on crowd control. This is a welcome addition, but it does not make up for the underlying combat loop.
The leveling system also suffers from a lack of variety. Skills tend to follow the same curve, and the differences between characters are mostly cosmetic. You will find yourself leveling up your main character again and again, and the only real change is the number on your screen. This is a game about numbers, and it treats those numbers as the entire point.
Dungeons That Look Familiar
The dungeons in Dungeon Siege III are competent but unremarkable. They are well lit, easy to navigate, and filled with the usual assortment of enemies. There is nothing wrong with this, but there is also nothing memorable about it. The game does not attempt to create a sense of place or atmosphere. Instead, it relies on the familiarity of its design, and that familiarity can wear thin over a long campaign.
Some dungeons do stand out. A few levels offer branching paths or hidden areas, giving players a reason to explore beyond the main objective. These moments are rare, however, and they are often overshadowed by the sheer amount of ground you need to cover to get to them. The game is generous with its pacing, but it is stingy with its ideas.
The music does little to elevate the experience. It is pleasant enough, but it blends into the background after a few minutes. The sound effects are serviceable, and the voice acting is adequate, though the script does not give the characters much to say. None of this is terrible, but none of it is particularly good either.
A Campaign That Outstays Its Welcome
The campaign in Dungeon Siege III is long, and it is not always clear why it needs to be so long. Missions are repeated across multiple dungeons, and the difficulty curve is inconsistent. Some fights are trivial, while others require you to grind for levels or gear before you can hope to win. This inconsistency can be frustrating, especially when you are expecting a steady challenge.
The pacing is also uneven. Some missions are quick, while others drag on for what feels like an eternity. The game does not warn you when a mission is going to take a long time, and the lack of checkpoints means you can lose significant progress if you die. This is a game that asks for a lot of patience, and it does not always return that patience in kind.
The campaign is linear, and it does not offer much in the way of side content. There are a few optional quests scattered throughout, but they are few in number and low in reward. The main storyline is the only real draw, and it is a slow burn from start to finish. The game does not build toward a climax so much as it meanders toward one, and the ending does not feel earned after everything that came before it.
How Dungeon Siege III Compares
To understand where Dungeon Siege III stands, it helps to compare it to its predecessors and its contemporaries. The table below summarizes the strengths and weaknesses of each entry in the series, as well as some notable action RPGs from the same period.
| Game | Combat Focus | Progression System | Atmosphere | Replay Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dungeon Siege III | Walking down hallways | Shallow skill trees | Unremarkable | Low |
| Dungeon Siege II | Real-time strategy elements | Deeper skill trees | Better than III | Medium |
| Dungeon Siege | Simple combat | Basic experience system | Least atmospheric | Low |
| Diablo III | Action-focused combat | Deep skill trees | Strong | High |
| Torchlight II | Action-focused combat | Deep skill trees | Moderate | High |
The table shows a clear trend. Each entry in the Dungeon Siege series has improved on the last, but the improvements have been incremental rather than revolutionary. The franchise has never matched the depth of games like Diablo III or Torchlight II, and Dungeon Siege III does not try to close that gap. Instead, it plays to its strengths, which are few and diminishing.
The comparison also highlights the problem with the walking down hallways approach. Games that prioritize action combat tend to offer deeper progression systems, better atmospheres and higher replay value. Dungeon Siege III is not terrible by any measure, but it is the weakest link in a chain that has never been particularly strong.
What Works in Dungeon Siege III
It would be easy to dismiss Dungeon Siege III entirely, but it does have a few things going for it. The companion system is a genuine improvement over previous entries, and it gives players a reason to care about their team beyond the numbers on their screen. The game also includes a multiplayer mode, which allows friends to play together online or locally. This is a small addition, but it adds some replay value for players who enjoy cooperative play.
The graphics are also a step forward. The game runs smoothly on all three platforms, and the character models are detailed enough to hold up in close inspection. The lighting is decent, and the environments are varied enough to keep the eye engaged for short periods. None of this is groundbreaking, but it is competent, and that counts for something in a genre where presentation matters.
The game also includes a few boss fights that stand out from the routine. These fights require you to use your companions strategically, and they offer a brief respite from the walking down hallways formula. They are not frequent, but they are memorable, and they show what Dungeon Siege III could have been if it had spent more time on its combat systems.
The Verdict on Dungeon Siege III
Dungeon Siege III is a game that knows its limits and respects them. It is not trying to reinvent the action RPG, and it does not pretend to be anything more than a straightforward dungeon crawler. On its own terms, it succeeds. The combat is simple, the leveling system is functional, and the story is serviceable. It is a game you can pick up, play for a few hours, and put down without feeling cheated.
But it is also a game that lacks ambition. It does not push the genre forward, and it does not offer much for players who are looking for depth or innovation. The walking down hallways problem is a feature, not a bug, and that is a problem for anyone who wants a game that feels alive. The campaign is long, the difficulty is inconsistent, and the atmosphere is thin.
The game is not terrible, and it is not great. It is somewhere in between, occupying a niche that has become increasingly crowded in recent years. If you are a fan of the series, you will likely find enough here to justify your interest. If you are new to the franchise, you might want to look elsewhere.
The score for Dungeon Siege III is 7.6 out of 10.
Get the Notebook.
The day's best stories and every fresh verdict, in plain English, in your inbox by seven. One email a day, no more.
