If you are into this kind of genre I highly recommend the Avernum series. I have played through 4 and a significant portion of 5 before real life caught up with me. I definitely enjoyed the mechanics of this, the world, and the story. Do note that if you want to buy any of the games in this series it does take a signficant amount of time to complete the story - 104 hours for me with some hang ups.

The only downside to this game is that there are a few missions where I got hung up because I literally couldn't locate the thing I was supposed to do and ended up having to troll through Google looking for the solution (which I try to avoid at all costs).

Let me just start by saying Avernum is not for everyone. For those who are only interested in fast pace action, then this is not for you.

But for those who like a game that is remarkably refined, has a driving story, and a vast open world to explore, this is the game for you. Do not automatically be driven off by the 2D graphics, this is a very fun game that will have you glued to your seat!

A classic RPG set in an underground world, Avernum IV is a fantastic game. In it, you control a guild of up to four characters, which can be customized both in appearance as in abilities. Each character levels up individually, getting a few points which you can then spend in their abilities; and, as a classic RPG, there's plenty of them: from combat abilites (including things as melee combat, ranged combat, etc) to magic (two types, actually, one focused on magical attacks, and the other in buffs and debuffs) and "social" stats like luck and charisma.

The game itself is played on an isometric view, and the combat is turn-based: your characters (and the enemies) have a set of movement points, which are used to perform actions during your turn, from moving (duh) to combat and magic. As you explore the world, there's always the possibility of random encounters. Depending on where you are, and the skilll of your characters, these can go from minor annoyances to incredibly intense battles. You can go pretty much anywhere, and the game world is rather big, but you can increase the speed of the game in order to move faster. Even then, there's no fancy fast travel, although you do get a boat.

The story is quite good, given the fantasy world setting: you're in this huge underground world known as Avernum, where people exiled from the topside world learned to live, and a huge threat is beginning to show up. You start as a group of regular soldiers set in one of the furthest outposts, and you must make your way to the capital as you uncover more and more about the sinister forces at play.

Very good (and long!) game, I enjoyed it a lot. Recommended.

10 year old game and still awesome as ever.

Avernum 4 is old school rpg hard, but at the same time rewarding. If you like turn action rpg where you need to use your head this will be perfect for you.

Choose 4 characters (races are human, Slith or Nephilim), hand full of classes or custom class.
Stats, there are 4 groups of stats. Pretty normal stats, easy to understand and well explained.

And then the are character traits what gives you something good but lovers your xp gain or gives something bad, but gives back more xp gain. You can make hard choices like if you want your archer to hit almost every time you can take it but you get -20% xp gain from kills so you can balance this by taking a bad trait like fragile bones you take more damage from melee weapons and so on.

+Interesting story and world.
+Conversation with ai characters are done very well.
+Game likes to tell you a lott with words, like what some places feels and sounds like and this can give better idea where you are heading or what you are facing, but if you do not like to read much you can always skip them.
+Game can be very hard and frustrating at least on the harder difficult, but i like when there is some challenge.

-Fighting in small rooms can be annoying, because the ♥♥♥♥♥♥ door is in your way when you are moving your units to better position near the door. luckily there are not so many fights in small rooms.
-And magic feels pretty overpowered and archery is useles as ♥♥♥♥.

While now, itself considered old, Avernum shows indie ingenuity, technology and ideas of its time being applied as an old-meets-new factor to Isometric, turn-based RPGs before its time. The world-map movement and near-seamless switch to turn-based combat mode is satisfying without taking me out of one map or singular-world feel. The world is huge and fun to explore in a movement mode that acts like real-time, but does all the individual move-calculations behind the scenes. When in combat I can then seamlessly take control of each character, playing my turn-based combat.

The dialog and story are great, the world feels non-linear, and combat is fun. I recommend this game to anyone who wants their RPG itch scratched, but fans of almost any RPG variant may also love Avernum, especially turn-based-combat fans.

Avernum 4 is a simple looking, old-school style RPG title that doesn’t try to dazzle you with anything fancy. It’s basically a dungeon hacker title, but has a decent story, some twists, and a lot of elements that make this game fun even without all the flash that games nowadays have. If you enjoy RPG gaming in an older style setting you might want to check this one.

If your looking for a good time and love older style RPGs like Fallout 1/2, Ultima series, and just want a good turned based experience give this game a look over.

I had a ton of fun playing this game. It's a party-based RPG and it's really enjoyable. The world is pretty huge as well. Should provide tens of hours on fun. 8/10

Possibly too "old school" for some folks, but I enjoy the game. One of the things I especially like is that you can work on quests as you desire. You're not forced to do Quest 1, then Quest 2, then Quest 3. Some quests are necessary to move forward in the game, but for most, the order you accomplish them in isn't terribly important.

I'm not a gaming expert and I can't compare or contrast with currently popular games, but if you like a slower paced, relaxed game, this is a good one.

It's an old school TBS type adventure. I enjoyed it. Reminded me a bit of the old Dark Sun rpg.

150+ hours in, I have just been propositioned by a giant talking spider. I rest my case.

Solid gameplay length, good story, battles can be quite difficult. If you enjoy turn-based tactical fighting instead of the cookie-cutter, button-mashing we generally get nowadays, play this.

Honestly I didnt expect anything from this one. But it looks like one of the best RPG's ive tried. Don't be misled by the 2d graphics and give it a try.

Great game! Very old school; it really took me back. I was really surprised of how long the game actually was, you should definitely try it out ! Can't wait to start the second game of the trilogy.

A real testament to the fact that graphics don't make a game. Avernum's graphics may not be the prettiest but don't let that turn you off. I was in that boat myself until I tried it out and just fell in love with the game. It is highly addicting!

I've been searching for an old-school RPG for months and have been let down... that was until I found Avernum. This game, although graphically simple, is complex and challenging in its world building, treasure-hunting and character building. In Avernum, your stats actually make a diffrence and aren't there for show. Sometimes going up a stat point can make or break a fight, and the addition of perks and flaws to enhance characters (something more commonly seen in paper-and-pencil RPGs) is a nice touch. I bought the bundle pack during the Summer Sale, and I'm still working my way through the fourth; pleased with my purchase and even more eager to know I've got two more that follow the same trend. If you're looking for a group-based RPG with graphics that won't kill your computer and still retain its story quality, this game is it. I highly recommend it, coming from a old-school gamer who misses the days of Baldur's Gate and Ultima.

Bit of a slow burn. In fact, the main quest and central plot of the game aren't really revealed until around 30-40 hours in. Which is perhaps fitting given that this is the first part of a trilogy of games (so all of the dominos have to be put in place for what is a fairly epic stroyline), but at the same time the game could have used a bit more focus in its first 1/3. Plus, it's strangely easy. Most Spiderweb games kick your ♥♥♥ on torment difficulty, but I had to keep checking the difficulty just to make sure it was set correctly. Utlimately a good game (especially the stat system which I think is better developed and more interesting than the newer, more broadly appealing, Avernum 1 remake), but definitely don't start with this one if you are new to Avernum or Spiderweb games in general (or if you want a challenge).

Kickass RPG. If you've ever liked Baldur's gate, Icewind dale, classis uber RPG's, this is the best one since those bioware titan's released. Very easy to use the controls, fun to play a quick few fights or get deep into, well worth the price!

Only a little bit into it but this game is pretty good so far. It's an interesting little indie game with a very old-style RPG feel to it. As well, the world seems good and fleshed out, the creatures are pretty cool from where I've gotten to and IT'S HARD. You aren't beefed up where you can take a good few hits, nope, one creature can kill you in two if you aren't careful. This is definetly a game for classic RPG gamers looking for a portal back into the realm of tile-based RPGs

If you're on Win7 you'll probably want to run "Microsoft Application Compatibility Toolkit" to ForceDirectDrawEmulation, but this game is pretty damn great!

Avernum 4. This game is really great. It may seem simple or old, but I love it. The story telling is really great and the combat is a solid experience. If you aren't careful your whole party can get wiped out even at the beginning of the game. You can make your own classes too! Making a character is pretty nifty, but you better have a complimentary party, or else your play style will be somewhat limited.

It's a great game and I say you should buy it!