While there were many Playstation Vita titles playable at E3 this year, Ruin manages to be unique among them in that it is the first of what I expect will be many titles to feature cross-platform play between the same game on PS3 and Vita. Not only can the game be played on either PS3 or Vita, but you can save and load almost instantly between the two versions.
Ruin is a Diablo-style action RPG with advancement and loot fair you would expect. The developers promise a ton of loot and a deep advancement system spanning multiple classes. The only class I was able to use during my play time was warrior. This melee-focused beast charges in and battles up close. The infernal warrior functions through a string of simple melee combos and blocks with his shield, and when he’s dealt enough damage he can perform a cinematic finisher. The warrior’s brutal fighting also brings out the destruction in the environmental objects.
Of course the real draw of the game is the social features. In Ruin you will build and attack personalized “lairs.” As you advance in the game you can invest in your lair, building it up and creating a dungeon to defend it, as well as storing items in it and creating new areas to give you lasting bonuses. Meanwhile, your friends can invade your dungeon and lair, gaining bonuses themselves. This is where the 3G model of the Vita looks most appealing, as with an internet connection you can get constant updates as to the status of your lair and your friends’ lairs. For example, you’ll be alerted if someone begins an assault on your lair, and also if someone begins constructing an important project that will make them more powerful. You can then hop online and beat them down then and there if you’re using a 3G Vita.
Your lair and dungeon will deteriorate if you don’t keep them regularly maintained. Kind of like Animal Crossing meets Diablo. So this not a game for those who play for a while then go to another game for a few weeks and then come back to Ruin.
Ruin looked nice on both Vita and PS3 from what I saw during my demo. I did not get to play with the PS3 version, only saw floor demos. The destructible environments were great, and the game had a smooth and steady frame rate and good flow. The dungeons looked like something straight out of Diablo, and while the art wasn’t unique it was pleasing to look at. Graphically Ruin isn’t mind-blowing, but it does take advantage of the Vits’s hardware. Ruin had a good coming out party at E3 and is a game that should be on the list onf any RGP player who may buy a VIta later this year.
