Grim Dawn: Definitive Edition (XB1) Review

A great, dark RPG for the Xbox

I had played Grim Dawn before on PC years ago. I enjoyed my time with it, especially some of the mechanics in the game that I hadn’t seen before. It was a great action RPG to say the least. Cut to four years later and we get a console version of the game bundled with both DLC expansions as well as a control scheme that caters to the controller rather well.

Grim Dawn is an action RPG where players are thrown into the world of Cairn, a war-torn world that has humans near the brink of extinction from a war taking place between two otherworldly factions. Survivors have begun setting up camps and settlements to hold off the coming spiritual invaders, but are in desperate need and advantage. In walks the player.

MSRP: $54.99
Platforms: Xbox (reviewed), PC
Price I’d pay: $54.99

Players embark on this dark adventure taking on quests, leveling up, acquiring new gear, and learning new abilities while hacking and slashing (or shooting) their way through hordes of enemies. Much like other ARPGs, players can gain points via leveling up to spend on new abilities as well as increase their base stats.Along with this, they can pick up loot both bout at vendors as well as found on defeated enemies that can offer up new bonuses like increased resistances, elemental damage, and more.

What sets Grim Dawn apart from other ARPGs is the freeform style the game has. Players begin with choosing a class, but eventually can double spec into a different class. This then adds a ton of synergy with new abilities and attributes to create a unique build all their own. On top of that, the item customization is here as well with socketed items and crafting.

The Definitive Edition comes with the base game as well as two post launch DLCs, The Ashes of Malmouth and The Forgotten Gods. Both of these add new chapters to go through as well as new classes. Granted, new players will see all the additions from the beginning, but adding to an already giant game is just icing on the cake.

I waited to get this review out due to a few issues I had with the game at launch. On the Series X, I had some issues with both progression as well as the text size on my TV. I am happy to say that both issues have been resolved since the last patch that was released. Players can now adjust the font size in the menus and change the performance of the game. The only minor issue I have is the control scheme on the Xbox controller. While it works, it is cumbersome when navigating menus at times. It’s never game breaking but seeing how Diablo III handled it, I am still waiting on a similar style of menu for other PC ARPGs.

There is a full co-op mode that can be played with up to four players. The game scales to the number of players and can even opt for shared loot drops or personal loot drops. It also has a hardcore mode for the players that like a real challenge where death is pernament.

Grim Dawn is still a fantastic game that any fan of the action RPG style will enjoy. There are tons of customization options not only with the game mechanics, but with the character builds as well. It’s a beefy game and with all the expansions added in, this is a complete package that any RPG fan will enjoy and get a ton of time in and while the menu navigations aren’t the best in the world, it’s something that now Xbox fans can enjoy.

Review copy of game provided by publisher.

Good
  • Great style
  • Customization options
  • Tons of content
  • Fun mechanics
Bad
  • The controller menu navigations aren't the best
9
Excellent
Written by
Drew is the Community Manager here at ZTGD and his accent simply woos the ladies. His rage is only surpassed by the great one himself and no one should stand between him and his Twizzlers.