At the same time, the game lacks critical features, such as being able to transfer items from one character to another. Players must rely on the "buddy system" and hand over legendary class items to friends to hold onto while they exit and log back in. Since there's no in-game market or auction system, the only other choice for incompatible gear is to either sell it to a non-player character or dismantle it for crafting materials.

Just like in the old Diablo days, combat areas are randomly generated. Maps, loot and creature locations are never the same twice, which is a remarkable feat since many areas tend to be a bit short. Picking up special quests, like hunting a boss creature, inserts those encounters when the game generates the area. Unfortunately, there's no way to manually reset them except by exiting the game and reloading it or by traveling from one base to another. This is especially bothersome when players have a simple quest, like collecting three more demon hearts from an area, but can't because all the demons are dead. In addition, even though randomly generated areas theoretically create "limitless replay value," there's rarely a compelling reason to revisit an area except for loot farming.

As far as graphics go, Hellgate doesn't look bad, but it doesn't compete with a lot of games being released this fall, chief among them Crysis, also published by EA. With all the spells and special effects flying around, players often have to get in close to see the details on the monsters. On the bright side, the game will run well on moderately powered systems. However, some of the enclosed areas are so crowded with creatures that computers can slow to an absolute standstill once the fighting starts.

It's easy to write Hellgate off as a mediocre game, but the truth is it's not altogether bad. In fact, it has some truly excellent innovations, like the item augmentation system that can imbue common items with special properties. Hellgate also has a machine that increases the level of an item, so players don't have to ditch useful armor or weapons because they outgrew them. Additionally, the game has a fantastically wicked sense of humor that comes out in the NPC dialogue. The problem is, the game tries to be a little bit of everything, but no one aspect gets fully developed.