LGR - Descent To Undermountain - DOS PC Game Review

Combine Dungeons & Dragons and Descent and what do you get? A first-person role playing adventure that was released incomplete, apparently!
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[@mechkarras]

My favorite part of this whole thing was the Magic 8 Ball in Fallout 2 which would sometimes say "Yes, we know Descent to Undermountain was crap."

[@theblackwidower]

Was it by the same developer?

[@snnnaaaaaakeeeee4470]

T Duke Perry Yeah, Interplay.

[@planescaped]

I vaguely recall reading that and not getting it as a kid... I thought it was a jab at some fantasy, LOTR-like book. XD

[@guguy00]

A little late but Chris Avellone was level head for Descent to Undermountain. He would work on Fallout 2 and later on be director (I think) of New Vegas.

[@jeremydandeneau7704]

@@guguy00 Avellone was a key developer on New Vegas but project director was Josh Sawyer. Chris A DID however direct all the DLC except Honest Hearts which again was J Sawyer.

[@RenaissanceRoadTrips]

That art was first used for a Forgotten Realms novel, Spellfire, which was published in 1987. So, the art was stolen twice over.

[@genekwagmyrsingh9433]

damn you, four years ago! At least I saw it before I said the same thing. I freakin' loved Spellfire.

[@johnhorne1839]

I read this in the LGR dude's voice.

[@Jayce_Alexander]

It was also used for one of the booklets inside the AD&D 2nd Edition Forgotten Realms campaign setting. Thrice.

[@the_numbuh1]

9

[@eclat4641]

Ah good to know 😊

[@CoxTH]

5:25 "Hi, I am Zariel, High Priestess of Tymora." Me: *pulls out my DnD books* Hmm, wasn't Zariel...oh, there it is: Zariel is one of the rulers of the Nine Hells, and one of the archdevils.

[@lucian1311_]

Yes zariel was angel turned demon

[@baroncalamityplus]

I was an external beta tester for this game. What a horrible mess that was.

[@ZeOHKay]

Wait, really?

[@yushatak]

Did it get less crashy from beta to release, or did it just stay the same? Also, you should totally leak any pre-release materials you have to the Internet.

[@brentlichtenberg]

I’ve used to be a game/system tester...my sympathies to you.

[@afti03]

we salute you, kind sir!

[@HP-pg5vg]

So, a customer?

[@theismywedding]

I broke my foot and now I'm stuck behind my laptop watching KZbin videos. I am so happy with your channel it really gives me great entertainment and makes this way more bearable. Thank you for that LGR! Keep on making awesome content!

[@LGR]

I'm glad you're enjoying, and I hope you heal up nicely!

[@nicholasb1936]

How's your foot?

[@cpmartins]

BG tavern song at the end, awesome.

[@LGR]

It's actually from Undermountain! A barely tweaked version was later used in Baldur's Gate :)

[@amshermansen]

Lazy Game Reviews Really? I never knew :D

[@cpmartins]

Mansen That makes two of us, I played DtU, but I didn't have a soundcard at the time.

[@posysajrazdwatrzy]

Lazy Game Reviews Whoa, plot twist. As usual w/o your obscure game trivia I'd be none the wiser.

[@PlayStationPaul]

Came here to post the exact same thing 2 years later, I presumed it was in Undermountain too though, would make sense.

[@Rakiarmas]

It is sad to see great ideas like this game to fail so badly.

[@LGR]

Very much so, it should've been great

[@bryndaldwyre3099]

Lazy Game Reviews i wonder if anyone has thought to make a mod of it in another engine like the source engine or maybe skyrim?

[@arverite7311]

Tony Arnold please make it happen

[@bryndaldwyre3099]

radio star Sorry, I know nothing about modding unfortunately. I would like to learn though if anyone's willing to teach me. :)

[@arverite7311]

Tony Arnold I was saying somebody please do it

[@shredderjack82]

The box art was from a forgotten realms novel called "Spellfire." The novel has nothing to do with the game content but I recognized it right away. I just read it later year and still have it.

[@derschmiddie]

The text on the box at 2:21 sais: Based on the Engine of the incredibly successfull Descent, the Horror of the chasm, with 3D-Polygon rendering and state of the art graphics that show an alomst terrifying love of detail, is brought back to life. *Advanced Multiplayer Options allow you to risk the lifes of up to three other players* on your way into the ultimate abyss. The 360 Degree motion control does not forgive any ruthless attacks from an ambush. Develop your personalytiy with apprehension. Trust noone. Get a good therapist. May God be with you. *Develop different personalities in over 20 magical dungeon levels *The first AD&D roleplaying action with modem- or network multiplayer for four players *Complete 3D-Action form first person perspective with 360° Motion control and the incredibly successfull engine from descent * Gruesome 3d-monsters await you in greyish(!) detail.

[@GuardianTam]

At least they didn't lie about needing therapy after playing.

[@Gilmaris]

Greulich=horrifying.

[@Powerhouse1]

Why not use this engine to play as a dragon and fly around the world burning down peasants lol.

[@yushatak]

Go back in time and make this happen - that is not a request, it is an order. :D

[@crazydingo3]

Burninate

[@arthas640]

im no game developer and know little about game production but i always thought a game where you go to play as a dragon would be tons of fun, flying around and burning down villages or saving them, fighting armies, etc. maybe add a "transformation" mechanic where you can change into a human like in ancient Chinese mythology (or like the show American Dragon) so you could interact with humans. Every once in awhile we get a game like Skyrim where you get to ride a dragon a little bit, but i'd love a full game where you got to BE a dragon.

[@RSimpkinuk57]

Divinity II ?

[@REDMOON982]

@Pow3rh0use I of the Dragon is a good game for playing as a dragon.

[@OS10100]

Your videos and reviews are awesome. Thank you for sharing them with everyone and keep up the great work!!!

[@LGR]

Thank you.

[@bryndaldwyre3099]

+1

[@BleachCowboy2016]

The box art is actually even older, from a Forgotten Realms book called "Spellfire"

[@mdtexeira]

As annoying as hidden walls are, they are kind of thematic for Undermountain, which is supposed to be a labyrinthine dungeon created by a mad wizard. If it wasn't infuriating and confusing, people might think Halaster had lost his edge.

[@LGR]

There's faithful translation of the source material, and then there's game design that's fun to play. Sometimes, you can't have both it seems :)

[@mdtexeira]

True that. I thought Neverwinter Nights did a pretty good job with Undermountain. At least then the secret doors were optional (if I remember correctly) and marked once you found them.

[@desther7975]

Yes, hidden passages should have been revealed by character spot checks, as they are in Hordes of the Underdark. This game here was clearly unfinished and possibly just not well thought out to begin with. Probably more of a cash grab than a proper D&D game from the get-go.

[@YukonHexsun]

@@desther7975 Exactly. If you had a high enough wisdom it should just let your passive perception reveal them, maybe some rules that change the DC like looking directly at it or moving quickly.

[@davidmiller9485]

this is an old thread but... Undermountain was specifically a trap. The whole damn thing. It was designed to kill. Halaster has issues after he received a part of mystra. Elminister did better. After mystra came back and took that part of her power from him he returned to normal and his paranoia was far less.

[@CeleronNutcase]

"If you chose a mixed class you can classily mix things up a bit" -- I laughed on that one. Great video!

[@UberMan5000]

The Ultima Underworld games must have ran circles around this.

[@Skullkan6]

they were, play them now

[@CakePrincessCelestia]

They still run circles around so many games even today...

[@aamiralavi78]

Frickin Stonekeep ran circles around this, let alone UW 1 and 2 which are on many GOAT lists 🤣

[@Crusader1089]

And hilariously came out years earlier

[@PaladinLarec]

I still have my copy. I remember working at a software etc store that Christmas of 1997 and returning my copy because I thought it was defective. It was then, on the forums, that I realized it was the game. The official forums were a hellish mess. I remember impersonating Brian Fargo on the boards and apologizing for the game and people believed it too, fooled the board admin, Robin. Good times. Also uploaded the first bit of gameplay of this game on my old channel back in 2007. Then had a bunch of others steal the footage and claim it as their own.

[@davidmiller9485]

welcome to fucktube.

[@mugwump7049]

This game badly needs a remake! Maybe a modder could do it in the recent Daggerfall Unity engine? Anyway, great review LGR! Love the humor, and the bit of trivia was very interesting. I actually had no idea it was related to Descent. Or maybe I forgot, because I was around at the time and was a big fan of Descent.

[@dronespace]

'Instant skeleton on a pillow' I LOLed

[@keyransolo]

Instant skeleton on a pillow...

[@DomTarason]

Ambitious failures are always interesting to see, and often far more interesting and educational than any regular success story. On that note, I'd love to see LGR take on Abomination: The Nemesis Project sometime. Not well regarded or reviewed due to a whole raft of issues, but it has a special place in my heart for having one of the coolest aesthetics and concepts an action-strategy-RPG could have in the late 90s. In short: X-Men + XCom + Lovecraftian horror. Eldritch biomechanical elder monsters eat a city, and a team of mutant superhero soldiers pick through the ruins in search of the truth and a cure. Could make for an interesting video.

[@TyphoidBryan]

Sad. This one looked like it could have been good. LGR, have you ever tried the King's Field series? I believe it is a bit of an ancestor to the incredible Souls series of today. KF carries that similar first-person action with the dark, dungeonesque esthetic.

[@base21]

It's even made by the same people who did dark souls

[@veraxis9961]

Reminds me a lot of the old Might and Magic games. MM7 was my jam back in the day. It was very fun to play, and while I remember it fondly, I'll be the first to admit that it suffered from the usual complexity and obtuseness that many oldschool PC RPGs suffered from at the time, particularly going into the late game.

[@satchel5909]

Cool I was searching for a game I played when I was little. Found out like a day before this video that it was Descent 3 on PC. And now you upload this video! Super cool!

[@kablammy7]

Decent 3 EyeRate global total kills leader mentioned in the credits portion of the manual remember me ? just like now in modern FPS games the more I tried the worse I got I just played a lot !

[@Blandco]

The box art is actually the same as the book "Spellfire" I believe.

[@qjmihuq100]

The splash screen guy is like "Damn, that intro blew me away!".

[@maritzaralph2223]

love watching your reviews. don't stop.

[@RyuRanXII]

2:31 - That 60 FPS page turning... soooo smooth! BTW, if you're looking for an awesome D&D action-oriented dungeon-crawler, get *Dungeon Hack* instead. That game is great!

[@Blandco]

Man that Spellfire artwork has been used so many times for so many things.

[@TheRealAkaRai]

Descent meets D&D *should* be a D&D game set on a labyrinthic dungeon that's a space prison and the gravity is wonky allowing you to move in any direction as you do in Descent. My mind tingles with the possibilities a game like that could have.

[@kablammy7]

Decent 3 EyeRate global total kills leader mentioned in the credits portion of the manual remember me ? just like now in modern FPS games the more I tried the worse I got I just played a lot !

[@EleonMythos]

I really love that Odium (Gorky-17) box you have on the background at 0:20. First "horror" game I ever played when I was around 8 or 9 years old. Needless to say at that time, a tatical horror and stressfull game made me shit my pants and only finish it years later.

[@EleonMythos]

Can we get a review from that game?

[@yushatak]

Was just rewatching this review and man it's so sad that it's so buggy/crashy, because it looks like a legitimately fun game with a nice engine (feature-incompleteness I can deal with). Few DOS games in that genre had such smooth cameras with mouse control, and nice model/texture work.

[@The_Keeper]

The cover art was also used on the cover of one of the Spellfire books set in the Forgotten Realms.

[@bloodrunsclear]

It's a shame this was such a broken game. There's some GOOD ideas in there...

[@JazGalaxy]

I'd love to see more reviews like this. "This" being high profile games from name brand publishers that I somehow have never heard of.

[@subtledemisefox]

instant skeleton on a pillow

[@luukeksifrozenhillbillyeur3407]

Hahaha, awesome video. I remember reading reviews of this game in the gaming magazines my brother bought as a kid, and kinda wanting to play it as a curiosity.

[@ListersHatsune]

Damn. If it wasn't for the rush in creation; this looks like it could've been an amazing game. Everything perfect is there but it was executed horribly. The only thing that I can see that wouldn't be solved by a little more time is the hidden walls - which could just be bad design. Other than that; it really seems like the kind of game I'd have spent hours on as a child - but they rushed it so it never was.

[@31leoceara]

Rushed? It took way longer than initially planned!

[@connorburton1009]

@@31leoceara Mostly because the original planned time was ludicrously short.

[@NomFandubs]

I was wondering what to watch and said to myself "I fancy LGR" Then realised what I had said... xD

[@onpatrolforthejuice]

mmmm dont we all though ;)

[@shanedeleon5376]

Ain't nothin' wrong with that :)

[@Clairvoyant81]

It's pretty amazing they used the Descent engine to make a game that seems to be mostly flat corridors.

[@Chamchamcham10]

The BG tavern music at the end!

[@DanielMReck]

Can't wait to watch LGR's Descent and Descent 2 reviews now.

[@Jayce_Alexander]

Even Order of the Griffon re-used that Clyde Caldwell art piece. It had already been used as the cover art for at least one Forgotten Realms AD&D product (one of the booklets inside the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting boxed set), the 1987 novel Spellfire, and I believe it was also used in one of the Forgotten Realms calendars that TSR used to release annually in the late 80s/early 90s. By the time Descent to Undermountain was released the box art was well over a decade old and this marked the fourth or fifth time it was used in a product.

[@michaelolz]

I'd really like to see some reviews of the old SSI gold box AD&D games. I still play those.

[@macdallanzero2145]

I'd enjoy reviews of those. I had one where magic was broken and all spells always worked to the maximum effect. 6d6 fireball? 36 damage every time. Hold person? Worked 100% of the time, no one ever made a save. Healing always got max heal. A party of mages and clerics would demolish anything if they won initiative.

[@froznanus]

This video actually made me look up the word "grundle" LOL biggest thumbs up to a video ever for the character name alone. I hope you don't mind me stealing it the next time I play Daggerfall.

[@DrewSwenson]

So glad you talked about Descent. It was one of my first PC Games next to Jazz Jackrabbit... but holy hell I had no idea the Descent Engine could be used in such a terrifying manner lol.

[@LGR]

It's disturbing what great damage can be done with great power used irresponsibly.

[@Trisentinel]

Lazy Game Reviews That's what Yoda Spider-Man would say! Are You Yoda Spider-Man!?

[@kablammy7]

@@LGR let s g o br an d on

[@Paganinifire]

oh! OH! OH! that was baldurs gate music when your in a tavern at the end of your vid! i love baldurs gate

[@lalolanda8458]

9:45 "My inn is as clean as an elven arse!"

[@mimilis3857]

5:14 ¡WOW!, from the bottom of your heart.

[@StephanS]

More of your videos! I really enjoy them..

[@thadialator]

Unrelated to the game, I love the fact that you walked up "stairs" in the beginning of the review. lol

[@Yusuke_Denton]

the hidden 1st floor of LGR HQ. ;)

[@IMN602]

LMFAO

[@Metetron]

Woah, 60 fps. I don't know if you switched to it as soon as it became possible but I noticed the smoothness just now. Seeing real life at such a high framerate almost reminds you of.. real life.

[@ReyedogMcGann]

Wow I totally forgot about this game it has its unique charm of brokeness, I was always a fan of decent, decent 2 & 3 and the Freespace series even though Freespace only used source code from decent. Speaking of Freespace maybe you should do that one next. I looked around your video archive and didn't see it.

[@garyleigh]

Excellent review. I could never get far on those AD&D games. I thought it was me, but glad to see it wasn't.

[@Videomaster21XX]

Not sure if you knew this, but the cover artwork for this game is also on the Forgotten Realms book "Spellfire" I have a feeling it was made for that book first, given it matches what happens IN the book. So I'm wondering if they just took it and decided to make it the cover art for two games.

[@mrbitbot]

Is this the game that shares the tavern music from Baldur's Gate (the music you played in the end)?

[@LGR]

Correct!

[@sappypngn]

Lazy Game Reviews Never had rats, no siree.

[@r3wcifer]

I knew it!

[@georgesiv2082]

Long wait before your first d&D reivew, excelent as always. I have to admit I like this game too(read the page on TCRF)...have you finished this game?

[@99gt03cobra]

Oh man, Gnome! Played the help out of that game as a youngster. You gotta review it soon

[@thudtheace]

The cover art was used for the D&D novel Spellfire by Ed Greenwood as well.

[@alanegdell7406]

box art is also used on the forgotten realms novel 'spellfire'

[@Rezic]

I was really hoping for a happy ending about a magical patch that fixed everything years down the road. Seems like it could have been legendary.

[@ResidentBeagle]

Those intros always bring a smile to my face :) lol

[@SuperRayW]

It's also the cover art for the novel Spellfire.

[@aamiralavi78]

Remember being so hyped for this when it was first released. I loved the old D&D games, I loved Ultima Underworld, I loved Arena: the elder scrolls and this was going to beat them all! And then....

[@volvoguy804]

The music at the end is actually from taverns in either Baldurs Gate 1 or 2

[@The_Original_Hawkez]

I absolutely love the graphical style on this. If it worked I could play it for hours.

[@Disthron]

So, was Descent 2 made on a brand new engine or was it developed from the original engine also? I wonder if this project could have been saved back in the day or if the engine just wasn't cut out to be an RPG. Maybe if they'd stuck to sprites for the monster characters? I know the enemies in Decent were 3D but they were also very rudimentary space ship shapes.

[@Horzuhammer]

The same engine, but it was modified I think.

[@branchonequal]

I suppose the (extremely) short bit of the intro which can be seen at 2:49 is part of the Interplay logo introduced sometime in the mid-90's. It's on KZbin if you want to have a look. ;)

[@Brovlovski]

The box art was also used for the book Spellfire

[@phillyphil1690]

Digging the Baldur's Gate Inn music at the end.

[@DarkKnightTrinity]

It's incredible how many game companies went out of business just because business owners made bad and rushed choices.

[@HaydenX]

With actual game devs at the helm, you get a reliable company that waits to release games until they are done, and generally aren't obsessed with expansion. With a business executive at the helm, you get people trying to extract as much money as possible from the --suckers-- customers, who will just move on to the next company when the current one inevitable bites the dust. Rinse and repeat; the parasites advance to their next host to bleed it dry in the name of anarcho-capitalism. For the best example of this sort of nonsense, you need look no further to the early days of EA versus today...or the early days of Activision versus today.

[@DarthKalia]

Oh snap, I had no idea this game existed even. And I thought I knew my PC D&D games. Apparently not! Interesting video, and thanks for the enlightenment. ^^

[@AcidKun]

Baldur's Gate Inn music at the end, nice touch ;)

[@SegaCDUniverse]

All hail Grundlebutt of Ankh-Morpork.

[@martincann5052]

+SegaCDUniverse From the city so great, they called it... Ankh-Morpork.

[@ptbunz2501]

Yo my guy, traveled back in time to view this vid 🏅🤘

[@Gr8Dane78]

Sweet that you put in Tavern music from Baldurs Gate at the end of the video. Made me fire up and play BG immediately :)

[@LGR]

Nope, it's actually the inn music from Descent to Undermountain. It was later re-worked a bit and included in BG!

[@cartmanbeer]

I have never heard of this game before.... maybe that is a good thing! On a more positive note I did really enjoy the jaunty little tune at the end. For some reason it made me want a tankard of Balor Ale...

[@bigpalookaalt]

Lol, that Mystery of the Druids box art gets me everytime.

[@eclatshwartzbaumcybertune2063]

Thank you for these great videos.

[@josuyasu]

Love your openings where you just casually appear on screen

[@TeppichPilot]

fyi the translated version of the 4 catchphrases on the back of the box (funny as always ;) ): - develop different personalities (I think they meant characters) in more than 20 dungeonlevels - the first AD&D roleplaying action with modem/network support for 4 players - full 3D-Action in Ego-perspective with 360°-movement and the extraordinary successful engine of Descent - terrifying 3D-Monsters in gruesome details will await you Allthough the lines are all grammatically correct German, it somehow sounds liked google translation.... or just marketing blah blah... :)

[@CakePrincessCelestia]

That Baldur's Gate tavern tune though :)

[@paradiseregaind]

I love the Baldur's Gate inn music at the end of the video.

[@Bauglir100]

This game is where that music originally came from, before they recycled it for Baldur's Gate.

[@amshermansen]

Oh man - This looks very similar to the early Elder Scrolls games. OH MAN - The Baldur's Gate inn music. Much nostalgia :D

[@FunkyPertwee]

Good video as always.

[@Jackson87RandomClips]

Around the 8 minute mark I could've sworn a rubber chicken with green eyes was being used as a weapon!🤣

[@rexthesheep]

Ohhhh, that silky smooth 60fps!

[@killzone321]

I remember seeing this in the store shelves many a moons ago, wish I could of picked it up back then. it looks... interesting, even how bad it is. xD

[@CYON4D]

Great review man. Can you tell me the name of the soundtrack that plays at the start and during you were explaining decent series?

[@LGR]

That's the _Descent To Undermountain_ soundtrack. I almost always use the music from the games I'm reviewing when talking about them!

[@CYON4D]

Lazy Game Reviews Yes, I figured it out after I wrote the comment, I should have checked the game's ost first sorry about that :)

[@pip5528]

I actually have a paper related to this game inside the box of Descent I and II: The Definitive Collection, which was released in 1997.

[@kablammy7]

Decent 3 EyeRate global total kills leader mentioned in the credits portion of the manual remember me ? just like now in modern FPS games the more I tried the worse I got I just played a lot !

[@drenkrod9811]

Grundlebutt is gonna be my name in my next D&D Campaign.

[@kosmosyche]

Basically, they wanted to make their own Ultima Underworld -- with blackjack and hookers (and D&D license). They should have hired Looking Glass Studios.

[@soylentgreenb]

+Locke Silvrel No, otherway around. Forget the blackjack and the hookers; ultima underworld was great!

[@soylentgreenb]

+Locke Silvrel Know; don't care.

[@1xphobiusx1]

Fuck yeah, some 3 am LGR! Good on ya Clint :D

[@kailmistiq6336]

Love this game. Very interesting

[@storerestore]

That toilet paper gag is a milestone of this channel

[@kilroy987]

I had an interview at Outrage Entertainment while they were developing Descent 3. I asked them if they had anything to do with Descent into Undermountain and the two devs put their hands up and said, "We don't have anything to do with that!" That was kinda funny. This is a great example of a game where someone really needed to think about the tech available and what a fun game made with it would feel and seem like, and aim for that instead of just satisfying the spec requirements without regular evaluation of fun value.

[@kablammy7]

Decent 3 EyeRate global total kills leader mentioned in the credits portion of the manual remember me ? just like now in modern FPS games the more I tried the worse I got I just played a lot !

[@nethrium]

It would be cool if you covered the descent and freespace games. Those are some of my favorite games

[@kablammy7]

Decent 3 EyeRate global total kills leader mentioned in the credits portion of the manual remember me ? just like now in modern FPS games the more I tried the worse I got I just played a lot !

[@Nick_R_]

My rose tinted spectacles recall this as being quite good. But then I haven't been back to it for years and years, so maybe that's just nostalgia....

[@NicholasBrakespear]

Baldur's Gate pub music at the end!

[@crazykong1967]

I still own this. I didn't have much luck either. As I remember, I liked the games music.

[@Modenut]

Oh god I remember this. I tried sooo many times to actually play it.