Dungeon Siege III

• There's an in-game glossary that explains pretty much every game mechanic. Don't miss it.

• When you first level up and get talent/skill/proficiency points to spend, read through all your options. It'll help you get a handle on how your character will play later on. In particular, pay attention to ways your character can generate focus or power.

• Don't feel obligated to switch out your companions frequently. If one works well with your style, use them. This goes double if you like their personality, although you probably won't hate any of them.

• Dodge roll all the time. It uses no resources, avoids all damage and requires no stats. Unlike other top-down action games, you can't just take hits and expect to come out on top. This is especially true for hard mode.

• Blocking is deadly, both in the sense that a blocking specialist can rip his opponents apart (stats like Retribution (damage to attacker) and Warding (stun attackers) work while blocking) and in the sense that someone who isn't geared for it can get turned into a red smear.

• You probably have the DLC. You'll meet a dude with a funny-colored quest marker (you literally can't miss him, so don't worry) later on. You could do it right away, but at some point you'll get a couple major quest chains you can do in any order. I feel that doing the DLC alongside these works best, although you can start it earlier if you feel the need to take advantage of its respec fountain.

• When you first gain access to power orbs, you may try out the only attack you have that uses them, decide it's underwhelming and relegate orbs to healing and buffing. Don't do this. The empowered skills (which you unlock by using the regular skill repeatedly) are fun-on-a-bun. It's possible to clear out an enemy group with a single empowered skill use.

If you have the DLC, there's an enchanting subsystem. Relevant points are these:

• Only certain stats are part of the system. The glossary can remind you which ones.

• From the items menu you can destroy items for a small bit of cash and a chance at an enchanting gem, provided they have a stat that can be enchanted. You don't get as much money as a vendor would offer, but the chance at more enchanting supplies is worth it.

• The more valuable an item is, the more expensive it is to enchant. It still might be best to focus your efforts on a single item, allowing you to more easily replace other pieces of gear.

• Kneel before Doom! Doom increases critical hit damage, and it's the only enchant that increases damage. A critical-hit specialist decked out in a couple hundred extra points of doom is hilariously effective.