Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura is one of those games that comes once in a lifetime and experiencing all it's glory in multiple playthroughs only reinforced my calling as a gamer. No game had this kind of strong effect on me like Arcanum did. Game is set in a lore rich steampunk/fantasy world of Arcanum, a magical world going through industrial revolution where magic clashes with technology and innovation.
Everything in this game from history of the world, plot, attention to details, art style, multiple ways of completing quests, diverse character customization, heck, even character portraits screamed of absolute ingenuity, and what Troika Games created is something to be written in gaming history books. Any aspiring game developer should take notes from this game if they want to make it big.
Game starts with character creation screen where we get to chose how to shape our character, this is where this game shines the most, After picking a race ranging from Halfling to Half Ogre it is time to specialize in some craft, you can be a heavy armor sword wielding knight, persuasive trickster, mad scientist and inventor with an army of clockwork creations, you can be ranged arrow and knife throwing assassin, mad bomber or gunslinger, mage with so many different schools of magic at your disposal, possibilities are endless in Arcanum. Player imagination can create some crazy combinations, and every new playthrough you can discover so much more.
Steampunk mixed with dying magic theme made exploration in this game something truly spectacular, you can stumble upon steam engines, trains, and in some other instances old ruins of ancient civilizations, soon after explore elvish forests and see magical creatures, explore dwarven mines and megacity of Tarant.
Bartering, trading, collecting pieces for schematics and finally crafting your special steampunk gear is something every gamer must experience, User Interface made all that smooth and playable. NPC's are fun with rich backstories and you can even have an army of 6 NPC characters fighting for you if you spend some points on persuasion.
End result is a game that any fan of RPG's must play at least once, if you somehow missed this game, damn, have fun exploring it, and I envy you for playing it for the first time. I would recommend this game over any modern game these days if you haven't played it yet.