Hard to be a God Demo Impressions

FileFront brings us their impressions of the recently released English demo of Akella and Burut's Hard to be a God.
Like most demos, this one is short by most standards, but not so short that it does not give you a perfect idea of what to expect out of the full version. You start off with a slight tutorial, which is given as an (exam) by your superior officer, and you must complete a couple of tasks before he sends you off on your first quest. The first task is arming yourself, which is as easy as getting a key and going into the armory and opening some chests. Secondly, you have to show him how well you fight with a sword. This is accomplished by beating up some scarecrow-looking men on poles. Again, not too hard. Thirdly, you must demonstrate to him how well you fight while riding a horse. Once I figured out how to handle my horse (they move really fast) I accomplished this task with flying colors. After proving your meddle, you are ready to leave your encampment and explore the wild, wonderful world that awaits. Now, before you leave your starting point, you can receive an additional quest from another superior officer in the encampment. NPCs and other important characters that have something to say to you will have an icon hovering over their heads - therefore it is easy to see whom you need to speak with and whom you do not.