Dungeon Siege II Previews

A trio of previews for Gas Powered Games' Dungeon Siege II have hit the web, all of which are based on an early press copy of the game. The first is at DailyGame:
The scripting going on around players to liven up the world is excellent, and it does a great job of making you feel like you're in an epic adventure involving entire armies and native inhabitants. On one adventure, for example, I came across a melee between a beautiful creature and an evil demon, the latter of which was winning. The creature's cries made me want to help the poor thing out, and although the scenery forbade it, the entire interaction further immersed me in the world.

The second is at GameMethod:
As a role-playing game, Dungeon Siege II promises more depth in primary quests and the number of secondary quests offered. While we were only afforded six or so hours of gameplay in our preview build, the game appears to feature a wealth of side quests that expand on what the first game provided. Three acts comprised of several chapters each tell the game's main story, while numerous side quests give you the chance to diverge. The game's log keeps track of your progress through the game, as well as including a bestiary and full back story for reference.

And the third is at Next Level Gaming:
The game uses a mix between a leveling system and usage reward system for advancement. Skills in weapons and stats for your character are based upon what you use, i.e. if you use an axe your axe skill and strength will improve. On the other hand, if you hurl fireballs upon your foes your intellect and fire magic skill will both rise. Skills are broken into categories, Melee, Ranged, Combat Magic and Nature Magic. Any character can learn any of these skills; you just have to use the abilities that applicable to the area you want to learn. So how do you get points to put into these skills, well there is where leveling comes into play. Every time you emerge victories from combat you gain experience points, these points then gain you levels, as you level you gain more hit and magic points, new titles and a skill point to use as you see fit.