Preview by: Toni Schwartz

When someone mentions the term “fantasy RPG”, one may immediately conjure images of warriors in plate armor wielding swords and shields, or of spellcasting mages who throw fireballs at their enemies. Throw in a dragon or two and you’re set. But what happens if you can become the dragon at will? (Well, aside from having a really, really good time?)

Developer Larian Studios attempts to turn the stereotypical fantasy RPG on its head with its upcoming Divinity II: Ego Draconis. You play a novice Dragon Slayer, learning the arts of fighting the fierce and deadly winged creatures. Your training is interrupted when a series of events occur that lead you to discover you are a Dragon Knight, which means that you have the ability to transform into that which you’re supposed to destroy. It’s deliciously ironic, especially when you find that the people who were once your allies suddenly turn on you while you’re in dragon form.

Divinity II offers a lot of flexibility to your characters, both human and dragon. For example, you may start off with a melee class, but as you progress through the game you get the option to obtain some ranged or magic skill. If fact, you can change your character’s appearance – even its gender.

Based on what I saw of a recent build, combat looks pretty standard as a human. You can map skills on the four buttons on the Xbox 360 controller, or on the keyboard keys of your computer. However, unlike a traditional RPG in which you aren’t able to dodge attacks, combat in Divinity II is more dynamic since it allows you to jump and even roll on the ground to avoid being hit. And yes, as a dragon you can participate in aerial combat, which looked really awesome. I watched as the Larian Studios rep effortlessly ducked incoming fire from flying fortresses and retaliated with his own fireballs. Think of it as a dragon flight sim.