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The mod Tales of the Deep Garden is part of a series called the Colour of Infinity, created by Lava Del'Vortel. The mod takes the Bhaalspawn and his/her companions on a fascinating journey to an alien world called the Deep Gardens, a place where people's lives revolve around Colours and their Essences. The people know nothing about Athkatla or Faerun, nothing about the Bhaalspawn or the gods, northing about magic. These Colours (note: not colours) are presented as unknowable powers, a life force that sustain the inhabitants of the Gardens.
And now onto the review proper?
Challenge - 6/10 (note: for this category, 10/10 does not indicate a greater challenge. The score indicates how appropriate the challenge level was, in my opinion)
I rather carelessly didn't fully digest the readme, and missed the part about avoiding this adventure until you're a higher level, so I had to face the battles at an alarmingly low level. I've never been one for combat anyhow, so I certainly struggled. However, I think if I had actually paid attention to the readme, I would have found the difficulty sufficient - a challenge, but not too much so. The reason why I have given a score of 6 is because I think that parts of the quest lack a little direction. The first part of the mod involves finding some items based on the answers to various riddles. These items can be located absolutely anywhere. I had to give up after a while and consult the walkthrough. I've no doubt it is doable, but it certainly felt like a chore.
Sound - 9/10
New music, voicing and sound effects? Yes, please. All is appropriate, and to an extremely high standard. An echoic effect given to some of the character voices is a really nice touch, and the consistency of the accents used for the voices adds an atmospheric, alien quality to them. Superb! The only reason why this isn't a 10 is because the voice of some of the female characters are a little jarring (even if one the songs one of the characters sings is ridiculously catchy!)
Seamlessness - 8/10
At first glance, this mod might not seem as if it would fit into the game world. It introduces concepts that are vague and unfamiliar, and the whole tone of the mod is pretty unique. However, disregarding this, the amount of content is spot on. The areas are not recycled, but look as if they should have been part of the game from the start; there is just the right amount of voicing; the music is appropriate (and quite beautiful, I might add); the custom items are, given their price, not too overpowered. It's all spot on. And given that this is a land where there are many planes, the existence of the Gardens is hardly implausible.
Dialogue vs. Encounters - 10/10
A really good balance between dialogue, combat and puzzles. It has a little bit of everything, including a romance of sorts. Ticked every box.
Fun - 10/10
An amazing addition to the game. It was so exciting playing through content that I don't know like the back of my hand, and it was all to an amazing standard. The mod was a real treat - interesting, thought-provoking, surprisingly touching, and delightfully engrossing, I couldn't stop playing from start to finish.
Bugs/Issues - N/A (There were none!)
There are probably a million other categories I could explore, but I think I have said everything I wanted to say. I cannot recommend this mod enough, and Lava deserves much praise for the obvious work he has put into this. If you're looking for a quest mod, and you haven't tried this yet, give it a whirl. You won't regret it.
Edited by Lava Del'Vortel, 10 October 2011 - 02:48 AM.
when I'm usually around 
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