Gameplay
Wizardry 8 uses different statistics than the previous games, necessitating conversions from the upper limit of 18 to the new upper limit of 100.
For the first time in the Wizardry series, players can see enemies approaching instead of having them pop up randomly. Combat is turn-based, although a continuous-phase mode can be toggled. Because combatants are free to move during combat, some disadvantages of the combat engine can quickly become apparent. Fights with more than ten enemies can become tedious, while spells that cause fear can cause the enemies to run away, even though the player's party is still flagged as being in combat. Due to the way enemies tend to surround the party, it is often necessary to retreat into nooks and crannies in the terrain in order to prevent being flanked.
Each race and class has a balance of strengths and weaknesses. The various races and classes are designed to be balanced so that a wide variety of parties can be playable. Characters may change their class as they advance, allowing a variety of combinations.
Monsters are scaled to the party level; higher level parties will face different sets of monsters than a lower level party in the same area. The scaling is limited to allow variation in difficulty.
For players seeking a more difficult challenge, Sir-Tech brought back an option to play using rules from the early Wizardries - the "Iron Man Mode". In this "permadeath" mode, players are not allowed to save the game; instead the game is automatically saved when the player quits. As a result, a death cannot be trivially undone by a simple "Restore Game".
There are many secret areas, including "retro dungeons". Retro Dungeon refer to the look of the dungeons in the original Wizardry (Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord). Instead of vast open views, players are greeted with a solid, traditional grid-based dungeon. Spinners, traps and teleporters are used.
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