Okay, after months of this creeping back into my conciousness and a four hour intense search marathon just now, all of which has left me completely fruitless. I turn to this great hive in hopes of salvation.
Here's everything I think I remember from watching my friend play this game (or demo):
It was a PC game (maybe not exclusively), I remember being impressed by the graphics (whatever that means), should be late 90s or early 00s. Medieval setting, might be fantasy, third or first person (maybe both) action adventure/RPG.
I believe there were at least three playable characters, but I don't think you actually chose one, more like you played a different character at different moments in the game. I believe one is a black haired warrior kind of fella (feels like main character or maybe front and center in the main menu), another red haired/bearded guy, which I'm tempted to classify as a dwarf (could swear he had an axe), and maybe a female archer. At least definitely archery and another thing I remember being impressed about is that you could either see the arrows you shot stuck in whatever they were shot at, and maybe even that you could pick them back up after that Everything I remember takes place around/inside a castle or something similar. The archery part I remember was mostly in an area in which there was a circular staircase around a tower (outside), water or just a drop on your left, the tower on your right.
The thing I remember most vividly is the red headed/bearded person in a cutscene/situation: inside, kinda like a dungeon, with an opened drawbridge or something similar out of wood in front of you and a gap in between. Also something about a red gemstone is trying to work its way into my memory.
I used to think the title had something with 'sword' or 'dark' in the title, but after running through multiple lists of video games between 1995 and 2005 I've come to doubt that theory. May still be true though.
So... PC, seemed like good graphics, tried for a realistic vibe, medieval/fantasy setting (in/around castle), action adventure/RPG, two or three characters (black haired guy, red haired/bearded guy), third/first person view, late 90s/early 00s, some archery with recollectable arrows annnnddd that's about it.
Here's hoping someone has a clue what I'm going for and I get to find out how much I've been misremembering.
Thanks!