DoctorFinger
10-05-2011, 07:53 AM
Orcs Must Die Review
Title - Orcs Must Die
Platform - Xbox Live Arcade (http://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/Product/Orcs-Must-Die/66acd000-77fe-1000-9115-d802584111eb). Coming to PC (http://store.steampowered.com/app/102600/?snr=1_200_200_250_105) October 12.
Developer - Robot Entertainment (http://www.robotentertainment.com/)
Publisher - Microsoft Game Studios (http://www.microsoft.com/games/)
ESRB Rating - T (Teen)
MSRP - 1200 MSP/$15
Editor - Michael "DoctorFinger" Chauvet
Favorite Combo - Wind Belt -> Push Wall -> Steam Trap -> Swinging Mace
What's Hot: A remarkably addictive action strategy game. Tons of traps and spells to mix and match. Almost perfect difficulty curve. Wonderful aesthetics and charm. Great replayability.
What's Not: It ends. Robot Entertainment, formed from the ashes of Ensemble Studios (Age of Empire, Halo Wars), brings us Orcs Must Die, the tale of a Mage, some orcs and a whole lot of destruction. It’s also one of the best downloadable games of the year.
You play as the nameless apprentice War Mage. Your grizzled master died slipping on a pool of orc blood, so it’s up to you to defend all of existence from evil monsters bent on invading. Your character is possibly the last War Mage left, and he had to protect a multitude of fortresses from the Orc hordes. The story is told through a few short but effective cut scenes which ooze personality and charm.
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6035/6210582759_d9a44daaab_z.jpg
The actual game plays as a mix of passive tower defense and active third person action. You begin with a pair of weapons - the crossbow and the bladestaff - and a pair of traps - spike trap and tar trap. You’re plopped down in a fortress with a Rift and a Fortress Gate. You have to make sure the waves of Orcs don’t get from the Gate to the Rift. That’s where the traps and weapons come into play. Each trap has it’s own cost and effect, and you have to figure out the best combination of these traps to most efficiently eliminate the orcs.
(Sidenote: In this way Orcs Must Die resembles one of my favorite old school games, the PSOne-era Deception series from Tecmo. Deception focused more on big trap combos, and your character couldn’t attack directly, but the idea was similar.)
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6076/6211094526_662bb6fcc7_z.jpg
Figuring out which traps to use and where to use them with a limited budget forms the core of the game. Lining the whole floor with Spike Traps is relatively cheap, but is it as effective as a line of slowing Tar traps and a line of Archers? Most levels also include some sort of built in environmental hazards, such as lava or bottomless pits, and orcs can be nudged into these hazards with both traps and spells. Early levels are simple Point A to Point B lines, but later fortresses introduce branching paths and multiple origin gates. But as you progress your tools of destruction become more plentiful and potentially more potent. After every successful level you’re given between one and five Skulls based on how you did. These Skulls can then be used to upgrade your traps, making them cheaper or deadlier. Each defeated level also yields a new trap or weapon, and after a while you’ll find yourself with a plethora of orc-obliterating goodies.
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6230/6211093880_38754ac7ca_z.jpg
The idea behind Orcs Must Die is simple, but the game itself is not easy. As you progress you’ll find yourself fighting new enemies, like the fast Kobolds and the tank-like Ogres. In the second Act you’ll open up Weavers, which will give you buffs or bonuses at the cost of your precious in-game cash. Weaver bonuses only last for that level, and add another layer of strategy on top of the whole pile. But even with the Weavers, it’s challenging. The orcs aren’t terribly smart, but there are a lot of them, often coming from two or three different egresses at once. Do you lay equal traps at both, or do you stack one and personally defend the other? You have a replenishing mana bar for spells and a health bar which can be refilled by picking up dropped potions or standing near the Rift. If you die you respawn by the Rift, at a cost of some time and money.
So it’s a simple game. It’s also an absolute ton of fun. Playing with the traps and spells, trying to figure out the best and most entertaining combos (and those aren’t always the same thing) is a blast. The levels never quite get to the unmanageable point, even if it may take a couple of tries to beat a level. Like some of the other recent tower defense/action hybrids (such as Trenched/Iron Brigade or Section 8: Prejudice) you can choose to focus a little more on passive attacks or active attacks, so there’s some flexibility in play style available.
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6083/6211092264_ecd6f845f5_z.jpg
Oh, and you can go back at any time to play previous levels, either to earn Skulls you missed or just for the hell of it. And you play those levels with all of the traps, weapons and Weavers you’ve amassed to that point, so a really tough early level may be a breeze with more advanced options. There’s also a Nightmare difficulty level unlocked after you beat the game, but I haven’t dared venture there yet.
The visuals are nice but generally not flashy. The various monsters all have fairly unique builds, so you can identify them from fairly far away. They’re also wonderfully animated, conveying a lot of info with some subtle motions. The audio is mostly unremarkable, although the voice acting is very well done.
Score: (4.5 out of 5 Cogs)
http://www.colonyofgamers.com/images/CoG4_5.png
Michael says, “In a year where some truly great XBLA titles were released, Orcs Must Die may be the best of the bunch. It stays challenging the whole way through without ever becoming frustrating. At the same time, you won’t face the same challenges twice. It’s a game which really wouldn’t work on a retail disc, but as a downloadable game it’s among the best you can buy today.”
Title - Orcs Must Die
Platform - Xbox Live Arcade (http://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/Product/Orcs-Must-Die/66acd000-77fe-1000-9115-d802584111eb). Coming to PC (http://store.steampowered.com/app/102600/?snr=1_200_200_250_105) October 12.
Developer - Robot Entertainment (http://www.robotentertainment.com/)
Publisher - Microsoft Game Studios (http://www.microsoft.com/games/)
ESRB Rating - T (Teen)
MSRP - 1200 MSP/$15
Editor - Michael "DoctorFinger" Chauvet
Favorite Combo - Wind Belt -> Push Wall -> Steam Trap -> Swinging Mace
What's Hot: A remarkably addictive action strategy game. Tons of traps and spells to mix and match. Almost perfect difficulty curve. Wonderful aesthetics and charm. Great replayability.
What's Not: It ends. Robot Entertainment, formed from the ashes of Ensemble Studios (Age of Empire, Halo Wars), brings us Orcs Must Die, the tale of a Mage, some orcs and a whole lot of destruction. It’s also one of the best downloadable games of the year.
You play as the nameless apprentice War Mage. Your grizzled master died slipping on a pool of orc blood, so it’s up to you to defend all of existence from evil monsters bent on invading. Your character is possibly the last War Mage left, and he had to protect a multitude of fortresses from the Orc hordes. The story is told through a few short but effective cut scenes which ooze personality and charm.
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6035/6210582759_d9a44daaab_z.jpg
The actual game plays as a mix of passive tower defense and active third person action. You begin with a pair of weapons - the crossbow and the bladestaff - and a pair of traps - spike trap and tar trap. You’re plopped down in a fortress with a Rift and a Fortress Gate. You have to make sure the waves of Orcs don’t get from the Gate to the Rift. That’s where the traps and weapons come into play. Each trap has it’s own cost and effect, and you have to figure out the best combination of these traps to most efficiently eliminate the orcs.
(Sidenote: In this way Orcs Must Die resembles one of my favorite old school games, the PSOne-era Deception series from Tecmo. Deception focused more on big trap combos, and your character couldn’t attack directly, but the idea was similar.)
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6076/6211094526_662bb6fcc7_z.jpg
Figuring out which traps to use and where to use them with a limited budget forms the core of the game. Lining the whole floor with Spike Traps is relatively cheap, but is it as effective as a line of slowing Tar traps and a line of Archers? Most levels also include some sort of built in environmental hazards, such as lava or bottomless pits, and orcs can be nudged into these hazards with both traps and spells. Early levels are simple Point A to Point B lines, but later fortresses introduce branching paths and multiple origin gates. But as you progress your tools of destruction become more plentiful and potentially more potent. After every successful level you’re given between one and five Skulls based on how you did. These Skulls can then be used to upgrade your traps, making them cheaper or deadlier. Each defeated level also yields a new trap or weapon, and after a while you’ll find yourself with a plethora of orc-obliterating goodies.
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6230/6211093880_38754ac7ca_z.jpg
The idea behind Orcs Must Die is simple, but the game itself is not easy. As you progress you’ll find yourself fighting new enemies, like the fast Kobolds and the tank-like Ogres. In the second Act you’ll open up Weavers, which will give you buffs or bonuses at the cost of your precious in-game cash. Weaver bonuses only last for that level, and add another layer of strategy on top of the whole pile. But even with the Weavers, it’s challenging. The orcs aren’t terribly smart, but there are a lot of them, often coming from two or three different egresses at once. Do you lay equal traps at both, or do you stack one and personally defend the other? You have a replenishing mana bar for spells and a health bar which can be refilled by picking up dropped potions or standing near the Rift. If you die you respawn by the Rift, at a cost of some time and money.
So it’s a simple game. It’s also an absolute ton of fun. Playing with the traps and spells, trying to figure out the best and most entertaining combos (and those aren’t always the same thing) is a blast. The levels never quite get to the unmanageable point, even if it may take a couple of tries to beat a level. Like some of the other recent tower defense/action hybrids (such as Trenched/Iron Brigade or Section 8: Prejudice) you can choose to focus a little more on passive attacks or active attacks, so there’s some flexibility in play style available.
http://farm7.static.flickr.com/6083/6211092264_ecd6f845f5_z.jpg
Oh, and you can go back at any time to play previous levels, either to earn Skulls you missed or just for the hell of it. And you play those levels with all of the traps, weapons and Weavers you’ve amassed to that point, so a really tough early level may be a breeze with more advanced options. There’s also a Nightmare difficulty level unlocked after you beat the game, but I haven’t dared venture there yet.
The visuals are nice but generally not flashy. The various monsters all have fairly unique builds, so you can identify them from fairly far away. They’re also wonderfully animated, conveying a lot of info with some subtle motions. The audio is mostly unremarkable, although the voice acting is very well done.
Score: (4.5 out of 5 Cogs)
http://www.colonyofgamers.com/images/CoG4_5.png
Michael says, “In a year where some truly great XBLA titles were released, Orcs Must Die may be the best of the bunch. It stays challenging the whole way through without ever becoming frustrating. At the same time, you won’t face the same challenges twice. It’s a game which really wouldn’t work on a retail disc, but as a downloadable game it’s among the best you can buy today.”