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Tecmo's DeceptionAh, this is what I like to see, a game that combines all the right elements of graphics, sound, controls, and gameplay into one sweet package. The premise behind the game is that you are the son of a king, and due to the fact that your brother is a power hungry SOB, he frames you for murder. Before you can say "lack of courtroom defense" your on the receiving end of a necktie party in the middle of a town square. Now, my first question is this: If you were such a beloved prince how come all the peasants are cheering your demise? Ah well, must be the joy of a public execution! Any hoo, as your spirit leaves your body to find eternal peace, you cry out for anyone to help you. Guess who helps? The Lord of Darkness of course!Lord of Darkness: Hey are you talking smack about me again? Me: Oh go away! Here is the address for Intellectual Giant, go torment him! LOD: Uh, I am the IG. Me: That really explains a lot. Hum, go torment Lucas in the Gulag. You'll love the snow! LOD: Great idea, I'd love to see my nephew again! Me: That explains a lot too...... Anyway, it end up that you end up serving the LOD by becoming the master of a mansion; sadly it is not the Playboy mansion. You lay traps to kill innocent victims, so you can sell their souls or turn them into monsters. In the end your mansion is a medieval Econo Lodge. Well, because we are all graphics whores, I'll start the review with a critique on graphics, then I'll go too sound, controls are third with gameplay coming in fourth. I'll sum up all reviews at the end so all the lazyfolk can just skip to the end....and toss aside all my efforts..sob.... READ IT ALL D@MN YOU!! I NEED MY EFFORTS TO BE VALIDATED!!!!! Graphics: Now keep in mind that this game is 2 years old. The engine is mainly first person perspective, with a 2-d map being used to plant the traps. Even with the age, the engine is quite functional. The rooms are not highly detailed, but they get the job done. There are several dozen enemies in the game, and they are all graphically differentiated so there is never any confusion. The trap animations are quite good, ranging from pits to nowhere, to spikes to falling cages. The enemies can cast very clean looking spells at you, and you can create a wide variety of monsters to do your bidding. All of the monsters are well animated too, and its always a joy to see your werewolves tearing into a helpless traveler.... Sound: Well, I'm not one to rant on sound, so all I'll say is the game could have really used some better in game music. A musical score from Resident Evil would have been perfect here. Even an older type Twilight Zone or Chillier Theater piece would have been better than the total silence. Once you get over the lack of musical accompaniment, the plain sound effects are nice. You will hear floors creak, doors open and enemies run. Still, a nice classical score would have been perfect. Control: This game had excellent control, with no stiffness orjerkiness. Also all of the buttons were laid out in a logical and intuitive manner, so there were never any moments where I was left wandering where I was supposed to push. The look up/down keys are a little sluggish, but nothing thatI can't live with. Gameplay: This is the area that the game never shines. First off there are a ton of levels, so the game gives you a good bang for your buck. Second, there are various means to an end in this game. You can either research traps, expand rooms, or create monsters. And when you do kill a traveler, you can sell the soul for gold, manna or keep the body for your "experiments." So there is no one set strategy that you have to pursue in this game. And believe me trapping stupid knights or pompous wizards never gets old. The only game that I can compare this too is Dungeon Keeper for the PC, where you play the evil bad guy there too. The only true way to describe this game is to picture yourself being the AD&D Dungeon master of one big ole dungeon, except YOU design the layout, place the traps, and create the monsters. Truly a gem of a title!
Graphics...8/10 If you see this game any where buy it. I got it for a steal at EB for 19.95 -Madgraduate |
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