Orcs Must Die! is a surprisingly well put together take on the “tower defense” genre. It combines some excellent third person gameplay with a great selection of traps.
When we first saw Orcs Must Die!, we figured it would be a new take on Tecmo’s Deception series. In actuality it plays closer to a more fast paced and easier version of Sanctum (also an excellent game). The controls work well and all the combat flows smoothly in this game, making it easy to pick up.
You take on the role of the apprentice, who in short order becomes the master warmage after his mentor dies. The story is carried through well-drawn story stills that are narrated by the former master. The apprentice gives his own humorous exposition throughout the game. The main character plays the lovable goof role found in so much media.
And that is the biggest part of the charm of this game. It doesn’t exactly take itself seriously or beat down the doors of a genre, but it all works. Character animations are good, we didn’t really experience any clipping issues or glitches either. Overall, Orcs Must Die! was fun throughout.
So we’ve gone down how great it is and why you should get it, but does it have any problems? Well, most assuredly. The game is rather short for extremely skilled players who have played the genre before. I.E. us, we finished most of the content offline in a few hours. There are leaderboards and multiple difficulties, which alleviates it a bit. On another note, it was quite surprising to see the final level ramp up the difficulty so much.
The other problem with Orcs Must Die! is the fact that it doesn’t do anything someone else hasn’t done before. I have seen a version of all the traps in other games, and the story isn’t exactly groundbreaking. So with that said, what is the final verdict?
4/5 great: While Orcs Must Die! isn’t going to revolutionize the industry, it is fun all the way through. For those who enjoy this genre of game, this is a must buy. It is easily one of the most fun tower defense/third person action games we have ever played.
Publisher: Robot Entertainment
Release dates: Xbox LIVE Arcade – October 5th, 2011
PC – October 12th, 2011
