Trashcat
08-24-2007, 8:09 PM
Media: Game
System(s): Xbox 360, PC
Genre: Adventure, Action, Strategy
Rating: M
On a system seriously short on decent games that don't involve shooting the crap out of everything that moves, Overlord is a breath of fresh air. An exercise in both micromanagement and general hilarity, the game manages to combine the perverse pleasure of being an evil mastermind with the light-hearted joy of slapstick humor.
The concept is simple. You are a recently resurrected evil Overlord charged with reclaiming your devilish domain and ruling the land with an iron fist, along with getting revenge on the seven heroes who killed your predecessor. To attain this goal, you'll rely on your trusty axe and a smatter of spells. However, the assistance of dozens of small, goblin-like creatures referred to as 'minions' is what will balance the odds between you and your mobs of foes. There are four different kinds of these interesting, and ultimately hilarious creatures. You start the game with the normal 'brown' type warrior minions, and end up obtaining red firethrowers, green assassins, and blue healers. Balancing your minions is key, especially considering the multitudes of different enemies. Halflings, Dwarves, trolls, giants, succubi, and other fantastic creatures will provide opposition to your foul designs.
For the most part, the game looks and plays beautifully. Water ripples gorgeously and reflects the sunlight (with an accelerated day/night system), the environments are diverse and interesting, and a lush amount of detail is put into the entire world. Managing your minions (which, by the end game, number up to 50) is as simple as running them around with the right analog stick and mapping separate colors to the D-pad (or hotkeys on the PC version). Best of all, the minions go about their tasks hilariously. They will jump on enemies and laugh gleefully while stabbing them to death, wear pumpkins as protective helmets, and jump happily to their deaths in pre-assigned health and mana shrines to serve you.
Unfortunately the game, while impressive, has it's drawbacks. Namely, despite your decent array of spells, including flamethrowers, protective shields, and mind-controlling abilities, the Overlord, controlled by the player, seriously lacks combat intiative. You have only one attack button and no blocking or dodging abilities, leaving you susceptible to quick deaths in melee combat. Furthermore, sometimes your minions will find their way to idiotic deaths (especially endgame when you're controlling more at a time) by drowning themselves or separating from the group and getting lost and slaughtered by enemies.
Minor complaints aside, Overlord is an enjoyable game that has something rare nowadays: a good sense of humor. Good for a thrill, and great for a laugh, it's one of the better ways to pass a weekend.
Overall Score: 8/10
System(s): Xbox 360, PC
Genre: Adventure, Action, Strategy
Rating: M
On a system seriously short on decent games that don't involve shooting the crap out of everything that moves, Overlord is a breath of fresh air. An exercise in both micromanagement and general hilarity, the game manages to combine the perverse pleasure of being an evil mastermind with the light-hearted joy of slapstick humor.
The concept is simple. You are a recently resurrected evil Overlord charged with reclaiming your devilish domain and ruling the land with an iron fist, along with getting revenge on the seven heroes who killed your predecessor. To attain this goal, you'll rely on your trusty axe and a smatter of spells. However, the assistance of dozens of small, goblin-like creatures referred to as 'minions' is what will balance the odds between you and your mobs of foes. There are four different kinds of these interesting, and ultimately hilarious creatures. You start the game with the normal 'brown' type warrior minions, and end up obtaining red firethrowers, green assassins, and blue healers. Balancing your minions is key, especially considering the multitudes of different enemies. Halflings, Dwarves, trolls, giants, succubi, and other fantastic creatures will provide opposition to your foul designs.
For the most part, the game looks and plays beautifully. Water ripples gorgeously and reflects the sunlight (with an accelerated day/night system), the environments are diverse and interesting, and a lush amount of detail is put into the entire world. Managing your minions (which, by the end game, number up to 50) is as simple as running them around with the right analog stick and mapping separate colors to the D-pad (or hotkeys on the PC version). Best of all, the minions go about their tasks hilariously. They will jump on enemies and laugh gleefully while stabbing them to death, wear pumpkins as protective helmets, and jump happily to their deaths in pre-assigned health and mana shrines to serve you.
Unfortunately the game, while impressive, has it's drawbacks. Namely, despite your decent array of spells, including flamethrowers, protective shields, and mind-controlling abilities, the Overlord, controlled by the player, seriously lacks combat intiative. You have only one attack button and no blocking or dodging abilities, leaving you susceptible to quick deaths in melee combat. Furthermore, sometimes your minions will find their way to idiotic deaths (especially endgame when you're controlling more at a time) by drowning themselves or separating from the group and getting lost and slaughtered by enemies.
Minor complaints aside, Overlord is an enjoyable game that has something rare nowadays: a good sense of humor. Good for a thrill, and great for a laugh, it's one of the better ways to pass a weekend.
Overall Score: 8/10