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Orcs Must Die! 2
Robot Entertainment does it again with their release of Orcs Must Die! 2, the follow-up to one of our favorite titles of 2011. Flying under the radar by many people, the original game blended action, strategy, colorful visuals, and a whole lot of fun into one package. Really, the only thing that I felt was lacking from the original game was the fact that it did not include multiplayer!
If Robot Entertainment merely added a multiplayer component in this sequel, Orcs Must Die! 2 would already be off to a great start. As it is, the studio took the extra step and cranked the gameplay and action up to almost 11. The game now features a more fully realized upgrade system, a more detailed story, slightly improved visuals, more traps, more weapons, more enemies, more levels, and more of everything else.
For those unaware, the basic premise of the game pits the player against waves of orcs and other enemies. You lay down traps between waves to set up bottlenecks that will either kill the enemies or at least slow them down before you ultimately put them out of their misery. It's basically a tower defense game mixed with a third-person action title, one that features various trap types instead of towers and in which the player has a more "hands on" role. Yes, the players can make use of weapons and even the environment to dish out their own blend of death and destruction in conjunction with the traps they laid down earlier. It is a very action oriented game, so don't expect to just sit back and let your traps do all the work for you.
Kill, get money, build more traps, and repeat. If you manage to fend off the orcs and prevent them from reaching the goal, you have essentially "won" the level and can move on to the next. Skulls are awarded based on your performance, which can then be used to unlock weapon and trap upgrades or used to unlock other items. The real challenge comes in the online leaderboards that show you how you rank against your friends. You'll want to revisit earlier levels if only to get a higher score than your buddy. Naturally, there are more challenging difficulty levels that can turn even the earliest levels into real tests of player ability.
One of the most obvious new additions to the sequel is the fact that players can now choose to play as a female Sorceress. As the title implies, she relies on heavy magic and mind-control abilities for her attacks. She joins up with the male War Mage, a character that is just at home using a crossbow as he is using a sword. A slight bit of magic usage can be used by the War Mage, but he prefers to get his hands bloodied the old fashioned way. The two unlikely partners team up and continue the story right where the first game left off. Sure, you don't have to play through the campaign with two people, but it's always more fun with a friend.
Co-op allows you and one other person to blast your way through every level in the campaign. Brief interactions and light-hearted one-liners are about all you'll experience between the two during the heat of the battle, with a majority of the story playing out through animated sequences between levels. Each player will be able to see what traps the other is placing thanks to a colored highlight on the ground where the other is aiming. By strategically placing traps for one another, combos can be built and a higher overall score can be achieved. The game really rewards teamwork and strategic trap placement. This is true whether or not you're flying solo or playing with a buddy.
Each level is wonderfully designed and provides a nice ramp up of the difficulty as the game progresses. Some choke points are quite obvious in each level, while others have to be player created by setting up an assortment of barricades and traps. Ranging from the small and tight to the large and frantic, the maps will always keep you on your toes. Players will often have to run from one area to the other to pick off the strays that their traps failed to funnel into an area or those that simply had too much HP. Obviously, this is less running around when playing in the cooperative mode, but this is balanced out by having more waves of slightly tougher enemies. The game seems to always find the right balance between being challenging and being fun regardless of the mode being played. The only exception to this might be found in some of the later levels, which seem to be designed more with co-op play in mind. It's not a huge deal, but it is one that should be taken under consideration.
The game offers up a ton of replay value. Either attempt to beat your own high score on a level, or attempt to beat the high scores of your friends, or just play for the heck of it because it's an enjoyable game. There are also a handful of difficulty levels, including a "Nightmare" difficulty reserved for those who think they just breeze through everything without issue. If you ever tire of the story mode, the game does offer up an endless mode that just constantly throws waves of enemies at you to see how long you are able to survive.
All told, Orcs Must Die! 2 takes everything that we loved about the first game and sweetens the pot even further with co-op play, over 20 different enemies, more trap and weapons, more levels, more upgrades, and more fun. If you happen to already own Orcs Must Die!, then you will be thrilled to find out that a hand-picked selection of 10 classic maps are included in Orcs Must Die! 2 from the original game.
Priced at just $15 (USD; $25 for a two-pack), Orcs Must Die! 2 offers tremendous value for the price. It is highly recommended to fans of tower defense games, action games with a more light-hearted tone, fans of playing a co-op game with a friend, and fans of enjoyable games in general.
Relevant Links
Orcs Must Die! 2 on Steam
Orcs Must Die! 2 on Gamersgate
Orcs Must Die! 2 on Gamestop
Orcs Must Die! 2 Official Page
Orcs Must Die! 2 was provided to TGN courtesy of Robot Entertainment for review purposes.
Robot Entertainment does it again with their release of Orcs Must Die! 2, the follow-up to one of our favorite titles of 2011. Flying under the radar by many people, the original game blended action, strategy, colorful visuals, and a whole lot of fun into one package. Really, the only thing that I felt was lacking from the original game was the fact that it did not include multiplayer!
If Robot Entertainment merely added a multiplayer component in this sequel, Orcs Must Die! 2 would already be off to a great start. As it is, the studio took the extra step and cranked the gameplay and action up to almost 11. The game now features a more fully realized upgrade system, a more detailed story, slightly improved visuals, more traps, more weapons, more enemies, more levels, and more of everything else.
For those unaware, the basic premise of the game pits the player against waves of orcs and other enemies. You lay down traps between waves to set up bottlenecks that will either kill the enemies or at least slow them down before you ultimately put them out of their misery. It's basically a tower defense game mixed with a third-person action title, one that features various trap types instead of towers and in which the player has a more "hands on" role. Yes, the players can make use of weapons and even the environment to dish out their own blend of death and destruction in conjunction with the traps they laid down earlier. It is a very action oriented game, so don't expect to just sit back and let your traps do all the work for you.
Kill, get money, build more traps, and repeat. If you manage to fend off the orcs and prevent them from reaching the goal, you have essentially "won" the level and can move on to the next. Skulls are awarded based on your performance, which can then be used to unlock weapon and trap upgrades or used to unlock other items. The real challenge comes in the online leaderboards that show you how you rank against your friends. You'll want to revisit earlier levels if only to get a higher score than your buddy. Naturally, there are more challenging difficulty levels that can turn even the earliest levels into real tests of player ability.
One of the most obvious new additions to the sequel is the fact that players can now choose to play as a female Sorceress. As the title implies, she relies on heavy magic and mind-control abilities for her attacks. She joins up with the male War Mage, a character that is just at home using a crossbow as he is using a sword. A slight bit of magic usage can be used by the War Mage, but he prefers to get his hands bloodied the old fashioned way. The two unlikely partners team up and continue the story right where the first game left off. Sure, you don't have to play through the campaign with two people, but it's always more fun with a friend.
Co-op allows you and one other person to blast your way through every level in the campaign. Brief interactions and light-hearted one-liners are about all you'll experience between the two during the heat of the battle, with a majority of the story playing out through animated sequences between levels. Each player will be able to see what traps the other is placing thanks to a colored highlight on the ground where the other is aiming. By strategically placing traps for one another, combos can be built and a higher overall score can be achieved. The game really rewards teamwork and strategic trap placement. This is true whether or not you're flying solo or playing with a buddy.
Each level is wonderfully designed and provides a nice ramp up of the difficulty as the game progresses. Some choke points are quite obvious in each level, while others have to be player created by setting up an assortment of barricades and traps. Ranging from the small and tight to the large and frantic, the maps will always keep you on your toes. Players will often have to run from one area to the other to pick off the strays that their traps failed to funnel into an area or those that simply had too much HP. Obviously, this is less running around when playing in the cooperative mode, but this is balanced out by having more waves of slightly tougher enemies. The game seems to always find the right balance between being challenging and being fun regardless of the mode being played. The only exception to this might be found in some of the later levels, which seem to be designed more with co-op play in mind. It's not a huge deal, but it is one that should be taken under consideration.
The game offers up a ton of replay value. Either attempt to beat your own high score on a level, or attempt to beat the high scores of your friends, or just play for the heck of it because it's an enjoyable game. There are also a handful of difficulty levels, including a "Nightmare" difficulty reserved for those who think they just breeze through everything without issue. If you ever tire of the story mode, the game does offer up an endless mode that just constantly throws waves of enemies at you to see how long you are able to survive.
All told, Orcs Must Die! 2 takes everything that we loved about the first game and sweetens the pot even further with co-op play, over 20 different enemies, more trap and weapons, more levels, more upgrades, and more fun. If you happen to already own Orcs Must Die!, then you will be thrilled to find out that a hand-picked selection of 10 classic maps are included in Orcs Must Die! 2 from the original game.
Priced at just $15 (USD; $25 for a two-pack), Orcs Must Die! 2 offers tremendous value for the price. It is highly recommended to fans of tower defense games, action games with a more light-hearted tone, fans of playing a co-op game with a friend, and fans of enjoyable games in general.
Overall: 9/10
Gameplay: 9/10
Audio: 8/10
Visuals: 9/10
Multiplayer: 8.5/10
Gameplay: 9/10
Audio: 8/10
Visuals: 9/10
Multiplayer: 8.5/10
Relevant Links
Orcs Must Die! 2 on Steam
Orcs Must Die! 2 on Gamersgate
Orcs Must Die! 2 on Gamestop
Orcs Must Die! 2 Official Page
Orcs Must Die! 2 was provided to TGN courtesy of Robot Entertainment for review purposes.
! I'm out of the contest though, I'll pass this one and give the chance to someone else who's probably more interested in the game than me.
And thanks!
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