DeVuego

While complaints can be leveled at Sword of the Necromancer based on repetition, that doesn’t mean that it’s bad. In fact, it’s enjoyable and recommended. Sure, Supergiant Games’ Hades devours this title’s lunch in that it’s a superior action rogue-like with great story. Barring that, Grimorio of Games built a fun and interesting dungeon crawler that’s deeper than it appears at first glance. The tale behind the stabbing is interesting and heartfelt, drawing the player further into the depths of the dungeon, while the action is exciting. An expansion to add more level and boss variety would go a long way to making this required playing, but anyone interested in this type of game should give this Sword of the Necromancer a swing.

To clear the palate, and because it’s so much fun, I put some time in with Robotron 2084 after I decided I was done with this game. For reference’s sake, I only discovered Robotron in recent years and have no history with the title to feel nostalgic about. It still holds up, though. The ramping up the challenge is perfect, allowing the player to get used to enemy behavior before moving to the next wave. It’s still relentless, requiring an almost superhuman level of situational awareness and quick reflexes. It is a masterwork on how to destroy a player but leave them wanting more. Bot Vice, on the other hand, is missing that magic. With another pass for tuning, the title could be something really special. All the pieces are already there. For now, though, it is something that should only be acknowledged by the truly masochistic.

Much of the time in this review was spent bagging on Anima: Gate of Memories’ many, many (many) flaws. Whether it was due to lack of experience, budget, or some combination of both, this game can be rightfully derided and relegated to the junk heap. Every positive that it brings to the table is counterpointed with a legitimate detraction. Yet, there is something here. The story is contrived, but intriguing. The combat is poorly balanced, but still has moments of greatness. I have never reviewed a game with so many glaring problems that I have enjoyed so much. So, players with a strong sense of patience and more forgiveness than should be required in their souls should check this out. There are jewels among the rubble of this tower.

Describing Tachyon Project as derivative is not intended to be dismissive. It manages to be what it sets out to be: fun. The joy of working up the leaderboard ranks is present and managing to surmount a particularly nasty swarm of baddies feels great. Eclipse Games picked a good target to copy and pulled it off with gusto. For the neophyte looking to get into this type of game, however, Geometry Wars 3: Dimensions is a better package overall. That one includes the basic version along with a host of different modes. Tachyon Project is for the people who have played that to death and want something else along the same lines.