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Castle Crashers: A Review in Altered States By: PoisonRamune, the Apathetic Lizardman
I love the art of Dan Paladin. It has this “done by an 8 year old with markers” energy, but it’s also very refined and well thought out. You may know Dan’s artwork from several featured Newgrounds videos (such as Queers of War) or the Alien Hominid game available on PS2, Gamecube and Xbox Live Arcade. Apparently, Dan Paladin and The Behemoth team are back with a brand new game, Castle Crashers. Castle Crashers is a 4 player beat ‘em up with RPG elements. While it does cost 1200 Xbox Live Arcade points ($15), its replayability and solid addictiveness makes the investment well worth it.
The controls are very simple, though the gameplay and combo system is somewhat indepth. I’d compare the fighting system to that of the Konami arcade beat ‘em ups (ie: The Simpsons and the TMNT arcade games); where you can feasibly beat the game by just doing basic attacks and jump kicks or you can choose to live a lot longer by learning the “special moves,” thus making you a more effective fighter. In Castle Crashers you are to fight your way through various levels laid out on a Super Mario World type overworld map. When you first start the game you’re limited to selecting one of 4 elemental knights; however, your selection of playable characters grows as you progress in the game. This alone adds to quite a bit of the replay, since I plan on finishing the game with each knight and possibly the Alien Hominid that you can unlock. The levels are fairly short, taking about 10 to 15 minutes to defeat. Each level has a checkpoint or 2; so if you have a life or really bad ADD, you don’t need to feel obligated to sit in front of the 360 all day milling through this game. Another thing that adds to the replay value of this game is the “customization.” While you can’t change your character’s appearance, there are a variety of weapons and assist animals find and use in the game. The local and online multiplayer also does wonders for the game. Though this game is a blast to play alone, the fun grows exponentially when you play with a buddy. It makes it feel like you’re hanging out with your pals at some arcade, even if they’re several states away from you.
As I mentioned before, I love the graphics by Dan Paladin. They’re simply brilliant. Paladin truly masters the art of making something simple yet wonderfully stylized in its application. The Castle Crashers themselves are designed like little toys; I’d love to have a plastic one sitting on my desk at work. The enemy artwork is also superb; from the barbarian henchmen to the monstrous cat that chases you to the river, the enemies have a look that’s not only grotesque and menacing but also kind of adorable. The soundtrack in Castle Crashers is great too. The best thing about it is the variety of the tracks. The music ranges from this epic medieval sounding drum tracks to trance that should be on a John Digweed album. The music is clean and well produced, which really surprises me for being in a $15 downloadable game. The sound effects are great too. The on screen effects are appropriate and clear, and even more impressive are the off screen sound effects. When something goes on off screen, you can almost tell for certain what’s going on. Whether it’s a tree falling, a castle being over taken, or a giant mammalian monster stalking you in the forest; you know what it is before you get to it (or it gets to you). I’ll admit playing this game while sober is a blast. However, playing this game while drunk or stoned takes things to a whole new level. Despite being an action game, Castle Crashers does not require you to take pebbles from Master Po’s hand. Bosses’ attacks are a bit slower that most game bosses and the henchmen will never just rush and stomp you in some erratic and unfair manner. Even with that being said, you still need to watch your back; beating an enemy is more about knowing what they can possibly attack you with, rather than trying to guess what they’re going to attack you with.
The game’s humor also makes this a perfect game to play while faded. There’s a little something to laugh at for everybody. The kids will love the scat jokes like watching a bear shit himself when a bigger animal pops out of the woods. Stoners, drunks and the idiots of the world take heart, there’s some slapstick comedy in the game for you too. And for all you normal people, there’s a moderate amount of sight gags and pop culture references to keep you chuckling (most notable is the shopkeeper yelling “Buy something will ya” ala Legend of Zelda. If you want a game with a fair challenge, that’s forgiving enough to play while you’re illing; then look no further, Castle Crashers is that game. If you’re looking for a fun game to play with some friends online or in home; once again, Castle Crashers is that game. Final Verdict:
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