Spartan Total Warrior Review (no fat)

Game Description

Sometimes, a game that's crafted with thought and care, can provide the perfect vehicle for players to live their fantasies. Spartan Total Warrior is one such game as it takes you through a period of time where heroes were revered and struck terror in the hearts of enemies.

Spartan Total Warrior narrates the tale of a one man war machine, the Spartan, blessed with unique powers and skills, taking on hordes of invaders and crushing them in his quest to liberate Sparta, the legendary Greek city. The enemy here is the invading Roman army and it's numerous divisions that include the undead, mythical and mythological characters. The Spartan is blessed by Aries, the Greek war god, and grows in might and gains new abilities as he vanquishes enemies.

The game can be played in Story mode where Spartan goes from battlefield to battlefield and engages in melee style combat with numerous enemies including some huge boss creatures. Or, you can opt for the Arena mode where you take on hordes of opponents at the same time and gain valuable experience and skills.

Spartan Total Warrior employs the entire gamut of combat elements and provides an epic adventure to players.

Spartan Total Warrior Gameplay

It's pure combat and carnage as far as the essence of the gameplay is concerned. The game is set in three acts - Warrior, Hero and Legend – each containing a slew of missions with the Ruins of Troy, Sparta and other historical venues acting as the battlegrounds. Based on the missions, you face a diverse range of enemies that span ancient history, mythology, fiction and like.

Spartan is equipped with a range of weapons including standard equipment such as bow and arrow, swords and shields. He also starts off with some basic styles of attack but as you progress, you learn new attacks and get to lay your hands on some lethal weaponry.

There is also a rage meter that fills up as you hack and slash your way through the incoming legions and once this hits it's peak, you get to unleash special powers that can take down a whole lot of enemies. There are some unique weapons which include the shield of medusa that can turn enemies into stone for a short while, the Athena Blade that slashes a lot of enemies in one fell swoop and also unleashes a stream of energy, The Hammer of Beowulf, that wipes out any unfortunate enemy within a radius and so on.

The game also features some great boss creatures ranging from a Roman general to a giant Hydra and even an evil clone of Spartan. While some of the enemies require serious skill and timing, the others can be vanquished with patience. Killing a boss creature moves you on to the next mission.

The most incredible part of the game is the sheer amount of sprites that the game packs into the screen at a given time. While this rarely takes toll on the quality of graphics, it promises memorable combat sequences as well. Characters do not feature intricate detailing but move in a fluid manner which accounts for great playability. The flip side is that there are instances when the camera acts quirky and mars the game. The fact that the fight animations are the same for all the soldiers lets the epic scenes of raging battles down…

Spartan Total Warrior Graphics & Sound

The graphics have been scaled down to accommodate better playability and this results in compromises in character and level detailing. The cut scenes are decent but the voice acting isn't the best.

The sound track has its moments but it is nothing that will amplify the experience for long periods of time. The game does depict some decent special effects and the action is fluid. A tweak in camera behavior would have done the game a world of good.

Spartan Total Warrior Summary

This game works for fans of the genre and those who love combat sequences with plenty of thrills and action to boot. The underlying theme is excellent and the prospect of battling against some legendary opponents is great.

The central character, Spartan, is imposing in his stature and also packs plenty of weapons and attack sequences to make him a cult hero. The action tends to get repetitive after a while with only the changes in vista and opponents adding any value. Boss creatures serve as a great finale to individual missions…at least when they are not trying to chicken out.

The game had a lot of potential to be an extremely successful fighting game with gory killings, it just falls short because of some glitches that limit the gameplay value. Even with the hiccups of camera trouble and a patchy allied AI, Spatran Total Warrior has some great entertainment value and is worth a buy.

Spartan Total Warrior Cost

At the time of this review, the game retails for $49.99