Demo Review 9: Rage of the Gladiator

Gracius, prince of a great land, was betrayed and is now forced to fight along with other gladiators, in the arena. This antique world, reminiscent of Rome A.D., is also home for many mythical creatures, such as minotaurs and dragons. Needless to say, those monsters pose a threat. As a result, our prince protagonist has to learn how to fight like a gladiator, show his talent, and then go up against the monsters.

First of all, this game makes you pick three different ways to play. That's a good start. Once the opening cutscene is over, you are now in the arena, and a little Chinese sensei comes to you. Oh, God... The character's design is insensitive, the voice is annoying, and his face is scary. I'd have a field day just mocking this one character, but I have to write about this demo as a whole. And it's kind of sad, because the game seemed at first to promise to us some excellent modeling, what with that grand cutscene and those beautiful images we hoped to see soon in 3D. Better luck next time, I guess. You're now following a tutorial during which you can bash on the little Chinese man as much as you want. Take that, insulting stereotype!

Fast enough, the little guy starts attacking as well, and continue teaching you the basis (blocking, dodging, jumping away from the attack). More is explained to you, such as counterattacks. Your first true enemy is an armor-wearing goblin. Use everything you've learned against him and beat him. Once he's beaten, he... summons power to him so he can beat you. Beat him again, and he'll do it once more. The third time? He grows to be a god damn giant. After he's beaten, you face an even greater challenge; A minotaur! He's really hard to defeat, but use all you've learned and you should be able to win. And then a sea witch.

The demo probably stops there. You got the tutorial, and then three battles... That's a LOT for a demo. What can I say about it? Well, while the modeling is great for the monsters, the only human we see in the game is... creepy. The controls? I'm glad we get to choose between three different control schemes, because this game is damn difficult. No matter which one you'll pick. Each opponent has different attacks, and you really have to learn what these attacks are, how to avoid them, and how and when to hit back. If you like your games hard, you'll like this. The voice acting for the cutscenes is fine, although you'll probably be saddened – or glad – that they're not animated. I do find this kind of awful that the game makes the enemies get stronger twice while you stay at the same “level”. Oh well.

Just download the demo, and if you love it, then spend your dear money to buy the full version. I know I won't, but really, it all comes down to your personal opinion.