Nintendo Wii Game and Accessory Reviews

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Rage of the Gladiator

Ghostfire Games have spent a considerable amount of time developing their latest WiiWare game. For the most part, it was time well spent.

 

Right off the bat, Rage of the Gladiator has two things going for it in the originality department. Quick, count on your hands all of the first person fighting games you've ever played. Now, how many of them utilize Wii MotionPlus? Exactly.

 

 

You play as a prince named Gracius who finds himself in a "Colosseum" of sorts, fighting for his life against many creatures. The reasons for this are initially unknown to the player. As you continue to defeat bosses, however, brief cinematic cut scenes attempt to fill in the gaps.

 

In general, the narrator is over-dramatic in his telling of the story, and for the most part the story itself is not all that engaging. Even though it feels lacking, it does a decent job of holding the game together.

 

You have three control options to choose from when playing Rage of the Gladiator. The first scheme involves holding the controller "Punch-Out!!" style, with the Wii Remote held horizontally. This was my personal preference. It isn't that the other control schemes don't work, they just didn't feel quite "right."

 

The other two schemes involve using the Wii Remote and Nunchuk as the player's hammer and shield. One of these options is for the use of Wii MotionPlus, while the other is for those still looking for some waggle fun, but do not own the MotionPlus accessory.

 

The MotionPlus scheme is a tad more accurate in detecting swings compared to not using it, but it is not the kind of change that demands you to run out and buy the device. Nonetheless, it is nice to see a WiiWare game make use of the peripheral.

 

You have two choices: block, or dodge and be ready to spring a counterattack.

 

Fighting is certainly for the patient man. The goal is to exploit each boss' weakness, but it will usually take more than one fight to figure this out. Be ready to die frequently, especially when it comes to the more difficult bosses.

 

In between fights, you'll have access to possibly the best part of Rage of the Gladiator, the skill tree. After each fight, you'll have three points to spend in the areas of Offense, Defense, or Magic. Upgrades range from upgrading attack strength to learning new combos, which let you protect yourself better from attackers. Upgrades make a genuine difference, and allow for different builds of a character.

 

This is one of the stronger combos you can eventually unlock through upgrades.

 

Once you complete the game, you unlock Challenge Mode, which allows you to play through the game again, but the bosses are tougher. Beating the game itself is something to be proud of, but this mode intensifies the game even further.

 

Versatile Bosses - No two bosses are the same. No two bosses even resemble each other for that matter. With each new boss comes a brand new experience.

 

Rewarding - With a high difficulty, it definitely feels like you earned those three upgrade points after a tough fight.

 

Upgrade! - The skill tree is extensive, considering the scale of the game, and allows for different strategies to be employed. Want to focus on being aggressive? Upgrade your offensive skills. Prefer to sit and wait for your chance to strike? Upgrade your defensive skills.

 

Addicting - I found myself saying over and over, "All right, I'm only playing ONCE MORE." Thirty minutes later, I was saying it again.

 

Value - Priced at a modest $10, you'll certainly get a lot of hours out of the game, even if you do not choose to pursue Challenge Mode.

 

Over The Line - The later boss fights tread a very fine line between difficult, and flat-out cheap. A couple of bosses are unbalanced, resulting in a lot of unnecessary frustration.

 

Cheesy Voice Acting - From the narrator to the each and every boss, the voice acting is at first humorous, but quickly turns annoying. This is especially the case when each boss feels the need to break up each fight to talk trash.

 

Damage Control - Bosses do not visibly take any damage. Hit a boss in the face with your hammer, and he'll look just as smug as before. It would have been nice to see bruises or cuts or something to account for the damage you are inflicting.

 

With Rage of the Gladiator, Ghostfire Games cites influences like Punch-Out!! and creates a fun, ambitious fighting game. With its simple premise, and addicting gameplay, fighting the many bosses is mostly a pleasure.

 

However, a grating combination of poor voice work and imbalanced bosses can become too aggravating. You may succumb to the growing sense of frustration at these points. Despite the frustration, Rage of the Gladiator boils down to being a good value on WiiWare.