Review: Overlord

Overlord
Triumph Studion

Reviewed On: Xbox 360
Street: 06.27.06

You all know the story. Boy meets girl. Boy has been resurrected by a legion of devilish imps who have mistaken boy for their deceased and evil master. Girl adds a much-needed woman’s touch to boy’s evil fortress of tyranny. Yeah, some stories just never get old, and Overlord is just such a story, but brings to the table a new concept in game play that I must admit is not only fun, but makes choosing evil feel better than ever before. Throughout the game you will control your minion, a herd of little evildoers you create via the destruction of all things good (or at least living), either directly with the controls, or by simply pointing them in a certain direction. Your minions will then unleash a wave of destruction that is both mesmerizing and hilarious. Enemies are swarmed, loot is pillaged and sheep are harvested for their yummy souls — all with the slightest gesture by the Overlord. Occasionally you may have to unsheathe your sword and give some support to the little fellers, but for the most part they just need you guidance to get them through. There are four minions that become available to you throughout the game, each with a different power and corresponding color and each with a tactical use in the game. There’s not much to complain about with Overlord; the graphics are awesome, the story is compelling enough to keep you coming back and the minion will have you laughing at the screen. One thing that I’ve been particularly impressed with is the sheer coolness of the levels you must traverse. There’s a cool Diablo feel to the levels (minus the loot) although you won’t have to do nearly as much slashing on your own with Overlord. There’s a few times when you are required to pull off some precision minion control and the controls for this can be tricky or even stupid, but for the most part this game has surprised me as one of my favorite new games of the summer