32_Footsteps's Full Review: Warlocked for Game Boy Color
(Note: A copy of this game was made available to me by Nintendo of America.)
Real time strategy games are huge right now. But did you ever wonder why they haven't become successful to this extent until now? Prior to this, the closest we had to one was "Lemmings" and its imitators. Is it a case that the technology is good enough to support it now, or is it just that nobody really thought of it before?
Well, Nintendo decided to put this to the test, and have released "Warlocked" for the Game Boy Color. While it obviously is much less compared to its predecessors in terms of what you can do, it still has some bright spots.
First, the premise of the game. It seems that in some unnamed fantasy world, humanity is expanding their empires too fast and running afoul of beasts who are doing the same thing. Chief Zog, the beast leader, declares war on the humans, and Queen Azarel, the human leader, responds in kind. Nothing dramatic here, and the plot is static. You simply march onward to destroy your foe. Like in thousands of other games, the plot is merely decoration to set the stage for the action.
The action, as it were, appears with the clashing of the forces. You can play as either the humans or the beasts, but initially, the difference is purely cosmetic. Both sets of armies have 3 types of troops: workers, melee fighters, and long distance fighters. The graphics change between the two armies, but they are otherwise the same. Ditto to the different buildings - farms to support your army, training areas for new recruits, and guard towers. You already know what your opponents' capabilities are - you have the very same.
Of course, when opposing the computer, you have one major disadvantage - you have to gather resources. The computer magnaminously gives itself unlimited funds, and can eventually overwhelm you if you aren't careful. Fortunately, the computer is unable to build new farms, so you aren't going to be seeing the equivalent of a Zerg wave unless you knock off a couple of guards without destroying a farm or two first. But still, even with the best strategy, you'll watch your own forces be eaten like fresh chocolate chip cookies on a level playing field.
This is where the wizards hinted in the title come in. This is also where it matters to choose beast or human. Each side can bring in up to three wizards, with powers to compliment your forces, to cause havoc. Some wizards you find will help either army (and you can use wizards previously found in later missions), or are exclusive to one army. Actually, check the comment about each side - your side gets to bring in three wizards. In exchange for the unlimited resources, the computer doesn't use wizards. Also, since wizards are the only units that can heal, a crafty gamer will quickly figure out how to wreck the computer's army without ever losing a unit.
As long as you think ahead about your actions, you won't have too much trouble going through the single player mode. While the straightforward "pillage the enemy" tactic will fail, the working alternative requires just a tad of thought. With the right wizards, it can get even easier. Playing through either single player scenario won't yield too much challenge.
However, like its forefathers on computers, Warlocked is meant to be played against another player. As of this writing, I'm the only one I know with the game, so I can't comment on this beyond what is mentioned in the instruction booklet. After each battle in single player mode, your surviving troops, guard towers, and money go into the game's memory. Now, with those troops and cash, you can build an army that can be stored on the game. You can have up to thirty armies, so you have alot of flexibility with them. Worried about not having enough troops, or not having the right wizards for the job? Just play single player more for the stuff you need.
Also, I've duly noted everyone who has complained about StarCraft 64. Unlike that game, you don't play a split screen on this one - you use the Game Link cable. Yes, it's not just for Pokemon anymore. So fans of online multi-player may like this. Of course, you only can have two people playing, but you won't have your opponent looking at your screen.
Fortunately, tedium takes a little bit to set in. In each scenario, there are different objectives to consider, all made faithfully from StarCraft scenarios. You even have the "small band of troops must secure a person" scenario. While the variety isn't tremendous, it does mean you can easily play two or three scenarios without becoming too bored, and the game, like StarCraft again, saves which scenarios are complete and which aren't, so you can always pick it up again when you're in the mood.
The graphics in this game aren't great, but they do get the job done. Thee isn't much variety between the units, since there are only a couple of models. Fortunately, the beast and human units are not palette swaps of each other, so we can avoid any jokes about "Mortal Kombat." The wizards, however, are just swaps off of two or three models, so maybe you can pull out the jokes. The game is not for the color-blind. For the most part, while the graphics are easily distinguished, I've seen much better.
The only exception is the screen that appears when you first find a wizard. There is an anime-style picture that comes along with it that has remarkable detail for a Game Boy still. Of course, you can also look at that still from the option screen. They look rather nice, and it's nice to see that some detail was put into graphics.
If anyone has ever kept up with my Game Boy reviews, they are going to be surprised about my comments about the sound. Oddly enough, I like it. Now, the music is as inane as any other Game Boy music. But finally, finally, Nintendo has added the option to turn off the music. Without touching the volume switch, I can play in peace. Almost brings a tear to my eye... well, not really. The music would have had I not shut it off.
But the sound effects, also capable of being turned off, are a different matter. the effects are crisp and clean, and most of them are digitized voices, done rather well for the system. I'm personally fond of the yelling of "Attack!" when your troops are ordered to engage the enemy. I still have "Au joie!" echoing in my head when I hear that. There are around two dozen different voice effects, and all are enjoyable. Also, they are hard to discern with the music on, so for your own sake, leave the effects on and turn the music off.
The control takes alot of getting used to though. Selecting and deselecting units can drive you batty, and you have to read the instructions carefully before playing or you won't know how to do half the things you can do in the game. It took me nearly a half hour to figure out how to make archers in the game - it should be more intuitive. A menu system would have worked much better than using nearly every button on the controller for something which changes with every unit.
Finally, this game is witness to another phenomenon we've all seen: the Pokemon-ization of every video game in existence. You can, via the infrared port (although why they can't use the Game Link cable is beyond me), trade the wizards in the game to a friend. This is useful, since you won't get most of the wizards until three or four runs through the game. And you will get annoying duplications, which your friends might want. Speaking of which, I have an extra Crowwiz if anyone wants him. If you've played the game, probably not.
Ultimately, this game lacks the full range of enjoyable options that made its larger cousins such as StarCraft a hit. However, it is an enjoyable little package, and a fun little diversion while on the go. Not only that, but it is something to play with a friend when you want more than another rematch of your ultimate teams in Pokemon. While really only for fans of the strategy genre, this game still has enough kick in it to make it worth some time.
two playable factions 24 missions; control groups of soldiers harvest resources raise and use dragons as weapons, Platforms: Game Boy Color, ESRB Rati...More at Amazon Marketplace
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2008 Shopping.com, Inc.