Review: Hero of Sparta
Game: Hero Of Sparta
Format: PSP
Developer: Gameloft
Publisher: Gameloft
With the launch of the PSP GO, the new model of PSP that only plays downloadable games, a sea of titles have been added to the PSP Store. As well as full retail games, Sony have launched the PSP Minis, small and affordable games for download. To give you some perspective, a PSP Mini game must be less than 100mb in size, and contain no multiplayer or online functionality. In a lot of ways the Minis program seems to be Sony’s answer to the increasingly popular ipod app store. It makes sense then that one of the initial PSP Minis is a port of the popular iphone game HERO OF SPARTA.
The game is a third person adventure that has you taking on the role of Argos, King of Sparta, as he hacks and slashes his way through countless mythological creatures, including Medusa-like snake women, Harpies, and Centaurs. After having his entire fleet destroyed, Argos finds himself washed up on a strange island with no idea how to get home. He is soon approached by the Oracle, who is trapped in Hades, and in exchange for his help releasing her, the Oracle offers to help guide him back to Sparta.
Hacking is the name of the game
It is very clear that this game takes a lot of inspiration from Sony’s GOD OF WAR series, as well as the Zack Snyder’s film 300. Essentially the game play is exactly the same as GOD OF WAR; gruesome battles, quick time button pressing events, and some light puzzle solving are all that is required of you. As you progress through each level you unlock new pieces of equipment, such as Apollo’s Bow, and the Sword of Damocles. The controls are simple and easy to grasp. Square performs a quick slashing attack, Triangle performs a heavy attack, and Circle performs a special attack. While there is no specific jump button in the game, at certain points you are required to press the X button to climb ledges. For each enemy you kill you earn various orbs. Green orbs refill your health, Blue orbs refill your special attack metre, and red orbs grant experience points. Each weapon can have it’s general damage upgraded, and the damage performed by the special attack can also be increased. Some might call it derivative, but if you are going to take your inspiration from any game, you may as well be inspired by one of the best games in town, right?
Argos finds himself lost on a strange island
As this is a small downloadable game the story is fairly brief, and a little weak. There is no voice acting in the game, so the story is told through text boxes that appear at the bottom of the screen. Production wise the game is of a fairly high quality, with suitably epic music and satisfying slashing sounds effects. Each of the eight levels has their own distinctive look, and it is always clear where to go thanks to a handy little arrow at the top of the screen. Overall it is a very familiar and enjoyable experience, and a strong effort from the developers.
REVIEW ROUND UP
GRAPHICS: 4/5 The levels are well designed with a strong distinctive look for each of them. The character models are fairly detailed for a PSP game, although they lack a certain indecipherable something.
SOUND: 4/5 A really strong epic soundtrack coupled with satisfying sound effects. Although the sound your enemies make when they die is not particularly impressive.
GAMEPLAY: 4/5 While it does nothing new, HERO OF SPARTA takes an established genre and performs admirably. Unlike many GOD OF WAR clones this game is actually a lot of fun to play.
LONGEVITY: 3/5 There are eight levels to battle through, which will probably take about 3 or 4 hours to complete. Upon completion, you unlock hard difficulty. As it is a PSP Mini there is no multiplayer. The story is not particularly deep and does not contain any real surprises.
OVERALL: 4 Gorgon Heads out of 5. A decent offering that takes influence from several popular titles, most obviously GOD OF WAR and 300. There also appears to be a sneaky little HE-MAN reference at the end of each level. For the asking price of £3.99 you cannot really ask for much more from a game.
[starreview tpl=16]
Great review. I’m thinking about getting a PSP myself. Mini’s sound like the perfect lunchtime game whilst at work.
Psp’s are amazing. This game looks interesting.
Looks decent for the price point. Much better than the currently pathetic offerings on the DSiWare (aside from Flipnote Studio!)