Review: Untold Legends: Dark Kingdom
It's a blessing in disguise that Dark Kingdom is a PS3 launch game, because on the PS2 it wouldn't warrant a second glance.
The generic hack-and-slash formula has been done to death on that console, and it would have gotten the lukewarm reception it deserved. But because it's on Sony's shiny new PS3, it'll probably sell a decent number of copies and leave a decent number of PS3 owners disappointed.
Alone In The Dark
PROTIP: The Scout excels at hit-and-run melee tactics. Don't linger close to enemies, or she'll get crushed.
Still, Dark Kingdom fares pretty well in that, if you put the disc in the system, it loads up. It's all downhill from there, however. The game feels as if it was slapped together minutes before the gold masters went off to the production facility. Case in point: you'll frequently see enemies "drop" into existence over the horizon ahead of you.
The story isn't worthy of mention, either, except to say that the setup involves an evil possessed king and three heroes that...well, you get the picture. You can choose from a Scout, a Warrior, and a Wizard and take on quests that will have you running around various mazes and killing lots of enemies. Too bad most battles can be won simply be resting your thumb between the Square and X buttons and rocking it rapidly back and forth. Higher difficulty levels require more strategic use of magic from the player, but only the most zealous hack-and-slash devotees are going to have the patience to see that through.
Hacked To Death
PROTIP: The Wizard is most powerful at distance-ranged combat. Hammer enemies with magic, such as Fireball.
But you know what? The graphics are actually sort of excellent, in a hardcore, technical kind of way. Water sloshes around realistically, clouds of sparkly dust are kicked up during battle, and capes and tassels flutter and fold like the real deal. The visual style is so mechanical, though, that there's no reason to be invested in the action--the characters all just look like a group of multicolored action figures.
At the end of the day, Dark Kingdom is a shallow and simpleminded title that holds a faint glimmer of fun. There's nothing here that you'd want to play for more than a few minutes, but ironically enough, that qualifies Dark Kingdom as one of the more tolerable PS3 launch games
The PS3's first mindless hack-and-slash is here, and it's a notch prettier than its predecessors.
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