Orcs & Elves is an enigma of sorts. A title at first released on cell phones (of all things) and then ported to the DS – this game is a first person dungeon crawler.
…Waitasecond, why the hell is MrWhitefolks playing a dungeon crawler (and a turn based one at that)?
Why? Because it’s fucking awesome, that’s why. This game is what a fun hand held title should be: Intuitive, engrossing, and paced well enough that you can play it for hours on end without becoming bored or annoyed.
The story is fairly basic; as you’re the voiceless/faceless hero that wanders into Dwarven territory to search out the King. Apparently some bad things have happened and you (and your talking wand) are the only ones who can save the day. Blah blah blah, Orcs, blah blah blah, Dark Elves, blah blah blah, Ghosts, etc.
The reason you play this game is not for it’s cliche story, but rather for the game play itself. Wandering through dungeons and fighting off hordes of monsters is actually ENTERTAINING for once in a dungeon crawler and given that this is done in some fashion by ID, you can rest assured that the engine is akin to the classic Doom/Wolfenstein style with a massively smooth frame rate. This results in a very well paced experience, full of monsters to slay, items to find, gold to earn, and secret passages (just like old school Id titles) to discover.
Puzzles are minimal, but they do extend beyond the standard ‘find X key for Y door’, and in turn some actually use the environment. This was a refreshing experience, as I was worried I’d be spending all of my time looking for scrolls with codes for locked rooms on them.
A barter and trade system is in effect as well, as you can interact with the dungeon’s local copper dragon. Trade her your gold and loot to acquire new weapons and ammo – or bring her a Gem from a nasty boss monster to be given a rare item. However, you have to take into account her mood; as you can only get away with good deals if she’s happy. If she’s pissed you’ll want to tread lightly, as you’re no good to the Dwarven people if you’re dead.
With tons of potions, rings, weapons, and spells to use, Orcs & Elves is far and away worth the asking price. For those of you who wonder if the title has replay value; you can go through it on an advanced difficulty after your initial play through AND the game actually grades your overall performance (and keeps track of a multitude of stats). So if you want to get that perfect rating you’ll have massive fun murdering Wererats and Slimes for hours and hours.
I personally, cannot wait for the arrival of the sequel and I also heartily recommend this title to anyone that owns a DS and wants something with an RPG flair that never loses it’s ability to entertain.
Seriously, nothing is more rad than owning a dungeon filled with creepy crawlies while you take a massive (and fulfilling) dump.
