“Combine the classic brawler Golden Axe with the art direction of The Wind Waker, controls of Children of Mana, stats of Diablo, and some raunchy humor, and you’ve got one of the funnest Arcade titles to date.”
Castle Crashers is a true throw-back to classic beat-em-up titles with some modern icing drizzled over the top. The visual style is so distinct that looking at the game is about half the joy of playing it, and the 4-player CoOp only adds to the catharsis.
Players charge through several levels of medieval mayhem, populated by creatures of all sorts (including giant cats. Some of what you’ll encounter is totally random, but hilariously so.) Weapons can be found and used, each with their own modifying stats that affect the abilities of your character. Did I mention that those are customizable, too? Player stats are divided into four categories – strength, magic, agility, and defense – and work well to differentiate one player from another, aside from the different magic abilities of the stock avatars.
The only annoyance I had with the game is the over-simplification of some controls and interfaces. For instance, the item system is such that you scroll through your items with the right bumper, and use the item with the B button. Items can be anything from potions to your bow and arrow, so many a time I accidently drank down a valuable health potion when I thought I had my bow selected (which you use sort of often.) Also, the shopping system seems a little shallow – it’s not immediately obvious that you bought something, unless you notice your money count decreasing. Still, these are minor things whose detriment declines as one gets used to the game.
All-in-all, a great follow-up to Behemoth’s Alien Hominid, and definitely one of the top XBLA releases to date.
