Grazza Posted April 24, 2011 Posted April 24, 2011 I thought this looked great. It's by WayForward, it's sprite-based and, as it's a licensed game, it will be released in Europe. From 1Up: It's a rare case when we go to a press event and pass by the PS3, 360, and Wii versions of a game in favor of the DS one. But that's exactly what happened at Sega's recent Thor demo day, in large part because the DS game -- developed by WayForward Technologies -- features some of the best 2D sprite graphics around. http://www.1up.com/features/cool-thor-pixel-art-ds
Retro_Link Posted April 24, 2011 Posted April 24, 2011 Yeah IGN have been saying how the Wii and especially the DS versins of Thor and Captain America are the best ones, because they take a different (better) direction and visual style.
ReZourceman Posted April 26, 2011 Posted April 26, 2011 Wow...looks sweet (I can't believe I'm saying). Whats the 3DS version?
Grazza Posted April 26, 2011 Author Posted April 26, 2011 The 3DS version is very mysterious. I hope it's not just a poor, polygon-based version of the console game. If it was sprite-based and by WayForward, I'd be interested in that. Check out all the frames of animation on the troll!
Nami Posted May 19, 2011 Posted May 19, 2011 This looks pretty sweet, reminds me of gold axe in some ways! May have to purchase after getting through all the other games on my todo list
Grazza Posted January 30, 2012 Author Posted January 30, 2012 Didn't realise I was the one who started this thread... Anyway, I finally tracked down Thor. I'm afraid I had to buy it 2nd-hand, as I didn't want to pay £29.99 and, if ever it was reduced, I missed it. The first thing that struck me were the visuals. They must surely be the best the DS can manage. Every enemy is richly-detailed and lovingly-animated, with a superb choice of colour palette. The genre is firmly beat-em-up, the type that hardly gets made any more. I have to think back to something like Bad Dudes vs Dragonninja or Two Crude Dudes to compare it to something. The combat, on the other hand, is more about combos and juggling than the previously mentioned games. Think "Guardian Heroes", but set on a single plane (instead of three). Thor features all the elements I used to love so much when I was a young, Megadrive owner: enemies can be picked up and thrown, scenery can be destroyed (with satisfying sound effects) and used as a weapon or thrown at the various enemies who burst in from all directions, often imaginatively. Despite Thor's strength being evident when destroying the scenery, it is less obvious against the enemies. Whilst I can accept trolls and other monsters are a good match for Thor, it could be argued that all his opponents have too much stamina. None of them are very difficult to fight, but all need to be hit multiple times. The end result is you may stand there bashing them longer than you'd like. One nice touch is finding runes, which can be used to upgrade Thor's helmet, armour and Mjolnir. Choosing which one you want to use for each of the three categories provides a welcome touch of customisation. Bosses are another chance to show off the graphics. The dual-screen titans of Acts III and VI are particularly impressive, requiring Thor to fly between the upper and lower screens. Unfortunately, if Thor seemed weak against normal enemies, it is even more pronounced against the bosses, especially the 7th, which is rock hard (after a curiously easy stage). Thor can only chip away at their HP and, as boss projectiles seem to do a ridiculous amount of damage, victory is largely down to whether you're lucky enough to avoid their lasers/fireballs for long enough. The end result is a distinct lack of catharsis. Overall, Thor is a lovingly-crafted homage to both Marvel's comics and traditional gaming. All seven Acts (with three Stages each) took me 4 hours 15 minutes to complete (with a sore thumb at the end!) Due to the repetitive nature of the gameplay, I only had fun for about half that time. Nonetheless, Thor dazzles with its fantastic graphics and authenticity. Graphics: 10/10 Sound: 7/10 Gameplay: 5/10 Overall: 6/10
cvl Posted January 31, 2012 Posted January 31, 2012 A really enjoyable read. Although personally this game is not for me it was a very good review, Gra! Thanks for sharing, and nice reference to Megadrive ^.
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