Castle Crashers

Which will you play as?

Castle Crashers is the latest game to hit the Xbox 360’s Live arcade and one of the biggest. Developed by The Behemoth, Castle Crashers is a side-scrolling beat-em-up upgraded with RPG elements to bring it to a new level of entertainment.

Castle Crashers starts rather quickly with the opening scene being the kidnapping of the king’s four daughters by an evil wizard. As the kings knight the duty of rescuing them and defeating the wizard along with his minions falls to you. As for plot that’s pretty much it, but there is nothing wrong with simplicity.

The level design is particularly exceptional in this game. Very clever and imaginatively styled. That is not to say this game is without flaws. While its hand drawn style may provide unique and interesting visuals the screen is often cluttered with the effects from attacks and can be quite an annoyance if you die cause you didn’t know where you were.

My other chief complaints with the game are that it is too short and can be beaten in a few hours. Also, combat, though enhanced by combos and new magic as you level, is pretty much the same throughout the game. Don’t worry I’m not saying that this game is predictable. On the contrary, one must always be on there toes because unexpected events are thrown in at rather irregular intervals. These events can range from being thrown into a chase, finding a mount or new items to power up your knight.  In fact, the shorter game time just entices one to play the game multiple times; unlocking new characters every time it’s beaten.

Another aspect that will ensure its replay value is the multiplayer aspect. Castle Crashers can be played with up to four players either locally or via Xbox Live allowing for friends to either gather or log on and enjoy the thrill of princess saving as a group. The multiplayer runs smoothly and abides by the invisible wall rule of old side scrollers. Multiplayer doesn’t add more enemies like most games, and by that respect the treasure isn’t increased either bringing less cooperation and replacing it with competition. Competition that becomes more prevelant after one rescues each princess. A battle to the death ensues between knights, the victor is rewarded a kiss.

In short, I had a few issues with this game, however, i’m still very much addicted to playing. It is an enjoyable game to play by yourself or with a bunch of friends. Even though it is short, there is still a lot to do in this game. Castle Crashers takes the best aspects of side scrolling beat-em-ups, adds humor and makes a remarkable game.