Orcs Must Die! (And they do...)

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Written by Sm1tty Sm1t

It was a few hours into the game when it happened:  I had just finished clearing out a wave of orcs that attacked through a boarded up door when I was mercilessly slaughtered by a Gnoll Hunter.  Immediately, the urge to throw my controller through a wall overwhelmed me.  But the urge to keep playing was stronger.  I restarted the level; that's when I knew I was addicted to Orcs Must Die!

Developer Robot Entertainment has released Orcs Must Die! on PC, Xbox Live Arcade, and OnLive! services, and MMOFringe is here to tell you:  It's magnificent.  The gameplay is a unique blend of tower defense and hack-n-slash, but also incorporates a "puzzle-like" aspect when selecting which traps and where to place them on each level.  The audio and video is crisp, comical, and smooth.  And the difficulty ranges from tough to I want to punch a kitten. Yeah, it's that hardcore.

You may think that the objective of the game seems simple: kill the orcs.  And while that proves accurate, the fun comes in how you kill the orcs.  Your options include arrows, your sword, spikes, explosives, acid, saw blades, NPC allies, and dozens of other painfully hilarious options.  However, you're limited on what you take into battle.  At the beginning of each level, you must choose only the traps, spells, and equipment you feel are necessary for the orcs you'll be fighting.  Prior to combat, you'll see the orcs designated path and, with limited funds to purchase them, lay traps to cause as much mayhem as possible.  Once combat starts, the orcs burst through the door with one intention: enter the rift that the War Mage (that's you) must protect!

The sound and visuals compliment the gameplay itself, creating a veritable smorgasbord for your senses.  Orcs grunt, groan, and scream "kill the human!" when sprinting down the hallways.  Further, at the end of each level, as the final orc is pierced by an arrow or is tossed into a vat of acid, a folksy, hip-hop-esque tune plays, creating even further benefit to the orcish genocide you've just committed.  Visually, the Orcs Must Die! does a great job of taking a drab, dark environment and adding bright, vibrant colors.  Also surprising is when dozens of orcs flood your screen, the framerate remains steady.  Upon stepping on traps, being blown up, sliced apart, or tossed in the air, there is no screen tear or lag, which is important when you're consistently hovering on the verge of being overrun.

Overall, the mechanics, gameplay, visuals, and audio merge together into an experience rarely seen in gaming.  Additionally, Orcs Must Die! is downloadable on Xbox Live Arcade, Onlive, and Steam for 1200 MS Points or $14.99, respectively.  It's unique, fun, and adds a level of difficulty in the later levels that will have you cursing out the game, but makes it near impossible to stop playing.  Even amidst the torrential downpour of games this holiday season, Orcs Must Die! is a Gamer Must Have!

Overall Score (Out of 5): 5