So - don't know how much anyone recalls of Bullfrog's classic Dungeon Keeper (and it's sequel) from the late 90's. You can find the original ported through GOG.com, and it was an amazing series.
The game really put down the whole notion of being deliciously evil in a medieval fantasy settings. It's dark sense of humor aside, the game was one of the first to develop the "tower defense" style of game. It was one of the first games I saw to allow you to flip from overhead to 3D perspective in game. Newer games like Dungeons and Overlord, to name a couple, were clearly inspired by it. I would even say that Wizard's of the Coast's old module, Reverse Dungeon was something of an homage as well.
That being said, EA has recently released tablet versions (iOS and Android) of the original game. If you are fan of the original, you'll find it has much of the same humor and style - but visually it has gotten a much needed adjustment to modern standards. But that being said, it's turning out to be something of "pay to play" joke. You literally cannot do much outside the initial setup without paying in time or money. And by "time" I mean, it could take you a week or more to make a few spaces - let alone upgrade or build dungeon features. Almost every feature of the game has been translated into this kind of time/cash block. There's a good breakdown of the mess here.
Now before someone mentions that it's "free to play" so what should one expect; or that EA has the right to make the game however they like, etc., etc, this isn't about what whether that's good or bad. I am just saying that if you were a fan of the original games, you might be disappointed by how the game has been redone to incur this "pay to win" method. Personally, I would have paid an up-front price if I didn't have to have to deal with the intrusions. I also explain this because apparently there is some fudging going on with the app that might give the misread impression the game is 5-star awesome despite issues and critical reviews.
Bottomline - the game could be a fun redo of the game if it wasn't built in such a terrible "pay-to-play" way.
I Dungeon Keeper & Dungeon Keeper II!
If I had heard they were re-releasing it as a 'for purchase' app, I would be overjoyed, tempered only by the fact I don't have a tablet to play it on. Hearing that the developers are jumping on the 'not really free-to-play' bandwagon is saddening, but unfortunately not surprising...
There are reasons why I don't play 'mobile app' games, and that article is pretty much all of them.
|
That is why I am waiting on War for the Overworld to come out. Seems really fun.
Also, new dungeon keeper sucks.