As is the norm for me lately, I bought this game for $12 at Blockbuster, because I thought it looked about $12 worth of interesting. I was pleasantly surprised. So long as you play right up to the end of this game without finishing it, you might agree with my first impression that this is an enjoyable – if unashamedly blatant – Zelda knock-off.
Long story short: You’re an anthropomorphic sphinx-looking hero-guy. In fact, your name is Sphinx. Initially you’re sent on a quest to collect the sword of Osiris with an equally anthropomorphic bird-guy named Horus. Eventually you get involved in a larger quest to save the world from the god Set, who looks an awful lot like Marilyn Manson. There’s lots of hacking, slashing, questing, and item collecting along the way.
Earlier I called this game a Zelda knock-off. That’s not entirely fair. It’s also a Star Fox Adventures/Lord of the Rings/Pokemon knock-off, but it steals from them all fairly well.
The innovative moments that really set this game apart are when you get to play as the mummy of Tutankhamen trying to reclaim the canopic vases that contain parts of his soul. Being undead, he cannot die and can infiltrate Set’s fortress undetected. This does not mean he is impervious to the traps within, however. Not only can he be set on fire, electrified, split into three parts, squished flat, and turned into a skeletal bat, but you must use all of these unfortunate disasters to your benefit. Being flat lets you slip through gates, being set ablaze allows you to light torches, etc. The mummy sections are short and relatively few, but the rest of the game is also entertaining.
The let down, as I mentioned earlier, is the ending. It seems like the developers either ran out of time or money. I’m guessing both. I am of the opinion that the ending of a game should be the most spectacular part and should tie up all of the loose ends, not simply say, “Yay, it’s over” and dump you to the title screen without even so much as a victory parade. Whole characters have gone AWOL by game’s end with no explanation and you aren’t even shown the fruit of your efforts. I’m sure a sequel was planned, but I won’t hold my breath waiting for it.
You might want to check it out at this price. Although quickly forgettable, it’s an interesting diversion worth a few evenings of your time.
This reminds me of the ending of Throne of Darkness. You spend all this time leveling your guys, getting different components to your armor and weapons to combine the with the elements to make super cool stuff, then it turns out that the end guy you have to fight is the same guy that helps you through out the game. The guy that's been healing you, giving you advice, is the end boss. And when you defeat him, it doesn't matter. The land still falls into ruin. Worst ending ever.
Posted by: Momotaro | July 17, 2004 at 12:31 AM
If you haven't already noticed, David just likes to use the word "anthropomorphic." :P This game really did have a lame ending, which seemed even more so since I was awakened from a nap just to see it.
Posted by: choppi | July 17, 2004 at 10:46 AM
Dang... The only thing worse than getting dogged by you significant other is to get dogged online by your significant other.
Posted by: mwest | July 17, 2004 at 02:52 PM
No kidding! Unfortunately, she's absolutely right. I try to say "anthropomorphic" at least once a day. It's a great word that most people don't know. So if I go too long without finding an opportunity to say it, I have to just interject something random like, "How can an anthropomorphic dog like Goofy co-exist in the same universe as a non-anthropomorphic dog like Pluto?"
Kinda pathetic, huh?
Posted by: SuperPope | July 17, 2004 at 07:41 PM