Overlord 2007

Approaching Overlord, the first thing to do is to get out of the head advertising posters in a demon-red palette, to despise the slogan “Think Evil. Breed Evil ”and push deeper into the inevitable comparisons with Dungeon Keeper. The genre gap between the creations of Triumph Studios and the late Bullfrog Productions is hundreds of light years, but it's not about him. Reigning in the underground darkness, the players clearly knew that on this side of the barricades stood their invisible Guardian, and on the other, the righteous inhabitants of the midday lands. At Overlord, no matter how Codemasters marketers strive to convince the public otherwise, we have a choice.

My name is Err ... Overlord
He rose from nothing, squinting with a burning eye from under a horned helmet and lives in a high black tower, whose appearance would have outraged Sauron's lawyers. Weak, forgotten by the lord of the country, where good triumphed over evil, and then slid into the garbage pit. Fat hobbits indulge in gluttony, paladins - debauchery, gnomes greedily look at grains of golden dust, the elf king mutated from laziness into a tree ... Whatever the “boss” is, the embodiment of one of the seven deadly sins. Against their background, an unnamed guy with a holey curtain instead of a cape is a standard hero from classic RPGs, preoccupied with the on-duty question “Who should I be?”.

After all, in fact, the guy saves the homeland, punishing moral freaks. Of course, in the end he will become the sole ruler of the world, but there is nothing shameful in this - remember childhood fairy tales about princes from the mud. Those, too, were not sick with democracy and liberalism.

And how exactly the future ruler gets out into the elite is up to the player to decide. The disinterested option: to give food to the starving citizens, to rescue the elven virgins from the dungeons and to return the stolen statues. The option is sneaky: rowing for yourself, spitting on other people's fates for the sake of ringing coins, and killing everyone they meet (do not worry, they always revive). Those who choose the second method, grow spikes on the armor and a dark halo, their home begins to resemble a true resident evil. In other words, the differences are in “cosmetics” and two opposite finals.

The rest lies in the middle of two poles, in the zone of banal hooliganism. Just think, I cleaned the houses in the village, trampled sunflowers in the field, killed (and more than once, not two, or even ten!) A flock of sheep, knocking out precious souls from the bleating creatures ... The game forgives unsightly actions, apparently realizing that otherwise we won’t make money money for a brand new sword-treasure trove and marble statues for the throne room. Well, if you, having overtaken in the fight against villains, accidentally broke firewood (for example, burned the last paradise glade among the elves), noble deeds will reduce the “Corruption” parameter to zero.

The Lord has only one trouble. Without wards, he is like a donut hole. The horde of enemies will not be defeated, it will not creep into the nooks and crannies of treasure, the lever will not turn ... The henchmen resembling goblins are his hope, support and secret of survival. Snot? Say this to his face, and a pack of brisk Mapuk loyal to the dark master to the grave will attack you. Cannon meat suspects an imminent death, but rushes forward, because it adores its work. With awe they bring trophies to the owner! How willingly they dive into a boiler with liquid metal, improving our armor, helmets and weapons at the cost of our own lives!

"For you, Master!"
Helpers - as many as four types. Browns are good at melee. Reds stand aside, throwing opponents with fireballs, and blow out fires. Greens are immune to poisons, therefore they cheerfully tread flowers whose toxic spores block the road; they are masters of crude techniques who have mastered invisibility and stabbing in the back. Blue resurrect fallen comrades, redeeming the flimsy love of water. I think you have already figured out what tasks level designers throw up, cleverly clearing up obstacles, and wells spitting out goblins.

The more colorful souls we shook out of the monsters, the wider the shrill army. Fortunately, Overlord is a game with a generous nature: once opened, spacious maps of the five main territories are available round the clock for repeated raids for livestock and junk. The main topic of discussion among fans is where it is more profitable to “farm” clots of energy.

However, the furious anguish that accompanies the extraction of resources in the MMORPG is not here and never will be. Thank the executive servants who clearly know what to do with this or that object. Left-click - and a motley flock of freaks, dressed in what much, rush to the specified location. They will see the enemy - they will attack. Unowned soul, healing broth, tinkling bag - will bring. Blade or armor - they will save for themselves, clucking and dancing with joy. A dying colleague will be dragged out of the danger zone and put on his feet. A chair, a box, a cart, a gate - will be smashed to pieces. A heavy cylinder with one of 12 spells or a bonus to health / mana / unit size - will pile in bulk and, puffing, will drag it to the nearest portal.

Sometimes orders do not reach tiny brains, and the Lord takes matters into his own hands. Shift highlights a specific target. A “Q” sticks a standard into the ground around which demons gather (convenient for ambushes). There is also direct control - a medicine for especially advanced cases, however, it’s better not to count on it, because the camera is very slow. Fortunately, funny tweaks, funny exclamations, and sometimes a hilariously silly look devise make you change your anger to mercy. Animation and vibrant, almost frivolous landscapes were a success.

Resident evil
Yes, Overlord roughnesses are annoying, but they don’t ruin the game, as a couple of mosquito bites do not spoil a campfire party in a pleasant company. Lack of maps - it would seem a Greek tragedy! - worries a little. It is perfectly replaced by visual memory, because, despite the scale, each district is endowed with a unique style and does not suffer from “copy / paste”. So that the user does not get confused, the authors open the locations gradually, adding paths to “cut” already passed places.

The console system of automatic “saves” is also sad, which records progress whenever we pass by a new portal or teleport to our native halls. At least at first. Later you understand that the “savegirls” are not so scattered, and the game itself is too courteous to scoff at people. Lost a bunch of banderlogs? Get new ones in ten minutes. Dead? You will be politely transferred to the tower.