Overlord
Preview
Action adventuring with a twist
by William Thompson
previewed on PC
”Proper Evil, takes skill” and maybe, well, just a bit of mayhem?
Overlord is an action adventure game with a slight twist. Whereas many games have you fighting evil, as Overlord you become the evil-doer. The background of the story is remarkable similar to Lord of the Rings. Many years ago an evil Overlord was destroyed by a group of seven heroes. These heroes all became corrupted and have inflicted tyrannies towards the poor peasants in the kingdom. After a period of time a man appears from the crumbled ruins of the Overlord’s Dark Tower. The old Overlord’s minions see this man as the reincarnation of their old master, the Overlord. Now it is up to you to restore the kingdom to your power, with the help of your loyal minions.
Your minions are small “gremlin-like” creatures that are extremely loyal to you. They will attack a chosen enemy, collect items of value on your behalf and are even willing to die for you. The amount of minions you control increases as the game continues. You will begin with just a handful of minions, but more and more minions are at your disposal to do what you please. At times your own Overlord powers will not be needed, as you will be able to do all the dirty work for you, but in a good way. By using the minions to do the grunt work, this leaves your strength at full power.
But minions, although largely disposable, are very important. They can be sent to their deaths by attacking hordes of enemy units, but then they need to be replenished. This can only be done by gaining the lifeforce of living creatures; well, once-living creatures. Once the lifeforce is collected, the new minions can be collected from a spawn point. These spawn points are located at numerous points throughout the kingdom.
”Is that a pumpkin in your pocket, or are you just pleased to see me”?
Graphically Overlord is fairly good. The main Overlord character has quite detailed features and has a realistic look. On the other side of the coin are the other characters in the game. They have more of a cartoonish look to them, and while they certainly look good, they do not have the same detail level as the Overlord.
The landscapes are one of the high points of the game. Although they are done in a pseudo-cartoon style not dissimilar to the latest Settlers II game, they are still quite detailed and give the game atmosphere throughout the game. There is one part of the game where the Overlord can walk through a wheat field. This gave me memories of watching Gladiator when Maximus is walking in the Elysian fields.
