Soul of Darkness Review

Anannya Sen’s Review

The old hack n slash returns

If it's one thing Gameloft do very well, it's the 2D hack n slash games. They've been doing them for years, and while this may not be the most innovative game they've ever done, it's certainly slick enough to make you forget all that.

You play as Kale, who is basically a Vampire killer. After the plot subsides you have to make your way through the levels to rescue your love. She's been abducted by Vampires and it's your job to rescue her.

The graphics are really decent for a 2D game, full of colour and great animation. Backgrounds are well detailed and interactive too. Sound is what you would expect from a Gameloft game.

The controls are simple, you can run, jump and slash using the key or D pad. Pressing 0 will use your magic and pressing 9 will allow you to change weapons. Like other platform actioners, you should be able to pick up the controls really quickly.

The game plays really well. The action is a whole lot of fun and has just the right element of hacking, jumping around and solving puzzles. On the later levels you can use your enemies to your advantage and even turn into them! There's a really good upgrade system where anything you slash will give you crystals to upgrade your weapon and magic. In addition there are chests scattered around with gems that increase your overall health and magic bars. These are not always easy to get to, and some require a little bit of thought. It's these little touches and the upgrading element that makes this such a fun game.

Lastability is great as there are 11 levels of action. The action varies enough on each level to keep you interested. Some areas you'll be swinging from chandeliers, some you will be hacking down mummies and werewolves and others you'll be trying to avoid giant big hands coming to get you! You can also replay the levels to access areas you may have missed out on first time, as there can be a fair bit of exploring to do.

Not that the game is free form, you'll often find that in a choice of 2 directions, one will lead to bonuses and crystals and the other will be where you're supposed to go. If you miss an area you can come back to it, and if you mess up a puzzle, you can always leave the screen and re-enter it.

These sorts of games have been around before, but this one is so well made and so much fun to play that I'd forgotten how good Gameloft can be. It reminds me of the good old days when everything that came out was this quality. Now if only we could get this in 3D with bluetooth playability!