Video Game Review: MAGICKA
Magicka
The storyline is cute, though a bit thin. This is not an epic tale with depth and drama, but a charming satire with funny lines and pop culture references. The story is narrated by Vlad, a “not-a-vampire,” who explains how you are a wizard, and there is an evil force out there that needs vanquishing, and… well, you get the picture. To tell the truth, I didn’t find the plot to be all that memorable, but it serves its purpose, which is simply a setup for the gameplay. However there are lots of fun little lines here and there from the different characters you can talk to, in their strange gibberish tongue which hearkens back to the Sims. It keeps things somewhat interesting.
The animation seems a tad lackluster overall, but then this is not a game with breathtaking scenery and sprawling vistas. The entire game is played from a top-down perspective, similar to Diablo 2, and the graphics aren’t that much better, either. It seems they wanted to concentrate their graphical ability on the spell effects you cast in-game, as these are pretty top-notch. However, if you’re looking for a Starcraft 2 quality experience overall, look elsewhere.
The main point of the game is to combine different elements (earth, fire, water, electricity, etc) to create different spells. I played with a controller, on which this is achieved through manipulating the right analog stick in different ¼ circle turns. However, as there are 8 elements to choose from, this feels very awkward at first, and though you eventually get used to it somewhat, it can still be time consuming, when you got a bunch of trolls chasing you across the screen, and you need a three element spell to shoot at em. After 5 or 6 deaths, it gets pretty frustrating. However, the game seems to be centered around multiplayer, as up to 4 players can jam together in co-op (locally or online), or go all out against each other online. I have not had the chance to play it with anyone else, so I can’t really comment on that.
I’m afraid this has most likely tainted my bias of the game, as the campaign, played alone, is extremely difficult at times, to the point where I threw my controller down in frustration at several different points in the game, and stopped playing for a while. I imagine playing with comrades would decrease this vexation considerably, but alas, singularly it remains. It would also be nice if they had a hot-key system, so you could save your favorite spell combos to cast when you need em, but I suppose the whole challenge of the game is in the spell casting. Makes you appreciate those wizards all the more.
As I said before, the game is fairly unique, in my opinion, and the creators must be given props for their ingenuity. The amount of different spells you can cast is quite staggering, and seeing the different effects of them can be quite entertaining. As the game truly shines in multi-player, the replay ability is quite high. Also, it must be mentioned that there are a ton of DLC packages out there as well, which I have not had a chance to checkout yet, so they could potentially lengthen your playtime considerably.
All-in-all, I found Magicka to be an interesting little diversion. It certainly has its moments, and if you’re an online gamer with lots of online-gaming friends, than I’m sure you’ll probably have a better experience than I did. I had some personal difficulties with the controls and flat storyline, but if you are a fan of fantasy adventure games, or want to play a game with a unique combat system with multiple ways of destroying your enemies, this game will leave you spellbound.
