Review

Developed by:ACE Team Published by:ATLUS Genre(s):
  • Action
  • Top-Down Shooter
  • Platform:
  • PC
  • Sony
  • Cost:$14.99 ESRB Rating:TEEN Players:1 Release date:January 19, 2016 Reviewed on:PC
    8.5

    The Deadly Tower of Monsters

    Throughout my life, I have always been an avid gamer. One of the things I miss about my early days was how developers focused more so on entertaining gameplay mechanics over an engrossing narrative. Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely adore a game with an outstanding story that keeps me on the edge of my seat the entire time. But, there are times when I just want to load up a game and go. No dialogue choices, long cutscenes or moral dilemmas to wrap my head around. What makes The Deadly Tower of Monsters such a breath of fresh air is that it combines these two…I guess, “moods” of play without necessarily overshadowing each other.

    The Tower of Deadly Monsters is a hilarious game that makes fun/pays homage to early Hollywood sci-fi films. Framed as a 1970’s B-film, you play as one of three actors who play three different characters in the game; fictional actor Jonathan Digby plays the hero Dick Starspeed for example. After crash landing onto the planet of Gravoria, it’s up to Dick and company to climb a tower full of monsters in order to stop the evil Emperor. The story itself is really simple and somewhat cheesy but it works because of the theme. You can take as little interest in it as you want and still enjoy working your way up the tower. What holds everything together though is the awesome presentation. The 1970’s vibe is worth the price of admission alone!

    The game actually takes place in a DVD (or in this case VHS) with commentary from the director who’s been away from the film industry for some time. Here he can be heard commenting on the movie and how monumental it was to Hollywood. Ironically, nobody in the industry respects the movie and as you play through the game, you quickly understand why. There are scenes in the game where the backdrop and characters make absolutely no sense at all, but that’s what makes it funny. The director will explain how he and his team would have an “agreement” with another movie lot where he and his cast would record scenes on another movie set after they have all left for the day. The banter between he and the younger commentator becomes more hysterical as the game goes on, which enticed me to keep playing.

    The consistent theme of the low budget sci-fi film is evident across the entire game. The cheesy character designs, intentionally poor visual moments, and terrible voice acting really makes it feel as authentic to the era in which it is trying to parody. It’s especially cool to see the strings on flying creatures and to know that you’re fighting actors in costumes. With that said, it’s still visually great to look at. The low budget sets and strange monsters are all in High Def, displaying a great attention to detail (like the aforementioned strings). I was always excited to see what kind of movie set I’d be on after climbing to a new level in the tower. Basically, ACE Team did a good job in the graphics department.

    Going back to the gameplay, things are rather simple yet really entertaining; the constant smacking of aliens with metal clubs and shooting flying eyeballs with lasers doesn’t get old. With each scene not only comes a unique set of enemies, but also puzzles that need to be solved. They aren’t too difficult but do require a moment of pause to understand what needs to be done, which helps to break up the action. Having interesting enemies and side missions placed off the tower itself (you have to freefall off the sides to find these secrets) made a second play through seem like a foregone conclusion. All and all, it’s a blast to play.

    Now the game itself isn’t very long, coming in at about five or six hours. That said, I’ve spent double that just looking for side missions. That and battling monsters while freefalling off the tower. It may have been pointless, but leaping off a side and teleporting right before hitting the ground is a game in itself. If you are looking for a fun few hours to take you away from the serious world, this is a great getaway. The entire presentation from top to bottom is nothing short of awesome. I can’t find much of anything negative to say about the game besides wanting more content.  I had a ball climbing and jumping off of this tower for hours on end. Here’s hoping we can see more of the same from this team in the future!

    Gameplay:

    8

    The Campy story, crazy enemies, fun gameplay and B-movie magic are all worth checking out.

    Graphics:

    8

    You have to play this game in VHS mode. It’s EVERYTHING!

    Sound:

    10

    The music feels authentic to 70s sci-fi films, but the voice acting is really what brings it together. The commentary is hilarious!

    Replay Value:

    8

    The missions off the tower itself are kept me playing. That said, the core game is worth revisiting once the credits roll.

    Final Score:

    8.5

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