Overlord + Raising Hell

Overlord is, in my opinion, an underrated classic that for whatever reason did not achieve the level of success that it could have. The game flips the trope of the high fantasy genre on its head and creates a thoroughly enjoyable experience as you romp through the realms of the game world as the titular Overlord who is bent on exacting revenge against the killers of his predecessor and ruling the world. You are assisted in this endeavor by an army of impish minions who have different powers and abilities based on their color and will happily obey your every executable command even at the cost of their own lives. Pros: -An amusing and original take on the genre. -A colorful and vibrant world to play in. -Amusing and memorable characters. The Minions are the best part of the game. -The GOG version includes the expansion pack which provides more of the same but is still enjoyable. Cons: -The controls used to direct the minions, while easy to learn, are clunky and sometimes difficult to use. -The Overlord character, even at the advanced stages of the game, is next to useless by himself. Overlord is an excellent game that can be enjoyed repeatedly by just about anyone. If Overlord II is ever released on GOG, it will be an instant buy.

In Overlord: Raising Hell. Here you’re encouraged to be nasty. Only by burning fields, killing off the “heroes,” slaughtering sheep, and resurrecting your all-powerful tower can you truly feel what it’s like to be evil. Resurrected by your evil minions, it’s your faithful duty to trump all that is good in the land, and replace it with darkness and fear. For the most part, you’ll have free reign to tackle quests as they are assigned or uncovered-though all branching pathways ultimately lead to the main objective. Sealed doorways and previously unattainable areas will only open once certain duties are fulfilled, so prepare to backtrack quite a bit. The many worlds and areas you’ll explore are all accessed through portals. The worlds, though large in size, limit how much you can do. Even as the commanding Overlord, you’re confined to small pathways and enclosed fields. The main kicker to Overlord is the ability to single-handedly command armies of minions. As you progress through your adventures, you’ll come across various other minions. Blues absorb magic and won’t drown in water. Reds have the ability to absorb fire, and can kill distant foes with flinging fireballs, and so on. A number of puzzles and strategies arise based upon these abilities. The main quest is filled with countless characters, subtle humor, plenty of areas to explore, and over 20 hours of gameplay.

Anyone who ever played Pikmin will instantly feel how similar the game is, almost to the point of complete rip-off. Thankfully, the game is different storywise, in art direction and many other details. The story is really unsignificant, nothing special and I honestly ignored it. It is a very humorous game and nothing is not to be taken seriously, which is great. If the story isn't very interesting to begin with, why not make it a comedy? It definitely feels appropriate with the game mechanics. Speaking of game mechanics. They work. It's as simple as that. What I mean specifically is how the minions are controlled and how they handle the concept. They are not as fluid and simple as Pikmins and feel more... heavy. It really is hard explaining how they feel but it isn't as polished as Pikmin and it feels as if they sometimes go where they relly shouldn't without you haveing any control over it but it is so minor and not very frequent that it's barely worth mentioning. They are more detailed and will pick up equipment for them to use. The one thing I think a lot of people missed out on is the Multiplayer. It is great. While it might not win any prizes, it is great fun at LAN parties and is very easy to learn, and not quite as chaotic as Pikmin 2 was. There are several different modes, too. I'll even go as far as to say, the multiplayer is better than Pikmin 2 (Huge pikmin fan, if you couldn't tell).

I bought this game through Steam years ago. It blends the gameplay of Nintendo's 'Pikmin' games with the style and atmosphere of Bullfrog's 'Dungeon Keeper' series. It's a grand combination. I can't recommend it highly enough. Just one caveat, it's best played with a gamepad.