Played on:
Mac
2 GB 667 Mhz Memory
NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT
In this harsh economic time, even gamers need to cut back on their spending. Instead of spending fifty or sixty dollars on the latest major first person shooter, why not spend twenty dollars and give Kivi Underworld a try? The game is self-described casual hack-and-slash game where you lead Kivi or any of his companions on a quest to defeat the dark elves before they destroy your homeland.
The game is broken up into a series of quests where lead your character on a quest to to find a person, a treasure or even the secret documents that outline the dark elves' plan. There is a wide variety of foes in the game for you to "click and kill", ranging from skeletons to ogres to dark elves. As the game progresses, you encounter enhanced versions of these foes that start shooting arrows, throwing bombs, etc. Unlike other fantasy style games that I have played, you will continue to find the lower level characters in the more advanced levels which adds a nice touch as these characters often seem to vanish from games.
Each level was set up similar to a mini-maze were you needed to locate keys to open doors to proceed further into the level. This did involve some backtracking at some points in the game but nothing that was too time-consuming. Also, as you are fighting your enemy, you need to keep an eye out for damage that might be inflicted by traps. These range from spinning blades of death to flame-breathing statues.
The graphics seemed a bit dated compared to most games, but don't let this fool you into thinking it detracts from the gameplay. The animation of an enemy lunging at you to attack was one of my favorites. In some parts of the levels there is a sensory overload with so many different items dropping with no frame rate issues at all. I was impressed by this clean implementation, as in some games I have noticed slowdown when too many objects would appear at once.
The controls are very simple with a click to lead the direction of your character. There are 3 spell slots allocated to you which you can activate by either by clicking on them with your mouse or by pressing the appropriate number key. As the game progressed, the need for the spells begins to show as the levels became more and more difficult and the enemies advance their skills. I did wish they had included the ability to rotate the camera in some of the levels, as you only get one view of the level. It's not critical for the game, but would have been a nice to have.
The fantasy-style music kept me in the spirit of the game by adding another dimension to the action. The music itself was not unique but it fit in well with a classic fantasy game. Sounds of slaying and killing also entered my ears for additional enjoyment as I rampaged through the quests on a killing spree. I would get excited when hearing the fall of my foes as the carnage levels increased around me. I also felt the narrator did an excellent job with the voice-over with an almost mystical tone to his voice when describing the quests to you. Being a bit inpatient at time, there is also the ability to skip past these so you can step right into the action.
If you are looking for an alternative to the common pricey game, I suggest you pick up Kivi's Underground. The enjoyment factor in this hack-and-slash game alone is well worth the price if you are looking for something that is an absolute blast to play.
