Act: Clash N Slash [by Enkord]

Game Review: Clash N Slash
Release Date: March 29, 2005
Developer: Enkord
Genre: Action
System Requirements: Windows 98/Me/2000/XP, Pentium II 400 MHz, 64 RAM, 16 Video Card, Direct X 8.1+
Players: 1
Price: $19.95
Download Now!


Clash N Slash is, at its core, a space shooter. The big difference that you'll notice almost immediately though is that your ship isn't going anywhere! Instead the ship stays in a tight orbit around a single planet as endless hordes of aliens and meteors come crashing in towards the planet. As the pilot of the ship (which, by the way, is about the same size as the planet, so don't think you don't come prepared) your goal is to blast everything coming at you into smithereens!

While the premise is really a variation on something that has been done a million times, the real quality of the game comes in the intense action that has been succinctly connected to the players strategy. Much like other shooters, there is a large array of weapons at your disposal in the game. As you move through the levels, more and more weapons become available to you, but the catch is that you only have the ability to upgrade one piece at a time and you are limited to 4 or 5 upgrades before the level is over. The combinations of weapons and power-ups are nearly limitless, and each choice you make will change the options that will be available to you at the next power-up point.

For example, when you reach your first power-up point, you probably will want to select one of the available weapons. When I'm playing in the later levels that weapon is likely to be the 'Pulse' laser. This laser will blast right through multiple enemies, eliminating in a single blast entire fleets as they approach the planet. However, the downside to such a powerful weapon is that it takes a bit longer in between shots than most weapons, you don't get that many shoots per clip, and it takes a little while to reload the clip. In addition, level one of the pulse laser sends out a single shot straight forward, while the enemies approach from every angle imaginable. So as the next power-up point occurs I usually will upgrade the Pulse to level two, which adds a spread to the gun, but that leaves the other issues I had pointed out. So at the next power-up point I can make a decision...the decision has to be based on what is offered, and that offering comes from a pretty big group, so you don't always know what you will get next. The list includes things such as quicker reload times, faster ship, automatic repair for the ship, better targeting, and on and on. On each level, depending on how you play it, you will have several chances to upgrade. Depending on the level, certain upgrades may be more useful, such as increasing the damage on levels with lots of meteors, which leads to an element of strategy in the game that for me made it a lot more enjoyable than mindless blasting.

In addition to your ship's ability to power-up, you will also be making choices about how to power-up the planet. While your ship can spawn an infinite number of times, if the planet takes too much damage then the game is over. The power-ups for the planet come in a couple different varieties. There are some that help you in your fight against the aliens, such as nuke missiles that fire out every so often while you are playing, and radar installations that find hidden power-ups for you. However, most of the power-ups for the planet are defensive in nature, increasing the defenses of the planet or increasing its ability to regenerate its energy. In addition, there are a couple of buildings that will increase your research, thus decreasing the time you wait between power-ups for your ship. The order you choose the planet power-ups will provide you with different options, but unlike the power-ups for the ship, you can expect the progression to occur in the same order each time. Thus you have to have a research facility before you have a Science Station available to you. There is a LOT of strategy that you can employ in determining what buildings you will place on your planet and in what order. You don't have the ability to build them all, in fact, you'll probably only build half of the buildings on any one level, but strategy is key, and different levels require different strategies. For example, I find that with levels that start with a large number of asteroids orbiting the planet that getting the nukes first is helpful in clearing out the field, however doing so means that increasing my research speed will have to be put off. Is the trade-off worth it?

Clash N Slash is a game that is just shy of perfect. It provides hours of great fun that is challenging and far from mindless. The mix of action and strategy is just perfect and when it works you'll find yourself cheering while you play!

Graphics: 9
Visually there isn't much more that could have been done in Clash N Slash. It is straight up fantastic looking. The planets, especially as they come on and off the screen are a beauty to look at. The different alien craft and everything in the game has the same artistic feel to it, which is somewhere between a casual game and a more serious shooter like Raiden, that leaves Clash N Slash with a distinctive look that really draws you into the game. The different effects on the weapons and explosions are really nice to look at and provide more compelling reasons to keep playing the game as the improved weapons you obtain later in the game also come with cooler effects. The planet that you are protecting also shows graphically each building power-up that you add to it. This is something that certainly wasn't necessary, but shows the extra care that was spent on the game’s graphics.

Sound: 7
The sound effects themselves are all quite well done, and though the explosions aren't the most rewarding explosions you'll find in a game, the real reason for the lower score here is the music. I play a lot of games on the old family computer and this is one of the few times my wife has walked in and said 'the music is awful, I thought we were on an elevator.' While certainly its not quite that bad, the music is nothing to write home about, and for an intense shooter of this style it leaves you wishing they had a more intense beat with some nice guitar riffs ala Jets'N'Guns.

Game Play: 8
Playing the game is quite intuitive even though the mechanics of playing themselves are not simplistic. Your ship both orbits the planet and targets as you move the mouse so, much like Heavy Weapon, you are really doing two things at the same time with a single mouse movement. That should lead to serious issues while playing but, like Heavy Weapon, it works fantastically well in the game. It is very easy to pick up and play the game, and the intensity of the battles leads the player to feel as though they have really just saved a planet against all odds.

The one issue I ran into with the game play that dampens my enthusiasm a bit is the power-ups for your main weapon. There is certainly not a lack for weapons as the ship has a large arsenal available. This is important for a game like this because a good portion of the fun in any shooter is in obtaining the power-ups. In the game, there are actually multiple levels to each of the guns that you can obtain as you move on through the levels. About every other level you will unlock a new weapon or a new level to an old weapon. The game teaches you about the new weapons and power-ups by only allowing you to obtain the new weapon on the level where that weapon or power-up appears.

While initially I liked the idea, I found that it wasn't a perfect solution. The issue I ran into is that the balancing of the weapons is a problem in the game. Just because a weapon is newer or more powerful doesn't mean that it is better. For example, after several levels you will obtain the rocket weapon. This weapon is different from the others because it creates a large explosion radius at the point of impact that will destroy other enemies as well. While that would naturally seem a good thing, I found that I had much more success in the game by using one of the weapons that had a larger spread (think of the spread gun in Contra versus having to use the laser all the time).

The different weapons in the game, while certainly cool, really don't become all that useful until you reach around level 26, at which point the pulse gun gains a spread attack. As you move into the 40s, other weapons become more powerful, but the balance issues seem to remain. With certain weapons it is just much easier to beat the levels. Being forced to use a weapon that doesn't really work for you often leads to failing a level over and over.

So the bag is a little mixed in this area. Certainly the positives far out-way the negatives. The weapons themselves are imaginative and enjoyable to use for the most part, and the ability to upgrade the planet is also fun. However, the place where the game really shines is in that arcade quality of being easy to pick up and play, with intense action that requires your best effort if you want to beat the game.

Value: 8
In all there are 60 levels in the game, with every 20th level having an 'end-boss'-like ship. Each level takes 3-5 minutes to get through if you are able to accomplish it on the first time. So the game provides probably around 4 hours of play time to get through the first time. However, the likelihood of you enjoying the game and playing it over and over again are really quite good. I think few people play through all the games they get any more, but with the power-up progression in Clash N Slash egging you on you will find it hard to put this one down and will return to it again and again until you eliminate that last pesky alien.

Concept: 7
It would really be an oversimplification of the game to describe it as Missile Command set in space. The way I think of this game is as a space shooter, where instead of the game being based on you flying all over the screen, you have a small area to move through and have to use those reflexes to blast everything that comes near you.

Fun: 8
Initially I was sure I'd be putting a 9 here, the game is simply a blast to play! I tend to enjoy games that require a bit of thought in addition to a bit of a quick trigger finger. Clash N Slash fits that bill perfectly as you have to use your head a bit as you consider what order you will build your power-ups in as well as what guns and strategy will work best. All the shooting in the world won't get you through if you don't have a good strategy. The only knock here, and the reason for the 8 instead of the 9 is because of the levels where you are forced to use a weapon. There were moments I felt that the game maker was more interested in showing me how cool the weapons I wasn't using were. When I was forced to use those weapons and then couldn’t stay alive, I found myself prodding along waiting until I could get back to the 'fun' boards that I loved.

Overall: 8
Clash N Slash is one of the better games that has been released in 2005 and one that should find itself at home in most any gamer's library. If you are looking for an action game that provides a great challenge and hours of non-stop pulse-pounding excitement while also requiring you to think just a little while you are playing, it is definitely a game you should check out.
Added: September 3rd 2005
Reviewer: Russell Carroll
Score:
Related Link: Download Now!
Hits: 2783
Language: