The wildly popular game "Castle Crashers," originally released on Xbox 360, PS3, and PC, was refined and re-released for the Xbox One last Wednesday. The updated version received enhanced graphics, increased framerates, improved matchmaking, an entirely new game mode, and new playable heroes and animal orbs.
If you played the game on last generation systems and don't want to start from scratch, don't worry. The remastered edition allows players to transfer their 360 data and keep the items they worked so hard to unlock in the original version. The cherry on top of this behemoth ice-cream sundae: it's 100 percent free for those that purchased the original on the Xbox 360—until September 20. After that, it will be bumped up to an extremely reasonable price of $5.
For those that have never purchased "Castle Crashers," the price is $15—a heck of a deal for first-time players. But are the upgrades worth getting back into the 2D hack-n-slash game? Though it's not perfect in my opinion, the short answer is dear god, yes!
Let's begin by discuissing the updated visuals. Harnessing the power of the Xbox One's GPU, "Castle Crashers Remastered's" texture sizes are five times larger and can now achieve 60fps. Lines are sharper than the Master sword and actions are smooth as the dialogue in "Alpha Protocol." This is best demonstrated in the combat—obviously. But also in the minute details, such as the animation of spinning coins. The simple cartoon art style is beautiful.
Even at 2 a.m., the online matchmaking speed was impressive. I was able to find a match in each game mode in less than 20 seconds. Unfortunately, this meant being paired with a few players with inadequate connections. Lagging ensued, sacrificing the smoothness of playing solo or with friends. If you know someone that has downloaded the remaster, or is willing to do a couch session, I would recommend sending them an invite.
The new game mode: Back Off Barbarian is not as addicting as the campaign and Arena game modes. Admittedly, I wasn't very good at it right out of the gate. Translating the color cues on the screen to matching buttons on the controller is a bit difficult, but that seems to be the point.
Frantically pressing buttons to dodge barbarians before they could stomp on my character's head eventually lead to laughter when I lost my concentration and the barbarians caught me, ending the round. Other than a feeling of accomplishment when setting a new time record, the new game mode is unrewarding. Unless a player is entertained by striving for the number one spot on the online leaderboard, playing this game mode solo offers about 15 minutes of entertainment.
When playing with opponents, Back Off Barbarian turns to a game of sabotage. Luring enemies toward other players is the best way get them eliminated. Hiding in a corner is tempting, but ultimately fruitless. As more and more barbarians appear, getting surrounded is unavoidable.
The Behemoth is best-known for their quirky character designs. And the new special characters are no exception. (click on the pictures to go to each character's wiki page.)
Open-Faced Gray Knight: Strange seeing the face behind the mask. Starting weapon: Skinny Sword.
Necromancer: Intimidating, but cute. Starting weapon: Evil Sword, of course.
Cult Minion: Once an enemy, now a fellow brawler. Starting weapon: the Glowstick.
Pink Knight: Adored by all, especially the ladies, apparently. Staring weapon: the Lollipop.
King: Whether he's smiling or gritting his teeth under that beard, he's ready to open a can. Starting weapon: only the King's Mace will do for the king.
Alien Hominid: From The Behemoth's game by the same name. Starting weapon: the Alien Gun.
Hatty Hattington: From "Battle Block Theater." Starting weapon: the Emerald Sword.
The new animal orbs are no exception when it comes to quirky character design. Dragonhead is a menacing looking, red orb with an ugly under bite. Pelter is a cute orb, reminiscent of the pokemon "Seal." And Golden Whale is just that—a golden whale.
I am thoroughly enjoying taking a break from games with weighty story lines to replay this humorous and light-hearted gem from 2008. The original isn't quite old enough for me to feel comfortable calling this remake nostalgic, but the remastered version does conjure up fond memories of well-made games from the previous generation.
