Baldur’s Gate, Fallout), action RPGs with dynamic real time combat (Dark Souls) and jRPGs – very specific titles based on Japanese style and culture, especially on manga and anime (Final Fantasy, Kingdom Hearts). There are classic RPGs with turn-based combat and rules inspired by pen-and-paper RPGs (e.g. They also have a multi-plot story and quests. This category includes games that put emphasis on progress system for a controlled character (or a group of characters) which is (are) described with many statistics. I was sad to see the excellent menu hero achievement from the original not get an equivalent in Thongs of Virtue, but worse things have happened.Indie gamesXBOX 360 RPG Video Games Video Games Encyclopedia by

You’ll also be pleased to know that the achievement/trophy list is fairly solid all around, if a little on the easy side. Some may clock ridiculous times if you get into trying to hunt for new gear or grinding through experience points. Expect roughly fifteen hours worth of gameplay based on how many side quests you get involved in. The Thongs of Virtue might not have much new stuff going on over its predecessor, but it has every bit as much content. Regardless of my complaints, the gameplay is actually very strong in the Thongs of Virtue and is still perfectly able to capture the addictive element that many games in the loot ’em up genre possess. The same can be said of the local co-op mode where, even though the inclusion of a new partner character to choose from is a nice idea, it doesn’t change the fact that it’s still quite a dull mode.

The inclusion of the new weapons helps to alleviate this repetition slightly but it’s still in plain sight regardless. The original had fairly balanced combat but, as simple and fun as it was, it could get rather repetitive after a while. It’s a shame that the core gameplay mechanics couldn’t have been given a bit of a touch up for ToV. See those guns he’s got? Be honest, you want them That and you also get to sail a pirate ship, remembering of course that the inclusion of pirates immediately makes something better. The only other main difference is in the quality of the missions, with much more variety this time around than the standard “go here, kill this” affair that we’re used to in this genre of gaming. For starters the game has a more modern setting, meaning that the many swords and axes of the original have now been complemented by a variety of guns and grenades as well. So has anything been changed at all since the original DeathSpank? There have been a few changes here and there that, at least partially, differentiate the Thongs of Virtue from the original. The visuals, whilst still smooth and excellent for an arcade title, are barely improved or altered for this new game. The same problem pervades the visual presentation of ToV as well. The rest of the audio is of a reasonable quality as well, but the problems begin when you realise that a large majority of the music and SFX have been recycled from the original game. Michael Dobson is a really talented vocal artist and it would probably be funny enough if he just read through the newspaper in his DeathSpank voice. Part of what makes the DeathSpank experience so appealing, both in the original and ToV, is the incredible voice acting for our hero himself.

The quirky visual style of the original is retained, partly because the graphics are nearly identical This is where Ron Gilbert’s flair for writing really starts to come in, as anyone who has played any of the other titles he has worked on will be immediately familiar with his excellent brand of comedy. DeathSpank is one of the funnier games around at the moment with some of the greatest lines of dialogue I’ve ever seen. The story isn’t enough to get you going on its own, but it works as a decent vehicle for the game’s strong sense of humour and strong it is indeed. There is a vague plot regarding the eponymous thongs of virtue, but it is explained well enough in the intro that a primer is not required here. It’s still a great game through and through but, unless you’re really itching for some more DeathSpank action, this might not be worth your time.įor those of you who missed out on the original, the only thing your really need to know is that our hero, DeathSpank, must dispense justice by fighting bad dudes and solving quests for various NPCs Diablo-style. Only a few months later we have a sequel with The Thongs of Virtue that, whilst retaining the same qualities as its predecessor, offers very little new content.

DeathSpank, the hack and slash ’em up created by Ron Gilbert of Monkey Island fame, released back in July on the XBLA and PSN to critical and commercial applause.

Deathspank thongs of virtue theme music