Wrath Unleashed (Preview)

Star Dingo, GamePro

06/02/2004 15:39:36

Wrath Unleashed is all about balancing opposites—Light vs. Dark, Chaos vs. Order, hardcore turned-based strategy vs. reflexive combo-addled fighting. The “board game” portion of Wrath takes place on a hex-based map where each side (out of four to choose from) takes a turn moving one piece to either capture a structure, cast a spell (if the unit is magically inclined), or land on an enemy unit to engage it in battle.

Battles take place in a completely different context—Soul Calibur–esque fighting arenas with your usual fighting game melee attacks, blocks, and combos—and your units are affected by the terrain, spells, and previous encounters they’ve lived through. While the fighting engine in the PS2 preview build is still a bit rough, the fact that it’s tied to a well thought out board game seems to do wonders. Sometimes, unlikely marriages are the most successful.

A full review of Wrath Unleashed will appear in the April-May edition of Australian Gamepro.