Reviewed: August 15, 2008
Reviewed by: Jason Flick
Publisher
D3Publisher
Developer
Infinite Interactive
Released: July 23, 2008
Genre: Puzzle RPG
Players: 1-2
10
9
9
10
9.5
Supported Features:
Screenshots (Click Image for Gallery)
Nearly nine months ago Infinite Interactive and D3Publisher released the highly addictive Xbox LIVE Arcade title, Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords. With its unique blend of puzzle and RPG elements, Puzzle Quest quickly became a big hit after its release. Nine months later, Infinite Interactive and D3Publisher bring gamers a whole new reason to fall in love all over again with the release of their newest expansion for Puzzle Quest, Revenge of the Plague Lord on Xbox LIVE Arcade.
I had the opportunity to review Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords back when it first released and I absolutely loved it. As I mentioned in that review I am a big fan of RPGs and I do enjoy casual puzzle games when I’m not blowing holes through enemies in my favorite shooters. So for me Puzzle Quest was a welcome change for me, and this new expansion with all its new content is even better.
For those of you reading this review it is safe to assume that you already know how to play this title. If not then you should probably go download the full version of the core title on Xbox LIVE before reading any farther. Nothing has changed with Puzzle Quest’s interface, so its smooth sailing as far as that’s concerned. The only thing that has changed is the amount of content to be explored.
Revenge of the Plague Lord offers a whole slew of new content including a new archenemy and four new Hero professions to choose from. As if Lord Bane wasn’t bad enough of a problem it seems that Lord Antharg, the Lord of Plague wants to become a big pain in the butt in this new expansion.
One of the things that I like about this new expansion that I must mention before I go any farther is that the Level Cap has been increased to 60 from the previous Cap at Level 50 to offer a bit more a challenge to the title. The only downside to this is that level 50 character will have little to no trouble navigating the new region and the 25+ added quests.
But for those of you wishing to start from scratch from the beginning, fear not, the developers got you covered too. New to this expansion is the introduction of the four new Hero professions: Bard, Rogue, Ranger and Warlock to choose from. Each of these new classes have all new abilities, skills and spells to utilize giving the player new tactics to learn and master.
Of the four new professions, the hardest one to master is the Bard due to the level of thinking required instead of force to master this class. The Bard, basically a songsmith that duels with music, is an expert at using yellow mana to put fear into his opponents. This is not a profession I would advice a new-comer to Puzzle Quest to attempt right off the bat.
For those players wishing to play with magic and force then you’ll want to look no further than the Rogue. This character cross between a warrior and a thief is probably my favorite of the new professions due to its versatility while in battle. This class also levels pretty quickly so getting to that 60 level cap shouldn’t be too much of an issue. The Ranger follows close behind the rogue in terms of magic and combat. Utilizing green mana this profession can whittle away an opponent’s health little by little. Its snipe attack is also pretty cool and equally deadly.
And last but not least is the destructive Warlock. The Warlock loves to use skulls in battle to inflict serious damage upon their opponents. Not exactly someone you want to cross when they’re in a bad mood. This Profession is quite powerful compared to the others so turning your enemies into little dust piles is fairly easy.
In addition to the new profession, Revenge of the Plague Lord offers a bunch of new spells to use and items to collect. There are over 50+ new spells to cast upon your victims…I mean enemies. There are also 40 new magical items to use while you fight off all new monsters, bosses such as the Storm King, and various other new enemies.
The one thing that I keep hearing and reading is that many people are complaining about the price of the expansion. Revenge of the Plague Lord will cost you 700 Microsoft Points, which compared to the 1,200 points it costs to purchase Puzzle Quest itself is a fairly reasonable price to pay. I mean come on; you’re practically getting a brand new game out of the expansion. I personally think it’s worth every point.
The graphics of Revenge of the Plague Lord which haven’t changed from the core title are still just as gorgeous as before. There are a few glitches here and there when it comes to the colors of icons above places with main story quest but other than that everything is pretty much the same.
Again like the graphics, the sound doesn’t vary any from the core title, but who really cares as you’re going to be paying more attention to keeping yourself alive in this new expansion. The core title has good music so if it isn’t broken don’t fix it. ‘Nuff said.
Revenge of the Plague Lord has a lot to offer with 25+ new quests giving the player about 10 or so hours of additional gameplay to an already awesome game. The four added professions are a big plus for me as I now have some serious leveling up to do now.
I also like the new storyline that unfolds as you work your way up to defeating Antharg. It really has revitalized an already popular and addictive title. The amount of new spells and items also give me another reason to justify the 700 points need to purchase this new expansion.
When it comes to Puzzle Quest, I was already a huge fan. The new Revenge of the Plague Lord expansion pretty much safely secures Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords in my top 5 Xbox 360 LIVE Arcade Titles List. With so much added content, what's not to love. I really enjoyed the additional storyline and all the new monsters to fightas well as the raised level cap.
The biggest plus for me however is the new Professions because without them this expansion might not have done so well. That and I love my new Rogue.Even though there were a few hiccups here and there, Infinite Interactive and D3Publisher have once again gained my respect as a name for quality games.