Together Retro: Golden Axe Warrior

[Ivo]

I feel like the only one who beat it but didn't really like it...

I think that's true. Me, SB, Exed, AlienJesus... we all liked it.

And you're all clearly insane. It would be all right if the controls were fixed. Heck, here's a vintage magazine review agreeing about the terrible controls.

I didn't play it along this time but I have finished it in the past and I liked it.

The controls are not as tight as the original Zelda but they are not terrible IMO. I think it is is a decent to good game, an interesting clone with some innovations over Zelda but not as big a classic as the original - and one of the reasons being the controls.

I think the sword being offset to one side makes sense btw, and in the great classic Link to the Past there is asymmetry in the sword as well.

Ivo.

[noiseredux]

@Hobie: I agree that the controls are rough. But they're not game-breaking to me. The proof is that I completed the game, haha. I mean, it's not an easy game. If the controls were impossible to get used to, I would have given up pretty quickly.

[ExedExes]

Controls make or break a game pretty quickly for me. The character in this game did NOT stop on a dime, sometimes running right into enemies, missing those damn places you need to push in to advance in the dungeons, etc. It wasn't BAD, but I know I had issues once in a while. I do agree they could have tightened them up a bit.

[awesomenick]

FINISHED! (not in record time, but none the less)



I really enjoyed the game even though it was brutal compared to Zelda. Not being able to turn towards an enemy without running into them and the "if you're above something you're going to get hit" made the controls seem off. I did find that if you hold down the attack button you can change your direction with out moving, but there isn't enough time to use this against fast moving enemies; which is most of them.

I was also expecting Death Adder to be... more death adder looking? Like a boss that is going to whomp you and send you back to the beginning of the dungeon. Not just a rehash of every other warrior boss.

Does anyone know how many heats there are? I seem to be missing one but don't know where it is. Is there a good way to refill magic? Maybe I missed this too.

My first Retro Together finished, thanks for being an awesome resource and community. Night!

[CFFJR]

Hm, I've got 8 days to get in on this game, so I should probably start playing, but everyone else is finished with it.

Maybe I should put it off and play it on my own time.

[alienjesus]

FINISHED! (not in record time, but none the less)

Does anyone know how many heats there are? I seem to be missing one but don't know where it is. Is there a good way to refill magic? Maybe I missed this too.

There is an equal amount of hearts and magic pots, so I assume you have missed one somewhere. As for filling up magic, outside of killing enemies the only way I found was to find a hidden room with a magic refill shop, which are fairly rare.

[Czernobog]

Finally finished the game last night. I was able to complete the game without save states or a guide, but I had to sink many hours into the game. I do think I got more out of the game that way. I really enjoyed the over-world exploration in this game, and that's what I spent the bulk of my time doing, just wandering around casually fighting enemies and uncovering secrets. There were tons and tons of secrets hidden throughout the world. Almost every screen had something to find, even if several of them got your horns stolen, it was fun to uncover as many hidden staircases as possible.

I also had fun wondering what each item would be in the palaces. The item I mentioned being excited about earlier in the thread was the Ship. The balloon item you get later, and was somewhat disappointing, but I don't think I would have been able to find the final palace without the mini-map. Still, it took hours for me to find the palaces in this game, which got really frustrating towards the end, but helped me uncover all sorts of other secrets, like magic and armor upgrades.

My biggest gripe with this game was the combat. I didn't mind it nearly as much once I found the axe, but then the game has you get upgraded swords, which I found much more difficult to use than the axe. I was so happy when I found the golden axe in the last palace, as it actually made me feel vastly more powerful than I had been up to that point. I didn't have much trouble with any of the palaces except for the sixth and the ninth. I kept dying at the end bosses of those two and having to run back through the palace, while trying desperately to get to them with decent hearts/magic.

Overall, I did really enjoy this game, despite the times I became really frustrated (considered quitting completely a couple times). I'm glad I stuck to it, because it was a rewarding game to beat, and I really enjoyed losing myself in the game, while looking for secrets, villages, and anything else interesting. Since, I played the Golden Axe beat-em-ups as a kid, it was fun to see some familiar bosses from those games as palace bosses. I doubt I'll play this game again completely through, but I may pick it up from time to time for a bit of fun.