Need food badly?
So a Warrior, Valkyrie, Elf, and Wizard walk into a tomb--and then proceed to murder everything that moves. That's the gist of Gauntlet, Warner Bros.' PC-exclusive reboot of the classic co-op dungeon crawler. Like its many predecessors, it tasks you--and up to three friends--with slaying monsters, getting rich, and eating as much turkey as humanly possible.
To start, you can choose from one of four classes: the melee Warrior, the arrow-flinging Elf, a magic-casting Wizard, or the tanky Valkyrie. Each character has different abilities, and, while it's no surprise that the Elf is a fast-moving character with a bow, or that the Warrior is basically a hulking guy on steroids that prefers to smash things with two-handed weapons, they all have a distinctly unique playstyle. Playing as the Valkyrie, I was equipped with a huge shield, which I could throw like some sort of medieval Captain America, and a sword for slashing enemies into ribbons. My special attack was a sword lunge, which could thrust through dozens of enemies at once. And because I had a shield, I could defend against incoming attacks by performing a knockback that temporarily stunned my foes.
The demo I played only lasted for about 10 minutes, but I was pretty impressed by the great mix of puzzles and combat-oriented segments. In some instances, we had to carry explosive powder kegs from one end of a trap-laden hallway to the other without taking damage--an admittedly hard feat when your buddies are trolling you. In others, we had to combine our abilities to cut through hordes of mutants and skeletons, barely surviving the process. And always, we were on the lookout for treasure and turkey--the former to enrich our lives, the latter to regain health and stay in the fight.
Check out the following slides for more information on Gauntlet.
You're able to toss allies around thanks to a light friendly fire mechanic.
I also had a blast tossing my shield into a huge group of enemies, watching it ricocheting from one to the next before returning to my hand.
It has a nice aesthetic, with surprisingly detailed shadow effects.
Seriously, look at those shadows.
What's a Gauntlet game without some awesome bosses?
