Many of the problems of Dungeon Twister lie in the product itself. The reason paper role playing games such as Dungeons and Dragons or other complex games only see a video game release every once in a while is because this is not the way the games should be played. Video games need to be easily accessible--to lay down easy to understand rules quickly and let gamers quickly join into a match. This is why games such as Magic: The Gathering Duels of the Planeswalkers find success as easy to pick up and learn titles. Games can also find success by modifying the rules of the game to make them easier to understand while making them more fun as interactive entertainment. Dungeon Twister does none of these things, only importing its complex rule set into over an hour of tutorials spread over 20 increasingly mundane levels. Dungeon Twister's storyline offers very little incentive to keep playing either casting the player as a group of eight characters sent into a labyrinth designed by the powerful and incredibly bored Arch-Mage. Maybe he's never heard of good video games.
Dungeon Twister is a type of game that will appeal to a very select group of gamers. Let's say that you're the biggest fan of the Dungeon Twister board game or a strategy aficionado, and you're still considering picking up the new release in hopes that it will give you the turn-based fix you've been looking for however. The presentation of Dungeon Twister will quickly make you regret that decision. For starters, the game's graphics look like a fighting game from PlayStation 2 at best, and the stiff animations are unforgivable in a game that doesn't require very many complex movements from its characters while moving around the dungeon or locked in combat. Dungeon Twister features a decent soundtrack that will help the time pass, but it can quickly be ruined by the terrible sound effects and voices coming from the actual characters in the game. Even the jig the quirky characters break into after completing a special objective or escaping the convoluted maze offers little in the form of satisfaction. Still, the worst of all is a game plagued with bugs, so good luck to anyone brave or foolish enough to pick up a game that is notorious for freezes and glitches and that locked up on us at least once during our time with the game.
As you'd expect, Dungeon Twister offers online multiplayer, but it manages to leave out any form of local multiplayer for those looking to sit down on the couch with a friend to enjoy the game. Online matches can quickly turn frustrating with a small community of gamers willing to support the title, and it becomes all the more difficult to find a quality opponent that will actually stay in the game for the entire hour or so it takes to complete a match. Of course, you can always take your aggression out on computer controlled opponents in offline sessions. If you still find yourself interested in the game, you can purchase the board game from the official Dungeon Twister website, but don't waste your time learning to play the game for PlayStation Network.
Dungeon Twister is now available exclusively for PlayStation Network and can be purchased for $9.99. Dungeon Twister is rated T by the ESRB for Mild Blood, Mild Fantasy Violence & Suggestive Themes. For more information on the game, check out the official Dungeon Twister website.
Game Features:
Game Information:
Developer & Publisher: Hydravision
Available exclusively for PlayStation Network (reviewed)
Release Date: July 3, 2012
