Nice break in the action...boobies
With all this violence going on, there’s no surprise that Conan himself has some sexual tension to release and aside from the fighting you’ll come across many a damsel in distress. They’ve unfortunately been tied up…topless of course. So, it’s up to you to head over there, have a good ogle and then, after some outrageous flirting, set them free before returning back to the fighting. After the intense combat fighting it’s a nice break in the gameplay and the breasts…well, they’re just a bonus for all your efforts.Conan does have a few puzzle solving scenarios, but none that are innovative or that really stand out. They generally involve working out how to open a gate, or how to climb a ledge to the next area, so they never really tax the brain. Whenever you open a gate or stone door, you need to follow the prompts on screen by pressing the relevant buttons. This may involve repeatedly pressing B to move a boulder or moving your left thumbstick in a set sequence, but generally these actions become quite repetitive and don’t really add anything to the gameplay.
Click for larger image
Click for larger imageAnother slight annoyance is the fixed camera, which prevents you from looking around each area. Whichever way you turn, the camera will follow to point in that direction, but sometimes it’s way too slow so you can’t see what’s in front of you for a couple of seconds. Luckily, there’s never really a time where this becomes an real issue because an enemy will never be able take you out with one blow. Nevertheless, its an unwelcome aggravation.
The audio in Conan does its job at capturing those intense moments, with a crescendo of cymbals and drums during fight sequences pounding away in the background, but the voice acting leaves a little bit to be desired. Conan’s voice doesn’t really match his manly physique, although the script is half decent with some witty dialogue and plenty of tongue in cheek humour.
Unless you’re a fan of the hack ‘n slash genre, Conan doesn’t really offer anything else in terms of gameplay, but its crude and brutal combat is extremely addictive. The range of moves are visually impressive and a joy to pull off and there’s enough great moments in the game to keep you hooked for the 10 hours of so of gameplay. Conan will be an unexpected and welcome surprise for any fan of the genre.
Pros
Over 100 combat moves
Gloriously violent animation
Great pace to the game
Absorbing boss battles
Half-naked ladies
Cons
Fixed Camera
Puzzles are lame
Some frame-rate issues
A thoroughly and entertainingly brutal hack ‘n slash
HEXUS Awards
Conan – Xbox 360 & PS3
