Castle Crashers Still Great On PS3
When my XBOX 360 bricked two years ago I thought I’d never get the opportunity to play the full version of Castle Crashers. Once it was fixed, I wanted to finish Fallout 3 (the system had to be repaired 30 hours into the game) and with so many new and old games to play I never got around to the delightful flash game-like side-scroller slash-em-up, especially after my 360 died again last Winter out of warranty - almost exactly one year after it was fixed.
I refused to pay half the price of the system for the repair, and was not about to lay out my scarce extra money for a new system that may break again. Instead, I set my sights on the PS3 release date of Castle Crashers, which for a long time was shrouded in mystery.
I was overjoyed when it finally came out this past Tuesday, though I quickly realized I could only play a level or two at a time after just coming off of another great side-scroller beat-em-up, Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World.
From another room, my fiancee immediately knew what game I was playing before I’d mentioned it, recognizing the fantastic soundtrack as her favorite to background listen to during my long stints of gaming in our small apartment. These tracks are charming renaissance modernizations, with some electronica influence as well, and always keep the player pumped and ready to attack.
You begin with a choice of four knights, each with a different type of magic at hand, and are partying with your fellow knights and wenches when a dying comrade falls into the room with an arrow through his chest. Sword in hand, you immediately join the fight to defend your land against an invading kingdom and rescue the four princesses that have been kidnapped. You’ll face mercenaries, various ranks of knights, and ridiculously large bosses, even fight atop an enemy carriage while a monster chases you. There is a good variety of enemies, environments, and helpful animal orbs ensuring the game never gets stale as you button-mash your way to the damsels’ hearts.
The added Volleyball mini-game is a chuckle-worthy addition to the full game and the arena mode, though it is more often than not frustrating because no one can judge the depth of field of their jumps when trying to slash at the volleyball. The game is played like traditional volleyball, but with less rules. A team wins when they have both 10 or more points as well as a 2 point lead. The ball is hit by attacking it, and magic can also be used on the ball, the ball sometimes taking on characteristics of the magic. I didn’t see any trace of the “All You Can Quaff” button-mashing eat-off mode that was in the XBOX 360 version, so I assume volleyball has replaced it.
Unfortunately, the online mode is not entirely satisfactory, which I remember being the case with the 360 version, as well. Several days after the game’s release I was hardly able to find players in the Quick Match setting, and of the co-op, arena, and volleyball modes only found two volleyball games after a total of ten attempts to connect. I also have no idea how to invite friends through the game itself. You may have to do this through the XMB only by sending an invite message. Of the two games I played, I experienced lag on the second, which caused all the players to quit after the match.
Castle Crashers was great on the 360 and it’s still great on the PS3, just keep in mind the PS3 only allows you to sign in with one username at a time, and you will therefore never be able to use characters saved on separate accounts during a local multiplayer game. This game caters better to single player and online friends than random matches with strangers.
And now to save the next princess…