Hell Warders

If you’re a fan of the grimdark aesthetic of the last Dark Souls games and enjoy the tactical combat of games like Dungeon Defenders, then Hell Warders will be right up your alley. Its combination of tower defense and action RPG elements will keep you engaged as you frantically repel the forces of hell in this enthralling game.

Blending genres

Hell Warders’ unique gameplay mixes and matches many elements from some of the most popular third-person action genres. At the beginning of each round, players must assemble their defenses as they would do in a tower defense game. Place archers, catapults, knights, and mages to stop the forces of hell from overtaking your fortress.

As the action progresses, players can and must take combat to a more personal degree. This is where the game turns itself into a musou of sorts, similar to the Dynasty Warriors series. Choosing one of the game’s three heroes will let you go all out on the enemy forces, but beware, because the enemies’ champions are just as strong as yours.

Towering monsters, unbalanced combat

Hell Warders features a variety of boss monsters that are both amazingly designed, and terribly unbalanced. Like we’ve already mentioned, if you’ve played Dark Souls before these bosses might look more than a bit similar to you. That said, each boss looks aesthetically pleasing and they fit in well with the overall tone of the game.

What isn’t pleasing at all is the game’s many balance issues. Difficulty spikes are a common occurrence in Hell Warders, making finishing the game solo a daunting task. Luckily, the game offers the ability to play in 4 players co-op, it’s just a shame that players who enjoy playing offline might be forced to join a party just to complete the game.

Visually divisive

Although the art style of Hell Warders looks great in concept arts and character designs, actual character models and maps leave much to be desired. If graphical fidelity is a must for you, then this game might be a bit disappointing for you.

Also, just like Lords of the Fallen before it, Hell Warders relies a bit too much on the Dark Souls aesthetic, sometimes feeling like a borderline knockoff of From Software’s infamous game series.

Thankfully, the game runs great in its PC version. Made in the Unity game engine, developers Anti Gravity Game Studios have made a superb job making sure that FPS remains buttery smooth, even in the most action-heavy scenes.

Though Hell Warders does a lot of things right, its inconsistent difficulty and dated visuals prevent it from achieving its full potential. The sparse muddy textures could’ve been forgiven if only the animations were up to the quality of the gameplay. In a game where flashy combat is one of its selling points, choppy animations can completely break the immersion.

Bottom Line

There’s a lot of potential hidden under an uneven coat of paint here. The punishing difficulty and unbalanced progression also seem to work against the player. Take a look at Risk of Rain 2, a stellar example of how to make a player feel overpowered without breaking the balance of the game.

Pros

• Lots of content to explore
• Somewhat rewarding progression system
• Fun multiplayer experience

Cons

• Dated graphics and clunky animations
• Unfair difficulty punishes solo players
• Late-game feels severely unbalanced
• Uninspired boss fights