The gladitorial arena is still waiting for a true champion. This one just misses the mark.
User Rating: 5.2 | Gladiator: Sword of Vengeance PS2
This is one of those games that quite possibly could have shined on original Playstation. The graphics would have been dulled down, but the gameplay would have at least satisfied. As it stands on PS2, Gladiator falls short. Graphically the game looks good. Not spectacular but definately good. The storyline is a lot of fun. Not terribly original or innovative, but fun. Nothing special soundwise. The real problem lies in battle. Entirely too repetetive and unwieldy. Targeting enemies is a hassle to say the least, and attacking without targeting you soon find ludicrous. Dodging becomes nearly impossible while surrounded unless you just pick up and run away. The weapons are cool, and the finishing moves deserves kudos, though watching the same death scene repeated over and over becomes irritating at the least. Even if it is ripping off a skeletons shield arm and using it to swing the shield, decapitating then smashing it's already decrepit body. If you can find it cheap, maybe give it a try. It is not a complete loss, but there are many games sitting next to this in the bargain bin that are much more fun to play.
