Spartan: Total Warrior is a solid attempt at an action game from the makers of the Total War series.
The story is pretty solid, you play as a warrior called 'The Spartan' (original, yes...) and you're a new recruit in the Greek army, prematurely forced into battle against the invading armies of Rome. As you play through the game you unravel a story that surprisingly leans quite heavily on fantasy. Not only will you go into battle against Roman soldiers and barbarians but also some creatures that you'll recognize from Greek mythology. The Spartan himself is also insanely strong, so if you were looking for something realistic like Rome: Total War you'll just have to go back and play that.
The gameplay is nice and solid, The Spartan is easy to control and you'll be mowing down hordes of Roman soldiers before you know it since the control system is easy to get the hang of. It's easy to think of this game as a Dynasty Warriors clone, but when you get into it, it really isn't. For starters you'll collect multiple weapons during your travels, all of which have their own strengths and weaknesses. You can't ride horses, which is abit of a bummer, but really there's no need, the action on foot stays pretty constant.
You can also customize the Spartan slightly by choosing which of his abilities you'll upgrade first, he will however always end up the same in the end.
There are however some irritating issues, for instance you must be completely stationary to change weapons, this may not sound too demanding but with half the Roman army breathing down your neck you barely have any time to stand still and change weapons. Some of the more complex things like fury attacks can confuse you aswell, even when you know what you're doing.
The graphics in this game are very nice, people who have played Rome: Total War might even feel a slight sense of nostalgia. The main characters and the soldiers all look great and so do the various landscapes you'll find yourself trekking across. From the city of Sparta, the desert wastelands, every environment is well pieced together. During battle, blood flies everywhere, dead bodies remain on the field and enemies can go flying like limp rag dolls.
Sometimes the weapons don't look great however. There aren't any real movie cutscenes either which would've been nice.
The sound is very good. The music fits in well with the game; there aren't any Dynasty Warriors style guitar solos here. The sounds in battle really immerse you in the experience; you can hear soldiers shouting and screaming, metal clashing on metal and explosions when you're on the right parts. The voice acting is also very good and consistent, some characters got on my nerves, but perhaps they were supposed to.
In terms of value, the game's okay. Really you'll play through the single player game and be done with it, but there are other features. Once you complete a mission in the single player mode you can go back and play it whenever you want. There is also an arena mode which you can unlock things for, which pits you against legions of enemies in an enclosed space. Finally there is a concept art gallery which you can gather pieces for in the single player game.
Overall though, these features aren't particularly worth it.
In conclusion, Spartan: Total Warrior is really quite a solid game, making an interesting alternative to Dynasty Warriors. I enjoyed playing it and would recommend renting it if nothing else.