The First Templar

 PC
User Score
6.0

Mixed or average reviews- based on 80 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 19 out of 80
  2. Mixed: 45 out of 80
  3. Negative: 16 out of 80
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  1. AbeMC
    Jun 12, 2016
    6
    Decent hack 'n slash with good mechanics, passable story and graphics. If you're a fan of the genre, worth picking up when on sale. Co-op is an added bonus.

    The story itself is pleasantly uncomplicated. I didn't even bother much with it. What's that? We're a knight in search of the Holy Grail? Whatever. Let's get our swords out and start slashing. The voice acting is generally good, but    Decent hack 'n slash with good mechanics, passable story and graphics. If you're a fan of the genre, worth picking up when on sale. Co-op is an added bonus.

    The story itself is pleasantly uncomplicated. I didn't even bother much with it. What's that? We're a knight in search of the Holy Grail? Whatever. Let's get our swords out and start slashing. The voice acting is generally good, but nothing outstanding. The atmosphere is great, though; the desert fortress of Acre is bright and dusty, while the village and swamps at the base of Montsegur castle are drab and dark. Environments in general are nicely detailed - not earth-shattering, but nice. You'll come across some incredibly low-res rocks and water at odd places in the game (usually towards the end). Fire and smoke are particularly well-rendered. This is not an open world btw; travel too far one way or another, and you'll come up against an invisible wall.

    The combat is very quick to learn, and the upgrade tree is very deep. There is some stealth (very easy), some boss battles (hard, but not too hard), Switching from one character to another is simple and seamless: just hit the Tab key to change to the other character. And you will need to do this to solve some of the dungeon puzzles. The puzzles themselves aren't that hard to complete, though if you charge in without analyzing the situation first, you'll die quickly.

    That's the problem with The First Templar: there's nothing really outstanding about it, but it is not a bad game either. It is average in just about every quantifiable category. I had fun with it. Not a must-buy at the current list price of $20; at $6 or less, though, it's a fun game to while away a few hours.

    If you're purchasing for the co-op, only the hosting player gets achievements, so be sure to take turns hosting the game.    … Expand
  2. Zargham
    May 18, 2011
    7
    This game might have great first look, but gets a little boring as u keep on playing. The action is good, the combat style is stylish and the story seems interesting. This game also gives a great variety of upgrades which really enhances the gameplay. New swords and outfits really increases the excitement. Although there are some elements which seem dull, for example the running animationsThis game might have great first look, but gets a little boring as u keep on playing. The action is good, the combat style is stylish and the story seems interesting. This game also gives a great variety of upgrades which really enhances the gameplay. New swords and outfits really increases the excitement. Although there are some elements which seem dull, for example the running animations which just seems stupid, the character display is uneven, the idea and gameplay seems repetitive. Overall i think this game is satisfactory.… Expand
  3. z0rrer0
    Jun 25, 2011
    4
    Hi all!

    About this game, I must say I was very disappointed. When I saw the screenshots and story, I thought it might be interesting, but after finishing it in 11 hours I found a pretty bad game. These are basically the ideas that come to my mind after finishing: - It's a completely linear game - There are very few types of enemies - The story is very mediocre and poorly interlaced -    Hi all!

    About this game, I must say I was very disappointed. When I saw the screenshots and story, I thought it might be interesting, but after finishing it in 11 hours I found a pretty bad game. These are basically the ideas that come to my mind after finishing: - It's a completely linear game - There are very few types of enemies - The story is very mediocre and poorly interlaced - The idea of â    … Expand
  4. MrMuse
    Jul 3, 2012
    7
    I really think this game has been unfairly scored by many people. The fact is that at its current price (and you can pick it up for under a fiver in most places now) it represents exceptional value and entertainment. The graphics and animation some people have whined about arent exactly going to win any major awards but niether are they going to make you cringe and complain unless you areI really think this game has been unfairly scored by many people. The fact is that at its current price (and you can pick it up for under a fiver in most places now) it represents exceptional value and entertainment. The graphics and animation some people have whined about arent exactly going to win any major awards but niether are they going to make you cringe and complain unless you are one of those people who just HAS to have the prettiest looking games and couldn't care less about gameplay. So lets just move on from that and say that TFT is pure hack 'n' slash clothed in a good story with an extremely high standard of voice acting. It's a shame that it has flaws that stop it being successful as a full-price release -and here they are: Anyone buying this game solely because they want a co-op game forget it; the co-op is just a minor diversion from what is essentially a single player game. The character skill progression system doesnt offer much variety in the way you play the game, most people will just boost health then proceed to mash away at the left mouse buton in most combat situations and its entirely possible to win the game on the normal setting by taking the health upgrades and just clicking away. The game is completely linear but I'm really not a person who cares overmuch for non-linear anyway - I believe you can have just as much fun when you know which direction you are headed as when you are distracted by random choice. There's nothing wrong with the way stealth works in the game other than a major exploit/bug issue in that since the game will always restart you at the nearest "checkpoint" to which you died you can just run right through the biggest stealth level with every npc on the map chasing you and if you dont die till one of the last save points the game will restart you there with full health -oops. SO-O not sounding too good so far? Nope, but the storyline and the voice acting are engaging enough to lift this otherwise mediocre game well out of the mire and into Completing it Several Times and Getting All the Costumes Achievements Etc Status. The samey combat CAN be played about with if you take the time to get to grips with all those new moves you bought from the skill tree but didnt bother to use on your first playthrough because you didnt need to, the stealth section will work well enough if you play it as it's meant to be played, the combat is broken up by fairly simple logic puzzles where you switch between control of two characters, and the Templar's Chronicle that you collect throughout the game is interesting and based on real historical evidence. So for all its flaws I'm giving this a solid seven for the simple fact that I enjoyed it anyway, played it to the end, and will play it to the end again on hard mode. How many games DONT keep you engaged enough that you can say you finished them (and maybe more than once)? I suspect most.… Expand
  5. spoonypirate
    May 10, 2011
    5
    Were this game made 5-10 years ago, it would be awesome. Unfortunately, there are many aspects of the game that look aged and tired. Shallow voice acting, both regarding content and delivery, kills the idea of voice acting. Running animations that look almost as if they came out of a last-gen console game got me all a titter. Seeing the characters display the same gestures repeatedlyWere this game made 5-10 years ago, it would be awesome. Unfortunately, there are many aspects of the game that look aged and tired. Shallow voice acting, both regarding content and delivery, kills the idea of voice acting. Running animations that look almost as if they came out of a last-gen console game got me all a titter. Seeing the characters display the same gestures repeatedly during dialogue sequences was actually the last straw for me, causing me to turn the game off. It's not all bad, however. Having a controller hooked up lets you (nigh-instantly) do split-screen co-op, a feature that has long been dead on PC, and one that I miss constantly. The story might be good, if it weren't for the glaring delivery fumbles mentioned earlier. Sadly, the game deprived me of the patience to find out.… Expand
  6. Blackcompany
    Aug 14, 2011
    0
    The game is advertised as coop. And it is. If you log into your Steam account, then into your Kalypso account. Then into your online Kalypso login. Then into Facebook to see facebook friends you can game with. Then the coop still does not work most of the time, and when it does, it lags to the point of making the game unplayable. And there is no LAN coop option for speedy coop play.The game is advertised as coop. And it is. If you log into your Steam account, then into your Kalypso account. Then into your online Kalypso login. Then into Facebook to see facebook friends you can game with. Then the coop still does not work most of the time, and when it does, it lags to the point of making the game unplayable. And there is no LAN coop option for speedy coop play. Moreover, guest characters can neither level up nor learn new abilities. You are, essentially, an NPC henchman in your friend's game. Animations are choppy and slow, weapons have no "weight" and the graphics are beyond antiquated - they are horrible. Easily the worst PC game in years, and an utter waste of money.… Expand
  7. Cpt_Crusader
    Jan 6, 2013
    7
    The First Templar is a fun game and has a dated look to the graphics. But the game play and fighting system kept me interested and the story line was not to bad either. If you looking for all the bells and whistles with graphics this is not a game for you. Except for the fact that this game does not reach today standard graphics I enjoyed it very much. So if you see this game with a goodThe First Templar is a fun game and has a dated look to the graphics. But the game play and fighting system kept me interested and the story line was not to bad either. If you looking for all the bells and whistles with graphics this is not a game for you. Except for the fact that this game does not reach today standard graphics I enjoyed it very much. So if you see this game with a good sale price its worth giving it a try.… Expand
  8. LordOFlibertY
    Jul 6, 2011
    7
    Its quite funny actually. I didn't expect a game like this to really win me over in terms of standards. The First Templar has really aweful voice acting, the lines are cheesy and the story is weak. But the combat is quite not bad. Its not on part with games like the Witcher II but a game made by a small company with low budgets, its really not that awful and its quite enjoyable.
    7/10    Its quite funny actually. I didn't expect a game like this to really win me over in terms of standards. The First Templar has really aweful voice acting, the lines are cheesy and the story is weak. But the combat is quite not bad. Its not on part with games like the Witcher II but a game made by a small company with low budgets, its really not that awful and its quite enjoyable.
    7/10
    +Simply Enjoyable
    -Everything else pitiful and weak.    … Expand
  9. deadspacer47
    Feb 23, 2014
    7
    +after you meet marie the game begins to take you in as you get into good looking levels and get new outfits.
    +story is good and it's the main reason that you will continue further.
    + levels in which you pass through obstacles and traps solving some puzzles are the best levels. +its Atmosphere is really cool. +these one vs one boss fights were challenging. Bad things: -combat moves    +after you meet marie the game begins to take you in as you get into good looking levels and get new outfits.
    +story is good and it's the main reason that you will continue further.
    + levels in which you pass through obstacles and traps solving some puzzles are the best levels.
    +its Atmosphere is really cool.
    +these one vs one boss fights were challenging.
    Bad things:
    -combat moves are not much,also evey character has almost the same special abilities
    -bad skill system that is almost the same in every character and that made me spend XP randomly.
    -stealth is very easy and not realistic.
    -has about 8 soundtracks and most of them are short.
    -repetitive bonus missions where you get to burn supplies and sh*t.
    -what is challenging of finding collectibles when they are not well hidden??!
    in the end it's a good game that took me exactly 12 hours to complete with all these bonus missions and it's worth playing.    … Expand
  10. FemCritic
    Aug 14, 2011
    0
    z0rrer0 - first of all congrats on making it 11 hours in the game. I couldn't even get past 11 minutes. This game is horrid!! After having to log in 4 different times, then finding out that the "facebook link" does not work, I was finally able to get in to a game with my friend. Then I found out that lag was horrible, the host is the only person that could work on character skills and thatz0rrer0 - first of all congrats on making it 11 hours in the game. I couldn't even get past 11 minutes. This game is horrid!! After having to log in 4 different times, then finding out that the "facebook link" does not work, I was finally able to get in to a game with my friend. Then I found out that lag was horrible, the host is the only person that could work on character skills and that all I had was a henchman to help play the game with me. Were this 10 years ago, the graphics may have been worth something. However, in today's day and age I fully expect more for the money we pay for these games.… Expand
  11. RUNAWAY
    May 10, 2011
    8
    8 for debut in action/adventure, nice work Haemimont Games. One of the best games in not very popular genre "Slasher" for PC in 2011 year. Gameplay is very similar to another greate slashing game The Lord of the Rings: Ã
  12. Amigos
    Oct 16, 2011
    10
    This is a good cooperative game, with very good gameplay ad my review is for the italian edition from FX Interactive with very very good price: 19,90 Euro.
  13. Kenjiro
    Jul 12, 2012
    7
    Good game, fighting system is enjoyable, graphic is nice, animations are smooth, i do not spot any serious bug and no crashes. Some complaints goes to bad voice acting and wrong sound positioning (also bad volume), some scenes has wrong camera setting, the same faces, maybe simple storyline, no physics interaction with barrels, woods, and so, but nevertheless, it is good game for 7. ItGood game, fighting system is enjoyable, graphic is nice, animations are smooth, i do not spot any serious bug and no crashes. Some complaints goes to bad voice acting and wrong sound positioning (also bad volume), some scenes has wrong camera setting, the same faces, maybe simple storyline, no physics interaction with barrels, woods, and so, but nevertheless, it is good game for 7. It reminds me some of Blade of Darkness, which was slightly better game.… Expand
  14. Contemptible
    Sep 30, 2011
    3
    This game looked really good in its previews but it is one massive disappointment. It is incredibly outdated for the time it was released and lacks everything but the fact that it is incredibly basic to play. I do not recommend this game to any game user.
  15. PrincessRose
    Mar 19, 2020
    6
    A linear hack n slash game that is fun to play despite being quite old. I like the medievai theme and find the story interesting and liked playing the game and didn't feel bored. Worth playing especially when on sale.

    It's an ok game to play, though not amazing.
  16. NordSkyrim
    May 2, 2015
    9
    The advantages of The First Templar can be attributed to its technical side. Artists and level designers did their best. Though in these locations and there is nothing particularly grand, they are made with proper approach to detail and in any time not copying each other, carrying their share of uniqueness. Graphic design is praiseworthy: crisp texture, plenty of shadows, soft lighting -The advantages of The First Templar can be attributed to its technical side. Artists and level designers did their best. Though in these locations and there is nothing particularly grand, they are made with proper approach to detail and in any time not copying each other, carrying their share of uniqueness. Graphic design is praiseworthy: crisp texture, plenty of shadows, soft lighting - all this can not but rejoice. Sorry, but pumped up the animation. And if the stiff gait of heroes can still endure, the absence of any sane great facial animation contrasts with their high quality traced persons.

    From cards to ax

    The First Templar is not quickly dispersed. Many players will throw it right at the beginning: oddly enough, it performed worse than the rest of the game. Those who remain in it and advance further, unlikely to be impressed by anything. The ancient tale about the search for the Holy Grail - too worn out topic for speculation and a little bonus in the form of scattered Templar Code page level - fun for the units. Let's leave it to the conscience of Haemimont Games, because of their track record before that was limited mainly historical strategy. The First Templar - the first attempt in the genre of slasher developers, and call it a failure does not. However, just as difficult to confidently call it a success.

    Pros: nice graphics; good location; Templars.
    Cons: monotonous gameplay; a simple fighting system; slow development activities; levers.
    Verdict: not the best representative of the genre. It may interest fans of the Knights Templar and ancient traps.

    Our Rating: 8.7    … Expand
  17. astelan
    Jul 1, 2011
    7
    ben moi je le trouve simpatique comme jeu.les combats sont simpa.ont visite pas mal d'endroit different.
    apres c'est sur ont peu mieux faire comme jeu mai je pense qu'il mérite un 7/10
  18. CriticoDubioso
    Mar 7, 2021
    10
    Masterwork: great story, beautiful music, atmospheric, cultural content, addicting combat system, perfect learning curve, ...
  19. crysi102
    Aug 28, 2016
    9
    While short, and dated, this game has aged well. I picked it up for .47 cents at a local store, and while I'm not ashamed of it, I believe I would have payed a nice 20 dollars for this if asked. The graphics are nice, the combat is amazingly smooth. The block mechanics are a bit frustrating, and the double tap for dodging is... well, dodgy, but that game is overall a solid hack-and-slash.While short, and dated, this game has aged well. I picked it up for .47 cents at a local store, and while I'm not ashamed of it, I believe I would have payed a nice 20 dollars for this if asked. The graphics are nice, the combat is amazingly smooth. The block mechanics are a bit frustrating, and the double tap for dodging is... well, dodgy, but that game is overall a solid hack-and-slash. The skills as you progress are fun, the level design--while horribly linear--is well thought out. There are audio volume issues, yes, but the soundtrack is beautiful, and the voice acting isn't unbearably terrible. The story is simple, but combat is the focus of the game, and exploration the second, so I don't mind.

    In short, this game has aged remarkably well. It's simple, and worth picking up for a relaxing hack-and-slash adventure while waiting for the next AAA title you'll add to your library.    … Expand
  20. CamyVero
    Jun 3, 2021
    7
    Cool and cheap game to pass the time and 'learn' some history at the same time. The game mixes exploration, hack and slash and puzzle solving mechanics and is designed to be played with someone in co-op, but it can be played alone. The story of the game is more than decent, even interesting.
  21. Nikomak
    Oct 11, 2020
    10
    I really enjoyed this game far more than a lot of other action games and yes it is rather linear but why is that a bad thing. I love not having to roam around aimlessly looking things. When I was younger and had all the time in the world I didn't mind spending 80+ hours in a game even though back then most games weren't that long but now I prefer shorter more to the point games and don'tI really enjoyed this game far more than a lot of other action games and yes it is rather linear but why is that a bad thing. I love not having to roam around aimlessly looking things. When I was younger and had all the time in the world I didn't mind spending 80+ hours in a game even though back then most games weren't that long but now I prefer shorter more to the point games and don't have time to be wasting endlessly wandering around. I don't know why people give low ratings for being linear in the first place, the game was designed a certain way for a reason and does not have to be open world with multiple paths to be great. The real enjoyment in this game for me comes from the story which I immensely enjoy as I really love history from that era whether it be real or fiction it a joy to play. If you think you may like a game try it and don't listen to other reviews, you may be surprised that you actually like a game that has been poorly rated by countless others and vice-versa.… Expand
  22. littlecat_
    Mar 19, 2022
    7
    i like the game but the end was hard and i left the game there . i had to be very fast but i m not .
  23. PenetratorGod
    Aug 20, 2023
    5
    The game follows the story of a French Templar and his comrades. Taking control of these two allies, the player must uncover the mysteries behind the Templar Order, play a role in a grand conspiracy and discover the secret of the Holy Grail. At every turn, our heroes fight against powerful opponents such as the Saracens, King Philip IV of France and the Inquisition. The First Templar tellsThe game follows the story of a French Templar and his comrades. Taking control of these two allies, the player must uncover the mysteries behind the Templar Order, play a role in a grand conspiracy and discover the secret of the Holy Grail. At every turn, our heroes fight against powerful opponents such as the Saracens, King Philip IV of France and the Inquisition. The First Templar tells the story of two heroes, Celian and Marie, who together will solve the mysteries of the Holy Grail. When playing solo, you can switch between the protagonists and the game's AI will take control of the second character. A second player can join the game at any time, taking command of the AI character. You can improve the abilities and skills of both characters and choose alternative development paths. The First Templar offers fast-paced action. The game offers an average of 10 hours of gameplay.… Expand

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
57

Mixed or average reviews - based on 19 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1 out of 19
  2. Mixed: 16 out of 19
  3. Negative: 2 out of 19
  1. Games.cz
    Aug 13, 2011
    50
    If Antonio Salieri was the boss of these developers, it would explain a lot of things. The First Templar is a prime example of a mediocre game that won't hurt nor warm your gamer's heart.
    Read full review
  2. Vandal
    Aug 9, 2011
    55
    This game looks five years older, and is obsolete both technically and gameplay-wise. However, its theme and cooperative modes are enjoyable.
    Read full review
  3. PC Gamer UK
    Aug 6, 2011
    63
    Besides unlocking costumes that don't offer stat bonuses, there's almost zero replay value here. [Aug 2011, p.99]
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