Gauntlet: Seven Sorrows

More of a tech demo than a solid game. The engine is pretty and the characters look great, but it's sorely lacking in the gameplay department.

It keeps the classic feel, but has enough new gameplay to make it solid. And it's the first real console-based Gauntlet game ever, which adds a new element to the 4 player co-op play that was a cornerstone of the series.

While there is a certain satisfaction to be had at unleashing 50-hit combos in Seven Sorrows, many people will find the game just too shallow in this day and age. The most enjoyment out of Seven Sorrows will be had playing with friends or online.

Sorrows nails the controls, making the repetitive hack-n-slash action enjoyable in a Dynasty Warriors kinda way, and multiplayer is mostly successful. Unfortunately, the graphics fail to impress, the story isn't anything memorable, banging buttons is as effective as making use of the combos, and what should have been an epic quest can be completed by a novice gamer in around eight hours, with not much reason for replay.

Watching these heroes pirouette amidst the violence is surprisingly entertaining, and while Seven Sorrows doesn't deliver fully on the promise and longevity of its progenitor, it does provide a fleeting good time.

It'll make you all warm and nostalgic at first, but don't' be surprised if by your second hour of gameplay an unfortunate sense of "didn't I play this back in 1989?" sets in.

It's Gauntlet through and through, packed with switches to be thrown, puzzles to solve and medievil overtures that compel you to gnaw on large turkey legs...only polished to a glistening sheen. [Jan 2006, p.47]

While mind-numbingly boring in single-player, the game does inch closer to being fun when other players pick up a controller.

It may not be revolutionary or technically stunning, but it is a lot of fun; and that's what games are all about.

Nothing beats running around cramped dungeons seeking treasure and revenge while hacking, arrow-ing, and spell-casting your way through hordes of Lord of the Rings rejects.

The winding dungeon crawl the franchise defined long ago has been replaced with a lifeless linear action game's dash, one which will hopefully get back on the track its forefathers fought so hard to gain.

The minimalist twist to Gauntlet: Seven Sorrows may turn of those gamers looking for depth, but the game really does pull you in with some great visuals and slick combo moves.

Fun and enjoyable game play could have easily made up for the lack in graphic quality. Gauntlet: Seven Sorrows is an all around below average product.

Seven Sorrows is best played with 4 players which helps retain some semblance of the intended Gauntlet experience.

An action-packed, enjoyable adventure that makes some major improvements on the classic Gauntlet gameplay.

The plot is inconsequential, the characters are less than one dimensional and the game is radically overbalanced, amongst other issues.

Seven Sorrows baits you with a role-playing-game-style character development system, but the game's short length (easily clocking in under six hours) makes leveling up unrewarding.

If you're looking for a Gauntlet game in the tradition of the original, you can find "Midway Arcade Treasures" for cheap. If you want one more like the recent N64 releases or Dark Legacy, this is the only game in town.

Seven Sorrows succeeded in bringing back the nostalgia of the arcade franchise, but the game just feels all too familiar for a present day purchase.

The setting of the game and the interface were perfect, but the gameplay felt like something new was just around the corner, and never came.

Gauntlet fans will be disappointed and the game won’t win any new converts to Gauntlet fandom.

The game's one noteable feat - online, cooperative multiplayer. This, I am delighted to say, works swimmingly. [Feb 2006, p.102]

Sorrows is a hollow experience, misinterpreting the original as a sheer numbers game rather than one of constant risk and reward. It’s an issue made more glaring by an unsatisfying combat system, paying lip service to counters, juggles and combo strikes even though endlessly repeating the same moves is just as effective. [Feb 2006, p.88]

A decent romp when playing with others, even if it does get old after a while. [Feb 2006, p.80]

Fundamentally unchanged since 1985, the Gauntlet experience remains fun, but the latest incarnation doesn't really take the franchise to the proverbial next level. It's a great way to kill an afternoon with friends, but nothing more.

It's a bite-size nugget of nostalgia and mindless fun. [Feb 2006, p.77]

Ironically, the real sorrow of Seven Sorrows is how laughably, arrogantly short it is: two players can easily finish the entire campaign on the hardest setting in a night. [Mar 2006, p.91]

Gauntlet: Seven Sorrows’ biggest issue, however, is its short length. Each of the game’s 16 levels can be completed within 10 minutes--10 extremely repetitive minutes--and there is no incentive to revisit past stages due to the lack of hidden features or bonuses.

While fun once through, the broken online component and repetitive design means this'll soon be consigned to a dusty game shelf never to be played again.

Retro purists will like it but most will find the gameplay too basic. The graphics and technology behind the game have obviously improved and grown over the years; it's just a pity the same can't be said of the actual gameplay. [PSW]

The hack n’ slash genre has evolved quite a bit over the years, so people have come to expect more out of a game like this.

While it is a solid hack and slash action title, Seven Sorrows has to be seen as a disappointment for many fans of the series expecting a deeper, longer experience.

Enjoyably frantic, brief and basic. Gauntlet is showing its age but still offers a decent few hours of mindless maiming. [Mar 2006, p.94]

A nice way to kill a few hours when guests are over, but I wouldn't have paid full price for it.

At least in terms of being faithful to the source material, it retains a similar level of simplicity, except that in 2006 that just isn't enough.

While the single-player is still a waste of time, the multi-player makes up for its shortfalls offering inclusive, challenging gameplay. [Apr 2006, p.92]