Of Orcs and Men

 PlayStation 3
Metascore
57

Mixed or average reviews - based on 8 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1 out of 8
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 8
  3. Negative: 3 out of 8
  1. PSM3 Magazine UK
    Nov 26, 2012
    49
    Imitates better fantasy RPGs poorly. It's interesting concept is buried under poor story-telling, a lifeless world, and dull combat. [Christmas 2012, p.89]
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  2. RPGamer
    Oct 31, 2012
    40
    Of Orcs and Men joins the list of games that have failed to deliver after some early promise. This is a pity as the concept of a game examining the point of view and culture of those fantasy races that would traditionally be shoved into the role of the antagonist forces without a second thought is an appealing one. Unfortunately, Of Orcs and Men squanders this opportunity and the result is a mediocre, all-too-short experience that won't live long in the memory.
  3. CD-Action
    Nov 29, 2012
    30
    'An ambitious story' turned out to be a compilation of clichés realized in a trivial way and dragged down by laughable combat, linearity and overall poor quality. [CD-Action 13/2012, p.73]
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Awards & Rankings

84
#84 Most Shared PS3 Game of 2012

User Reviews

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User Score
6.3

Mixed or average reviews- based on 44 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 23 out of 44
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 44
  3. Negative: 14 out of 44
  1. AndrewBonieskie
    Nov 22, 2012
    8
    I'm probably one of the few people that enjoyed the Game Of Thrones RPG, although gameplay was repetative and boring in places, it told aI'm probably one of the few people that enjoyed the Game Of Thrones RPG, although gameplay was repetative and boring in places, it told a great story. I think that this is the case in Or Orcs And Men too. I, personally, adore this game. Combat is fun, sophisticated, and hard. Gameplay and story are absolutely innovative. The one complaint I have is that levels are way to linear. You go from point A to point B with the occasional second route. Other than that, flawless. Although now a game for anyone, I'd definetly pick it up if your someone who enjoys engrossing RPGs like me.… Full Review »
  2. SuperkenGaming
    Feb 6, 2017
    7
    Of Orcs and Men…
    Thankfully its interesting…
    Of Orcs and Men is an action RPG game about the struggle between Orcs and men… Its humans vs    Of Orcs and Men…
    Thankfully its interesting…
    Of Orcs and Men is an action RPG game about the struggle between Orcs and men…
    Its humans vs green skins…
    Here you play as 2 characters…
    Arkail who is a warrior brute from the legendary Bloodjaws as well as his Goblin companion Styx who offers ranged and stealth gameplay who’s job is to help Arkail get to where he needs to go on his mission to kill the emperor and change the course of the war…
    The story and characters are the best part of the game…
    I laughed out loud numerous times thanks to the loudmouth Styx having no filters when talking to Arkail and other characters.. And the story is full of twists and turns that this 12 hour game is genuinely enjoyable and surprising…
    You even get to make choices to change minor story outcomes
    and the level design here is great...
    This is a very linear game... but areas feel open and theyre crawling with enemies and equipment…
    Where the game is held back though is its combat itself…
    Here you can play as either Styx or Arkail... and you can switch back and forth instantaneously…
    Styx, who was my favorite to play as can go into stealth mode and clear some or all of the enemies out before progressing to prevent as few combat situations as possible which is ideal..
    Because the combat is just no fun...
    Basically both characters are on autopilot…
    You put attacks in their commands list from different fighting stances and let them do their thing...
    you really don’t even have to touch the controller until late in the game if you don’t want to…
    because of this put in commands combat system, you never truly feel in control…
    You don’t feel like you’re using strategy to win...
    just that youre desperately running around with styx throwing knives and healing Arkail so you don’t have to start again... neither of the 2 have strategy programmed into them… if you leave styx he automatically goes into close range when he has considerably less health than arkail… so hell die almost instantly…
    Its almost like you really have no choice but to use him
    In some instances youll get into fights after messing up a stealth kill or being seen and arkail is just standing there looking at you instead of running to help…
    As you do complete battles youll level up so you can balance the characters in areas theyre weak or make them stronger in areas there already strong in.. So the juggling act isn’t as annoying…
    And you can unlock new skills and upgrade them with a choice of a perk to suit your gameplay style…
    but it’s a bad sign when playing your game is the worst part of your game...
    its an alright time and worth experiencing..
    Especially for the story, level design, and being introduced to these characters…
    It’s just rough to get through…
    I give of Orcs and Men
    A 6.5/10    … Full Review »
  3. BaronMonaco
    Mar 25, 2016
    6
    Of Orcs and Men is one of those games that starts off a very fresh and appealing idea : let's see the point of view of the orcs against theOf Orcs and Men is one of those games that starts off a very fresh and appealing idea : let's see the point of view of the orcs against the humans. Unfortunately there is not much more to see in the game.

    Technically the levels are empty, the graphics were out of date before the game was even released and there's some bugs in the game.

    The gameplay is , for the main part boring, the infiltration side is probably the fun one ,no wonder they just kept that for the next game of the franchise (Styx), even if very simplified, because the sword fights are simply boring. There was some good ideas like the berserk meter or the tactical view to choose your actions but the actual fighting is like watching a turtle's race.

    Concerning the story it's clearly the selling point of the game and it does not disappoint even if it's not very long (12 hours to finish the game and all its optional objectives) we could also criticize some of the voice-overs, clearly a low budget title.

    In conclusion like most of the games edited by Focus Home Interactive on this generation of consoles there is some very good ideas but it lacks on money or talent (maybe both ?) to make a truly enjoyable game, surely the day will come when they have a hit and join the others big editors on the market. Concerning Of Orcs and Men if you're a fantasy love, find it at a very low price and already played the dozen of RPG better than this one you can give it a try.    … Full Review »
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