Throwing down the Gauntlet

Another game I played last weekend was Gauntlet: Seven Sorrows.

Being a child of the eighties, I knew of Gauntlet. It was title that was held in high esteem, known for it's four-player action, it's use of sending out enemies by the swarm to fight and it's use of speech. Yet at the same time Gauntlet has a reputational for some oddball spinoffs (not least of which is the Atari Lynx version) that haven't quite succeeded in carrying a monumental legacy. Its for this reason that I haven;t given the series much thought in years.

That was until I was presented with Seven Sorrows: A PS2/Original Xbox game that a friend had on his 360. Upon playing it, it is immediately apparent that the familiar is present: The PCs of Warrior/Elf/Wizard/Valkyrie, the use of speech, the maze-like environment and the use of Zerg Rush before it was even called Zerg Rush.

I stress: My experiences with Gauntlet has been limited. I knew of the original game, I knew of it's reputation, I played the second game once and I even played the Lynx adaptation. So I have little to no attachment to the franchise. So what do I make of Seven Sorrows?

It's a lot of fun.
Seriously: It's great mowing through hordes of baddies, building up impressive combos. And there are moments of desperation in trying to find the all-too important health (Cheese!).

Does it live up to the legacy of it's namesake? Who cares?! This is great!