Xena: Warrior Princess

• Release Date: October 07, 1999
• Genre: Action
• Style: Third-Person 3D Action
• Similar Games: Tomb Raider (Sega Saturn), Tomb Raider (PlayStation), Die by the Sword (IBM PC Compatible), Tomb Raider (IBM PC Compatible), Deathtrap Dungeon (IBM PC Compatible), Deathtrap Dungeon (PlayStation), Duke Nukem: Time to Kill (PlayStation), Tomb Raider Starring Lara Croft (Game Boy Color)

Game Description

Grab your Chakram and sword, because the evil sorceress Kalabrax has broken free after centuries of imprisonment. She will finally get her revenge upon the gods who imprisoned her and the world they created. Only one thing is stopping her. In order for her spell to gain ultimate power to work she must sacrifice a queen.

Unfortunately for Xena, it would appear that Gabrielle is the sacrifice de jour, being Queen of the Amazons and all. So with the help of her allies, who just happen to be Xena's bitter enemies, she has captured Gabrielle and it's up to Xena, Warrior Princess to save her.

It won't be easy though. Nothing for Xena ever is. She will have to journey far and wide before she can face Kalabrax. She must defeat the vile King Valarian and his cronies as well as Narsus the evil renegade Amazon, and a host of other creatures like a cyclops and dragon just to name a few.

Developed by Universal Studios Digital Arts, Xena: Warrior Princess is one experience you won't forget as you must defeat all the enemies on a stage, solve puzzles and save a few hapless villagers before you can continue on your journey. You have all of Xena's trademark moves and weapons at your disposal, including her classic warrior scream.

Will it be enough to save Gabrielle from becoming an ingredient in Kalabrax's evil spell? Can you save the world? Do you really want to save the gods? There's really no choice; you must stop Kalabrax before all you hold dear crumbles in an instant.

Safe journey! Battle on, Xena...

Roots & Influences

Xena: Warrior Princess is based entirely on one of the top ranking syndicated televisions series of the same name. It's interface is similar to Tomb Raider except it's a little more linear.

Review: Overall

Xena: Warrior Princess is brought to you by Electronic Arts. The opening animated sequence is poorly done. It appears as if they just pasted the faces of Xena and Gabrielle on 3D models with no thought of smoothing it over. So while the opening isn't done very well, it sufficiently sets the stage for the story and game at hand.

Make no mistake, Xena looks very nice. It has lush 3D environments that are almost free roaming. She has all her signature moves and weapons as well as her battle cry. The characters and bosses are average as far as appearance goes and the game itself isn't very inventive. Hardcore gamers will find this okay to rent but most diehard Xena fans will love this game.

The gameplay is extremely basic. While you can wander anywhere on the screen, the game itself is a strict linear adventure. If you don't beat all the enemies nor complete whatever task is asked of you, then you can't move on. Xena walks along a paved path throughout the adventure, sort of "yellow brick road-ish." You walk down the path, fight the bad guys, get a key and go through a gate. This is pretty much how the game plays the whole time. There are painfully long load times between levels. A bit of slow down occurs when Xena fights too many enemies at once which lets one or two of them get in a free shot while you're left trying to face them.

The character controls are pretty impressive and fit this type of adventure and character nicely. With the benefit of analog compatibility, movement of Xena is amazing. She can do all types of flips and tricks just like in her show. Not only can you throw her Chakram but if you hold down the R1 button you also can guide it using the D-Pad.

There are only two real down sides to the game. There are so many moves to use that you need a few extra fingers to press all the buttons so you can see all her moves. One really classic one is the low blow kick to the nether regions of the enemies. The other is that in order to perform simple tasks like jumping, you need to use a certain button combination, otherwise you'll end up going past or coming up just short of your mark. The one thing missing is that you can only attack one enemy at a time, very un-Xena like.

There is a pretty big learning curve involved in beating the bosses. More often than not, your weapons will have no effect at all and you'll need to figure out some other way to kill them. It may involve knocking stalactites from the ceiling or running into one until it gets close enough to the edge to be pushed over. You do get hints from the scrolls that can be found on the various levels. Make sure you pick them up, otherwise you're going to waste a lot of lives on one boss.

One interesting feature in keeping with the television show is that if Xena simply beats up an enemy instead of killing it, she gets power added to her karma meter. When the meter is full she becomes invincible for a short period of time. There are also assorted upgrades to her sword and beloved Chakram.

Now the end of this game is, well... interesting. Saying more would ruin the surprise but you should definitely try to get there or be there when someone else makes it to the end. It truly gives much to the imagination!

Review: Enjoyment

Here we have a basic but fun game.

Review: Graphics

The game has very basic polygons.

Review: Sound

Listen... it's just like watching the show.

Review: Replay Value

Once you're done, you're done.

Review: Documentation

The instruction manual has everything you need.

Production Credits