Customer Reviews

GLADIUS

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Gladius is a turn-based tactical strategy game. That is, your gladiators and your enemies each take turns moving and attacking in a grid-based arena. Gladius is very deep and can be complex if one does not take the time to learn how to really play it. I had this game for a month before I really discovered how great a game this is. I would reccomend the strategy guide as well, to help you spend your gladiator's earned Skill Points more effectively.
There is so much customization and character development - it is great! The gold you earn from battles is spent on better Weapons, Shields, Armor, Helmets, and Accessories. The graphics are very good, and the "paper doll" representation of your character looks great as you try on all the different equipment. Just like in Japanese RPG's, your character stats change colors, red or green, to indicate if the equipment will help or hinder your chance of success in the arena. You can also customize the color of your character's hair, skin color, armor, and clothes. They also have four different styles of outfits you can choose from for each character - you can make all your gladiators the same color (i.e. team colors) or just make them all individually completely different. It's really cool.

As you earn more Experience, your Level or stats goes up - Hit Points(HP), Defense(DEF), Power(PWR), Damage(DAM), Accuracy(ACC), Initiative(INI), Constitution(CON), and Move Rate(MOV). As these abilities go up, the better your gladiator will perform in the arena. Different equipment will also change these a bit. For instance, a certain sword might increase your DAM by 2, but reduce your DEF by 1 which might be good for your offensive-heavy Samnite, whereas your Archer might prefer a weapon that increases ACC but decreases MOV, or whatever. That's just two examples, but the customization is limitless.

Your gladiators are divided into 5 classes - Light, Medium, Heavy, Support, and Arcane . Combat works on a paper-scissors-rock style. Light beats Heavy, Heavy beats Medium, Medium beats Light. Support and Arcane classes are best used from a distance (arrows and lightning bolts, obviously.) As you go up in Level, you also earn Skill Points. These are used to customize your fighters even more! Each character has dozens of different Skills to potentially learn, but you will never earn enough Skill Points to learn them all, so you must select few that complement the gladiator to your liking the most. Once again, I recommend the Gladius strategy guide to help you choose the best Skills for each Class - there are so many branches to develop your character, it can get daunting and hard-earned Skill Points unwisely spent.

The Swing Meter is what keeps the combat from getting boring and static. Just like in golfing games, it's a meter at the bottom of the screen. You have a normal hit(yellow), critical hit(red), and miss zone(blue). It's not too terribly difficult to score critical hits on a semi-regular basis, but it makes you pay attention and be involved in how your fighters do in battle. Enemy A.I. is actually pretty good. During the fights where the object is something other than all-out combat, (i.e. Points Battle, Barrel Break, Defend the Statue, or King of the Hill) the computer will do some dumb things, but during true battle the computer will stomp you if you don't employ the right tactics and appropriate gladiators (luckily, you can preview who your opponents will be beforehand, so that you may assemble your team with the best advantage.) You are the leader of a gladitorial School, so you are able to recruit a large variety of fighters to choose from.

This game is HUGE. It will take a long time to go all the way through it. You must travel with your School through 4 different lands and compete in numerous Leagues and Tournaments, with the ultimate goal of being able to take on the best Schools in the High Tournament in Caltha.
Each land you travel through (Nordagh, Imperia, Windward Steppes, and Southern Expanse) all have an average of 3 to 7 towns. In each town, there are numerous Leagues and Tournaments to compete in.

Please give this game a try. If you enjoy deep and involved games that can quickly consume hours of your free time, this is a game for you. I hope this game does well, so that we might be able to look forward to Gladius II.

Wow. Anyone who likes roleplaying games such as Baldur's Gate or hack n slash such as Hunter: The Reckoning will like Gladius! Only difference is that it is turn based, so you will need to think ahead and figure out how to place your fighters vis a vis the enemy (part of the fun!). I have owned this game for a month and a half and have been ADDICTED. Its a very involved game- you will need to constantly change your character's weapons, armor, etc as they gain levels as well as know how to balance each character's skills and affinities in the school. You don't want too many water affinitiy gladiators, for example. You will also need to keep an eye on your school's money as you buy stuff, enter into battles with entry fees, or recruit new gladiators. Great thing is you can sell your old equipment. The side quests also enrich the gaming experience (gain exotic gladiators or powerful weapons otherwise unavailable). There are different types of battles you face. Some are treasure hunts, others are limited to certain gladiator types, while others are good old melee fun.
But you will need a little patience in the beginning to learn all the nuances of the game. Lucasarts almost always makes great games anyway!!! HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!!!

For the reviewer "the scent from texass", I don't know what platform you're playing on- mine is a gamecube- because 1) tutorials DO NOT last for 3 hours; 2) loading times were NOT AS LONG as other games, and I've played many.

Any and all fans of the RPG genre stand up and take note, this is one of the best. This game packs as much depth and genuine fun as any of the final fantasy series ever thought of. The combat is much more than some would have it seem. The combat requires real skill and timing (which can be learned your first time ever playing it). The only thing I would suggest to maximize your fun from this title: don't expect a stereotypical hack and slash, hard charging gladiator game. This game is deep in RPG elements as well as strategy on and off of the battlegrounds. The ability to customize the gladiators in your school is also a very welcome add-on, as far as clothing goes...you can pretty much have a school of black-clad vampire look a likes (complete with the complection, and no disrespect to vamp fans out there..i myself am one so jus relax folks) or you can have a school decked out with the traditional gold and silver armor of Roman times. lol, this is definitely one game that REALLY takes alot of time to develop and work with if you're going for the full experience. on the other hand most of the time it is pretty simple to be playing at your best while still talking on a phone,lol. aight..conclusion: great game, and requires PATIENCE!!! ...and one final thought, some of the attacks and combos in the game translate into descent actual sword/weapon techniques could give you a few ideas for your own training, should you happen to do that sort of thing.

LucasArts has produced another fine game in Gladius. Its the story of a brother and sister, who are looking for action and adventure. You form and recruit gladiators to your school, and then you power up by winning competitions. The more points you get, the greater your powers become. I've only made it about 1/3 or the way thru, but I love this game. The sound could be a bit better, but the graphics are very detailed. What I love most about this game, is you can either CHOOSE to do tutorials, or you can just skip it. It's not like some games where you have to watch every single cutscene to get to the next fight. You can just skip it if you prefer. You can detail your warrior with different outfits and weapons, and I don't think you'll get too tired of this game. Gameplay is a bit slow, but that's rpg for ya! Something I haven't done yet....yu can morph into a more powerful gladiator, but you have to have mega points to do that. Great gameplay, graphics, and the storyline is solid! This game is a SOLID 4 stars!

This is an awesome game!!!! I would not recommened it for people who dont like to stop and read instructions before playing the game or else you will get bored with it really fast. I got this game for christmas and I started with the girl but wanted a challenge so switched to the guy ( his swings are faster and harder to get criticals). I am already at the third city. Overall this game is pretty fun the graphics are excellent i just dont like walking down the roads it is really univentful. Whoever does not like this game is deffinetly not that good of a game reviewer. GLADIUS ROCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This game is a joining of Final Fantasy and Gran Turismo 3. It draws upon the best of both worlds. Now don't get confused when I say Gran Turismo-this game has nothing to do with racing at all. What I meant by that was you have a school of gladiators (sort of like the G.T. garage.) From this school you can use any of your gladiators, each upgradable and customizable (just like G.T.) and then use them for different matches. Some battle have certain restrictions, which makes you choose wisely which warriors will be coming to your aide. The recruitment centers are a lot like the dealerships, and there are even qualifying rounds which are just like the license testing! Well, if you have never never played GT3 then you have no idea what I'm talking about. I'll explain it in normal terms. You have a large pool of skill to draw upon, each with their distinct abilities and you need different types for different battles. (You even get animals to fight with you!) This game is not however for the Final Fantasy fans out there-the story line is not as in depth, though I muyst give this game props for trying. The main premise here is strategy. You control everything from your starting positions, to where the move and attack from (and how they attack) in battle. Environment, terrain, elevation, and even how much the crowd likes you effect how well your force will do. The voice acting is good although sometimes a bit repetitive (For instance, one of the barbarians likes to say "For Nastharth!" every freaking time he moves his axe) What you do lose is a truly action packed arena fight. What you gain is more a strategic approach that foregoes the hack and slash method of some games. I will say one thing about this game though, it is complex. In order to have an appreciation and grasp of everything to need to take advantage of, you should have some video game experience under your belt. They do a very good job of trying to teach you the system, but younger kids beware-for this gets a little advanced. All in all this is a great game with tons of possibilities. If you played this game 20 times you would have the same experience. Get it.

This game really is a great game unless of course your not into sword fighting turnbased games. Then you should probably steer clear of this one. In my personal opinion this game is very interesting. The more battles you fight the stronger your gladiators get and the more money you get and the better stronger gladiators you can get. I really like this game. Like I said though it's not for everyone, but everyone is entitled to an opinion.

My husband is very particular about his video games. It takes a lot to keep him interested and he loves this game. He is now playing it through for the second time in a row which I have never seen before. It's an older game so the graphics aren't what they have today, but it doesn't seem to detract from the fun.

This game is very fun rpg and i love the way that you can create a school of people not just stuck with 2 or 3 characters the whole game.you can get new people in your school by simply clicking the recruit button.such a variety of characters everything from a centurion,to an archer, to a wolf.very amazing and long takes some patience though.over i dont know but a lot of weopons, shields,etc.Another thing is there are theses things called affinity attacks that act like specials.this game requires good hand eye coordination.i like the way you can move to town to town because every town has its own arena and shop and tournaments.if you are a rpg fan this game is great.this game would be a great gift too.o ya forgot this game can have up to 4 players too thats awesome because everybody can control a character!!

I initially bought this game on release day (came with a figurine as i recall). I have loved the game ever since. So much so that i just bought a gamecube and a copy of this game so i could play again.
The basic premise is that you play as either Valens or Ursula (each has their own campaign, but whichever you choose, the other becomes your loved one in the game), a gladiator forming your own school with the help of your mentor (who gives you tips along the way). As you gain experience, you can increase the number of gladiators in your school, and can compete in a greater amount of tournaments in a larger selection of nations.
The character maintenance is completely RPG in style, from upgrading your abilities to improving your equipment.
The battles are more like RTS in style. You have a basic map (generally an arena, but some battles happen in a more freeform style when you are travelling), in which you position your gladiators to maximize their effectiveness. The game is also turn based. The attacks are accomplished through a hit meter, which requires timing to maximize their power and potential for special effects. This is set up much like kicking field goals in Madden, but is quite intuitive and satisfying.
The story is pretty detailed and interesting, and includes political intrigue, romance, betrayal, and a reasonable amount of adventuring.

The different types of gladiators available are well balanced, interesting, and really cool. You might have a barbarian, a centurion, a wolf, and undead sorceror, and a mongrelman all fighting for your school in the same battle. Perhaps you elect to utilize the speed and mobility of your bandits, the feminine wares and archery skills of your Amazons, the heavy weaponry of your Samnites, etc....your choice of gladiators is integral to your battle strategies, and will at times impact whether you can even enter a particular competition.

Anyway, if you have an older game system, or are willing to buy one, this game is a must own on any of the three systems, although i prefer the gamecube myself (xbox and PS2 are the other two...not sure if this was released for PC play or not).

A definite must own, but sadly a game that flew under the radar when it was released.

Enjoy!