Customer Reviews

Robin Hood Defender of the Crown

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

 

 

I remember being about thirteen, coming home from school and playing this game on my Apple IIgs. Hours upon hours wasted. Well, now I can waste even more because Capcom has released it on Xbox and Playstation, completely updated yet very faithful to the original.

The story starts with you as Robin Hood in Sherwood forest. You have to defeat the Sheriff of Nottingham in a similar style of play that made the original Defender so great. It's a territorial battle, where the number of men that you recruit and have stationed in a province will determine your ability to protect that province against attack. This part of the game is rather quick and thrown together. They would've done better to extend it, since it is the primary difference between this updated version and the original release.

From here you enter into the original storyline. England is in disarray and it's up to you to save it. Several other nobles are vying for the same properties as you are, and you must choose your properties and fortify them with castles and men, all the while watching your back against attack. The ultimate goal is to defeat other nobles and claim their territories, and essentially be the last one standing when it's over.

As a standalone game it's hard to recommend very highly. It's relatively simple compared to the monolithic games of today, and doesn't have a lot of "sparkle" to it. But as a fan of the original it's like being reacquainted with an old friend. They pay homage to the original scenes, even lifting some of the actual text and cut scenes directly from it. One of the almost humorous additions is the animated princesses after you rescue them. Instead of the simple silhouettes in the window, you now see a scantily clad vixen straight from a Victoria's Secret add. That probably wouldn't have fit in too well back in the 80s. On the most part the scenes are great, especially in the swordfighting sequences. They now take place in 3D castle settings and utilize unique camera angles and perspectives to show some amazing animated scenery.

Overall it's a simple but still great game. On this review page, the major complaint was that the game is "hard." Even if this were true it doesn't mean it's a bad game. And with a little practice you can easily master the elements of the game, from catapult launching to swordfighting to basic strategy. If you're a fan of the original, buy it without hesitation. But if you're new to the game, I'd suggest renting first to see if you like it, since it's so different than what's currently popular in the market.

This game has been very entertaining, and brings a new style/perspective to games that have been lost for a long time. A lot of games these days have missed the gameplay aspect in favor of flashy graphics. This has both. The game does get monotonous at times, but it doesn't daunt me too much from enjoying it. The strategy of the game is very challenging and keeps the game going. You can get a lot of re-play out of this game, it retains it's fun pretty well, which is very important to me.

There are aspects I wish they would have developed further, like the sword fighting. It's not the greatest system, and I found the fights quite easy and non challenging after my third time playing it. But it's still enjoyable, definitely not the worst!! You can block, duck, jump, and do high and low attacks. But it's quite simplistic in method.
Jousting is definitely kool, but like the fighting, they could have added a lot more features. Still, I love watching the guys getting smashed by my lance! And the controls are very good.
You get to go on castle raids which is totally awesome, but also simplistic. Archery ambushes are quite hard, in my opinion the hardest part of the game. If they made it just a tad easier it would be my most played sequence. Ahhh, and the sieges! Nicely done, let the castle walls crumble! Decent fun, but again, they could have added extra features in there as well. I just want to shake the creators a bit for not pushing the game a little further.
The voice acting was superb! The movie sequences are truly awesome. It adds a very nice flare to it, and is done better then any other game I've seen. The graphics are really very good, my applause to the artists and animators.

Overall, the game is very well worth the price of admission!

I hope to see a Robin Hood: defender of the crown 2 with added features and sequences.
The game could really use some added spice to make it more robust. But after playing it and knowing it's pro's and con's. I would still buy it if I didn't own it. I am very happy with this game, the low price, and my purchase.

(Edit Dec 2006: I think the computer version of this game is perfect for laptop/notebook users, more so today then 2 years ago.)

DFC was my second favorite 8-bit Nintendo game (after Mega Man 2 of course ;) ). When I saw this on the shelf, and the quote on the back of the box saying "Based on the origional", I couldn't get home fast enough. Truth be told, I was more than pleased.

Some folks on here whine about the graphics, and these complaints are completely unfounded. The graphics are fantastic, but if you're looking for an in-depth game with mind blowing graphics, go play Transformers.

Everything is so much more detailed, and fun, in this version. From castle sieges to sword fighting, all aspects of DFC have been improved. I will admit that it is nearly impossible to beat Prince John (I still haven't), but that takes nothing away from the game.

Build a fortress, and a big army right away and go take over England!!! Relive your childhood in PS2, or Xbox, form with this great game.

O.K, I bought this game because of what all of the other online reviewers said about it. I was very disappointed.

Although it's an interesting and original game it has some serious shortcoming. It's almost impossible to hit the men on horseback with your bow. When you raid a castle, it's the same level over and over again. No matter which castle you do! The play control is extremely bad.
The military campaign has some good strategy but the battle scenes themselves are horrendously bad. First off, it's extremely difficult and Prince John inevitably defeats all of the other nobles and becomes almost impossible to defeat.
I don't think the original ATARI would boast such poor graphics during the battles. The graphics during the battles are like Intellivison or Odyssey quality (how many old-school gamers remember those) graphics. You have to see it to believe it that PS2 is capable of such poor graphics that were bad even by 1985's standards.
It's still a fun story and the non-linear nature can be refreshing for orthodox RPG/adventure fans. The archery raids are fun if you have superb aim. Castle sieges are fun addition as well. You get a certain satisfaction watching your enemies walls crumble before your catapults.
This game is worth renting but definetely DO NOT BUY IT!

this is a Good game. with that said let me explain a few details.
ok in sieges its almost like risk with armies of 100+ up to 400 pesants footmen archers knights and catapults make for a bunch of fun but some of the fun vanishes a bit with the risk style siege system but alas the game has redeeming features such as, Swordfighting in castle raids or Jousting to win fame or once again (yes cliche but still fun) Archery and where this game lost a star in my opinion! not only is it nigh impossible to shoot enough people on a Caravan Raid to earn a good amount of Gold but they shoot back and you have to Dodge while up a tree? they have a bit of humor and even a few saucy lady scenes (no dont get worked up no nudity just damsels rewarding you for a vallant rescue!) so while the game isnt by any means flawless its so free to do as you wish each turn in risk/civilization style turns and what you end up with is a 4 star product that could have shined in the 5 star case but a few minor flaws will not tarnish this gem.

Pros: Quality graphics, interesting variety of things to do via 4 battle systems and just plain fun (see below)

Cons: Evil Camera angles on the Swordfights and Jousting can be a little annoying after losing the 4th or 5th joust but hang in there and it will pay off and at last the Archery system could have used more polish but i have to admit still amuses me.
like i said a 4 star game that could have been a 5 ownworthy and its rare i say that.

I love this game! It is a little of a challenge, but that makes all the more fun! I definitly recommend it to anyone who likes playing medieval video games.

I bought this game and absolutely love it! I played the original on the Amiga, and this new version is very much in keeping with it, yet has come on a long way. All of the mini-games look and feel excellent. Your first exposure to them is an archery raid, which is SO addictive! You'll end up playing it again and again until you can master it and kill all the riders before you get hit yourself.

The cut-scenes are also astounding. I've never seen such attention to detail and atmosphere put into in-game movies before. And there's so many of them!

Most people seem to assume this is a game about archery, swordfighting, jousting etc. But there's such a big strategy game behind it, with a map of England (and Sherwood Forest) that you attempt to take-over county by county. It's up there with the Sid Meier classics.

This is a great game. I can't stop playing it. I'm off to kick the Sheriff's ass!

I too once owned this game on the Commodore 64 back in the 80's. What a game. It's even better than back then!!! However, it is addicting and takes sometime to get the method of how to effectively build an army. I'm still getting the hang of it. Very fun. I judge a game on how addicting it is and this one is!!! Graphics are tight, the sound great, story line is even more involved than the original version. More to do. Cineware put out some cool games. I hope they put out a PS2 version of the "Three Stooges" game, also created by Cineware and I owned that one on the Commodore 64 as well!!! Ahhh, the good ol' days of gaming. Enjoy.

I liked this game, but there was a joke comparing kings to dogs that I found distasteful and uncharacteristic of Robin Hood (I guess this was due to the storyline, which took way too many liberties with the legend of the famous outlaw who stole from the rich & gave to the poor).

Some of the egregious liberties taken (all of which I HATED):

I. Robin saying that distasteful joke about dogs during dialogue with Marian about the remaining lords in England. Completely disgusting and out of character (fortunately, I skip it by pressing "X," which allows you to skip lines)

II. Robin & Marian's relationship-they were always fighting and there was barely, if any, trace of the love between them that we know so well from the written legends and the classic films "The Adventures Of Robin Hood" and "Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves."

III. Robin was portrayed as simply doing "My duty to something greater than a simple king." In the legends and the movies, he was a loyal subject of King Richard and loved him as much as he loved England (no, Robin WAS NOT GAY).

IV. Guy Of Gisborne had tattoos. I don't believe tattoos existed at that period in history.

V. Why wasn't the entire cast credited, especially whoever played King Richard? (I think Sean Connery played him here, but I don't really know;

SPOILER WARNING AHEAD FOR THOSE WHO HAVEN'T SEEN "ROBIN HOOD: PRINCE OF THIEVES"

I know Sean Connery appeared as King Richard at the end of "Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves")

CI. God WAS NEVER MENTIONED AT ALL. Wasn't Friar Tuck a man of God? Surely, the idiot writer for this game would have known that and inserted some references to Him into the story. "Politically correct," my a--e.

Egregious liberties aside, awesome graphics and gameplay. Rated T for some suggesstive themes (mild sexual comments between Marian & Robin).

This game was not at all what I expected. Not fun and somewhat difficult to understand with poor graphics.