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Deal watch: Grab Overlord: Dark Legend for $37

by Richard Mitchell { Jun 25th 2009 at 1:05PM }

Being that games are an expensive habit, we're always on the lookout for a decent savings. With that in mind, please direct your attention to Amazon, where you can pick up a copy of Overlord: Dark Legend for $36.99. That's $13.00 off the standard price of $49.99 and nothing to sneeze at. The game has been reviewed fairly well thus far and, at the very least, we can vouch for the charms of its PS3 and Xbox 360 brethren.

If you like your games funny and evil, you might consider picking it up.

Gallery: Overlord: Dark Legend

Snap Judgment: Overlord 2

by Justin McElroy { Jun 24th 2009 at 5:00PM }

With limited time in the day to review all the games we want to tell you about, some have a habit of falling through the cracks before we've been able to get our thoughts onto the site. In the hopes of remedying that, we've created a new feature we're calling Snap Judgment. Here's the gist: We'll play enough of the game to get the lay of the land -- what we liked, what we didn't, etc. -- and then pass our opinions on to you. It's not a full "review" in the traditional sense, but we're hoping you'll scroll away just a bit more informed.

So, shall we?

Gallery: Overlord II

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Hands-on: Overlord II

by Alexander Sliwinski { Jun 7th 2009 at 5:00PM }

The original Overlord was a flawed game with a subversively chewy center. The only thing Overlord II needs to deliver to outdo the original is some polish, which is something we can't really tell is present from messing around with a demo for 10 minutes. That doesn't mean we didn't like what we saw, it's simply noting that Overlord's flaws didn't become strikingly clear until later in the game. The latest title has the same whimsical art style as the original, but this time magic is starting to disappear from the world. The Overlord will not only battle a comical version of the Roman empire (Asterix and Obelix fans will notice immediately), but will be an antihero to the loss of magic in the world.

A demo for the game is available now on Xbox Live and PSN, but it picks up where the E3 demo leaves off.

Gallery: Overlord II

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New Overlord: Dark Legend trailer is adorable, tiny

by Justin McElroy { May 14th 2009 at 4:00PM }

Now, let's examine the difference between "bad" and "evil." Using your army of minions to wreak havoc in a fairytale land like you will in Overlord: Dark Legend? That's evil. Evil in a fun way that we can't wait to try out, but all the same, evil.

But making a trailer available to the public for the aforementioned game but only allowing it to be viewed in a window the size of Hervé Villechaize's belt buckle? That's just bad.

Gallery: Overlord: Dark Legend

Rhianna Pratchett launches portfolio website

by Jem Alexander { Mar 18th 2009 at 7:25PM }

Rhianna Pratchett, the British game writer behind Heavenly Sword, Overlord (and its upcoming sequels), Mirror's Edge and Viking: Battle For Asgard has launched her portfolio website, making it easier to keep track of her various projects. The website showcases all the games that she's worked on, as well as her contributions to some game writing textbooks and her ongoing series of Mirror's Edge comic books.

There are also links to interviews (including one of ours) for those who want to get a little more insight into the person behind the words. From the look of things, the site won't be updated for a while as Rhianna's being kept fairly busy with Overlord 2 and the Wii and DS Overlord games. Now that she's set up home on the internet, we wonder if she'll be joining us on Twitter soon, too.

Joystiq hands-on: Overlord: Dark Legend

by Randy Nelson { Feb 20th 2009 at 11:40PM }

click to enlarge

"Not a port." Those were the words used by Overlord: Dark Legend producer, Carl Johnson, used convey the fact that the Wii's first taste of the darkly humorous action-strategy series is, well, not a port of the upcoming Overlord II for the HD crowd. No, this is every bit its own game -- apart from the basic premise, that is -- that takes good advantage of the Wii's controls, doesn't phone in its visuals and, so far, is a fun (yet sinister) adventure best described as a sort of "Pikmin Gone Wild."

Gallery: Overlord: Dark Legend

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Codemasters talks Overlord, working with Wii

by David Hinkle { Feb 9th 2009 at 6:15PM }

It might not be a good time to port your game to the Wii right now. With Dead Rising causing many jaws to hit the floor in disgust, confidence isn't in ready supply. Enter Overlord: Dark Legend brand manager Dan Robinson, who doesn't want you to think his game is just being slapped together.

Codemasters "realized quite early on if we just did a port of 'Overlord' or 'Overlord 2' onto the Wii, we'd get slighted," Robinson told MTV Multiplayer. The most important thing for his company is that "the game works with the control system." He explained that when making a game on a Nintendo console, a developer has to "make sure that it hits all the buttons that Nintendo fanboys want," because it can be "dead in the water before you've even started." Viewing the Wii as something more than a system to make a quick buck on ... that is a good start!

Codemasters, like Sega, is looking for that hardcore buck, too. "I think it's definitely more of a hardcore game than you've got on the Wii at the moment," he said. "I think this gives us an opportunity to show them that the Wii can actually do games like this, and it actually works and it can make good fun." Casual players need not feel left out, however, as he thinks there are "elements of it" that will appeal to them.

Overlord: Dark Legend is currently slated for release this summer.

Gallery: Overlord: Dark Legend

GameTap Thursday: Tuesday brings the Overlord for free

by Alexander Sliwinski { Dec 23rd 2008 at 3:00AM }

This week's additions to GameTap aren't all that exciting, but if you didn't take the opportunity back in October, now's your chance to play Overlord one week for free. The game's minions may be a little glitchy and frustrating at times -- but for free, it's worth a test drive.

Stronghold Crusader Extreme (Windows) - Like Stronghold Crusader, but extreme!
Al Emmo and the Lost Dutchman's Mine (Windows) - An adventure game where the protagonist reminds us of Leisure Suit Larry. The game's description notes Al is a 42-year-old who lives with his parents and travels to "dusty Anozira out west to pick up his mail order bride, Ivanna."

Check out the full free games list after the break. Remember that last week's A Christmas Carol episode of Grimm is free to play until New Year's Eve.

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GameTap Thursday: Full Supreme Commander experience; Overlord for free

by Alexander Sliwinski { Oct 23rd 2008 at 3:00AM }

GameTap brings the goods this week with the addition of Supreme Commander and its expansion Forged Alliance. There's also an extra evil treat for the freeloaders out there.

Supreme Commander: Forged Alliance (Windows) - The well received RTS by Gas Powered Games in one package.
Die By The Sword (Windows) - Treyarch's sword fighting game from a decade ago.
World Poker Championship 2 (Windows) - That title couldn't be any more descriptive.

This week temporarily adds Overlord to GameTap's free-to-play titles for one week. Give it a spin, there's definitely a "love it or hate it" division about the title. The service also adds Penumbra Overture for the foreseeable future to the gratis list, which can be found after the break.

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Overlord footage features minions, bosses, pumpkin armor

by Chris Greenhough { Aug 25th 2008 at 10:14PM }

The first video of Overlord: Dark Legend might be off-screen and a bit blurry, but we don't require high-resolution, direct-feed footage to tell us that the game will keep all the charm and personality of the original Xbox 360 title.

Producer Dean Scott can be heard commentating throughout both this and the video after the jump, enthusing about how nicely the Wii's controls suit Overlord, and discussing how Climax want to avoid fashioning a Morrowind-esque grey and brown fantasy world. So far, it's working; this looks visually closer to Fable. We'll be keen to see how many minions we'll be able to gather at once in Dark Legend -- the first game on the 360 allowed players to assemble around forty or fifty at some points, and a similar number would be welcome here. Also worth noting: Scott currently thinks this will be ready in time for June or July next year.

To see a boss battle in action, arm yourself with a pumpkin and charge past the break.

Gallery: Overlord: Dark Legend

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Overlord overload: Sequel incoming, new versions planned for Wii, DS

by Alexander Sliwinski { Aug 14th 2008 at 2:15PM }

Triumph Studios' excellent (but flawed) Overlord will receive a sequel on Xbox 360, PS3 and PC, along with new versions for the Wii and DS, all scheduled for 2009. IGN reports Overlord II will have smarter minions who can ride mounts, use war machines and sail ships. The scope of the game world has been broadened in the sequel and the controls for the Pikmin-style gameplay have been "greatly improved." We loved the first game, and it's great to hear about all these improvements for the sequel, but we hope "polish" is a word that Triumph doesn't forget this time around.

The Overlord franchise will also spawn Overlord Dark Legend on Wii by Climax Studios, an "all new game" penned by Rhianna Pratchett. The game seems to be set in the original Overlord's world with many of the same characters, but with the inclusion of some fractured fairy tale aspect. Finally, on DS (and also by Climax Studios), Overlord Minion will present players with a puzzle action game. OK, does that about cover all the Overlord info? Good, all hail the Overlord!

Source -- Overlord 2: Xbox 360, PS3, PC
Source -- Overlord Dark Legend: Wii
Source -- Overlord Minion: DS

Overlord to quench your insatiable thirst for power

by Chris Greenhough { Aug 14th 2008 at 1:00PM }

Power. Glorious, undiluted, corrupting POWER. That's what we crave as we slave away at our tiny desks working for The Man, and that's what Codemasters will be bringing us soon. The publisher has announced a DS version of the Pikmin-inspired Overlord, in which players must use a crack team of minions to maintain control of their kingdom.

Giblet, Blaze, Stench, and Zap are your unquestioning servants throughout Overlord Minions, and instantly win points with us by resembling the Gremlins. Unlike the home console editions of the title, you'll be controlling your willing slaves remotely with touches of the stylus. By combining their scaly assets, the four can help you solve puzzles, duff up enemies, and generally further your despotic desires.

The polygon-saving omission of an Overlord avatar aside, this looks pleasingly close to the fairly well-received original, and we're promised that all of that game's humor and physical comedy will have made the leap when it releases next year. We command you to hit the jump for a second screen.

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Next year, the minions will return in Overlord II

by Dustin Burg { Aug 14th 2008 at 10:00AM }

Great news for the Minion slave driving fanboys among us! Codemasters just announced Overlord II and that it is currently in development for release on the 360, PS3 and Wii sometime in 2009. Huzzah!

Developer Triumph Studios promises that the sequel "massively increases the scope of the original concept," being a much more realistic, less fantasy driven Overlord where players will encounter political problems and environmental issues all while remaining true to Overlord's unique style of Minion commanding humor. Fart jokes included. And, heck, the sequel looks much prettier too. We can't wait!

[Thanks, Dark Caboose]

Overlord moving his minions over to Wii

by David Hinkle { Aug 14th 2008 at 8:58AM }

Click to see more screens

Remember that PS3 and Xbox 360 game Overlord? No? Well, you aren't alone (it was kind of like Pikmin, only less good), but Codemasters has decided to bring the IP over to Wii anyway. Thankfully, though, they're building a new title from the ground up.

Development for the new game, titled Overlord: Dark Legend, will be handled by Climax Studios. They're aiming for a 2009 release, and the producer of the game, Dean Scott, assures that this is "an all new game, designed especially for Wii," with a "new story, new characters," and "new gameplay." Based on his brief chat with IGN, it sounds like a majority of the game will be a pointer-based affair, with gamers using the Wiimote's IR sensor to direct their horde of minions. And what about those minions?

"It's the same four minion types, but we've given them new abilities," said Scott. "Some of these may be themed around bodily functions that childish folk like us find hilarious."

Be sure to check out first screens from the upcoming game in our gallery below!

Gallery: Overlord: Dark Legend

The Overlord and his minions will return in 2009

by Jem Alexander { Aug 14th 2008 at 8:30AM }

Think you've seen the last of Overlord? Think again. Codemasters has announced that a sequel, Overlord II, is now in development at Triumph Studios. The game will retain the same gameplay of the first title, whilst increasing the scale of the game dramatically. Emphasis seems to be on epic battles between The Overlord and his minions and a new, Roman-esque, civilization that has set out to thwart him.

Minions are now able to ride into battle on various different creatures and the environments are promised to vary far more than in the original. Overlord was a pretty decent title, considering how early in this generation's cycle it was released, so we're looking forward to finding more about Overlord II between now and its 2009 release.

[Via Press Release]