Story of a Gladiator is an arena beat ’em up developed and published by Brain Seal. You play as a gladiator who has lost everything and everyone. Now the only thing that drives you is your lust for glory and battle.
AT A GLANCE
Platforms: Steam, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PS4
Genre: Action, Indie
Developer:Brain Seal Ltd
Publisher: Brain Seal Ltd
Release Date: 27 Nov 2019
Are you not entertained?
Story of a Gladiator plays out like any other typical beat em up, except it has some gladiatorial elements to it. You start out as a grunt with no equipment and skills. You can choose from 3 different backgrounds – Greece, Carthage, and Egypt that give you minor stat buffs.
In the arena, you start off with easy enemies that require very little tactics and skills to beat, but it quickly becomes a tricky test of your skills as the game ramps up it’s difficulty with new types of enemies. Every victory or defeat in the arena gives you experience points and coins that you can then use to unlock new skills and equipment. This, in turn, gives you an edge to defeat more powerful enemies. You can choose a patron deity to help you out in the arena. The more gory kills you do, the more the crowd chants and throws items to help you out. This also recharges your special meter, and you can unleash a devastating power to turn the tide.
There’s not much of a story, and the campaign just serves as an excuse for throwing more things at you to kill. There are three campaigns with 12 different battles each. Every campaign has unique enemies and gameplay elements. At the end of every campaign, you have to face a boss that will test all your skills. You will need to adapt your playstyle and upgrade equipment if you don’t want to get beaten to a pulp.
Story of a Gladiator’s biggest strength is its deceitfully simple and approachable gameplay that can quickly become an addictive loop.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Story of a Gladiator is a challenging beat ’em up that offers great gameplay, beautiful 2d visuals in a neat package. It doesn’t have a lot in terms of content, and it doesn’t reinvent the wheel but it’s a fun experience that will make you yell your favorite Gladiator quotes as you decapitate your enemies.
