One of the cool things about the Xbox 360 was that amateur game makers could create games for it that you could download later on under their ‘indie games’ section.  Many of these games were quite amateurish, but there were some standout gems.  One was a Japanese game called Protect Me Knight.  It was an 8-bit styled, action oriented tower-defense game.  It was made by famed video game composer Yuzo Koshiro and his team at Ancient, so you know the tunes were good.  Actually the whole game was fantastic, and it was one of my favorite multiplayer Xbox LIVE titles on the 360.  And now, about five years later, we finally get a sequel in Gotta Protectors, a downloadable title on the Nintendo 3DS!

The object of Gotta Protectors remains the same as it was in Protect Me Knight.  Choose from six classes of warriors: Fighter, Amazon, Mage, and Ninja, as well as two new classes: Old Guy and Archer.  You must fight off waves of monsters in an overhead perspective, and keep them from reaching the princess.  If you can defeat all the monsters, you win the stage.  But if the monsters get to the princess and she loses all her HP, it’s Game Over and you must start the level again.  You can build barriers and other structures to protect the princess as you fight.

In the original Protect Me Knight game, each level was a single screen, since all players had to share the same field.  But since the sequel is on the 3DS and everyone gets their own screen, the maps are much bigger.  Many are mazelike and include monster generators to destroy, keys to find, and hidden treasure to discover, so it kind of has a more Gauntlet feel to it.  Another new feature is the castle.  If enemies destroy it, you won’t lose the level, but you’ll want to protect it as well because you go to the castle when you need to level up your warriors in a stage.

In between levels they’ve added more RPG elements as well.  Use gold and materials you earn by fighting monsters to buy new weapons for your characters, as well as level up their skills.  You can also invest in the castle town to upgrade shops, dojos, the castle, and even the princess!  In the original Protect Me Knight game, there was only about 12 stages, as it was more of an arcade affair.  But in this game, there are about 100 stages, and you can even make your own with the in=game map editor!  Supposedly there is also DLC, mainly new music from other famed game composers from the 80’s, but I couldn’t get it to work (either I didn’t have enough funds or it’s not out yet, can anyone fill me in on this?).

The game has a few minor problems, but I’ll mention them anyway.  The learning curve may seem slightly steep at first, especially if you never played the first game.  They don’t make it clear at the beginning how to do things like equip skills or build barricades.  Luckily they give you plenty of easy levels to test things out at the start.  Even though you can ‘hire’ players in single player mode, it’s way more fun with more people.  The text is a bit small to read, and it’s slightly pricey to download at 12 bucks for such a simple game.  But there is quite a lot of content to be had here.

But other than that, this is one of the best downloadable multiplayer titles on the 3DS.  Best of all, only one person needs a copy of the game for everyone to play it via Download Play!  And it’s really easy and quick to set up, too!  The game also has a lot of 8-bit style and humor.  Like the first game, you even have the option to ‘blow’ into a virtual cartridge to start!  My favorite is the intro song with ‘lyrics’ which I’ll post below.  You gotta get Gotta Protectors!

OK here’s the funny song ‘lyrics’ that show the kind of humor this game has:

When the land is out of hand

You gotta call the pros

Slackers with a knack for danger

Gotta Protectors, Go!

In the rough, they get buff

By Princess Lola’s side

Against evil hordes

They pit their swords

Or axe (Whatever, guys!).

Role play? No way!

They’re for real, like human steel!

Evil can’t take away their game

They’re too lame already!

Gotta Protectors, Go!

Unite and save the day

In your weird way!

With your powers aligned

And Princess Lola leading the fight

You can fly (metaphorically)

Propelled by Lola’s bloodcurdling scream!

Gotta Protect

Armed to the neck

Ready to trek

Protectors, Go!

Kid Factor:

Gotta Protectors is rated E-10 with ESRB descriptors of Fantasy Violence and Suggestive Themes.  You can smack around monsters with weapons and swords, but they just fall off the screen when defeated and the 8-bit visuals keep things from looking too graphic.  Some of the characters, like the Amazon and eccentric male ninja wear very few clothes, so that’s where the suggestive themes come from, other than what’s in the text.  But it’s all presented in a silly, campy way.  Reading skill is a must for all the text in the instructions and menus.  Multiple skill levels let everyone of all ages enjoy it.  As long as everyone has their own 3DS, this would be a great game to play together as a family!

Tags: Game Reviews