Review of Breath of Death VII

I first learned about this game when I saw it go on sale at Steam. It was bundled along with Cthulhu Saves the World for only $3. I was almost going to get it when I then saw both games originally came out on Xbox Live Indie Games. I thought about it for a little bit and then decided that I would rather play both games on my 360 instead. Both games are currently available on both Steam and Xbox Live Indie Games.

Breath of Death VII: The Beginning is really the first of the series, not the seventh. It is an old-school RPG that features references to many other classic games of its time period. The story follows a skeleton named Dem who lives in a world inhabited by the undead. A war long ago wiped out all life on the earth and so everything has been taken over by the undead. Dem goes on his adventure by following the advice of his fellow companions who join up in his party. Eventually a whole group of four of you will find the a long lost secret that will decide the fate of everyone.

Breath of Death is about four hours long. Though that may be considered short for an RPG I think for the price it is just the right length. The game has random encounters with enemies just like many other games do. However, once you fight so many of these random encounters you are able to avoid them in the area unless you choose to fight them. Leveling up in the game is pretty quick and has branching choices for leveling up such as "+ 30 HP" or "+ 10 strength" along with new different attacks to choose from. Graphics are simple but classy. A nice soundtrack accompanies the game as well.

Breath of Death is pretty much your typical retro RPG. It is well done and there aren't really any problems with it. It does have a harder difficulty mode and a couple extra dungeons to go explore. But there really isn't a whole lot to separate it from other games of its type. Also some of the areas can be a little hard to navigate around.

If you like JRPGs I would recommend this game. It's only 80 msp on 360. Cthulhu Saves the World is a much better game however and I would recommend it over Breath of Death if you are only going to get one of them. If you're going to buy both then play this one first.

I give Breath of Death a 3/4.

Review of Miner Dig Deep

There sure seems to be a lot of mining games out these days. You know the drill, dig deep into the earth, find some minerals, use those minerals to make a better pickaxe, then use the better pickaxe to mine better minerals. The same rules apply to Miner Dig Deep. So then, how does it stand out from the rest? Miner Dig Deep reminds me a lot like a simplified Terraria. Of course Terraria came out a couple years after Miner Dig Deep, but I'm sure some of you can easily see the resemblance.

At the start of the game you begin with a pickaxe, a lantern, a bag, and a really big mining helmet. With those items equipped you then begin your descent into the earth. On your way down you look for minerals that you will be able to sell back at the shop. One key feature is that of the lantern. The lantern will help you see what minerals are in the dirt. The longer you stay down in the caves the smaller the light from the lantern gets. This adds a timed element to your spelunking. Once your light is up you won't be able to tell where the minerals are and whether or not it is safe to keep digging. When you get back to the surface the shop is available for you to buy and sell. The shop sells a variety of equipment including ladders, elevators, pickaxes, inventory bags, bigger lanterns, and a few other items. After you get better stuff you can go down deeper to find even better treasure. Along the way there are blueprints to be found. These will unlock better gear in the shop. Dying isn't too painful in game, the main penalty is that you will lose all minerals that are currently in your inventory.

I did not get as far as I possibly could in the game. I think I got to the very bottom of the world (about 500-600 depth I believe) but I didn't have the best equipment. Honestly I got a little bored towards the end and lost interest in finishing with the greatest things. It took me something like two and a half hours to get where I currently am. The game for the most part was enjoyable. Finding good minerals was always fun, and there's a few extra tools like the grappling winch and a power drill too give you a hand. The main issue I had was the fact that you had to climb up and down to get to where you were currently mining and the surface. This process took up several minutes, and since your going up and down so much it really eats into how much of the mining your actually doing. Eventually you can buy elevators that help you get around a little faster. Towards the end of my playing session I did find a teleporter that instantly brings you back to the surface. This helped some but it was still a pain to get back down.

Graphics are well done. I enjoyed the surface area and wish I could have maybe explored it a little more. Seeing the green grass and large trees was a little more exciting than looking at the brown dirt that surrounds the rest of the world (although that is probably all they would see if they were 500 feet below ground.) The background music isn't anything special. One of the soundtracks was actually quite annoying. Of course if it's that bad you could always turn it down.

I'm sure several people will enjoy Miner Dig Deep more than me. It is by no means a bad game, it's just not my favorite type of game. If your interested the game sells for 80 microsoft points.

I give Miner Dig Deep a 3/4.