Orcs Must Die feel, very fun and fair, even for solo (100% achievements). Trailers and poor communication about core changes seem to be the main reason for mixed reviews among long time fans. Multiplayer a little risky with long-term commitment that can result in all or nothing outcome of your time from disconnect/power outage/etc. Devs have been on top of positive changes, and it's 100% worth $30. If you're on the fence, wait for a sale. Otherwise? These orcs really need to die. :]

- - - -

I didn't think it was possible to kill this many orcs, yet they continue to come, and I eagerly await. Orcs Must Die! Deathtrap is a step away from the main line series, drastic changes made to the core makeup of the game- but not in a way that betrays the original idea, nor the fantasy. Rather, with grace the game takes the simple concept of what Orcs Must Die was, a tower defense with action-rpg hack-and-slash kind of murder layered on as a beautiful slice of butter on this toast.

What was once sprawling hallways in a fortress, or mines (omd2 my beloved <3), becomes vast fantasy locations that baffle you with their majesty. A Great seaside observatory where a battle unfolds upon the beachfront landing, as a final desperate defense culminates at the rift- invaders coming from additional fronts. This is where my first complaint comes, as a mostly solo player (80-90% of my play time), having to deal with 4 fronts as 1 body is just not a realistic expectation. The game can be played to 100% completion in terms of achievements solo, but multiple bodies will just be able to cover a greater area more effectively than a lone person ever could.

The barricade count being increased for fewer players was helpful in this regard, but high-level solo play does seem to wittle down to flyers just eeking through one by one over a few waves every mission. You'll progress, not a single orc, troll, nor ogre will reach the rift- but you can't possibly hold them at your traps while also navigating flyers ignoring the barricades you laid in the first place. Steam Traps were added as a floor/wall option in a patch today which may help on maps where ceiling defense may not be an option against flyers when you can't spare the time.

I Should also iterate that from the mainline OMD series, barricades no longer cost rift coin. Instead, you are given a certain number of them at the start of a mission, which can be increased through random threads (more later). This does allow you to focus your coin on traps for murdering. I personally feel this change has been healthy for the game. There's no map that currently feels oppressive with the starting barricade amount (Maybe Museum :eyes:), and additional just streamline designs.

Not only do you have all your rift coin for traps, your entire hotbar is dedicated to them as well in Deathtrap. Trinkets and weapons have been hard baked into the character's identity. From what I've read, this bit is particularly divisive among longtime players. While you could freely swap out between a blunderbuss or a Staff of Petrification, weapons are an extension of the character. Sophie is a dual-wielding menace with daggers, while Mac has a staff that functions as a sniper rifle.

Deeper to that cut, each war mage also has an active ability (Q) and Overdrive (Z). These fill what trinkets sort of did in previous games. In Vaan's case, literally as the rift protection power. Kalos, our large bear man with a big ol' hammer on the other hand creates a runic circle with his Overdrive, greatly empowering war mage damage while they stay within. His Q creates a totem that taunts nearby enemies- great to feed floor traps like Cursed Ground and Briar Patches.

The flexibility of swapping war mage every mission would certainly help, but I also feel the marathon run style needs to be addressed as a whole. It may be the greatest weakness of the core changes.

Due to the way skulls (currency for perma upgrades (like traps and talents (and thread unlocks))) are gained from and gambled between stages, they aren't actually rewarded until you cash out and return to the fortress. That means you could be several hours into a 10 run marathon and a power outage or crash away from losing tens of thousands of skulls. In multiplayer this also includes the chance of disconnecting. While still in lobby you seem to have the option to reconnect, but if your internet cuts out during a run in progress? All skulls are forfeit and you cannot reconnect. This is frustrating to say the least.

Opposed to previous entries, where we had a campaign, perhaps a bonus one (or dlc!), endless mode, and in OMD3 Scramble mode. Instead the only game mode consists of a scramble-like formula. Choosing from 3 different maps at a time, each with a different negative affix that will stick for the entirety of your run. That could be anything from barricades not being able to be sold after being placed, ogres dealing double damage and costing double rift points, floor traps costing twice as much, sappers appearing every wave, and then some. A little balance of weighing temporary misery (the map) against long term woes (the affix).

To balance out this increase in difficulty, each time you complete a wave during a mission (which there is always a total of 6 now) you are able to choose 1 of 3 threads. Threads are minor buffs, things like a little extra wall trap crit, increased weapon damage, perhaps a fun bonus chance to launch smaller enemies, or even a chance to stun on hit. You'll slowly gain in power through these threads, as well as a random given blessing at the end of each mission. These tends to be passive long lasting buffs of weaker strength than a thread (+250hp), or a single massive boost for the next stage (50% bonus damage on floor traps).

You are then given the choice to gamble forward (wager some of your current skulls) or return to the fortress with your current trove. If you do gamble forward, the orcs get a bit more health, do a bit more damage, and you choose between 3 stages and their various negative affixes. Repeat infinitum*

*The base game does follow a more restricted format.
Do two missions, fight a boss.
Do three missions, fight a boss.
Repeat until you have killed all 4 bosses. At this point the only way to play the game is infinite runs where you risk some of your winnings to progressively mounting challenges and overlapping affixes. This is honestly where the game really shines. Where there once was only three difficulties, apprentice, war mage, and nightmare, there is now an entire spectrum of ever mounting challenges. No two runs will bring the same challenges, but as long as you've still got 1 rift point to gamble, you can up the difficulty another nudge and keep at it.

On top of that, there is an adjustable starting difficulty that ups health and damage for a +10% skull bonus, up to +100%. Less random difficulty affixes, and more raw orc to have to deal with every stage. The furthest I've personally been able to get on difficulty 10 is mission 7 completed, 4 rift points remaining. Mission 8 would have been the actual death of me.

Retired on my throne of skulls, I did. But, not for long.

Despite it's flaws and deep changes, the game has a very strong base to build off of that none of the others had. This is the first time I've been as excited as I have been for an Orcs Must Die game, and that's coming as a long time fan from the very first game over a decade ago. Like, I legitimately love this game. $30 is beyond fair for the fun it has brought and will continue to bring. If the devs continue to respond to changes with the cadence they have, I can only remain optimistic. All the more once we start getting new war mages and maps, too.

[h2]tl;dr[/h2] Orcs Must Die feel, very fun and fair, even for solo (100% achievements). Trailers and poor communication about core changes seem to be the main reason for mixed reviews among long time fans. Multiplayer a little risky with long-term commitment that can result in all or nothing outcome of your time from disconnect/power outage/etc. Devs have been on top of positive changes, and it's 100% worth $30. If you're on the fence, wait for a sale. Otherwise? These orcs really need to die. :] - - - - I didn't think it was possible to kill this many orcs, yet they continue to come, and I eagerly await. Orcs Must Die! Deathtrap is a step away from the main line series, drastic changes made to the core makeup of the game- but not in a way that betrays the original idea, nor the fantasy. Rather, with grace the game takes the simple concept of what Orcs Must Die was, a tower defense with action-rpg hack-and-slash kind of murder layered on as a beautiful slice of butter on this toast. What was once sprawling hallways in a fortress, or mines (omd2 my beloved <3), becomes vast fantasy locations that baffle you with their majesty. A Great seaside observatory where a battle unfolds upon the beachfront landing, as a final desperate defense culminates at the rift- invaders coming from additional fronts. This is where my first complaint comes, as a mostly solo player (80-90% of my play time), having to deal with 4 fronts as 1 body is just not a realistic expectation. The game can be played to 100% completion in terms of achievements solo, but multiple bodies will just be able to cover a greater area more effectively than a lone person ever could. The barricade count being increased for fewer players was helpful in this regard, but high-level solo play does seem to wittle down to flyers just eeking through one by one over a few waves every mission. You'll progress, not a single orc, troll, nor ogre will reach the rift- but you can't possibly hold them at your traps while also navigating flyers ignoring the barricades you laid in the first place. Steam Traps were added as a floor/wall option in a patch today which may help on maps where ceiling defense may not be an option against flyers when you can't spare the time. I Should also iterate that from the mainline OMD series, barricades no longer cost rift coin. Instead, you are given a certain number of them at the start of a mission, which can be increased through random threads (more later). This does allow you to focus your coin on traps for murdering. I personally feel this change has been healthy for the game. There's no map that currently feels oppressive with the starting barricade amount (Maybe Museum :eyes:), and additional just streamline designs. Not only do you have all your rift coin for traps, your entire hotbar is dedicated to them as well in Deathtrap. Trinkets and weapons have been hard baked into the character's identity. From what I've read, this bit is particularly divisive among longtime players. While you could freely swap out between a blunderbuss or a Staff of Petrification, weapons are an extension of the character. Sophie is a dual-wielding menace with daggers, while Mac has a staff that functions as a sniper rifle. Deeper to that cut, each war mage also has an active ability (Q) and Overdrive (Z). These fill what trinkets sort of did in previous games. In Vaan's case, literally as the rift protection power. Kalos, our large bear man with a big ol' hammer on the other hand creates a runic circle with his Overdrive, greatly empowering war mage damage while they stay within. His Q creates a totem that taunts nearby enemies- great to feed floor traps like Cursed Ground and Briar Patches. The flexibility of swapping war mage every mission would certainly help, but I also feel the marathon run style needs to be addressed as a whole. It may be the greatest weakness of the core changes. Due to the way skulls (currency for perma upgrades (like traps and talents (and thread unlocks))) are gained from and gambled between stages, they aren't actually rewarded until you cash out and return to the fortress. That means you could be several hours into a 10 run marathon and a power outage or crash away from losing tens of thousands of skulls. In multiplayer this also includes the chance of disconnecting. While still in lobby you seem to have the option to reconnect, but if your internet cuts out during a run in progress? All skulls are forfeit and you cannot reconnect. This is frustrating to say the least. Opposed to previous entries, where we had a campaign, perhaps a bonus one (or dlc!), endless mode, and in OMD3 Scramble mode. Instead the only game mode consists of a scramble-like formula. Choosing from 3 different maps at a time, each with a different negative affix that will stick for the entirety of your run. That could be anything from barricades not being able to be sold after being placed, ogres dealing double damage and costing double rift points, floor traps costing twice as much, sappers appearing every wave, and [b]then some[/b]. A little balance of weighing temporary misery (the map) against long term woes (the affix). To balance out this increase in difficulty, each time you complete a wave during a mission (which there is always a total of 6 now) you are able to choose 1 of 3 threads. Threads are minor buffs, things like a little extra wall trap crit, increased weapon damage, perhaps a fun bonus chance to launch smaller enemies, or even a chance to stun on hit. You'll slowly gain in power through these threads, as well as a random given blessing at the end of each mission. These tends to be passive long lasting buffs of weaker strength than a thread (+250hp), or a single massive boost for the next stage (50% bonus damage on floor traps). You are then given the choice to gamble forward (wager some of your current skulls) or return to the fortress with your current trove. If you do gamble forward, the orcs get a bit more health, do a bit more damage, and you choose between 3 stages and their various negative affixes. Repeat infinitum* *The base game does follow a more restricted format. Do two missions, fight a boss. Do three missions, fight a boss. Repeat until you have killed all 4 bosses. At this point the only way to play the game is infinite runs where you risk some of your winnings to progressively mounting challenges and overlapping affixes. This is honestly where the game really shines. Where there once was only three difficulties, apprentice, war mage, and nightmare, there is now an entire spectrum of ever mounting challenges. No two runs will bring the same challenges, but as long as you've still got 1 rift point to gamble, you can up the difficulty another nudge and keep at it. On top of that, there is an adjustable starting difficulty that ups health and damage for a +10% skull bonus, up to +100%. Less random difficulty affixes, and more raw orc to have to deal with every stage. The furthest I've personally been able to get on difficulty 10 is mission 7 completed, 4 rift points remaining. Mission 8 would have been the actual death of me. Retired on my throne of skulls, I did. But, not for long. Despite it's flaws and deep changes, the game has a very strong base to build off of that none of the others had. This is the first time I've been as excited as I have been for an Orcs Must Die game, and that's coming as a long time fan from the very first game over a decade ago. Like, I legitimately [i]love[/i] this game. $30 is beyond fair for the fun it has brought and will continue to bring. If the devs continue to respond to changes with the cadence they have, I can only remain optimistic. All the more once we start getting new war mages and maps, too.