Crimson Alliance

Last updated
Crimson Alliance
Crimson Alliance digital boxart.jpg
Crimson Alliance's cover artwork depicting the game's character classes:
(from left to right) Assassin, Mercenary and Wizard.
Developer(s) Certain Affinity
Publisher(s) Microsoft Studios
Producer(s) Tom Potter
Designer(s) Mark Tucker
Platform(s) Xbox 360
ReleaseSeptember 7, 2011 [1]
Genre(s) Action role-playing
Mode(s) Single-player, Multi-player

Crimson Alliance is a co-op action role-playing game developed by Certain Affinity and published by Microsoft Studios. The game was first announced at RTX 2011 and was available for demo at E3, ComicCon and PAX Prime, [2] with the press release being announced on May 31, 2011. [3]

Contents

Crimson Alliance was released on September 7, 2011 on Xbox LIVE Arcade for free as a freemium. Player can choose to pay between 800 Microsoft Points for one character class or 1200 Microsoft Points for all three character classes. [4] The game was also offered as a free bonus code download for those who purchased all five of the fourth annual Xbox Live Summer of Arcade titles before August 23, 2011. [5]

Plot

Once a thriving empire, Byzan has faced dark times with survivors living a meager existence while a cruel goddess, the Soul Siren, rules with an iron fist and is not afraid to have her minions do her dirty work. Direwolf, Moonshade and Gnox – the wizard, assassin and mercenary – dive into the primitive world to stop the Soul Siren from unleashing her ultimate weapon. But these three have their own sordid pasts to deal with as well.

Gameplay

Crimson Alliance is an action RPG that uses gold to upgrade characters weapons and armor. Each character has a special fighting style which players can equip to match their play style. There are three equipment slots for each character. Direwolf, the wizard, uses long range attacks to defeat his enemies while Gnox the mercenary has a melee fighting style. Moonshade, the assassin, is a hybrid of the two, using both melee and long range shots to bring down her attackers. Each character is equipped with a basic attack and a heavy attack and can also stun their enemies and dash throughout the levels.

In each level there are secret areas to find as well as class specific areas where characters can open chests that contain items to upgrade their weaponry and armor. Merchants are available to improve items. Also throughout the game are challenge maps where players will have to defeat hordes of enemies.

The leaderboard system takes advantage of the hack and slash style of play. As the player kills more enemies without being hit, the player's score multiplier increases, resulting in higher overall scores. Higher difficulty settings also increases the points earned.

Reception

At E3, Crimson Alliance was a nominee of Game Informer 's and G4TV 's "Best Of" awards as well as 1UP.com 's "Top 10 Sleepers of E3 2011."[ citation needed ] On release, the game received "average" reviews according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. [6]

The Observer gave it an average review and stated, "Once past the hackneyed presentation of this co-op dungeon crawler there is a real meaty, moreish pleasure to be had. The key is solid combat – each of the three characters has basic, heavy and stun attacks, with special moves and collectible extras such as deployable turrets, which add to a contained but tactical system." [19] The Digital Fix gave it seven out of ten, stating, "Leave your traditional RPG expectations at the door, jump in with some friends and for 800 points you will find a great little arcade dungeon crawler." [17] Metro gave it six out of ten, calling it "Derivative, shallow and ruthlessly unambitious, but as Diablo clones go this is still one of the best and most addictive on consoles." [18]

On September 27, 2011 Certain Affinity announced the release of the Vengeance Pack for Crimson Alliance, which became available on October 12, 2011. The pack was reported to contain 4 levels, new monsters, new treasures, a new challenge type, and 3 new achievements. Sales at year's-end 2011 are approximated at 116,000 units. [20]

Related Research Articles

<i>Halo: Combat Evolved</i> 2001 video game

Halo: Combat Evolved is a 2001 first-person shooter video game developed by Bungie and published by Microsoft Game Studios for the Xbox. It was released as a launch game for Microsoft's Xbox video game console on November 15, 2001. The game was ported to Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X in 2003. It was later released as a downloadable Xbox Original for the Xbox 360. Halo is set in the twenty-sixth century, with the player assuming the role of the Master Chief, a cybernetically enhanced supersoldier. The Chief is accompanied by Cortana, an artificial intelligence. Players battle aliens as they attempt to uncover the secrets of the eponymous Halo, a ring-shaped artificial world.

<i>X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse</i> 2005 video game

X-Men Legends II: Rise of Apocalypse is an action role-playing game developed primarily by Raven Software and published by Activision. It is the follow-up to 2004's X-Men Legends. It was released in September 2005 for the GameCube, Windows, N-Gage, PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable and Xbox. It is set after the events of X-Men Legends and features the mutant supervillain Apocalypse as the primary antagonist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Xbox Live Arcade</span> Digital video game download service

Xbox Live Arcade was a video game digital distribution service that was available for the Xbox and Xbox 360 consoles. It focused on smaller downloadable games from both major publishers and independent game developers. Titles on the service ranged from previously released arcade and console games to brand new games designed for the service, and were priced from a range of 5 to 20 US dollars. While originally requiring a disc to gain access to the service on the original Xbox, the Arcade was integrated into the Xbox 360 along with the rest of the Xbox Live Marketplace with the launch of the new console.

<i>Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge</i> 2003 video game

Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge is a first-party video game developed by FASA Studio for the Xbox. The game, like the earlier Crimson Skies for the PC, is an action-oriented arcade flight game. Nonetheless, there are significant differences between the gameplay of High Road to Revenge and that of the original PC title. For example, while the Xbox game has a more open-ended mission structure, it offers less plane customization than the PC game. A Microsoft Windows port was planned but was cancelled.

The Xbox 360 is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. As the successor to the original Xbox, it is the second console in the Xbox series. It was officially unveiled on MTV on May 12, 2005, with detailed launch and game information announced later that month at the 2005 Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3). As a seventh-generation console, it primarily competed with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii.

Certain Affinity is an American video game development studio based in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 2006 by Max Hoberman and a small number of other ex-Bungie employees and other industry veterans.

<i>Vigilante 8 Arcade</i> 2008 video game

Vigilante 8: Arcade is a vehicular combat video game developed by Isopod Labs and published by Activision. It was released on November 5, 2008, for Xbox 360 through Xbox Live Arcade. Isopod Labs was formed by three former members of Luxoflux, developer of the original Vigilante 8 series. A remake of Vigilante 8 with some elements of Vigilante 8: Second Offense included, Vigilante 8: Arcade features online play for up to eight players.

<i>Borderlands</i> (video game) 2009 video game

Borderlands is a 2009 action role-playing first-person shooter video game developed by Gearbox Software and published by 2K. It is the first game in the Borderlands series. The game was released worldwide in October 2009 for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows, with a Mac OS X version being released on December 3, 2010 by Feral Interactive. The game's story focuses on a group of four "Vault Hunters", who travel to the distant planet of Pandora to search for the "Vault", which is rumored to contain advanced alien technology and other priceless riches. The hunters piece together clues to find the Vault while battling the savage wildlife of Pandora, local bandits that populate the planet, and ultimately banding together to prevent the Atlas Corporation and its privately funded paramilitary forces from reaching the Vault first.

<i>Trine</i> (video game) 2009 puzzle-platform video game

Trine is a puzzle-platform video game developed and published by Frozenbyte. The game was originally released for Microsoft Windows in 2009, and has since been ported to Linux, OS X, and game consoles. The game takes place in a medieval fantasy setting and allows players to take control of three separate characters who can battle enemies and solve environmental puzzles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Twisted Pixel Games</span> American video game developer

Twisted Pixel Games, LLC is an American video game developer based in Austin, Texas. Originally a contractor, Twisted Pixel releases games based on its own intellectual properties such as The Maw and 'Splosion Man. The company uses its own proprietary engine, known as Beard, to power its games. On October 12, 2011, it was announced that Twisted Pixel had become part of Microsoft Studios. However, Twisted Pixel separated from Microsoft, and became an independent company again on September 30, 2015. In November 2021, the company became a subsidiary of Oculus Studios.

<i>Destructoid</i> Video game news website

Destructoid is a website that was founded as a video game-focused blog in March 2006 by Yanier Gonzalez, a Cuban-American cartoonist and author. Enthusiast Gaming acquired the website in 2017 and sold it to Gamurs Group in 2022.

<i>Fable III</i> 2010 video game

Fable III is a 2010 action role-playing open-world video game, developed by Lionhead Studios and published by Microsoft Game Studios for the Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows. The third game in the Fable series, the story focuses on the player character's struggle to overthrow the King of Albion, the player character's brother, by forming alliances and building support for a revolution. After a successful revolt, the player becomes the monarch and is tasked with attempting to defend Albion from a great evil. The game includes voice acting by Ben Kingsley (Sabine), Stephen Fry (Reaver), Simon Pegg, Naomie Harris (Page), Michael Fassbender (Logan), Zoë Wanamaker (Theresa), Bernard Hill, Nicholas Hoult (Elliot), John Cleese (Jasper), Jonathan Ross, Adjoa Andoh (Kalin), Kellie Bright, and Louis Tamone.

<i>Comic Jumper: The Adventures of Captain Smiley</i> 2010 video game

Comic Jumper is an action video game developed by Twisted Pixel Games published by Microsoft Game Studios. It was released for the Xbox 360 via the Xbox Live Arcade Marketplace on October 6, 2010. It is the third original game created by Twisted Pixel following The Maw and 'Splosion Man, all three of which are exclusive to Xbox Live Arcade.

<i>Snoopy Flying Ace</i> 2010 video game

Snoopy Flying Ace is a dogfighting video game based on Charles M. Schulz's Peanuts franchise and developed by Smart Bomb Interactive for the Xbox Live Arcade service on the Xbox 360. It was announced on November 10, 2008 and released on June 2, 2010. An unofficial sequel to the 2006 video game Snoopy vs. the Red Baron, it features a similar World War I setting. Snoopy is tasked with defeating several members of the Flying Circus, a special flight squadron in the Luftstreitkräfte, and its commander, Manfred von Richthofen, also known as the Red Baron.

<i>Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light</i> 2010 video game

Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light is an action-adventure game developed by Crystal Dynamics and published by Square Enix's European branch for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Android and iOS. It is part of the Tomb Raider series, but unlike previous games, the game does not carry the Tomb Raider brand and has a heavy emphasis on cooperative gameplay. In multiplayer, players take the role as either Lara Croft or a 2,000-year-old Mayan warrior named Totec. They must work together in order to stop the evil spirit Xolotl and retrieve the Mirror of Smoke. A single-player campaign mode is available that does not include the non-playable character AI following or helping Lara.

<i>Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds</i> Crossover fighting video game

Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds is a crossover fighting video game developed by Capcom in collaboration with Eighting. The game features characters from both Capcom's video game franchises and comic book series published by Marvel Comics. It was released for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 consoles in February 2011. It is the sequel to 2000's Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes, the fifth installment of the Marvel vs. Capcom franchise, and the first to use three-dimensional character models instead of two-dimensional sprites.

<i>Dungeon Defenders</i> 2010 video game

Dungeon Defenders is a hybrid multiplayer video game developed by Trendy Entertainment that combines the genres of tower defense and action role-playing game. It is based on a showcase of Unreal Engine 3 named Dungeon Defense. The game takes place in a fantasy setting where players control the young apprentices of wizards and warriors and defend against hordes of monsters. A sequel titled Dungeon Defenders II was released in 2015.

<i>The Gunstringer</i> 2011 video game

The Gunstringer is a third-person rail shooter video game developed by Twisted Pixel Games and published by Microsoft Studios for Xbox 360 with Kinect. It was originally planned as an Xbox Live Arcade release, but was later made into a full retail game.

<i>Skullgirls</i> 2D fighting video game

Skullgirls is a 2D fighting game developed by Reverge Labs and published by Autumn Games. In Skullgirls, players fight each other with teams of one, two, or three characters, attempting to knock out their opponents or have the most cumulative health when time runs out. The setting of the game revolves around the "Skull Heart", an artifact which grants wishes for women. If a wisher with an impure soul uses the Skull Heart, she is transformed into a monster known as the "Skullgirl". The game was released through the PlayStation Network and Xbox Live Arcade in April 2012, and received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised the animation and gameplay mechanics, while criticizing its initial roster size and online multiplayer features.

<i>State of Decay</i> (video game) 2013 video game

State of Decay is a 2013 action-adventure survival video game developed by Undead Labs and published by Microsoft Studios. The game combines elements of shooters, stealth, role-playing and strategy games and the game challenges players to survive by exploring, scavenging, and fighting the undead. It places emphasis on how the player's leaderships skills fare against an onslaught of problems, such as diminishing survival resources, group trust and morale, zombie extermination, base defenses, and people's lives.

References

  1. ↑ obi1mccarthy (July 18, 2011). "Certification? Nailed it". Crimson Alliance. Certain Affinity. Archived from the original on March 24, 2012. Retrieved October 24, 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  2. ↑ "Crimson Alliance Announced!". Certain Affinity. May 27, 2011. Archived from the original on September 20, 2011. Retrieved September 7, 2011.
  3. ↑ "Official Crimson Alliance Announcement Press". Certain Affinity. May 31, 2011. Archived from the original on September 30, 2011. Retrieved September 7, 2011.
  4. ↑ Fletcher, JC (September 7, 2011). "PSA: 'Free' Crimson Alliance download isn't the full game". Engadget (Joystiq). Oath Inc. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  5. ↑ "Free Crimson Alliance Offer". Xbox.com. Microsoft. Archived from the original on January 26, 2012. Retrieved August 24, 2011.
  6. 1 2 "Crimson Alliance for Xbox 360 Reviews". Metacritic . CBS Interactive . Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  7. ↑ Sterling, Jim (September 6, 2011). "Review: Crimson Alliance". Destructoid . Enthusiast Gaming. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  8. ↑ Miller, Matt (September 6, 2011). "Crimson Alliance". Game Informer . GameStop. Archived from the original on October 8, 2011. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  9. ↑ Haske, Steve (September 8, 2011). "Review: Crimson Alliance (360)". GamePro . GamePro Media. Archived from the original on September 25, 2011. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  10. ↑ Reboucas, Eduardo (September 14, 2011). "Crimson Alliance Review". Game Revolution . CraveOnline. Archived from the original on September 17, 2014. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  11. ↑ McGee, Maxwell (September 8, 2011). "Crimson Alliance Review". GameSpot . CBS Interactive. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  12. ↑ "Crimson Alliance Review". GameTrailers . Viacom. September 12, 2011. Archived from the original on March 7, 2012. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  13. ↑ Workman, Robert (September 12, 2011). "Crimson Alliance Review". GameZone. Archived from the original on March 29, 2012. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  14. ↑ Sliwinski, Alexander (September 6, 2011). "Crimson Alliance review: Born-again gauntlet". Engadget (Joystiq). Oath Inc. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  15. ↑ Lewis, Cameron (September 6, 2011). "Crimson Alliance review". Official Xbox Magazine . Future US. Archived from the original on November 13, 2011. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  16. ↑ Marchello, Sam (September 7, 2011). "Crimson Alliance - Staff Review". RPGamer. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  17. 1 2 Phillips, Andrew (October 10, 2011). "Crimson Alliance Review". The Digital Fix. Poisonous Monkey. Archived from the original on November 13, 2011. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  18. 1 2 Hargreaves, Roger (September 8, 2011). "Crimson Alliance review - in the red". Metro . DMG Media . Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  19. ↑ Ditum, Nathan (September 17, 2011). "Crimson Alliance - review". The Observer . Guardian Media Group . Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  20. ↑ Langley, Ryan (January 20, 2012). "Xbox Live Arcade by the numbers - the 2011 year in review". Gamasutra . UBM plc . Retrieved January 23, 2012.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.