Hero of Sparta
Encyclopedia
Hero of Sparta is an action-adventure game
developed and published by Gameloft
for the iOS
, Nintendo DS
, Android and PlayStation Portable
. It was first released on December 9, 2008. The game follows a storyline set in ancient Greece, wherein the player controls the protagonist throughout multiple landscapes while fighting mythical beasts.
The game was generally well-received by critics, and it received an IGN
Editors' Choice Award.
, Argos, must free the oracle, who will lead him home. Play progresses across various legendary areas, such as Atlantis
and the Underworld
.
During the battle with Hades, black versions of the Zombie and Zombie Warrior appear to fight you. These variations are completely silhouetted and have blue and green auras around them.
rated Hero of Sparta 9.0 and highly praised the game for its cinematic quality and its sharp controls. The game has been directly compared to the God of War franchise
, even being called "a shameless God of War rip-off."
Action-adventure game
An action-adventure game is a video game that combines elements of the adventure game genre with various action game elements. It is perhaps the broadest and most diverse genre in gaming, and can include many games which might better be categorized under narrow genres...
developed and published by Gameloft
Gameloft
Gameloft SA is a major French computer and video game developer and publisher headquartered in Paris, France. The company also has subsidiaries in 31 countries around the world....
for the iOS
IOS
iOS is an operating system for iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch, and Apple TV.IOS may also refer to:-Companies and organisations:* Illinois Ornithological Society, American state-based bird club...
, Nintendo DS
Nintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
, Android and PlayStation Portable
PlayStation Portable
The is a handheld game console manufactured and marketed by Sony Corporation Development of the console was announced during E3 2003, and it was unveiled on , 2004, at a Sony press conference before E3 2004...
. It was first released on December 9, 2008. The game follows a storyline set in ancient Greece, wherein the player controls the protagonist throughout multiple landscapes while fighting mythical beasts.
The game was generally well-received by critics, and it received an IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
Editors' Choice Award.
Story
The story starts with the player regaining consciousness on a beach after his entire fleet of ships had been wiped out by a violent storm. He progresses inland while fighting various mythical beasts across multiple landscapes. The SpartanSpartan Army
The Spartan army was the military force of Sparta, one of the leading city-states of ancient Greece. The army stood at the centre of the Spartan state, whose citizens' primary obligation was to be good soldiers. Subject to military drill from infancy, the Spartans were one of the most feared...
, Argos, must free the oracle, who will lead him home. Play progresses across various legendary areas, such as Atlantis
Atlantis
Atlantis is a legendary island first mentioned in Plato's dialogues Timaeus and Critias, written about 360 BC....
and the Underworld
Underworld
The Underworld is a region which is thought to be under the surface of the earth in some religions and in mythologies. It could be a place where the souls of the recently departed go, and in some traditions it is identified with Hell or the realm of death...
.
Gameplay
The game consists of 8 levels where the player controls a Spartan king wielding a sword and fighting various mythical beasts. The Spartan collects "orbs" from his fallen enemies, green orbs for health, blue for magical energy, and red for experience which can be used to upgrade his weapons' damage and special powers. When upgraded to full damage, weapons take on a new "ultimate" form. When certain enemies are weakened, the player may perform a finishing move on them, executed by tapping a series of buttons that appear on-screen. This will kill the enemy and grant the player more orbs than a regular eliminationWeapons
- The sword and shield of HephaestusHephaestusHephaestus was a Greek god whose Roman equivalent was Vulcan. He is the son of Zeus and Hera, the King and Queen of the Gods - or else, according to some accounts, of Hera alone. He was the god of technology, blacksmiths, craftsmen, artisans, sculptors, metals, metallurgy, fire and volcanoes...
. Received in the Oracle's Island level. - The sword of DamoclesDamoclesDamocles is a figure featured in a single moral anecdote commonly referred to as "the Sword of Damocles," which was a late addition to classical Greek culture. The figure belongs properly to legend rather than Greek myth. The anecdote apparently figured in the lost history of Sicily by Timaeus of...
. Received after defeating the Keeper. - The Bow Of ApolloApolloApollo is one of the most important and complex of the Olympian deities in Greek and Roman mythology...
. Received upon completing Garden City level. - The Axe of AjaxAjax (mythology)Ajax or Aias was a mythological Greek hero, the son of Telamon and Periboea and king of Salamis. He plays an important role in Homer's Iliad and in the Epic Cycle, a series of epic poems about the Trojan War. To distinguish him from Ajax, son of Oileus , he is called "Telamonian Ajax," "Greater...
. Received upon completing Descent level. - IshtarIshtarIshtar is the Assyrian and Babylonian goddess of fertility, love, war, and sex. She is the counterpart to the Sumerian Inanna and to the cognate north-west Semitic goddess Astarte.-Characteristics:...
's twin swords. Found in the mouth of Cerberus after defeating it, in Hound's Lair.
Equipment
- The cape of ArachneArachneIn Greco-Roman mythology, Arachne was a great mortal weaver who boasted that her skill was greater than that of Minerva, the Latin parallel of Pallas Athena, goddess of wisdom and crafts. Arachne refused to acknowledge that her knowledge came, in part at least, from the goddess. The offended...
. Received before entering Hound's Lair on the island of the Sun. - The Helmet of PerseusPerseusPerseus ,Perseos and Perseas are not used in English. the legendary founder of Mycenae and of the Perseid dynasty of Danaans there, was the first of the mythic heroes of Greek mythology whose exploits in defeating various archaic monsters provided the founding myths of the Twelve Olympians...
. Received after completing the Steam Rock level. - PantheonPantheon (gods)A pantheon is a set of all the gods of a particular polytheistic religion or mythology.Max Weber's 1922 opus, Economy and Society discusses the link between a...
Armor. Received before confronting CerberusCerberusCerberus , or Kerberos, in Greek and Roman mythology, is a multi-headed hound which guards the gates of the Underworld, to prevent those who have crossed the river Styx from ever escaping...
, in Hound's Lair level.
Enemies
In the game, Argos encounters numerous types of enemies which he must kill. Below is a list of enemies as they appear. These names have been conceived by a fan. They have no official names, so call them what you will.- Zombie: A blue-skinned, zombie-like enemy. These bear swords too large for them to carry, so they drag them on the ground. They are seen during the intro movie.
- Zombie Warrior: A large, red zombie in bulkier armor. They are tougher and do more damage than the regular zombie.
- MinotaurMinotaurIn Greek mythology, the Minotaur , as the Greeks imagined him, was a creature with the head of a bull on the body of a man or, as described by Roman poet Ovid, "part man and part bull"...
: Enormous, brown, half-human bulls, similar to the Minotaur from myths. They wield axes and are the first enemy to be introduced that have a Focused Kill pattern.
- Scorpion: Small black scorpionScorpionScorpions are predatory arthropod animals of the order Scorpiones within the class Arachnida. They have eight legs and are easily recognized by the pair of grasping claws and the narrow, segmented tail, often carried in a characteristic forward curve over the back, ending with a venomous stinger...
s. The weakest and least deadly enemy in the game.
- CentaurCentaurIn Greek mythology, a centaur or hippocentaur is a member of a composite race of creatures, part human and part horse...
: Centaurs with purple skin. They carry bows that shoot flaming arrows. A centaur drops Hephaestus' shield, which is then added to the weapon 'Hephaestus's Arsenal'.
- FuryFuryFury is a form of anger.Fury may also refer to:In fiction:* Bryan Fury, a video game character from the Tekken series* Fury , two superheroine characters...
: A bird-like enemy that can shoot fireballs.
- Scorpion Fighter: Enormous red scorpions that wield axes in their right pincer. They walk semi-upright.
- Minotaur Warrior: Armor-clad, blue-skinned Minotaurs that wield spiked clubs. Four of them must be killed to complete the Garden City level.
- Naga: Green, human-like creatures that have lizard-like tails instead of feet. They bear swords.
- Scorpion Warrior: Blue, stronger variations of Scorpion Fighters. They have green blood instead of red.
- Naga Guardsman: Purple variations of the Naga. They are clad in armor and have a special attack which turns Argos grey and slows his movement and attacking speed.
- Centaur Warrior: Red-skinned centaurs. They wear helmets and can fire two flaming arrows which home in on Argos.
- Reaper: A green, faceless soul-like creature that has purple blood. They wear blackish-green cloaks, appear to be made completely of transparent energy and attack with their claws. When killed, they dissipate into a flack of black bird forms that fly away.
- Hell-bound Zombie: Red Zombies that are even tougher and stronger than the Zombie Warrior. They are exactly like the Warrior but do not have the larger armor.
- Reaper Warrior: A larger, orange variation of the Reaper. They are armor-clad, have larger, metal claws and, unlike the Reaper, have a face.
- HadesHadesHades , Hadēs, originally , Haidēs or , Aidēs , meaning "the unseen") was the ancient Greek god of the underworld. The genitive , Haidou, was an elision to denote locality: "[the house/dominion] of Hades". Eventually, the nominative came to designate the abode of the dead.In Greek mythology, Hades...
: The final boss. Hades is completely clad in armor, wields an enormous blue scythe and has a completely black face, aside from two glowing blue eyes. He also has a large helmet and is almost twice as tall as Argos.
During the battle with Hades, black versions of the Zombie and Zombie Warrior appear to fight you. These variations are completely silhouetted and have blue and green auras around them.
Reception
IGNIGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
rated Hero of Sparta 9.0 and highly praised the game for its cinematic quality and its sharp controls. The game has been directly compared to the God of War franchise
God of War (series)
God of War is a series of action-adventure video games based on Greek mythology.The main trilogy—God of War I, II, & III—in the series were developed by Sony Computer Entertainment's Santa Monica division , with Ready at Dawn Studios developing the PSP and Javaground the mobile phone installment...
, even being called "a shameless God of War rip-off."