Comments

(taken from the manual of the game)

The evil sorcerer Drax desires Princess Mariana and has sworn to wreak an unspeakable doom on the people of the Jewelled City unless she is delivered to him. However, he has agreed that if a champion can be found who is able to defeat his demonic guardians, the princess will be allowed to go free. All seems lost as champion after champion is defeated. Then, from the forgotten wastelands of the North, comes an unknown barbarian, a mighty warrior, wielding his broadsword with deadly skill. Can he vanquish the forces of Darkness and free the Princess? ONLY YOU CAN SAY...

We all must have heard this story a million times before. It's the way all fairy tales go. But do we care if it is original or not? No, we don't...Cause we're talking about a fighting game here. And "Barbarian" has to be one of the coolest beat 'em ups of the late 80's. This isn't the usual punch and kick fare, this is a true fantasy sword fighting game. I used to play this for hours with my friends. Is it still worth bothering in times when we're spoiled with super fast 3D graphics and 200 different camera angles? let's take a closer look...

[i]Graphics

The graphics do look a bit dated. They have this blocky effect. But don't let that ruin the fun. Remember, this game is almost 15 years old! The animation is fluently and we do get some nice background scenes.

Sound

One word...Awesome. The sound fx are so realistic. I just can't believe they managed to do this in '87. The screams, the moans when kicking your opponent in the stomack...It's all very real. And the sound effect used when decapitating the other warrior, sends shivers down my spine! Some of you might noticed that the samples have been taking from the fantasy-sword fighting movie "Red Sonya". There isn't any music in the version I've tested.

Gameplay

This is a really good game. You either have the option to take on the challenge against the computer, or another person can join in the 2 player modus. The latter one is especially fun. The game offers a wide variety of moves, which are easy to learn. Especially the "Death Sword" move, when properly executed, is very cool. Before going into battle, you can also enter a practice mode to get the hang of it.

Each fighter has 6 life points. When getting hit, you loose a point or half a point, that depends on the move that was executed on you. When you are decapitated, the game is over and you have to start from the beginning. There are about 10 levels which increase in difficulty. The opponents are getting faster and smarter after each completed level. In the final stage you have to face Drax himself. It will take a while to beat him as he uses his magical forces to defeat you. Once you manage to kill Drax, the princess is yours and the game is over.

One final warning. The game is pretty gory (which is fine in my book). Decapitated heads fly over the screen, there's chopping and slashing everywhere...You can actually perform a fatality during a fight. If it were released these days, the MPAA would be all over it!

Conclusion

This is great fun to play. Of course there are better beat 'em ups these days, but "Barbarian" will always be special to me. One of the better fighting games of its era. If you're into this type of game, you should definitely check it out. I can assure you, you won't regret it!