I thought the aftermarket for PlayStation 1 games was more cost prohibitive, but you can get a complete copy of The Unholy War for only twenty dollars. What a steal for a demo of The Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver.
The truth is, I've had a cinematic platformer itch for a while now that only Lorne Lanning can scratch, so I was in the market for both Oddworld games when I came across a bundle that had Oddysee, Exoddus , and a copy of The Unholy War. Nice, a free game [Note: if you get something extra as part of a bundle, you still paid for it.] I'd never heard of The Unholy War until then, and my suspicion is that it holds very little relevancy outside of 90s kids who enjoyed playing it with friends and have developed nostalgia for it.
After spending the better part of my morning with it, I could see that being the case had I actually played The Unholy War back in '98. It's a perfectly serviceable early 3D arena brawler with a good spread of characters, but there's nothing really remarkable outside of "strategy" mode, which attempts to marry the arena fighting with SRPG board navigation. This is where counterpicks matter the most, as it's very easy to lose one of your units if you put yourself against an enemy they're weak against, and it's likewise important for you asserting control over the board.
But this mode still feels like it's lacking something. The strategic layer is very bare and actual board movement feels crummy. There's an idea there, but the execution leaves something to be desired and it ultimately just feels like more steps to get to the brawling.
Part of what makes collecting fun - and buying bundles/lots of games in particular - is getting at stuff like this which you've never heard of or played before. The Unholy War might be a perfectly average game in my eyes, but I think it's neat. Probably won't play it again but would definitely pick it up off the shelf, hold it in my hands and think "I can play the demo to The Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver any time I want."
The truth is, I've had a cinematic platformer itch for a while now that only Lorne Lanning can scratch, so I was in the market for both Oddworld games when I came across a bundle that had Oddysee, Exoddus , and a copy of The Unholy War. Nice, a free game [Note: if you get something extra as part of a bundle, you still paid for it.] I'd never heard of The Unholy War until then, and my suspicion is that it holds very little relevancy outside of 90s kids who enjoyed playing it with friends and have developed nostalgia for it.
After spending the better part of my morning with it, I could see that being the case had I actually played The Unholy War back in '98. It's a perfectly serviceable early 3D arena brawler with a good spread of characters, but there's nothing really remarkable outside of "strategy" mode, which attempts to marry the arena fighting with SRPG board navigation. This is where counterpicks matter the most, as it's very easy to lose one of your units if you put yourself against an enemy they're weak against, and it's likewise important for you asserting control over the board.
But this mode still feels like it's lacking something. The strategic layer is very bare and actual board movement feels crummy. There's an idea there, but the execution leaves something to be desired and it ultimately just feels like more steps to get to the brawling.
Part of what makes collecting fun - and buying bundles/lots of games in particular - is getting at stuff like this which you've never heard of or played before. The Unholy War might be a perfectly average game in my eyes, but I think it's neat. Probably won't play it again but would definitely pick it up off the shelf, hold it in my hands and think "I can play the demo to The Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver any time I want."