Game Reviews

Spellwood

Star onStar onStar onStar onStar half
|
| Spellwood
Get
Spellwood
|
| Spellwood

It's been a busy year for word games. We've seen asynchronous multiplayer battlers aplenty, games that mash together genres to create something new and interesting, and a number of twists on the increasingly well-worn Scrabble formula.

It seems fitting that at the end of the year something has come along that squishes those three strands together into an entertaining and engaging package.

The game in question is Spellwood, and more than just tying together the threads of a blossoming genre it adds a bit of magic as well.

Magic words

You play an aspiring word magician who's just about to come to the end of his training. You're also a rabbit for some reason. The first few battles work you through the basic mechanics.

The gameplay takes place on a grid, with a word positioned in the middle of it. In single-player you'll go first, and have to use the letters you're given to make a word of your own. This word is scored much like it is in Scrabble, with the points becoming a spell that smacks your opponent in the face.

You duel it out, throwing down tiles until one of you has taken enough of a pounding and your health bar hits zero. To begin with the fights are weighted in your favour, but pretty soon you'll need to be using all of your vocabulary if you want to win.

Book of spellings

The game also throws in tiles that multiply your score, and potions and scrolls that let you change the way the game plays. Each victory grants you experience and the occasional item too.

You can duel it out with Game Center and Facebook friends as well, using the skills you've learnt in single-player mode to get the better of your real life adversaries.

Spellwood is as charming as it is addictive, and in spite of the cartoon graphics it can pose quite a challenge. Like the best games, it's easy to pick up and layers its twists on well enough that it never feels overwhelming.

The year might be winding down, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't make time to learn another brilliant, enchanting word game. And that's exactly what Spellwood is.

Spellwood

A charming twist on the Scrabble formula with more than enough content to keep you playing into the new year, Spellwood is well worth the investment
Score
Harry Slater
Harry Slater
Harry used to be really good at Snake on the Nokia 5110. Apparently though, digital snake wrangling isn't a proper job, so now he writes words about games instead.