Game Review: Sword of Xolan (Mobile)

Sword of Xolan is a classic side-scrolling 2D platformer that sees an evil dark lord rising from the Underworld, attacking a peaceful village & capturing all of its people. The dark lords power is so strong that none can stand against him even the village wizard. When all hope looks lost a hero arrives…you.

Tasked with defeating the dark lord & rescuing the villagers you must navigate your way through 3 acts with 10 levels in each & an eventual boss fight.

Your main mode of attack is your sword, a powerful weapon that strike down most foes with a couple of hits. Your hero can also wield magic, gained from collecting blue vials that drop from boxes & some defeated enemies.

The controls are nice & simple, two decently sized arrows for movement, well spaced out so you rarely hit the wrong one. On the other side of the screen are icons for attacking with your sword, magic or jumping. Again it’s all spaced out well enough to avoid any accidental deaths because your thumb pushed attack instead of jump.

Being a platformer you’ll be jumping a fair amount as you traverse platforms, jump over pits of spikes & just generally avoid the many enemies that come at you. While most die with a few hits of your sword the variety in types means you have to approach them all a bit differently. Some will advance constantly towards you, others will have ranged attacks while some will wait until your close enough to try & strike back!

Your life bar is measured in hearts & you start with just 3. That’s 3 hits before it’s game over & you have to start the level again. Health can be gained as you play either by picking it up from smashed boxes & vases or by killing enemies.

It seems particularly difficult until you factor in currency, coins. These are found in abundance throughout & can be spent in the shop to buy game cards. These cards are little bonuses that help make the game that little bit easier. Each cost 1500 coins which isn’t exactly cheap. It does drive you to pick up every coin possible though, taking risks to try & not lose any as well as rescuing the villagers locked up in each level (almost always behind a hidden wall) for the extra coins.

These coins are not an in-app purchase either. You pay for this game, you get everything it has to offer!

As well as the standard adventure, Sword of Xolan also has a time attack mode. This mode adds some longevity to a fairly substantial game. Offering players an extra challenge that will test even the best player.

All for the low price of 79p. An absolute bargain.