Graphics: The graphics in Call for Heroes are middle of the road. At no point during gameplay will a visual image make the player say “Wow!” — but neither will players find themselves laughing at bad artwork or swearing at high system requirements for poor visuals. Yet, the game’s camera has a serious problem. Normally, the camera is floating far enough back to provide a good image of both your character and the surrounding area [view screenshot]. However, when a character’s back is against a wall, the entire field of view is taken up with the character’s head [view screenshot]. This makes it difficult to see anything and can be lethal if you’re picking up an item that causes enemies to spawn. This bug is more of a problem for the Amazon and her reliance on ranged weapons than the Warrior, and it’s also more of an issue on claustrophobic maps as opposed to open air environments.

Interface: Initially, I found the HUD to be fairly cluttered as I picked up items and started killing monsters. After a few hours of play, it became apparent that, despite the mess, the player really needs all of the information the HUD provides. Part of this is because of the multiple kinds of ammunition applicable to all of weapons in the game, but it’s also due to being not allowed to pick up certain items if your inventory is full. Since part of the game’s challenge is deciding when to use certain special abilities, it’s important to know if you’re at or near the limit on items such as monster souls.

Gameplay: Upon reading the manual, the first thing that becomes apparent is that the story elements in Call for Heroes are thin. Aside from the few paragraphs in the manual that describe what’s going on, there’s no plot or story. Other than your game profile, the two characters you can play have no name, no history and no dialog aside from the obligatory grunts and cries of anguish from being hurt. In fact, what little plot there is doesn’t seem to advance as you move from level to level. For some gamers, this might call into question Quotix Software’s claims regarding RPG-like qualities in this title. On the other hand, it’s no accident that I mentioned Gauntlet earlier in this review. The gameplay in Call for Heroes calls to mind the style and pace of such games. While not original, it can be very enjoyable for a player looking for that kind of offering; however, if you’re looking for something with more depth than killing monsters, you won’t find it here.

The RPG aspects come into play with the character advancement system. I found it engaging enough to make me want to continue fighting and advancing my character’s abilities. I also caught myself thinking CRPG thoughts, such as “I wonder if specializing in the bow will be more effective if I take Regeneration-based special abilities?” The action elements are fairly engaging as well, and I experienced a few heart racing battles as I tried to make use of dwindling resources versus my growing number of enemies.

Sound FX: The sounds of battle, monsters and character injuries are what one would expect: appropriate while not being spectacular. Occasionally, certain enemies with ranged attacks seem to make little or no noise at all when they injure you, making it difficult to determine what’s happening. While this is annoying, it’s by no means a fatal flaw. However, there is another, more serious, bug. Opening the menu in the middle of a level to adjust key bindings meshes the main menu music with various other sounds in a short, annoying loop when you return to the game you’re playing. The only way to fix this is to exit and reload a saved game. This might not be a big deal, except Call for Heroes only saves at the beginning of its levels. Needless to say, this is very frustrating when you acquire a new special ability and want to bind it to a particular key.

Music: The music is low key and atmospheric. When you take the time to listen, you find it creates a mood of impending doom. When monsters swarm you, the music stays out of the way, allowing you to listen to sound cues related to your enemies.

Intelligence: The AI of the various monsters you encounter is adequate. Most of them tend to attack aggressively without regard to their own safety. In another game, this would be another case of suicidal AI; however, in Call for Heroes, there are a number of factors that make this behavior more appropriate. First, the attacks of many monsters are fairly lethal compared to your character’s initial amount of health and available health potions. Second, on maps with environmental hazards, aggressive AI and lethal attacks, it’s difficult to just “run and gun.” If this was a multiplayer FPS and I were playing the monsters, I’d pursue similar tactics. Still, the AI tends to have problems navigating the terrain, as when the creatures fail to grasp that bottomless pits aren’t traversable terrain when pursuing a fleeing player.

Difficulty: Like most games, Call for Heroes starts out fairly easy and gets progressively more difficult as you move on to new levels. I found that even on normal difficulty, the game provided a decent challenge once the initial maps were cleared.

Overall: Costing $19.99, Call for Heroes: Pompolic Wars had the potential to be an excellent budget title and a strong first release for Quotix Software. Unfortunately, the bugs are a continuous source of frustration and will try the patience of any gamer. At the end of the day, I found myself wishing the release of this title had been delayed a couple of months to give the developers time to fix its problems and add a multiplayer component.